Canadian Black Book Residual Value Awards show EVs holding their value

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Electric cars could hold their resale value better than their gas-only competitors, according to Canadian Black Book (CBB), although electric SUVs lag behind their conventional counterparts. That’s the takeaway from the company’s 2023 Best Residual Value Awards, the second year for the annual awards.

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Across EVs and internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, Toyota and Lexus took the top awards for residual value overall, while Volkswagen held the spot for zero-emission vehicles (ZEV), and Nissan showed the most improvement. The 2023 awards cover 16 vehicle categories and five overall brand categories. The awards forecast residual values four years into the future – for this year, it’s the expected value for 2023 model-year vehicles in calendar-year 2027.

The winners in the EV car categories had an average residual value of 58.5%, while winners in the ICE car categories held an average of 56.1%. The opposite was true for SUVs, where ICE vehicles did better at 74.3% forecasted residual values, versus 66.5% for EV sport-utilities. But electrified SUVs still outperformed electrified cars, and Canadian Black Book reported that the winners in all EV categories would hold more value four years into the future than the EV winners in last year’s awards.

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The 2023 awards introduced two new categories for plug-in hybrids, in mainstream and luxury categories. Among all vehicles, the Chevrolet Corvette achieved the highest forecasted value at a predicted 84.2% in four years.

“There are more EVs on the roads; more people researching, buying, and leasing them; and more options from (automakers) and dealers,” said Daniel Ross, CBB’s senior manager of industry insights and residual value strategy. “They are becoming commonplace and, therefore, consumer confidence in them is increasing, which helps bring up residual values for EVs.” He added that “Canadians still have a soft spot for larger, more versatile vehicles. This is a taste that transcends the ICE versus EV debate. With more SUV EV options being made available, recognition and sales of EVs has increased, bringing values up.”

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The winners are below, with individual category winners presented in first, second, and third place.

Overall Brand Award: Car

Toyota

Overall Brand Award: SUV/Truck

Toyota

Overall Brand Award: Luxury

Lexus

Overall Brand Award: ZEV (Zero-Emissions Vehicles)

Volkswagen

Overall Brand Award: Most Improved

Nissan

Car: Main

Car: Luxury

Car: Prestige

Small Pickup

Full-Size Pickup

Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV): Main

Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV): Luxury

Sports Car: Main

Sports Car: Luxury

SUV Compact/Subcompact: Main

SUV Midsize/Full-Size: Main

SUV: Luxury

EV Car Below $55,000

EV Car Above $55,000

EV SUV Below $60,000

EV SUV Above $60,000