Senior Editor
It’s the quintessential hook to selling a certified pre-owned car. It has been inspected and reconditioned (and practically guaranteed) “good as new,” or close to it.
And some more so than others.
In a set of lists released Tuesday morning, Autotrader shared what it considers to be the 10 Best CPO Cars for 2019 and the 10 Best CPO Luxury Cars for 2019.
With modern design, warranties and much of the same amenities, these rides come at a more affordable price than buying the same car new. And you might not be able to distinguish some of them from new, says Autotrader executive editor Brian Moody.
“As more features are added to today’s vehicles, new-car prices continue to rise, with even ‘affordable’ models costing as much as $35,000 or $40,000,” Moody said in a news release.
“Our list of ‘good as new’ vehicles can bring the car a consumer wants into the price range they want to pay,” Moody said. “These CPO vehicles are thoroughly inspected, covered by warranties and offer the latest designs, making it difficult to even tell the difference between their new car counterparts.”
The lists below, respectively, are the 10 “Must-Shop” CPO cars, broken down by mainstream and luxury models. The maximum price tag on cars for the mainstream was $40,000 and $65,000 for luxury vehicles.
The lists are ordered alphabetically and unranked.
Good as News: 10 Best CPO Cars for 2019
2015-2018 Chevrolet Tahoe
2016-2018 Honda Civic
2016-2018 Hyundai Sonata
2013-2017 Jeep Wrangler
2016-2018 Mazda6
2014-2018 Nissan Rogue
2015-2018 Ram 1500
2015-2018 Subaru Outback
2016-2018 Toyota Tacoma
2014-2018 Toyota Tundra
Good as New: 10 Best Luxury CPO Cars for 2019
2014-2018 Acura MDX
2015-2018 Cadillac Escalade
2017-2018 Chrysler Pacifica
2014-2018 Infiniti QX60
2017-2018 Jaguar F-Pace
2014-2018 Jaguar F-Type
2014-2018 Kia Cadenza
2015-2018 Lexus RC
2015-2018 Porsche Macan
2016-2018 Volvo XC90
As shown above, the non-luxury list is split fairly evenly between trucks/SUVs (six) and passenger cars (four). AuSM asked Moody if that was surprising, given how strong truck/SUV demand is over cars, and what he thought was driving that even distribution.
“It is surprising considering how the industry has been telling all of us how SUVs and trucks are king,” Moody said via email. “I think there are a lot of good cars out there and believe frugal shoppers, the kind likely to buy CPO, are in tune with the fact that many cars (coupes and sedans) are a better value given the better fuel economy on the whole and the fact that some sedans with similar equipment can be less expensive than SUVs.
“Also, I feel like Autotrader shoppers may be a little more practical and want what best does the job for a reasonable price versus what’s the coolest or fanciest vehicle,” Moody said.
“Remember, even if sedans drop all the way down to just 10 percent of the overall new-car market, that’s still hundreds of thousands of sales per year for some brands,” he said. “Finally, people who enjoy driving prefer sedans and coupes because of the lower center of gravity and better handling.”
