Inaugural Best Value Car Awards revealed
The NRMA has revealed its inaugural Best Value Car Awards, with two vehicles from China – one powered by petrol and the other by electricity – taking out top honours.
The MG3 Vibe was named Australia’s best-value new car, while the BYD Atto 1 was crowned the country’s best-value electric vehicle, after Open Road analysed over 120 vehicles across eight of the most popular new-car categories.
As cost-of-living pressures continue to put household budgets under strain, these awards highlight why finding a genuinely affordable new car means looking well beyond the dealership’s quoted price.
The Best Value Car Awards calculate the estimated total cost of owning each vehicle for five years, factoring in drive-away pricing, depreciation, insurance, fuel or electricity, servicing, registration, CTP and even a replacement set of tyres.
The results demonstrate just how dramatically those costs can vary between vehicles in the same category. In the small-car segment, for example, there is an almost $11,000 difference between the five-year ownership cost of the MG3 Vibe and the Volkswagen Polo Life. In the dual-cab ute category, the gap between the BYD Shark 6 and the Foton Tunland V7-C is more than $13,000.
NRMA member surveys show that while 83 per cent of new-car buyers consider purchase price when shopping for a new car, just 22 per cent consider depreciation or residual value – despite depreciation typically being the largest single cost of owning a new vehicle.
“The cost of ownership is informed by an array of factors, and it is the combined figure that represents the car’s real impact on a family budget going forward,” said Open Road managing editor Alex Inwood.
“Open Road’s figures show that choosing the right contender in your chosen segment can save you up to $15,000 over five years. We wanted to create a transparent comparison of what different cars genuinely cost to own and run in Australia today.”
The results also reveal the increasingly competitive value proposition of electrified vehicles. The BYD Atto 1, for example, finished second overall in the small-car category despite costing more to buy than the MG3, thanks in part to an electricity bill of less than half the MG3’s five-year petrol cost.
The data shows EVs are not automatically cheaper to own, however, with depreciation, insurance and tyres emerging as areas where electric cars can cost more. Insurance premiums, in particular, varied by thousands of dollars between some contenders.
The winners
Small car: MG3 Vibe
Highly commended: BYD Atto 1 Essential, Kia Picanto Sport manual
Small SUV: Suzuki Ignis GL
Highly commended: Mahindra XUV 3XO, GWM Ora 5 Lux
Medium SUV: Chery Tiggo 7 Urban PHEV
Highly commended: Chery Tiggo 7 Urban, Honda ZR-V VTi X
Large SUV: Skoda Kodiaq Select
Highly commended: GWM Tank 300 Lux diesel, Chery Tiggo 8 Pro Max Urban
Family car: MG QS Excite
Highly commended: Kia Sorento S, Chery Tiggo 9 CSH Elite
Hybrid: Toyota Yaris Ascent Sport Hybrid
Highly commended: MG3 Excite+ Hybrid, Chery Tiggo 4 Urban Hybrid
Electric vehicle: BYD Atto 1
Highly commended: MG4 Urban, GWM Ora 5 Lux
Dual-cab ute: BYD Shark
Highly commended: GWM Cannon Alpha 2.0 Lux PHEV, KGM Musso ELX
The full rankings, methodology and five-year ownership costs are available on the Best Value Car Awards landing page and in the latest issue of Open Road.
