The decline in new electric vehicle (EV) sales has been well documented. But sales of used EVs have also stalled, sending prices sharply lower.
If you’ve thinking about buying an EV but have been put off by prices, this may be a golden opportunity.
An analysis by iSeeCars.com shows the average price of all used vehicles is well off of its all-time high, but EVs are leading the plunge. The year-over-year drop in all used car prices average 5.1%. The average decline in hybrid prices is a bit more – 9.6%.
But both pale in comparison to the 33.7% plunge in the average price of a used EV, with Tesla models losing the most value. If you’re interested in a used EV, the analysis shows you where to look.
The average used EV price in October 2022 was $52,821 – out of many consumers’ price range considering the rise in auto financing rates. But by October 2023, the average price was down by one-third, to $34,994.
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One to five year old models
For the analysis, iSeeCars looked at prices of vehicles that are one to five years old.
The biggest price declines are among premium models, which were very expensive to begin with. Budget-conscious EV shoppers might consider more mainstream models. Even though the percentage decline is smaller, so are the current sale prices.
For example, the average price of a Nissan LEAF has dropped from $28,304 last year to $19, 649 this year. The average price of the Chevrolet Bolt has fallen from $28,625 in October 2022 to $20,328 this year.
Teslas on sale
If you have your heart set on a used Tesla, prices of those models are falling fast. The Tesla Model 3 is going for $33,455 on average. The Tesla Model S still has a hefty sticker price of $56,665 but that’s nearly $20,000 less than the average buyer paid last year.
But before jumping into the EV world, it might pay to think about why the prices of these vehicles are falling.
“Even with massive price drops, electric vehicles are selling slower than gasoline and hybrid vehicles,” said Karl Brauer, executive analyst at iSeeCars.com. “This combination of lower prices and slower sales suggests EVs have hit a market demand threshold that will be difficult to break through. Everything from economic concerns to growing competition among electric vehicles is contributing to their downward trend.”
And with new car makers sitting on large inventories of new EVs that aren’t selling at the predicted rate, the deals could get even better in the months ahead.