Not Subaru, Not Honda – This Is The Best Resale Value Japanese SUV, According To KBB

Buying a new car is one of the biggest purchases most people will make, but choosing which model to get isn't always straightforward. There are plenty of different factors that are worth considering, with depreciation being one of the most significant. Virtually all new cars will depreciate to some degree as they age, but some lose value a lot faster than others. If you're looking for a new SUV and are conscious about its resale value, you'll want to stay well away from the worst depreciating models, many of which hail from American or European brands.

In general, SUVs from Japanese brands tend to hold onto their value well. Nearly all of the SUVs with the highest resale value based on KBB's data are manufactured by Japanese brands such as Honda, Subaru, and Toyota. However, one SUV model sticks out from the rest as holding a particularly large chunk of its initial value: the Toyota 4Runner.

According to KBB, the 4Runner will retain an average of 60 percent of its value after its first five years on the road, which is several percentage points more than its nearest competitors. Similarly priced SUVs like the Toyota Grand Highlander and Lexus NX will only retain 51.3 percent and 43.5 percent of their value, respectively. The 4Runner and Grand Highlander are far from the only Toyota models that boast impressive value retention — in fact, some studies put the brand at the top of the charts overall for resale value.

Toyota launched a new generation of the 4Runner for the 2025 model year, although its off-road chops remained unchanged. It was launched with a choice of two powertrains, either a 2.4-liter four-cylinder i-FORCE engine that made 278 horsepower or a hybrid i-FORCE MAX powertrain that churned out 326 horsepower. As well as being powerful, the new powertrains were also significantly more economical than before. The most efficient variant of the 2024 4Runner hit an EPA-estimated 17 mpg combined and required buyers to sacrifice four-wheel drive. In contrast, the 2025 4Runner achieved 23 mpg combined while still sending power to all four wheels.

We put the range-topping 2025 4Runner Trailhunter through its paces off-road and found it to be both more capable and more comfortable than its predecessors, although we weren't convinced that its asking price was competitive. For the 2026 model year, the 4Runner Trailhunter starts at $69,195 (including a $1,450 destination fee), which is roughly the same as the base Lexus GX. The Lexus offers more power from its twin-turbocharged 3.4-liter V6 engine, as well as a third row of seats, unlike the Trailhunter.

According to data from CarFigures, 4Runner sales have been declining for several years now, reaching a peak in 2021, when around 145,000 examples were sold. In 2024, around 92,000 examples were sold. That means buyers looking for a lightly used 4Runner still won't be short of inventory to pick from, although given the SUV's market-leading resale value, they'll need a more generous budget than with rival SUVs of a similar age.