America's Best Used Cars

Cars and Drivers

Published: November 18, 2022 9:30 am

Auto experts at J.D. Power believe they know the value of a used car while it is still new. This has triggered the release of the. J.D. Power 2023 ALG Residual Value Awards. The study looks at 13 brands and 291 models. The basis of the analysis is “used-vehicle performance, brand outlook and product competitiveness.” Kia took the crown.

Kia is one of the newer major American brands. The company is based in South Korea. For decades “best car brands” have been made in Japan or Germany. Kia vehicles were considered cheap but not high-quality alternatives. Decades ago, Japanese car companies took the crown from American brands, which were poorly built and did not belong on any list of quality vehicles in any year.

Kia won because it had five models on the J.D. Power list. Honda and Toyota followed Kia. While the Japanese car companies have been unseated at the top, they continue to hang on nearby. Kia’s models on the list were its K5, Rio, Sportage, Soul and Telluride.

Eric Lyman, vice president of ALG, the division of J.D. Power, commented, “This year’s achievement by Kia speaks volumes about how far the brand has come.”

Once again, it is hard to imagine how the residual value of a car can be determined in advance, particularly three years ahead. However, J.D. Power is so widely admired for its research that it may be best to leave the question alone.

Several individual vehicles did well in vertical categories. The Subaru WRX took the lead position among sports cars. Subaru often does well in examinations of car quality. Porsche, which usually does well among high-priced cars, took the top prize for Premium Compact SUVs with its Macan. It took first place among Premium Midsize Sportscar with its 911 model.

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American cars rarely appeared at the top of any list of car types.

Kia should not have done well based on conventional wisdom. However, wisdom did not work in the rankings this year.

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