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How much will a Volkswagen Golf depreciate?

I work at the British consulate in Boston as the right-hand of a high-ranking consular official. The official, who I’ll call “Margaret”, is looking for a used, German-made car for her son, “Jasper”, who learned to drive on a stick shift and has said he’ll never drive an automatic car for as long as he lives. “Margaret” wants to reward “Jasper” for being such a well-behaved lad this year—the first year out of five he didn’t get kicked out of prep school. She’s asked me to help her find a VW Golf, but is worried about how much value it will lose. How much will a Volkswagen Golf depreciate?

avatar
Jason Tushinski · Updated on
Reviewed by Shannon Martin, Licensed Insurance Agent.
A
Volkswagen Golf
tends to hold its value pretty well compared to most cars, but a Golf will still depreciate by about 30% after five years of ownership.
While “Jasper’’ might be clamoring for a new, manual transmission Golf, going with a lightly used Golf, and one between two and four years old, is the better bet if “Margaret” is concerned about value. All vehicles depreciate significantly during the first year of ownership, so snagging a slightly-used Golf means Mum will save money, as depreciation typically slows down between the second and fourth years of ownership.
So if you’re looking for a Golf that’s value won’t drop like a stone, go for a lightly used one, as it will still have plenty of modern features (if not the absolute newest gadgets and gizmos) and will have plenty of lifespan ahead of it. “Jasper” will thank us—we hope.
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