2015 Toyota Tacoma Among Slowest Depreciators

Choosing a pickup truck is no easy task, mostly because there really aren't a ton of options out there (nowhere near as many as, say, midsize sedans or CUVs) and those that are available typically offer a lot of some features and options. The friendly sales team at Charlesglen Toyota could rattle off a million reasons why the 2015 Toyota Tacoma and 2015 Toyota Tundra are so much better than the competition, but there's one really interesting reason why the Tacoma, for example, has a huge leg up on its competitors: depreciation.

Okay, so we know that "depreciation" is a nasty word for car buyers because it reminds them that automobiles do lose some value over time. In fact, the industry average for depreciation in the first year alone is -17 percent, but the good news is that number is only an average. Some models, like the Tacoma, for instance, do significantly better than that.

To put this all into perspective, if a vehicle priced identically to the Tacoma lost 17 percent of its value in the first twelve months and the Tacoma itself lost only 6.9 percent of its value in that time (which it does, according to iSeeCars.com), the Tacoma would leave an extra $2,000-$3,500 in value for its owners after the first year, depending on the trim level and how the truck was equipped.

Obviously, that isn't chump change, and it's money that stays in consumers' pockets without them having to do anything other than just pick the right truck. The Tacoma is an excellent pickup in a lot of other ways, as well, but if it really is a hard decision, why not go with the vehicle that holds its value so much longer than every other truck in the segment?