You’ve got $20,000 to spend on an EV: Here are some options
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I've seen a few Prius primes for a little over 20k. I still think I'd rather have one of those over any of the EVs on the market right now
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I want to know how far this series will go.
"You've got $2,000,000 to spend on an EV. Here are some options."
"You've got $2,000,000 to spend on an EV. Here are some options."
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Just bought a 2024 Mini Cooper SE (iconic trim) with 13k miles 19 days ago for $19,700 (plus tax and registration). Love the car, but its not for everyone. I drive 2 miles to work, so it works for me.
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I think I’ll go up to $50k, since it’s the average new car price. But maybe in $10,000 jumps next.
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I recently bought a 2024 Chevy Equinox EV (36k miles) for 19,500 which became ~$22.75k out the door. I think I should be able to get a few thousand in state rebates/incentives to bring it down to just under $20k
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I went and checked Autotrader and was surprised to see a few Mach-E's in the $17k-$19k (and a lot more in the $21k-$26K ) range around me. That's probably where I would look if we were in the market for a second EV.
Dang, I was looking forward to the "So you've got Supercar money to spend on a used EV, here are some options" article.
Dang, I was looking forward to the "So you've got Supercar money to spend on a used EV, here are some options" article.
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Last week, United Airlines said they were planning for $175/bbl oil. Which, at least in my part of the country, puts it around $7/gal.
If that comes true, buying at EV now that you can plug in overnight where you live, especially in a multi-car household, makes a lot of sense.
If that comes true, buying at EV now that you can plug in overnight where you live, especially in a multi-car household, makes a lot of sense.
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A guy I know for college (who didn't leave SF) drove an OG Mini in college, then bought the newer Mini and now upgraded to the SE. He seems very happy.
Near my parents house (SATX), it's completely slim pickings for EVs under $20k. (In fact only 1 Tesla in my 5yr/<50k search.)
Here locally, I can get a Leaf NISMO 2nd gen for <$13k US. (Two of the most popular EV models here are both sub $20k new, so there's that.) There are a few BYD Seals now just above $20k, around $20,500 or so.
Near my parents house (SATX), it's completely slim pickings for EVs under $20k. (In fact only 1 Tesla in my 5yr/<50k search.)
Here locally, I can get a Leaf NISMO 2nd gen for <$13k US. (Two of the most popular EV models here are both sub $20k new, so there's that.) There are a few BYD Seals now just above $20k, around $20,500 or so.
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It's just my experience, but similar to many people who bought VW Beetles. Many people who are buying them can probably buy a car 2x or more the price. The guy I know with the EV version can buy any car that exists (he also still works at Google for some stupid reason, some people just are how they are I guess.)I know. I thought they were all wound up, instead.
Great for those who can't afford a car, I guess.
But if you can't afford a new car, odds are you don't have the home or overnight access to charging solutions, either. So the convenience vs inconvenience math has to be done. If your car is falling apart, and you have the time and access to recharge outside of the home, great. Otherwise, it's going to be more trouble for a prospective buyer than an ICE or hybrid is.
I'd be looking at hybrids myself. They at least might let me get into it without the mandator folding/spindling/mutilating smaller cars require for me to fit inside.
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My advice on used EVs is avoid Euro Lux models with features like Air Suspension. At least unless you are getting a significant warranty. I don't think the EV system will fail, but the sport/lux stuff can and it's often not cheap to fix.
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My sister has an electric MINI and loves it. They also have a Tesla model 3 that they like, but from what I gather, the MINI is more fun.
I'm not looking to by a new (to me) car right now, but the sub-$20k used electric market is where I'd be if I was.
I'm not looking to by a new (to me) car right now, but the sub-$20k used electric market is where I'd be if I was.
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If you want reliability, then the Bolt and Leaf are still the gold standard. The Bolt: well, you've seen the reviews. They honor their recalls and you can get support at every Chevy station. The early Leaf is kind of amazing in that 3rd-party mechanics are actually able to work on it (which is why my son wants one).
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BYD Seals?
You must live outside the US. BYD cars are not homologated for sale in the US.
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That might be so, but they're not stupid enough to be openly white supremacist on social media. Sorry, but I will never own a Tesla as long as Musk is involved in any shape, way, or form with the company.
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I know you know this, but I don't want other people to read your comment and take it at gospel.I know. I thought they were all wound up, instead.
Great for those who can't afford a car, I guess.
But if you can't afford a new car, odds are you don't have the home or overnight access to charging solutions, either. So the convenience vs inconvenience math has to be done. If your car is falling apart, and you have the time and access to recharge outside of the home, great. Otherwise, it's going to be more trouble for a prospective buyer than an ICE or hybrid is.
I'd be looking at hybrids myself. They at least might let me get into it without the mandator folding/spindling/mutilating smaller cars require for me to fit inside.
Most (70-some percent) car sales are used cars.
Most (nearly as many) people in the US live in single family housing.
There are plenty of people who buy used who can have an EV. A friend of mine is shopping for a used EV right now. He owns his house, but he can't drop $50-60k on a new car. Most people can't. That's why most people buy used.
You will always find a reason to discount EVs. You actually remind me of the parents of that friend of mine. They discount everything about EVs because they've been driving ICEVs for 60 years or whatever and they think about every time they've gone to the gas station, replace that with what they think is a multiple hours of standing their with their thumb in their ass while they charge, and say fuck that they're useless. Nevermind that they literally never travel and own their home with a garage and large driveway. They're also tight as hell and live somewhere where electricity is dirt cheap. They could get by with a clapped out Leaf that's lost half of its range and they'd never want for more, plus they'd save money on gas. But nope, they'll buy another ICEV, almost certainly used.
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Three things. The lack of home charging is a problem. The plugin Hybrids like the Prius primes are a good option.I know. I thought they were all wound up, instead.
Great for those who can't afford a car, I guess.
But if you can't afford a new car, odds are you don't have the home or overnight access to charging solutions, either. So the convenience vs inconvenience math has to be done. If your car is falling apart, and you have the time and access to recharge outside of the home, great. Otherwise, it's going to be more trouble for a prospective buyer than an ICE or hybrid is.
I'd be looking at hybrids myself. They at least might let me get into it without the mandator folding/spindling/mutilating smaller cars require for me to fit inside.
Second. If you do have access to charging, it is kind of a no brainer. My old ICE car cost $470 a month in a payment. By Tesla costs $414 a month. I need my cars to work absolutely reliably. I was paying more for my ICE car, to also spend $120 more in fuel. It is just that simple.
Third, You are completely right. As I get older, the ability of my neck to bend to get into a car is becoming a real problem.
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For the folks interested in an ID.4, VW just issued a pretty extensive recall (~44,000 vehicles in the US) for battery overheating issues....
https://www.nhtsa.gov/?nhtsaId=26V030000
https://www.nhtsa.gov/?nhtsaId=26V030000
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Speaking of Colorado deals, the Ionic 5 SEL has been available for lease at $99 down, $99/month.
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They are not great. A fossil car converted to EV.
If you hadn't banned Chinese EVs you could have a good spec new one for $20k. Oh well.
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You might be able to swing an electric retrofit of a Beaver
https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-...bour-air-electric-beavers-draw-oshkosh-crowds
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Curious. You are certainly entitled to spend your money as you choose, but why buy a used POS swasticar instead of a new Equinox at $22k?
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I don't care what car you bought. I'm not remotely judging you for buying an off lease Tesla. Where I live (SoCal) I drive surrounded by Teslas any time I leave the house. Whatever.
But, I do think people's personal choices can often feel different when the terrible person is still alive and benefits from things you support.
I personally would rather someone buy a Tesla than an ICE vehicle if those were the two choices. And frankly a used one doesn't really put money in Elon Musk's pocket.
But choosing to overlook problematic dead people and avoid problematic live ones is I think a pretty rational choice. I no longer support JK Rowling or Neil Gaiman for instance, despite being fans of their work.
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I'm a fan of the Leaf's and have two of them but I can't recommend any of the Gen 2 Leaf's in this price bracket. The 2023 and newer aren't covered by the fast charging recall yet but I see no reason to think they won't end up covered in the future. Maybe they'll actually have the software fix ready by then instead of the eventually(TM) that earlier owners are still getting. Beyond that CHAdeMO charging infrastructure is poor and getting worse. You can deal with those sorts of things if they are a good enough deal but in this price bracket you have other options that don't have the big caveats. If we were looking at this price range we'd probably end up with a Mach-E. My wife likes the looks of them and would be high on her list. We'd probably look at an ID4 also but I suspect my wife wouldn't like the heavy touch reliance.
As far as the Hyundai/Kai cars go and the ICCU it could be tricky for used vehicles. There isn't a recall yet in the US that would cover them. The 10y 100k mile power train warranty is only for the original owner so if the want to argue this was part of the power train a used purchaser would only get 5 years and 60k miles for coverage.
The Hybrid/Electric Battery & Hybrid System Components Warranty would cover it for 10y 100k but I'm not sure if the ICCU would be considered part of that as it only mentions the battery and traction motor for EVs in that section. I wish there was a recall or some official statement covering the ICCU for at least the 100k/10y if not extending it beyond that. It seems like things have improved but they haven't done a good job of communicating clearly about the cause or that they've definitely got it fixed and there won't be problems in the future.
https://www.hyundaiusa.com/us/en/assurance/america-best-warranty
As far as the Hyundai/Kai cars go and the ICCU it could be tricky for used vehicles. There isn't a recall yet in the US that would cover them. The 10y 100k mile power train warranty is only for the original owner so if the want to argue this was part of the power train a used purchaser would only get 5 years and 60k miles for coverage.
The Hybrid/Electric Battery & Hybrid System Components Warranty would cover it for 10y 100k but I'm not sure if the ICCU would be considered part of that as it only mentions the battery and traction motor for EVs in that section. I wish there was a recall or some official statement covering the ICCU for at least the 100k/10y if not extending it beyond that. It seems like things have improved but they haven't done a good job of communicating clearly about the cause or that they've definitely got it fixed and there won't be problems in the future.
https://www.hyundaiusa.com/us/en/assurance/america-best-warranty
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Personally, I do own a house and can afford my car. However, no one who is truly intreated in maximizing value should buy any new car. No one. And anyone who does is really accomplishing some other purpose beyond the economics.
Depreciation is throwing money away, and Cars are the only real significant purchase where we put up with it.
That's why this series is so nice. Because there are options at pretty much all levels for everyone.
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We own (and bought it new) a 2022 VW ID.4 Pro S AWD.
We are very happy with it. We plan to replace it in 2032.
I see many available for <$25K.
We are very happy with it. We plan to replace it in 2032.
I see many available for <$25K.
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Musk is clearly a controversial figure and I see no reason to criticize someone where they choose to draw the line in regards to what they are willing to do with companies connected to him. Sure, buying a used Tesla is not nearly as much support as buying a new one but it is still some support. If you make any road trips you'll be steered towards using their charging network which will send some amount of money that way. Things seem to have died down somewhat but I could also see people just being concerned about vandalism due to Tesla's connections to Musk.
Personally, I don't think my wife would ever go for the touch screen centric interface and I WFH so have no reason to spend even used Tesla money on a car for me to drive. On the other hand if we moved and Starlink was the only decent internet option I'd be signing up in a heart beat.
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DAMN, THAT's the EV commuter vehicle I want!
live off on a lake somewhere: fly into work, landing at the river in walking distance of the office?
Of course: if I can afford an electric airplane... and to live off at a lake: I'm pretty sure I wouldn't need to go to an office. LOL
I'd still love that airplane
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Yeah. Turns out sometimes people spend money on things that aren't min/maxing their bank account. Some people travel. Some people have a really expensive woodworking hobby. Some people collect old arcade cabinets. Some people buy not the literal cheapest car that technically runs.
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That recall is to install software that monitors the battery and alerts you if there is a problem. It isn't like there are ~44,000 vehicles with problematic batteries, VW just needed to install software on the cars to keep tabs on how the battery is performing. I think this recall was mostly triggered because a small subset (less than 1,000) of the ID.4's DID have at least one defective battery module that VW learned of (and have recalled) and the ID.4's weren't detecting the defective batteries so VW wanted/needed to provide better software to hopefully detect future problems when/if they crop up.
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People are sour on Volvos around here, but as a C40 owner I'd say they are still a fine option, if a wee bit more on the used market at around $25-30K. They get regular software updates, the batteries are solid and haven't been subject to any major recalls (at least for the C40 / XC40s), even if the range is middling. Fit and finish is nice (compared to the competition). I've had it serviced twice in 4 years, both times just the scheduled visits. It's fine about town and I go on multi-state adventures with the family from time to time with no issue.
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I've always bought off-lease cars. Get the extended warranty and have no had major issues.
case in point the first time I did that the rack and pinion busted, but it was filly covered. And I know keeping a car until it's worthless is making a trade-in hard, but I once dated an insurance adjuster and she said that pieces of a car go for as much as the whole thing being traded in, so I at least hardball the dealer a bit on trade-in value. But ya gotta set a budget and stick to it
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Been looking at car options myself, and was curious on that battery 2% loss per year figure. Came across this, which was an interesting addition of details:
https://recharged.com/articles/what-is-battery-degradation-normal-rate
https://recharged.com/articles/what-is-battery-degradation-normal-rate
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You need get some updates on the Fisker Ocean. New software is coming out regularly, parts are available, and things are much better now than during the bankruptcy.
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