As a car dealer based in Miami, Florida, Yusuf Benallal sees a lot of high-end luxury cars come through. And while one of his primary goals is to turn a decent profit on trade-ins and straight sales, he also has a clear passion for helping car buyers with car loan literacy.

This month, he shared some concerns with drivers who swear by Honda and Toyota, only to end up upside down or dealing with some unexpected dependability issue. He argues that many higher-end cars, while buyers fear them, retain their value better and offer near the same reliability.

“I don’t understand the hype sometimes.”

The dealer gets started by explaining that in his world, high-end cars often shine just as brightly as Honda and Toyota reliability. He’s talking Porsche and Audi, even.

And it’s true, to some extent. Many drivers have heard Honda and Toyota tout dependability and entry price as major marketing points. But in recent times, other automakers have stepped up on the reliability front, while Honda and Toyota have had issues. Today, Toyota faces a major engine recall (120k+ units) for debris left in the block during manufacturing.

A Honda or Toyota might not be worth as much as you’d think

The car dealer affirms their low entry price and mostly easy maintenance. But brand loyalists often point at “resale value,” too. And this is what gets Benallal going.

For Benallal, he says he actually stopped selling Hondas and Toyotas due to their low profit margins. Which is a personal business decision, no doubt. But it does hint at the tight market. 

For instance, if you have a three-or-four-year-old Honda or Toyota to trade, you might owe more than it’s worth at any given time, leaving the dealership with little motivation to go to bat on helping you move on to another car. And these days, the same goes for a more heavily used vehicle under either nameplate.

Cars with the best resale value in 2025

Benallal lists the Toyota Tacoma, Chevy Corvette (which he contests), Toyota Tundra, Toyota 4Runner, Ford Bronco, Mercedes G-Glass, Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV4, Porsche 911, and the Toyota GR Supra as holding their original retail value best after 60 months of ownership.

Well. That’s a lot of Toyota.

But hear him out: the car dealers explains it’s all in your perception of the data. Most of these cars lose around 50% of their original value after five years.

That’s really not far off from the nameplates scoring just under these “lowest” percentages.

To support his claim, he pulls up the five-year deprecation numbers for several BMW models. The M2, for example, has a 59% resale value after 60 months. The X5 is around 54%.

The Honda CR-V is also at 54%.

Now, it’s not all straightforward. The BMW 7 Series depreciates an awful lot, with a 35% resale value after the same amount of time.

In terms of Audi models, the A4 retains about 58% of its value after five years.

His point, then, that Honda and Toyota aren’t “the best” at resale value, starts to ring true.

Honda and Toyota reliability vs. Audi and Porsche

Problematic turbos, hybrids, and direct injection engines.

He lists mechanical challenges surfacing not only with high-end luxury cars. Modern Honda and Toyota cars incorporate these components, too.

And while Subaru, Lexus, and Toyota top the dependability chart, BMW and Audi are seated pretty dang close to Honda, Acura, and Mazda. “Marginal difference,” he insists.

To further drive his point, Benallal shares the 2024 J.D. Power U.S. Vehicle Dependability Study. Mini, Porsche, and BMW are all positioned better than Honda when it comes to problems per 100 cars.

As for the mechanical woes I listed above, often, the owners dealing with them bought a newer Honda. “I’ve sold plenty of these cars,” Benallal assets, and if they have a modern turbo engine, they can be highly problematic.

I do agree with the car dealer, but with an asterisk

Look, I get what Benallal’s trying to say. If you’re buying any car, new or used, based on “resale value” or “brand dependability,” it’s really important to make sure you aren’t acting on a deep-set perception that isn’t actually true today.

But, there’s just no arguing that Toyota tops many lists for both resale and dependability. I’ll confirm that Honda seems to have dropped over time.

There’s also no arguing that accessible entry price, low maintenance, and statistically lower insurance costs matter a lot today, to many drivers.

But that’s not Benallal’s point. He’s saying not to buy a Honda just because you assume it’ll always treat you right on paper and at the shop.

And I’m not saying Honda and Toyota are the only brands with models that check those low-cost dependability boxes. All I’m suggesting is that you do genuine research using credible sources to figure out what car will best suit your financial profile and actual driving needs first. “Wants” always come second to that.