Only electric car worth buying right now is used
To the brave, prudent shoppers trying to cash in on new U.S. incentives to buy an electric vehicle: Good luck.
The $12 billion in EV support written into the Inflation Reduction Act — including rebates of up to $7,500 at the point of purchase — is expected to shift electric-car buying into high gear.
As Bloombergnef analyst Ethan Zindler puts it: “There aren’t many cars available and there aren’t many credits available in 2022.”
That means it’s time to internalize what many Americans already know: A new car often isn’t the best idea — even if it’s electric. For every new car that rolls off the lot, Americans buy three used ones, making for a far more liquid market with a far wider spectrum of prices. Factor in an IRA rebate of up to $4,000 for buying a used EV, and so called “pre-owned vehicles” are arguably the smartest money in subsidized wheels.
Pricing and availability have always made used cars a viable option, but there’s another reason for the prevalence of pre-owned EVS: Electric cars have been depreciating more like smartphones than cars, at least until recently. Battery technology improves at a rapid clip, which means
EVS tend to lose their shine far more quickly than internal-combustion models. And while this summer’s record-high gas prices boosted demand for used EVS — as the incentives are likely to — there remain plenty of options that fall under the Ira-incentive cap of $25,000.
Christopher Malikschmitt, of New Jersey, is loving the 2018 BMW i3 that he bought last year for $23,000. He gushes about how it handles and how it sticks out in a Tesla-centric town; a $4,000 incentive would have only made the purchase sweeter.
“With this car, it’s really only a value if you buy it used,” he says. “I would never have bought a new car for a family; it’s a crazy thing to do.”