4 ms·

The only fear I'd have buying a 2nd hand on what I consider these 1st/2nd generation EVs is battery repairability/replacement. Buying a 10 years old used ICE ca

by piva00 2y ago

The only fear I'd have buying a 2nd hand on what I consider these 1st/2nd generation EVs is battery repairability/replacement. Buying a 10 years old used ICE car is a pretty common and affordable option for many people, a 10 years old EV might need its whole battery pack replaced, and as far as I know that is a pretty massive cost.

Ekaros 2y ago
And with 10 year old cars you have enough spread to know the common issues and costs to repair those. Some of them are pretty minor. But battery packs still can be very substantial comparatively. And I would really worry about some second/third hand battery from fly-by night operator that might actually not properly guarantee anything.
beAbU 2y ago
This is true, and EVs have not been in the market long enough to really know how they behave over long periods of time and high miles. There is also not a strong enough secondary market of mechanics, parts dealers, second-hand parts, generic batteries/drive units etc. BUT, having said that, the common sentiment that I'm picking up in my online "research" is that it's not as a big issue as made out to be. The Nissan Leaf specifically has issues with its battery design that makes high mileage batteries that were mostly fast-charged very suspect, but in general for other cars with proper thermal management, degradation is not really an issue. 80% after 5-10 years is not so bad, especially if the car is much cheaper than comparable new models. But yes, the cost of replacing that battery after 10-20 years is massive, considering that an ICE car will happily last that long if it's looked after, and if not, usually an engine overhaul is all that's needed. Once again, it comes back to cost. Everything is too expensive, and EVs are still seen as a luxury item, compared to an affordable means of transport.

4 ms·

The only fear I'd have buying a 2nd hand on what I consider these 1st/2nd generation EVs is battery repairability/replacement. Buying a 10 years old used ICE ca

by piva00 2y ago

Ekaros 2y ago
And with 10 year old cars you have enough spread to know the common issues and costs to repair those. Some of them are pretty minor. But battery packs still can be very substantial comparatively. And I would really worry about some second/third hand battery from fly-by night operator that might actually not properly guarantee anything.
beAbU 2y ago
This is true, and EVs have not been in the market long enough to really know how they behave over long periods of time and high miles. There is also not a strong enough secondary market of mechanics, parts dealers, second-hand parts, generic batteries/drive units etc. BUT, having said that, the common sentiment that I'm picking up in my online "research" is that it's not as a big issue as made out to be. The Nissan Leaf specifically has issues with its battery design that makes high mileage batteries that were mostly fast-charged very suspect, but in general for other cars with proper thermal management, degradation is not really an issue. 80% after 5-10 years is not so bad, especially if the car is much cheaper than comparable new models. But yes, the cost of replacing that battery after 10-20 years is massive, considering that an ICE car will happily last that long if it's looked after, and if not, usually an engine overhaul is all that's needed. Once again, it comes back to cost. Everything is too expensive, and EVs are still seen as a luxury item, compared to an affordable means of transport.