Used EV price crash keeps getting deeper with ‘premium’ brand idea history
A used 2020 Tesla Model 3 is available for sale on a CarMax lot on March 10, 2022 in Burbank, California.
Mario Tama | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Back in February, used electric vehicle prices dipped below used gasoline-powered vehicle prices for the first time ever, and the pricing cliff keeps getting steeper as car buyers reject any “premium” tag formerly associated with EVs.
The decline has been dramatic over the past year. In June 2023, average used EV prices were over 25% higher than used gas car prices, but by May, used EVs were on average 8% lower than the average price for a used gasoline-powered car in U.S. In dollar terms, the gap widened from $265 in February to $2,657 in May, according to an analysis of 2.2 million one to five year-old used cars conducted by iSeeCars. Over the past year, gasoline-powered used vehicle prices have declined between 3-7%, while electric vehicle prices have decreased 30-39%.
“It’s clear used car shoppers will no longer pay a premium for electric vehicles,” iSeeCars executive analyst Karl Brauer stated in an iSeeCars report published last week. Electric power is now a detractor in the consumer’s mind, with EVs “less desirable” and therefore less valuable than traditional cars, he said.
The gap between used luxury brands and EVs has widened, too. Used BMW prices exceed prices for comparable, all-electric, Tesla vehicles by a significant amount, according to iSeeCars. A Tesla Model 3 cost $2,635 more than a BMW 3 Series in May 2023, but by May of this year, was priced over $4,800 less than the 3 Series.
More people are selling their used EVs today than ever before, at least partially because the market is bigger than every before. In 2022, 176,918 used EVs were purchased in the U.S. In May alone, that number increased to over 45,000. There are many more vehicles in the used market than new car market, and used vehicle value does rapidly depreciate as a rule. A one-year-old used car is, on average, priced at 80% of the same car sold new. As more EVs enter the used market at lower prices, the EV market does become available to a wider market of potential first-time EV owners.
There are reasons why EV premiums are more likely to decline in the used market regardless of the recent consumer perception shift: battery technology is continually getting better, increasing range on new models, and consumers also worry about batteries degrading over time. Newer models have longer ranges and improved battery life with temperature control for charging. Between 30-50% of the value embedded in an EV is the battery. But offsetting that is the fact that EVs have lower overall owner costs, from fuel to maintenance, and owners of used EVs can qualify for federal tax credits.
A key factor in the recent decline in used EV prices has been Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who began an industry price war as demand slumped by cutting prices in 2023, with price cuts on Model X, Y and S vehicles continuing into 2024. Scott Case, the CEO of Recurrent, a startup that measures EV battery performance for auto consumers, recently told CNBC that declining used Tesla prices correspond to new Tesla price drops, followed by decreasing prices across used EV competitors.
In January, Hertz also shifted its aggressive EV strategy to sell off 20,000 EVs at Hertz Car Sales locations, roughly one-third of its EV fleet, selling used Teslas at a “no haggle” $25,000 average price across the country.
Declining market demand for EVs and a lack of infrastructure have pushed many auto companies to step back from aggressive EV rollouts, and put more promotion behind hybrid models, which are experiencing a boom. General Motors recently cut its expected sales and production of EVs from a 200,000–300,000 range to 200,000-250,000. EVs made up less than 3% of GM’s Q1 sales. Ford has faced losses from its Model E electric vehicle rollout, even as combined hybrid and EV sales rose in May. Ford has now made the decision to rescind a program announced during the initial EV boom that required Ford dealers to make significant investments in EV infrastructure to be able to sell electric vehicles.
Charging infrastructure is still in an early stage and without increased infrastructure, switching to electric vehicles is an accessibility issue for many Americans. But access to EV chargers is growing. There are over 64,000 publicly accessible electric vehicle charging stations in the United States, with over 176,000 total EV charging ports, according to the Department of Energy. EV charging infrastructure has grown by 29% since the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, which included tax incentives to adopt EVs. There are roughly 145,000 gas stations in the U.S.
A Pew Research analysis using Department of Energy data found that roughly six in 10 Americans now live within two miles of a public charger, though only 7% of people who live within two miles of a charger will consider buying an EV, Pew found. Most EV charging still occurs at home, while there are also rural EV “deserts.”
A Gallup poll of Americans in April found ownership of EVs increasing by 3% annually, but an equal percentage decline in consumers who indicated serious interest in buying an EV, down from 12% to 9%. Overall, 35% of Americans said they might consider buying an EV in the future, down from 43% last year.
Fueled by incentives from the Illinois EPA and the state’s largest utility company, new EV registrations nearly quadrupled the 12% first-quarter increase in EV registrations nationally – and there are no signs the state is slowing down.
Despite the dramatic slowdown of Tesla’s US deliveries, sales of electric vehicles overall have perked up in recent months, with Illinois’ EV adoption rate well above the Q1 uptick nationally. Crain’s Chicago Business reports that the number of new EVs registered across the state totaled 9,821 January through March, compared with “just” 6,535 EVs registered in the state during the same period in 2024.
Those numbers represent more than 50% growth in EV registrations – far beyond the expected 12% first-quarter increase nationally being projected by Cox Automotive. (!)
What’s going on in Illinois?
While President Trump and Elmo were running for re-election, they campaigned on the threat promise of canceling the $7,500 federal tax credit for EVs. Along with California Governor Gavin Newsom, Illinois’ Governor JB Pritzker made countermoves – launching a $4,000 rebate for new electric cars and up to $1,500 for the purchase of a new electric motorcycle.
At the same time, the state’s largest utility, ComEd, launched a $90 million EV incentive program featuring a new Point of Purchase initiative to deliver instant discounts to qualifying business and public sector customers who make the switch to electric vehicles. That program has driven a surge in Class 3-6 medium duty commercial EVs, which are eligible fro $20-30,000 in utility rebates on top of federal tax credits and other incentives (Class 1-2 EVs are eligible for up to $7,500).
We covered the launch of those incentives when the program was announced at Chicago Drives Electric last year, but the message here is simple: incentives work.
SOURCES: Chicago Business, Ray Cunningham; featured image by the author.
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The electric construction equipment experts at XCMG just released a new, 25 ton electric crawler excavator ahead of bauma 2025 – and they have their eye on the global urban construction, mine operations, and logistical material handling markets.
Powered by a high-capacity 400 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery capable of delivering up to 8 hours of continuous operation, the XE215EV electric excavator promises uninterrupted operation at a lower cost of ownership and with even less downtime than its diesel counterparts.
XCMG is delivering on part of that reduced downtime promise with the lower maintenance and easier repair needs of electric equipment, and delivering on the rest of it with lickety-quick DC fast charging that can recharge the machine’s massive battery in 1.5-2 hours … but that’s not the slick bit. The XCMG XE125EV can be powered up without leaving the job site thanks to its BYD battery swap technology.
We first covered XCMG and its battery swap technology back in January, and covered similar battery-swap tech being developed by MOOG Construction offshoot ZQUIP, as well – but while XCMG’s battery tech has been in production for several years, it’s still not widely known about in the West (even within the industry).
XCMG showed off its latest electric equipment at the December 2024 bauma China, including an updated version of its of its 85-ton autonomous electric mining truck that features a fully cab-less design – meaning there isn’t even a place for an operator to sit, let alone operate. And that’s too bad, because what operator wouldn’t want to experience an electric truck putting down 1070 hp more than 16,000 lb-ft of torque!?
Easy in, easy out
The best part? All of the company’s heavy equipment assets – from excavators to terminal tractors to dump trucks and wheel loaders – all use the same 400 kWh BYD battery packs, Milwaukee tool style. That means an equipment fleet can utilize x number of vehicles with a fraction of the total battery capacity and material needs of other asset brands. That’s not just a smart use of limited materials, it’s a smarter use of energy.
You can check out all the XE215EV’s specs at this tear sheet, and get an in-person look at the Chinese company’s latest electric excavator this week in Munich, Germany.
SOURCE | IMAGES: XCMG.
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As “extreme” weather events become more commonplace, the demand for reliable and portable energy continues to rise. In response to that growing demand for dependable off-grid power, Volvo has developed the new PU500 Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) designed to take electrical power when it’s needed most.
Designed to be deployable in a number of environments at a moment’s notice, the Volvo Energy PU500 BESS is equipped with approximately 500 kWh of usable battery capacity (up to 540 kWh total). More than enough juice, in other words, to power a remote construction site, disaster response effort, or even a music festival – anything that needs access to reliable electricity beyond a grid connection.
That’s great, but what sets the PU500 apart from other battery storage solutions is its integrated 240 kW DC fast charger.
“With an integrated CCS2 charger, the PU500 is designed to work with all brands of electric equipment, trucks, and passenger cars,” says Niklas Thulin, Head of BESS Product Offer at Volvo Energy. “This ensures that no matter what type of electric vehicle or machinery you rely on, the PU500 can provide the power you need, making it a truly flexible solution for any grid constrained site or location.”
The integrated charger in the PU500 has the impressive ability to charge a heavy equipment asset (be that an electric semi truck or something like a wheel loader) in under two hours. Its on-board capacity allows to fully recharge up to 3 electric HD trucks or 20 electric cars per day, making it an incredibly versatile disaster response asset.
Electrek’s Take
As we often say over at The Heavy Equipment Podcast, “just because you’re working for the power company doesn’t mean you have power,” and there are hundreds of scenarios where the extra power provided by something like the new PU500 would be useful. Its ability to be palletized and easily moved or swapped out of a larger BESS array, too, just add to its flexibility.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Volvo.
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