Do Chinese Cars Hold Their Value in South Africa?

Last updated 18 September 2026

“Are they reliable” is the question people ask out loud. “What will it be worth when I sell it” is the one behind it. It's a fair question — and unlike reliability, resale value has real, published numbers behind it. Here's what TransUnion's book values and cars.co.za's own industry data actually show, why the gap exists, and the one decision that makes most of it irrelevant.

Why do Chinese cars depreciate faster in the first place?

Mostly because the used-car market hasn't fully caught up to the new-car market yet. A shorter local track record makes used-car buyers cautious, and caution shows up in the price they'll offer, not in anything mechanically wrong with the car.

This isn't a Chinese-brand problem specifically — it's what happens to every new entrant to the South African market. Korean brands went through the same discount two decades ago and now sell close to Japanese-brand money on the used market. The pattern is familiar; only the badge has changed.

A second factor is warranty structure. Where a brand's headline warranty doesn't transfer to the next owner (more on this below), a used buyer is getting less cover than the first owner got, which a rational buyer prices into their offer.

What do the real numbers actually show?

Better than the reputation suggests. Using TransUnion's Vehicle Valuations Database — the same book-value data South African dealerships use to price trade-ins — and cars.co.za's own 2025 industry report, here's the retail depreciation over three years on the models with real, published figures:

Cars.co.za's own analysis makes the comparison explicit: the Haval H6's just-under-30% figure lands in the same range as the Kia Sportage, Mazda CX-5 and Hyundai Tucson — brands nobody would call a risky resale bet. None of these Chinese-brand models are the outlier the reputation suggests.

Is the gap actually closing, or is that just marketing?

It's closing, and the reason is volume, not spin. Chinese brands reached 22% of new-vehicle sales in South Africa in the second quarter of 2026, up 72% year-on-year — nearly one in every five new cars sold. Growth like that has knock-on effects a reputation alone can't produce.

The clearest sign is finance approval. Absa's Vehicle and Asset Finance data shows Chinese brands' share of SUV finance applications more than doubled since 2023, from 19% to 40%. Banks don't extend credit against a car they think nobody will want to buy back in three years — a rising finance share is a rising confidence signal, and confidence is what sets resale prices.

More new-car buyers today means a bigger, better-informed second-hand market in three years' time. That's the mechanism, not a promise — and it's already visible in how tight the gap has become on the models with real data behind them.

Does a transferable warranty change the resale maths?

Yes, and this is the detail most buyers never check. GWM describes its 7-year/200 000 km warranty as “comprehensive and transferable” — a used Haval or GWM buyer inherits real, meaningful cover, not a used car with an expired promise.

Chery's headline promise works differently. The 10-year / 1 000 000 km engine warranty is first-owner-only and does not pass to the next buyer. Sell a Chery on and the buyer is left with whatever remains of the standard 5-year/150 000 km factory warranty — the million-kilometre number that sold you the car disappears the moment you sign it over.

The practical effect: a used GWM or Haval can defend a stronger asking price because the next owner is genuinely still covered. A used Chery has to compete on price alone once that first-owner clock runs out — which is exactly why its resale figures, while still reasonable, sit a touch above the Jolion's.

Picture this: buy-and-hold vs. trade-every-three-years — which maths applies to you?

Two buyers walk into a showroom on the same weekend and pay the identical price for the identical car. One keeps it for nine years. The other trades it in at three, then again at six. On paper they made the same decision. In the bank account, they didn't.

Here's a worked example using the Tiggo 4 Pro's real ~27% three-year figure, on an illustrative R450 000 new price — the model and price will differ for your car, but the shape of the maths won't:

Illustrative example only. Assumes the ~27% three-year TransUnion figure for the Tiggo 4 Pro on a round R450 000 new price; your actual price, model and condition will change the numbers. General depreciation curves flattening after year three is standard automotive economics, not specific to this figure.

The percentage-point gap between a Chinese brand and an established one matters most to the buyer who trades every three years, because they pay the steep part of the curve repeatedly. It matters least to the buyer who holds for the long haul.

Is there a way to make the depreciation gap mostly irrelevant?

Yes — buy the car after someone else has already absorbed the steep part of the curve. A 2–3 year old car has been through its steepest depreciation already; from that point on, the curve flattens regardless of which badge is on the bonnet. You get the same car, the same warranty balance where it transfers, for meaningfully less than new.

That's the exact gap our floor is built to fill. Every used car we sell — including the Lepas L6 and the Chery Tiggo 8 Pro Max — is priced against real market data, not a guess.

You're not paying new-car money for a car that's already taken its first hit. If you're weighing a trade-in against one of these, a free trade-in valuation gives you the actual number rather than a rule of thumb.

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