Look at how the early 90s Ford Tempo resale value compared to Toyotas of the era. Trash cars don't keep their value. Toyota could then charge a premium because they were known for quality.
Resale values do have an impact on new car prices. The better a vehicle holds its value the easier it is for the company to charge more for a new car.
Its also worth considering that, for better or worse, very few people actually own their cars today. When you have a loan on it the resale value becomes really important. If the manufacturer wants the kind of customer that buys a new car every few years they'll need resale value that at least keeps up with the principle on the loan over that time.
> is resale value what the manufacturer wants? I mean they want to sell new cars after all...
They have a higher resale value because they have a reputation of lasting a long time, and people are thus perhaps more willing to pay a higher initial purchase price because they know their "investment" will last longer.
And while they may not be planing to sell their car after only a few years, knowing that they'll get back more of their "investment" is also probably sitting in the back of their mind ('just in case').
