Depreciation is not an issue when you plan to drive a car 5 or 6 years. Value is the issue and the bottom line is this; Toyota, Honda and others just don't want to negotiate the price of the car at the dealer level. There are at least three negotiations in any car deal. The price, the trade, and the financing and I don't begin the next until the previous is on paper. I don't give a damn what the monthly payment is gonna be, never have and If that's your only concern, than you need to go back to school because your buying more than you can probably afford.
I don't buy anything because it's cool, fast or pretty. I buy because I don't care to walk too far, period. Ford has been far better in price wars because they move a lot of cars whereas, if you get get Toyota or Honda to drop the price a few hundred bucks, you think you've won.
My current vehicles cost me about $5000.00 less than the sticker price so depreciation is a moot point, both are six years old with 98,000 and 70,000 miles repectively and since my last one gave me little or no trouble over six years and 182,000 miles, it was a no brainer to buy another Ford. I drove an Escort for fourteen years until the body was so rotton, the back seat used to fill up with mud when it rained, the seats had fallen out and the electrical system was smoking but that little four cylinder just kept plugging away. It wasn't pretty, fast or get me any dates but it got me to work...kind of like the Liberator in WWII, it got me to work so I could buy another Ford!
Maintain any mechanical THING and it will treat you right, if you don't, well.........