This Humble 2022 Corolla Laughed In The Face Of Depreciation

In a market where depreciation is almost always the largest cost of car ownership, one 2022 Toyota Corolla Hatchback XSE just defied the rules. It recently sold for $23,500, a mere $3,280 less than its original MSRP of around $26,780. That kind of return makes the simple Corolla one of the stealthiest value-retainers on the used market today.

The Magnetic Gray Metallic example featured a black interior and just over 19,000 miles (31,000 km) on the odometer. According to the auction listing, it came well-equipped with features like Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, dual-zone climate control, and a suite of Toyota driver aids such as blind-spot monitoring.

Related: America’s GR Corolla Will Be Built Somewhere You Can’t Buy One

It’s also the sporty XSE trim, which includes 18-inch wheels, sport seats and a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine putting out 169 hp (171 PS). This one also has the rear spoiler (a $600 option) to give the car a bit more presence, and maybe some minuscule increase in downforce that you’ll never notice.

However, the real party trick, and probably the main reason this one held its value so well, is that it was equipped with a manual gearbox, a feature Toyota’s compact hatch no longer offers unless you splurge on the GR Corolla.

Cars&Bids

While we’d definitely not go so far as to say that the Corolla XSE is a cut-price GR Corolla, it’s not a bad choice for someone smitten with the hot hatch’s looks but unable to stump up the extra $15k and associated insurance premiums required to get behind the wheel of the real hot hatch. The 8-second zero to 60 mph (97 kmh) time isn’t too bad in light of the 38 mpg highway economy.

Bidding on the Cars&Bids auction actually topped out at $22,000, which wasn’t quite enough to meet the seller’s reserve, but the two parties struck a deal later that resulted in the Corolla changing hands for $23,500.

Interestingly, this isn’t an isolated incident. A quick search on Auto Tempest turns up plenty of other used 2022 Corolla XSE hatchbacks with similar mileage – and some with double the miles – advertised for around $24-25k. That’s despite Toyota’s retail website enticing new-car buyers with the promise of a zero-miles 2025 XSE hatch for as little as $28,215 including destination. The catch? It’s now only available with a CVT.

Cars&Bids