26 September 2023 , 07:42
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It's no secret that luxury cars and supercars depreciate very heavily, it's one of the biggest costs involved if you're lucky enough to be in a position to buy one.
Take a Maserati Ghibli, for example, one of the worst offenders at the moment. If you were to spec one up to £100,000, it might only be worth a shade over £30,000 in three years' time. So that's over £20,000 per year before you've even put fuel in it or had it serviced.
But, just for a bit of fun, I decided to put a handful of prestige cars through the ruthless evaluation processes of some of the biggest car-buying websites out there, to see what professional valuers thought of my imaginary line-up of exotica.
It's fair to say, if I did own one of these lavish cars, I wouldn't be entirely happy with the results... See for yourself below.
Ferrari California
This is one of the most "accessible" Ferraris out there at the moment, because it's in that sweet spot most mainstream Ferraris get to - still depreciating, and not yet exclusive enough for its value to climb. That said, the one I selected to put forward for evaluation is still a £75,000 car, with just 26,000 miles covered in the 12 years it's been on the road.
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Price when new: £150,000
Advertised at: £75,000
We Buy Any Car: £52,860
Motorway: £58,066
Carwow: £58,612
Money4YourMotors: £53,100
Arnold Clark: £42,541
Range Rover SV Autobiography
People often ask me what I think the best car in the world is, and I always say it's a Range Rover. No other car does quite so much so well. My pick of the previous generation would be the SV Autobiography with its thunderous five-litre V8 and an incredible spec. The 2017 model I found had covered 33,000 miles and already seems like a bargain at £60,000 - but what would the car buyers offer?
Price when new: £140,000
Advertised at: £60,000
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We Buy Any Car: £19,500
Motorway: £55,815
Carwow: £55,570
Money4YourMotors: £50,451
Arnold Clark: £48,643
McLaren 570GT
Said to be the most useable McLaren out there, the 570GT is more comfortable, practical and refined than any of its stablemates, with more understated looks and an elegant feel about it. Don't be fooled by the softer springs and slightly less direct steering though, this is still very much a McLaren, and it can still set your pulse racing on the right road. Depreciation has not been kind to the £90,000, 2017 car I spotted, but what will I be offered?
Price when new: £650,000
Advertised at: £90,000
We Buy Any Car: £64,260
Motorway: £76,335
Carwow: £77,474
Money4YourMotors: £70,275
Arnold Clark: £63,259
Bentley Continental GT Coupe
One of the depreciation massacre's worst victims, the Bentley Continental GT is an absolutely wonderful car, with a sumptuous cabin, a V8 engine that sounds like a Supermarine Spitfire and stunning looks that have stood up well to the test of time. The 2017 model I put forward has covered 41,000 miles, and its value has dropped to £72,500. But how close can the sites get?
Price when new: £160,000
Advertised at: £72,500
We Buy Any Car: £43,435
Motorway: £57,229
Carwow: £56,381
Money4YourMotors: £51,186
Arnold Clark: £48,983
Aston Martin DB11
This drop-dead gorgeous car with its orchestral V12 engine is one of the best grand tourers out there. Its sleek looks and plush cabin are just a few of the reasons you'd buy an Aston Martin, but an ability to hold their value is not one of them. I found a 2018 model in a desirable colour with less than 5,000 miles on the clock for £100,000. It's a pretty car, but will it fetch a pretty penny?
Price when new: £160,000
Advertised at: £100,000
We Buy Any Car: £63,500
Motorway: £77,731
Carwow: £77,575
Money4YourMotors: £70,442
Arnold Clark: £67,478
Porsche 911 Targa 4 GTS PDK
Some people aren't fans of the 991 Targa, but I think it's the perfect Porsche. It looks every bit as good as the coupe, but it doesn't have the dumpy proportions of the convertible. Wind in your hair with a stiff chassis and a sleek roofline. What's not to like? The 911 does hold its value better than some cars of its ilk, but this 2017 model that's covered less than 30,000 is still £100,000.
Price when new: £130,000
Advertised at: £100,000
We Buy Any Car: £75,605
Motorway: £81,409
Carwow: £79,400
Money4YourMotors: £70,863
Arnold Clark: £65,202
Outcome
It's fair to say, you really need to sell your car privately if you want to get a decent price. It's also worth remembering the sites only give indicative values, you might get more if you show up with a shiny car and haggle a bit.
The beauty of these online services is a quick sale, so use them in the knowledge you won't get full whack for your car, but they can be good for taking the hassle out of selling.
Here's how the five sites did in order:
1st: Motorway - just by a whisker, Motorway offered me the most money overall for the cars
2nd: Carwow - a very close second, and some relatively good values overall, and consistency was the key for the two taking top spots.
3rd: Money4YourMotor - a pretty disappointing set of valuations, but not low enough to see it lose out to the last two
4th: Arnold Clark - some very low values compared to some of the other sites puts Arnold Clark in the penultimate place
5th: We by Any Car - if it wasn't for the absurd Range Rover valuation, We Buy Any Car might have fared better, but most other valuations were still too low to keep it from the bottom of the list overall.