Demand for electric cars is seeing used values increasing, according to new analysis by CarGurus. While petrol and diesel models have depreciated between January 2017 and November 2019, EVs have seen appreciating values.
Looking at the four most searched for electric models on the company’s site – BMW’s i3, the Nissan Leaf, Renault’s Zoe, and the Tesla Model S – prices either rose or remained level for months at a time. In most cases, they significantly out-performed the most searched for petrol and diesel equivalents over the same period.
The average asking price for a used 2015 Renault Zoe increased by 18% between January 2017 to November 2019, from £6,425 to £7,612. To compare, the Ford Fiesta of the same age decreased by 22% from £9,165 to £7,160 over the same period.
BMW i3 values increased by 1% based on 2014 examples, while petrol or diesel Mini hatchbacks by comparison fell by 14%, both since the start of the year. A 2015 Nissan Leaf sees an average drop in value of just 9% from January 2017 at £10,438. Same age petrol or diesel VW Golf models dropped by 17% over the same period.
Many drivers are changing to electric cars, and now the market has been around for a around nine years, there are a number of used models available – which wasn’t the case even a few years ago. With used models seeing a far lower purchase price but the same low running costs, it’s easy to see the appeal of a used electric car.
