Toronto New Car

Ten models with surprisingly steep hidden costs.

Depreciation can be one of the least pleasant surprises of long-term new car ownership. Today’s steal deal can easily become tomorrow’s lame duck, and you might never know until it’s too late.

But you can at least avoid the biggest money losers on the market. For the new year, the folks at Automotive Lease Guide have compiled a list of the 2008 models expected to retain the lowest proportion of their value over the next five years.

Fortunately, the list turns up some predictable patterns. The models here are guilty of being ancient, unreliable, or born from low-grade engineering, and most of them sell only with deep discounts. So do yourself a favor, financially and otherwise: aim higher.

1. Mazda B-series — 29%