At fifty thousand dollars, buying a new Corvette can hurt—but on the plus side, after five years it will still retain a value of around 50% . That puts it among the top 10 best cars for resale value as compiled by CNN Money and based on Kelley Blue Book figures. Or if your budget is smaller, a Honda Civic Sedan costs around $19k and retains 52% of its value.

1. Corvette (50%)
2. Honda Civic Sedan (52%)
3. Infiniti G37 (52%)
4. Mini Cooper (52%)
5. Scion tC (52%)
6. Scion xB (52%)
7. Toyota Corolla (52%)
8. Volkswagen Eos (52%)
9. Volkswagen Jetta (51%)
10. Volkswagen Rabbit (51%)

It might seem a little odd that Volkswagen has three cars on the list, considering their "spotty reputation for reliability - the brand fairs poorly in J.D. Powers' annual rankings of long-term dependability." On the other hand, "Volkswagen's certified pre-owned program, recently rated the best by Intellichoice.com, may help boost resale values in the long term."

"Top 10 best resale value cars" [CNNMoney]
(Photo: Getty)