Which Suzuki Ignis trim holds its value better?
Resurrecting the Ignis nameplate for their 2017 smash hit, Suzuki has seen sustained success with this boxy and friendly little crossover. But how does its popularity among new-car buyers translate to its resale value? We looked at the entire range to see which trim holds its value better.
Built on the same platform as the acclaimed Swift, under-appreciated Baleno, and current budget-car champion S-Presso, the Suzuki Ignis has all the right credentials to grab plenty of sales in the small crossover market. It probably helps that it’s cute as can be, well-equipped, and nice-to-drive for the money, too – and let’s not forget Suzuki’s legendary fuel efficiency.
With these attributes in mind, we decided to investigate this model’s value retention. Searching AutoTrader for different variants of the 2017-model Ignis, with 60 000 km or less on their odometers (corresponding to a maximum of 20 000 km per year), we compared their current retail values with what those derivatives cost when new. We also calculated the percentage of their original value that they retain after three years on the market.
Related: We chart the changes applied to the Suzuki Ignis midway through 2020.
2017 Suzuki Ignis 1.2 GL
New Price: R 169 900
Average Current Value: R 117 666
Value Retained: 69.3%
This is a rather disappointing medium-term showing from the entry-level Ignis, but also serves to illustrate that used-car buyers tend to prefer buying up-level variants instead of base trim derivatives. It must however be noted that our sample sizes are quite small, with few 2017 Ignises of any stripe listed at the time of writing – this model’s popularity only started growing about a year after its local release.
2017 Suzuki Ignis 1.2 GLX (manual)
New Price: R 189 900
Average Current Value: R 141 488
Value Retained: 74.5%
Proving the points made above, the high-trim Ignis performs rather better in the depreciation stakes than its less-expensive sibling. Retaining almost 75% of its new-car value is quite impressive for a small budget car that fights in a crowded segment, and is a better performance than we’ve seen from other low-end cars.
2017 Suzuki Ignis 1.2 GLX (automatic)
New Price: R 204 900
Average Current Value: R 149 443
Value Retained: 72.9%
The range-topping GLX Automatic performs almost as well as its manual counterpart, with value retention of almost 73% after three years. That’s pretty good for a small car with a small engine and an automatic gearbox – in other words, a very niche-focused offering.
Related: The Suzuki Ignis also leads its class in lower long-term running costs, as this comparison demonstrates.
Which one holds its value the best?
For a new-car buyer, the value retention performance of the high-trim GLX derivatives should offer some peace of mind that their purchases will retain their values rather well in the short term. Whether those customers choose a manual or an automatic, the Ignis GLX’s depreciation is mild in relation to its market segment, and should prove one of the slower ways to lose money on a car.
Related: Living with a Suzuki Ignis 1.2 GLX for a month highlighted many of this little city slicker’s strong suits.
But, for used-car buyers who place affordability above all other criteria, there is some great shopping to be done on entry-level Ignises. We wouldn’t necessarily recommend that buyers choose an Ignis GL as a new car, but it gives used-car buyers a stunning value proposition.