For 2008 the five car brands with the best overall predicted resale values are Volkswagen, BMW, Acura, Honda and Porsche. Not a US label in the bunch.

And what is ranked 5 to 10? It's Subaru, Lexus, Infiniti, Audi and Toyota. Again, not a US label in the list.

And it gets worse if you break it down by model instead of just the brand, because VW alone takes 3 of the top 10 spots, according to Kelley Blue Book predictions.

What's wrong with this picture, folks?

Detroit hurts in this kind of comparison because they go after market share and that ends up meaning building more than the market can absorb and that hurts resale value. Worse yet, the Big 3 throw incentives and rebates out there like it's going out of style, sell millions to the rental car companies to bolster sales figures, and then wonder how come the resale value just isn't there a year or two down the road. Well, no kidding folks.

If you flood the market with thousands and thousands of Taurus vehicles, the value of a Taurus just isn't going to hold up. On the other hand, if you build quality and build a limited supply of your model, then the prices tend to hold up better and longer. Detroit seems to be plagued with the "instant gratification" mindset of the "give it to me now" generation.

Meanwhile, VW has steadily moved up in the resale rankings because they put style and quality and fuel efficiency into a limited supply of models. And those are all factors that drive value up and resale prices hold steady because of it.

So, the moral? If you don't hold onto your car for long, then get one of these cars that hold their value longer so you can get more out of it when you sell it in 2 or 3 years.

Of course, all of that depends on if you get a lemon, which can rip the floor out of any car's resale value. If that happens to you, call us. Getting rid of lemons is what we do. Everyday.