2016 WHEELS GOLD STAR VALUE AWARDS

This year’s best buys for every budget

THE notion that some cars are duds while those at the other extreme represent driving bliss is at the core of any comparison – just as the idea that some cars are money-pits while others are inherently easier on the wallet is central to Wheels’ annual Gold Star Value Awards.

Considering that a car is the second-most expensive purchase most people make, and the most complex product almost anyone buys, it’s important to have the right advice on both fronts. When fine dynamics and fiscal shine coincide in a decent-driving, value-packed product, you have a Gold Star car.

The dominant cost of car ownership is depreciation – the chunk of the initial outlay that vanishes over the first few years, much of it (as popular perception suggests) the moment you drive out of the showroom.

Of the 63 cars that made the podium in 2016, the healthiest three-year retained value figure belongs to the Audi RS3, which held 67 percent of it’s value, while the worst went to the Ford Falcon Ecoboost (34 percent). For the Falcon, that means $24,000 gone in three years, and it only costs $36,400. Yet our analysis says the Ford is the second-most cost-effective car in its class – yes, large cars are a depreciation disaster.

Depreciation makes up as much as three-quarters of the cost of owning a car from new; then there are running costs including fuel and insurance. Annual premiums, obtained online from AAMI, range from just over $500 (for the average light or sub-light hatch) to a bit less than $2000 for a typical large luxury sedan. Fuel costs run from less than $700 annually (the turbo-diesel Volvo S60) to more than $1800 – a Falcon sedan again, this time the petrol six-cylinder G6E Turbo.

More than 2000 cars were evaluated for the 2016 Wheels Gold Star Value Awards. Read on as we uncover the stellar buys in each of 21 categories.