Everyone knows that as soon as you drive a new car off the lot it loses a portion of its value. That is certainly true, but some vehicles keep their value better than others.

The analysts at Kelley Blue Book (KBB) have ranked the top 10 vehicles based on the projected resale values of dozens of 2014 model year vehicles after five years of ownership. Every one of the top 10 models retains more than 50% of its value after five years.

Only five carmakers are included in KBB’s top 10. Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) nabs four spots, General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) grabs three, Chrysler Group gets two and Honda Motor Corp. (NYSE: HMC) gets one spot in the top 10. Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) was shut out of the top 10, as were such carmakers as Volkswagen, Nissan and Subaru.

Resale value does not necessarily correlate with sales. Ford’s best-selling F-150 pickup does not make the top 10 for best resale value. Chevy’s Silverado 1500 pickup, the second-best selling vehicle in each of the past two years, is ranked ninth in KBB’s resale value top 10. In fact, of the 50 best-selling cars so far this year in the United States, only five are among the top 10 for resale value.

Conversely, five of the cars with the highest resale value are not among the top 50 best-selling cars. Largely that is due to market demand — there is significantly more demand for a family sedan like the Toyota Camry, the third best-selling car, than there is for a Corvette, ranked fifth for resale value.

As well as drawing up segment winners and an overall top 10 list, KBB also named Toyota as the best brand. In addition to the top spot overall, Toyota claims four of the top 10 slots for resale value.

The folks at KBB explain Toyota’s success simply: “Make a quality product that improves people’s lives, sell it at an affordable price, and make triple-certain that the comfort, reliability and enjoyment last for years.” More than just about anything else, it is this reputation for quality that helped the company get over the recalls it faced in early 2012.

Based on KBB’s numbers, used pickups and SUV/crossovers are retaining their value better than nearly any other vehicle — seven of the top 10 are pickups and light utility vehicles. Industry analysts at KBB suggest that demand has rebounded as gas prices have gone down, but inventory continues to be tight.

In 2008, manufacturers faced huge losses as truck prices dropped. “When gas prices rose, you couldn’t give away large trucks,” explained Eric Ibara, director of residual value consulting for KBB.

When gas prices began to fall, resale value for trucks returned. However, “that scare has discouraged manufacturers from cranking out trucks, and truck volumes continue to be lower than they were before the gas price spike,” said Ibara. “The combination of return to normal demand and shortage is what’s helping keep prices high for resale values.”

Ibara speculated that the relatively small number of muscle cars capitalizes on an unmet need from baby boomers who can now afford to relive their glory days. “The fact that there are only the Camaro, Mustang, and Challenger to fulfill their needs helps to keep these residual values up.” What is interesting, he noted, is that demand has not waned since the Camaro was introduced four years ago. KBB also continues to see high resale values for the Challenger and Corvette.

KBB chooses its top 10 based on its own research. The company’s projections of resale values have long been a standard in the industry. The company ranked vehicles in 22 segments, such as mid-size car, plug-in vehicle and full-size SUV/crossover, to produce the top 10 list. KBB excluded low-volume vehicles and vehicles with a manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) for the base model of more than $60,000 from consideration, except in the luxury and high-performance categories. 2013 model sales and MSRP are also from KBB.

These are the top 10 cars with the best resale values.

10. Dodge Challenger
> Resale value: 50.5%
> 2013 YTD sales: 45,833
> MSRP: $27,290
> Make: Chrysler

A fully loaded, top-of-the-line Challenger SRT8 will cost around $45,000 — if you can find one. Chrysler brought the Challenger brand back for a fourth iteration in 2008, building on the 1970s vintage muscle car image. Availability is extremely limited, according to KBB — and that will only help keep the resale price high. The fuel economy rating for the V6 engine is 18/27 city/highway miles per gallon, and for the big 6.4-liter Hemi V8 the economy rating drops to 14/23.

9. Chevrolet Silverado 1500
> Resale value: 50.6%
> 2013 YTD sales: 403,435
> MSRP: $36,155
> Make: General Motors

The Chevy Silverado finished just ahead of its first cousin the GMC 1500 in the full-size pickup segment. The best-selling vehicle on this list based on unit sales, a Silverado 1500 can carry a sticker price as high as $50,000 for a crew-cab, four-wheel drive (4WD) version. The truck offers three flex-fuel engines that are capable of running on an 85% ethanol blend. The 5.3-liter V8 has a fuel economy rating of 16/23 city/highway miles per gallon for the two-wheel drive (2WD) version and 16/22 for the 4WD version.

8. CR-V
> Resale value: 50.7%
> 2013 YTD sales: 251,636
> MSRP: $25,025
> Make: Honda

The CR-V offers only one engine, an in-line four-cylinder model that gets city/highway fuel economy ratings of 23/31 for the 2WD version and 22/30 for the 4WD version. A fully loaded version with 4WD will set you back about $33,250. KBB notes that the CR-V has a long history of maintaining its resale value over time.

7. Chevrolet Camaro
> Resale value: 51.9%
> 2013 YTD sales: 70,484
> MSRP: $24,450
> Make: General Motors

Of the three high-performance cars to make the top 10, the base coupe model Camaro has the lowest MSRP and, probably for that reason, sells more cars than the Dodge Challenger and the Corvette combined. A top-of-the-line Camaro ZL1 convertible will cost more than $60,000. A city/highway fuel economy rating of 17/28 for the V6 engine is nothing special, and fuel economy for the V8s is even lower.

6. Tundra
> Resale value: 52.3%
> 2013 YTD sales: 91,734
> MSRP: $37,3700
> Make: Toyota

The Tundra is one of two full-size pickups offered by Japanese carmakers (Nissan’s Titan is the other one). The Tundra four-door, 2WD CrewMax model is the one that garnered KBB’s resale value award, and like the American-made competition from Ford, GM and Chrysler, the price of a fully loaded four-door 4WD version can just about double the MSRP. The city/highway fuel economy rating for the V6 is 16/20, and the 5.7-liter V8 with 4WD comes in with a rating of 13/17.

5. Chevrolet Corvette
> Resale value: 53.5%
> 2013 YTD sales: 11,759
> MSRP: $51,995
> Make: General Motors

For a V8-powered car, the all-new 2014 Corvette gets a surprisingly good fuel economy rating of 17/29 with a manual transmission. Now in its seventh generation, and tracing its history back to 1953, the new Corvette’s brand-new small-block V8 is the most powerful base engine ever put into the car. Adding all the bells and whistles to the car can ring up the drive-off price to near $80,000, but the ‘Vette is expected to hold its value very well, if you find that you have part with it.

4. 4Runner
> Resale value: 56.2%
> 2013 YTD sales: 41,844
> MSRP: $35,555
> Make: Toyota

Toyota’s 4Runner has not yet made the transition to the more popular crossover styling recently introduced on the Nissan Pathfinder and Ford Explorer. It is still basically a truck, and its city/highway fuel economy rating of 17/21 for the 4WD version is evidence of that. The high-end Limited model’s price starts at $42,225 but could top out at more than $45,000 with 4WD and other options.

3. Jeep Wrangler
> Resale value: 59.1%
> 2013 YTD sales: 131,721
> MSRP: $23,390
> Make: Chrysler

The Jeep Wrangler is the latest in a line of vehicles for a brand that dates back to World War II. The brand was acquired by Chrysler in 1987 from now-defunct American Motors, and the latest version of the top-of-the-line Jeep, the Unlimited Rubicon X, can cost well over $40,000 when loaded up with options. The base model’s fuel economy is low for this class at a rated 17/21 for city/highway driving.

2. Tacoma
> Resale value: 61.9%
> 2013 YTD sales: 134,123
> MSRP: $25,520
> Make: Toyota

The Tacoma once competed with compact pickups like the Ford Ranger and the Dodge Dakota, both of which are no longer manufactured. Competitive pickups from GM are getting a face-lift soon, and the Honda Ridgeline is less a truck than an SUV, while the Nissan Frontier does not offer as many configurations as the Tacoma. From the base price for a double-cab, four-cylinder 2WD version, moving up to the 4WD four-door model fitted out with plenty of options can top $36,000. City/highway fuel economy for the 2WD four-cylinder version with a manual transmission is 21/25; the V6 with 4WD and an automatic transmission is rated 16/21.

1. FJ Cruiser
> Resale value: 70%
> 2013 YTD sales: 10,676
> MSRP: $29,580
> Make: Toyota

The FJ Cruiser retains nearly 10% more of its value than does the second-place Tacoma, the widest gap between any two cars on this list. For a 4WD version fully loaded, expect to pay around $36,000. The vehicle offers just one engine, a four-liter V6, with fuel economy ratings of 16/20 city/highway for the 2WD version with an automatic transmission to 17/20 for the 4WD with an automatic. Alas, 2014 is the last year that Toyota will build the FJ Cruiser, and the company is marking its passing with a special Trail Teams Ultimate Edition Cruiser that will be available in January.

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