Electric car occasion

Electric vehicles are not known for their competitive pricing. What will you do if you find your new EV is too expensive but still want to drive electricity? Then you look at a used electric car. So what should you pay attention to? And what can I get there? These questions and answers are discussed in this article.

Battery

To start: what should you look for when buying an electric car as a used car? What are the weak points? We can answer the last question right away: the battery is the most important thing to pay attention to.

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A battery will inevitably lose capacity over time. How quickly this happens depends on the machine and various factors. Overall, however, this is slow. Cars five and older often have more than 90% of their original capacity. While mileage is a very important metric for a fossil fuel vehicle, it is less so for an electric vehicle. An electric powertrain is much less prone to wear and tear than an internal combustion engine.

Battery life is mainly determined by the number of charge cycles. This refers to how often the battery is charged from fully discharged to fully charged. This is not the same as the number of recharges. Of course, there is ultimately a relationship between mileage and number of charge cycles. However, even more factors play a role. Hence, high mileage does not have to be the same as a bad battery, and the same does not have to be applied the other way around.

There are a number of factors that can accelerate the degradation process. For example, temperature is an important factor. High temperatures increase internal resistance and can permanently reduce battery capacity. It is very important that we do not have a warm climate in the Netherlands. High temperatures are also an important reason that over-fast charging is not beneficial to the battery. If the previous owner did this too often, the battery may be in worse condition.

At low temperatures, the battery performs less well, but this is only for a short time. This does not play a big role in the aging of the battery. This should be borne in mind during a test drive. You can read more about battery degradation in the article on the battery of an electric vehicle.

Finally, which also does not help the battery: it stands still for a long time. Then the battery is slowly but surely discharged. In this case, the battery can be damaged, so long periods of inactivity should be avoided whenever possible. If this happens, the battery may be in poor condition and the mileage is low.

Test Drive

Of course, the question arises: how to find out in what state the battery of the electric drive is? You can ask the seller a few questions, but it would be nice if you could check it out. First, you can simply see how quickly the battery drains during the (longest) test drive. Then you will immediately get an idea of ​​the real range of the electric vehicle in question. Pay attention to temperature, speed, and all other factors that affect the range.

Battery check

It is not possible to accurately determine the condition of a battery using a test drive. If you want to know what the battery really is, you should read the system. Fortunately, this is possible: your dealer can prepare a test report for you. Unfortunately, there is no independent audit yet. BOVAG is working to develop a uniform battery test in the near future. This is also included in the Climate Agreement.

Warranty

A low-quality battery can be replaced under warranty. The terms and duration of the warranty depend on the manufacturer. Many manufacturers offer an 8-year warranty and / or a warranty of up to 160.000 70 km. Usually the battery is replaced when the capacity drops below 80% or XNUMX%. The warranty also applies to the BOVAG battery. Replacing a battery outside of warranty is very expensive and also unattractive.

Other interesting places

Therefore, the battery is the most important object of attention for a used EV, but certainly not the only one. However, much less attention is paid here than in the case of a gasoline or diesel car. Many wear-sensitive parts from an internal combustion engine vehicle cannot be found in an electric vehicle. Aside from a sophisticated internal combustion engine, an electric car lacks things like the gearbox and exhaust system. This is of great importance in maintenance, which is one of the advantages of electric vehicles.

Since in an electric vehicle it is often possible to brake on an electric motor, the brakes last much longer. Rust is not decreasing, so brakes are still a concern. Tires usually wear out faster than usual due to their heavy weight, which is often accompanied by a lot of power and torque. Together with the chassis, these are particularly important points to look out for when purchasing a used electric vehicle.

Another thing to keep in mind about older EVs: These cars are not always suitable for fast charging. If you find this to be a useful feature, you can check if the vehicle can do it. This was an option on some models, so check if the specific one can do it.

Subsidy

In order to stimulate the purchase of electric vehicles, the government will introduce a procurement subsidy this year, as stated in the Climate Agreement. This is expected to take effect on July 1st. The scheme is applicable not only to new electric vehicles, but also to used cars. If new cars cost 4.000 euros, the subsidy for used cars is 2.000 euros.

There are some conditions attached to it. The subsidy is available only for vehicles with a catalog value of 12.000 45.000 to 120 2.000 euros. The operating range must be at least XNUMX km. The subsidy also only applies if the purchase is made through a recognized company. Finally, this is a one-time promotion. That is: anyone can apply for a one-time subsidy of € XNUMX to prevent abuse. For more information on this scheme, see the article on the electric vehicle subsidy.

Used electric car offer

The range of used electric vehicles is growing steadily, in part due to the fact that many vehicles have expired. At the same time, there is a strong demand for used electric vehicles, which means that these cars often do not have to wait long for a new owner.

The choice of electrical appliances up to 15.000 2010 euros is very limited in terms of models. The cheapest examples are the first generation electric vehicles. Think of the Nissan Leaf and Renault Fluence, which hit the market in 2011 and 2013, respectively. Renault also introduced the compact Zoe in year 3. BMW also released the i2013 quite early on, which also appeared in the year XNUMX.

Since these cars are already pretty old by EV standards, the range doesn't get much mention. Imagine a practical range of 100 to 120 km. Therefore, cars are especially suitable for urban use.

Important to know about Renaults: the battery is often not included in the price. Then it must be rented separately. The good news is that you always have a good battery guaranteed. It should also be borne in mind that in some cases the prices quoted do not include VAT.

In the category of small electric vehicles in the used car market, the Volkswagen e-Up and Fiat 500e are also worth mentioning. The XNUMXth one is new, it has never been imported into our country. This trendy electric car hit the Dutch market by accident. There are also Mitsubishi iMiev, Peugeot iOn and Citroën C-zero triplets. These are not particularly attractive cars, which, moreover, have a useless assortment.

Those looking for a little more space can opt for the Nissan Leaf, Volkswagen e-Golf, BMW i3, or Mercedes B 250e. The range of all these cars is also often small. There are newer versions of the Leaf, i3 and e-Golf with extended range, but they are more expensive. This also applies in general: you really need to upgrade to more recent models to get a decent range, and they are just expensive, even as a case.

The used car market is still problematic. However, the appearance of attractive cars on the used car market is only a matter of time. Many new electric vehicles are already being produced in cheaper price segments. In 2020, worth around 30.000 euros, there will be various new models with a decent range of more than 300 km.

Conclusion

When buying an electric car, there is one clear point to consider as an excuse: the battery. This determines how much of the range is left. The problem is that the battery status cannot be checked one, two, three. An extensive test drive can provide insight. The dealer can also read the battery to you. There is no battery test yet, but BOVAG is working on it. In addition, an electric car has significantly fewer attractions than a regular car. The chassis, tires, and brakes are still points to look out for, even if the latter wear out slowly.

The supply of used electric vehicles is still small. It's almost impossible to find cars with a decent range and a decent price tag. However, the range of electric vehicles is quite wide. If the current cheaper electric vehicles hit the used car market, it will get much more interesting.