Jeep Wrangler Is Basically ‘Immune’ to Depreciation
A Study by iSeeCars confirms what we already knew: the Jeep Wrangler is one of two vehicles that are ‘immune’ to depreciation.
Before we dive deeper into what immunity to depreciation means, we should talk about defines depreciation for cars. Depreciation simply means that over time, the value of a car lessens. For some manufacturers it’s more or less than others — some brands like BMW lose a huge amount of their value as soon as they’re driven off the lot. Unsurprisingly, the Jeep Wrangler came up as number one on the list of cars that don’t lose their value — no matter how many years have passed or how many miles are on the odometer.
iSeeCars‘ market study says that because of the Wrangler’s many flavors and the uncomplicated purpose and how it’s relatively unchanged since the first model year, the Wrangler’s value remains high. Taking second place was the Porsche 911, which like the Wrangler, comes in several trim levels ranging from insanely expensive to surprisingly affordable. Both the 911 and the Wrangler have a long winded history behind them, and both FCA and Porsche have had several decades to come up with a formula that they’ll rarely have to change.
The Wrangler is every man’s four-wheeler — a notion that was obvious from day one. A two-door Wrangler with a manual starts at $31,195, which is a much more affordable entry level price for the Porsche, making it a lot more accessible for multiple types of people. The Wrangler only suffered a depreciation rate of 7.3%, while the national average was 33.3%. The 911’s rate was at 14.6, but when pricing starts in the six figure range, it’s not all that shocking.
Another aspect that makes the Wrangler so appealing is the fact that while it’s quite literally geared for off-road prowess, it can still be driven daily comfortably. The 911 has a singular purpose, which is encapsulating an exhilarating driving experience. Recently, Porsche has unveiled a Dakar off-road variant, bringing the 911 closer to being the all-around vehicle the Wrangler currently is.
