A Toyota Hilux will lose approximately 14% of its purchase value within the first 25,00km of its life, according to research done by TopAuto.
The Hilux is South Africa’s best-selling vehicle and while that usually translates to better after-sales value, the bakkie is anything but immune to depreciation.
The true cost of ownership
To investigate the depreciation rate of the Hilux, we looked at AutoTrader and filtered for listings from dealerships with a mileage cap of 25,000km, 50,000km, and 100,000km.
To ensure that we have a more accurate apples-to-apples comparison, we exclusively looked for the Raider trim level, as it is one of the most popular derivatives in the country.
However, since bakkies tend to have more variations in their build compared to passenger cars, we also filtered for double cab 4×4 units with an automatic gearbox.
For better context, this particular model was selling for R792,600 at the end of 2023, though this has since shot up to R858,600 thanks to the recent introduction of updated units.
It should be noted that since all of the vehicles we looked at were from before the update, the R792,600 figure is a more accurate representation of what a new Hilux cost prior to depreciation.
Also important to mention is that the sale prices listed below reflect the Hilux’s retail price, which is not the same as the wholesale value that a private seller will get for their wheels when trading it in to a dealer.
These were three results for a model that had travelled less than 25,000km.
| Model year | Mileage | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 18,918km | R679,000 |
| 2023 | 23,138km | R679,900 |
| 2023 | 22,500km | R719,900 |
Several listings for the mileage group were around R680,000, which reflects a 15% drop compared to its original price tag.
Considering that the majority of a car’s value is lost during the first year of its life, the Hilux actually holds up quite well, illustrating the level of demand the bakkie enjoys.
Of course, if we look for higher mileage groups the asking price will lower to reflect this, as you can see with the next three models going for between 25,000km and 50,000km
| Model year | Mileage | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 41,500km | R649,900 |
| 2023 | 32,300km | R669,900 |
| 2024 | 27,724km | R689,000 |
The drop-off here is even smaller than before, and there was even a unit listed for more than the lower mileage examples from the previous bracket, indicating that dealers can take advantage of the strong order books for the double cab.
The question then, is how much value it will lose as the Toyota climbs towards the 100,000km milestone:
| Model year | Mileage | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 83,458km | R585,900 |
| 2021 | 76,746km | R613,900 |
| 2021 | 84,000km | R619,995 |
Considering that the mileage gap between this and the last bracket is essentially doubled, we do see a larger value cut to the point where you can potentially get a Raider 4×4 for under R600,000.
Then again, many listings still had the bakkie pegged for between R600,000 and R650,000, which goes to show that a popular brand and model like the Toyota Hilux is the way to go if you are concerned about resale value in South Africa.
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