Updating the exterior styling of an existing vehicle model can improve its UK market residual value prospects by as much as 15% during the first year of ownership, according to used car valuation specialist EurotaxGlass’s.
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It said that a comparison of the trade values of a range of cars before and after they underwent mid-life facelifts indicates that used car buyers will often pay substantially more for the latest styling.
Such price premiums are greatest for prestige brands such as Audi, BMW and Porsche.
For example, a 2004-registered ’54-plate Audi A4 2.0SE CVT with the marque’s distinctive new grille currently commands a £1,825 premium over the pre-facelift version of the same car registered just weeks earlier on the same ’54-plate.
A facelifted BMW X5 3.0 (petrol) registered in early 2004 on a ’53-plate is currently worth £1,025 more than the same X5 on a ’53-plate built immediately prior to the facelift. Similarly, a 2001 ’51-plate facelifted Porsche 911 Carrera 2 Tiptronic currently has a £1,425 premium over the pre-facelift model on the same ’51-plate.
“Often these facelifted cars cost the same or only marginally more than the outgoing model, and yet the residual value performance is significantly better, particularly during the first 12 months,” said EurotaxGlass’s prestige car editor Richard Crosthwaite.
“Even after three years, facelifted cars will still typically retain around 50% of the initial premium. Although updates to the styling are often accompanied by under-the-skin changes, the evidence suggests it is the more distinctive new styling treatments that generate the greatest uplift in demand and a consequent improvement in used prices.”
