There’s nothing quite like a bit of window shopping at expensive dealerships, wandering around while picturing yourself cruising along in the $100k+ cars lovingly polished and parked to try and snare a deep-pocketed buyer. Well, give it a number of years, and you’ll be able to buy your very own. And no, that doesn’t mean you’ll have to live in a cave and eat rocks to save up enough cash to buy one, but by allowing depreciation to work its magic.
Give it enough time, and you’ll be able to purchase what was once a $100k luxury model for a small fraction of its original value. There aren’t only a handful of models around either, as you’ll have the pick of a range of a thrilling bunch.
Pretty much every car you buy brand new will suffer from value loss in its early years, with the only specimens getting away with it being limited-edition versions of cars that collectors see as future classics. Whether it’s a Nissan Versa or a top-flight Range Rover, you’ll likely have to accept the fact that you’ll get a significant chunk less money when it comes time to move your pride and joy on for another one. That said, if you opt for a luxury model like the latter, you’ll be set to lose a significantly more cash.
According to CarEdge, you can expect a 2026 Versa to lose 38% of its value over a five-year term, which is a pretty average value loss, given the popular Toyota Camry sedan only fares slightly better with a 36% drop over the same time frame. However, if you elect to offload a 2026 Range Rover after five years, you’ll have to wave goodbye to a huge 74% of your initial outlay. While those who can afford to buy a brand-new Range Rover can likely brush this off, it’s still a huge amount of money to give away on what is still a young vehicle.
Share your tips for buying a used car – especially in terms of SUVs and what I should look out for. I’m new to car-buying and I don’t want to get scammed.
The Range Rover is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to such models. For $20k, you’ll be able to find low-mileage L322 generation versions, either in standard or Sport variation and with Land Rover’s excellent range of Jaguar-developed V8 engines. You’ll also find great deals on other exotic SUVs, such as the Maserati Levante. Higher mileage examples, such as this tidy blue twin-turbo V6-powered number offered by Boktor Motors, also clock in below this threshold. This particular Levante is up for $19,199 as of December 2025, and has covered a little over 71,000 miles.
We apologize in advance if any of your cars are on this list.
The Germans also have a range of excellent deals, with late 2000s Mercedes-Benz G-Class models being an interesting shout. Having once been offered for not much shy of $100k, you can now find these for well under $20,000 in varying trims. Other excellent examples are the Porsche Cayenne, BMW X5, and Volkswagen Touareg, all of which can be found in well-specced form and in good condition for easily under $20k.
Should a luxury SUV be a little too large for your tastes, you’ll be able to get equally tempting deals on high-end sedan models. A great example is the Maserati Quattroporte, with multiple versions on offer. Lower mileage of the M139-gen car – built between 2003 and 2012 – can be had at this price bracket, as well as more modern M151 variants. Base versions of the latter retailed for just shy of $100k eight years ago, illustrating the scope of how much money you can save.
The same sentiment can be applied to rivals like the Audi S8, BMW M5, and the Jaguar XJ X351. The latter in particular is a great deal, with supercharged V6 versions of the model selling with low miles for under $20k, such as a silver 2018 XJ R-Sport with just 33,000 miles on the clock. Sold through Bring A Trailer, it was supplied with a clean title and in pristine condition, and eventually went under the hammer for an insane $19,277. The vehicle would have retailed for over $75k when new, making this one a blazing deal. You can get V8 ones for a similar price, though you’ll have to accept higher mileage as a trade-off.
Due to depreciation, modern Jaguars represent a tempting used option. There are several elements to consider before taking the plunge, though.
Luxury cars such as these have it tough on the used market due to the kind of buyers that purchase them in the first place. A big part of the reason for buying such models is the status they provide, and after a few years, they’ve been superseded by newer models with revised styling and extra technology, rendering the older cars somewhat redundant. These rich owners then offload these cars and buy new ones, though similarly well-off buyers are doing the same thing.
As a result, the only way of selling the older cars is by dropping the price so far that those who don’t mind not having the latest or greatest vehicle will pick it up. Unless rich buyers get to the stage of not wanting to buy new models within a few years of ownership of their previous steed, the luxury market will continue to be susceptible to extreme depreciation. Luckily, there are some things you can do to help restrict the effects as much as possible.
And then you come to the world of luxury EVs. Not only do they suffer from the same issue of supply and demand as their gas-powered rivals, but they also have to contend with the lack of interest from road users in the EV industry. The high prices of such vehicles, as well as the relative lack of charging infrastructure when compared to conventional combustion-engined machines, means that few buyers are interested in picking up a used EV at this moment.
The resulting lack of interest means sellers have to offload their cars for way less than they’d hope, which in turn is helping to further lead potential buyers to hold serve and stick with gas vehicles instead. Manufacturers beginning to turn their backs on the technology isn’t helping either, with one of the highest-profile stories being Ford ditching its electric F-150 Lightning model. Therefore, expect the used EV market to turn even redder.
The problem is such that you can now buy a 2015 Model S with decent mileage, such as this white specimen sold through Cars&Bids with only 69,000 miles on the odometer, for less than $20k. The car highlighted here ended up fetching just $19,500, which gets even crazier when you factor in that it’s a P85D version. This means it gets a dual-motor powertrain that sends a supercar-challenging 700 hp to all four wheels, which gets it to 60 mph in just over three seconds. Alongside this, it’s also graced with a generous list of equipment, which far eclipses its $20k worth.
Buying a new EV can be a strain on your bank account, so this is how much a ten-year-old used example will cost on the secondhand market.
2015 Tesla Model S
Powertrain
Single/dual motor electric
Transmission
1-Speed Auto
Power
380–691 hp
Torque
687–713 lb-ft
0-60 mph
3.1–3.4 seconds
Used Value
$14,700–40,000
Newer EVs like the Porsche Taycan are going in the same direction, with middling-mileage 2021 examples selling for less than half of their $100k MSRPs at the moment. Give it another few years, and you’ll likely be able to pick one up for under the magic $20,000 barrier. As a result, don’t feel too wistful when walking around the various luxury dealers around you, as you’ll be able to have a similar example for a much more palatable price in several years.
Sources: CarEdge, Tesla.
We want to hear from you! Share your opinions in the thread below and remember to keep it respectful.
Your comment has not been saved
Be prepared for insane repair and maintenance costs when these vehicles are out of warranty. 
