ALG, the benchmark for forecasting future vehicle values and the analytics division of TrueCar, Inc., announced winners of its 15th annual Residual Value Awards, with Land Rover and Toyota taking top honors for Premium Brand and Mainstream Brand, respectively.ALG’s Residual Value Awards (RVA) recognize vehicles in 26 segments – including midsize and full-size commercial vans for the first time – that are forecast to retain the highest percentage of their Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) after a three-year period. This year’s recipients were chosen from 2015 model year vehicles on sale that have shown strong value in their competitive segments. The awards will be presented to automakers this week at the Los Angeles Auto Show.
“Residual value is important for automakers and consumers because it’s a complete indicator of the vehicle’s future value, accounting for quality, durability and brand desirability among other factors,” said Larry Dominique, president of ALG and executive vice president of TrueCar. “The award recipients demonstrate strong forecasted returns on investments for their owners.”
Land Rover’s overall win among Premium manufacturers is its first, and comes as a result of having consistently delivered a stream of hot, new vehicles for which customer demand far outweighs supply.
“With some models like the Range Rover Sport, we’re seeing vehicles on the dealer lot for just 13 days on average – far below the industry’s 65-day average,” said Dominique. “Some Land Rover models are in such high demand that they’re selling above MSRP – a remarkable achievement that’s only possible with manufacturer restraint and a tightly controlled supply chain.”
Among Mainstream brands, Toyota captured five segment awards. Some of its highlights include the Toyota Prius v wagon overtaking last year’s winner, the Prius c subcompact car, in the alternative-fuel category; the Toyota Tacoma pickup truck winning a 14th straight RVA; and the Toyota Tundra winning its fourth consecutive RVA. Toyota’s premium products also took home three RVAs – the Lexus IS, Lexus GX and Toyota Land Cruiser.
“Even in a robust automotive industry, where competition is fierce, we’ve seen automakers keep incentive spending down, which helps maintain high residual values,” said Dominique. “That benefits consumers and businesses, helping their vehicles retain strong values and leading to lower overall costs of ownership.”
Noteworthy in this year’s RVA winners are the Subaru Outback and Mini Hardtop, which have won in the past but re-enter as segment champs after being completely redesigned for 2014 and 2015.
Additionally, eight vehicles earned RVAs for the first time, including:
- Dodge Charger (Fullsize Car)
- Subaru WRX (Sports Car)
- Toyota Prius v (Alt-Fuel Vehicle)
- Chevrolet Tahoe (Fullsize Utility Vehicle)
- Ford Transit Connect (Midsize Commercial Van)
- Hyundai Genesis (Premium Fullsize Car)
- Audi TT (Premium Sports Car)
- Porsche Macan (Premium Compact Utility Vehicle)
“It is great to see such a diverse mix of brands winning this year,” Dominique noted. “It shows the industry as a whole continues to improve residual values, benefitting consumers and automakers alike.”