Posted on 03/09/2015 11:00:12 AM PDT by thackney
...Mr. Hoban expects between 100 and 150 of the leased vehicles to be returned to his Capitol City Nissan dealership on a monthly basis over the next two years as their leases expire. The problem: used Leafs aren’t attracting much demand.
With gas prices down 33% from a year ago, and buyers cooling toward electric vehicles, some auto makers are offering deep discounts or attractive leases on battery-powered vehicles and plug-in hybrids. Nissan, for instance, slashed the price of a new Leaf by $6,400 in 2013 and is now offering a $199-a-month lease, or $3,500 cash back and 0% financing for 72 months, on brand new Leafs.
Buyers who also get a $7,500 federal tax credit on purchase of a new Leaf, see little reason to shop for a preowned model and some worry the expensive batteries could have to be replaced. “Used Leafs haven’t really taken off,” Mr. Hoban said. “There is really no incentive to buy a used one when you can lease a new one for less.”
This has driven down resale values of plug-in electrics including the Leaf and General Motors Co. ’s Chevrolet Volt, representing another hurdle for auto makers trying to boost sales of alternative-fuel vehicles.
Other electric cars, including plug-in versions of Ford Motor Co. ’s Focus and Toyota Motor Corp. ’s Prius, are depreciating as fast as the Leaf with the average trade-in value in 2014 falling between 22% and 35%, depending on model, according to the National Automobile Dealers Association’s Used Car Guide. The depreciation rate on plug-in electric cars is nearly twice that of a comparable gasoline-engine car, NADA Used Car Guide found.
In December and January, for instance, the average selling price of a 2012 Nissan Leaf at auction was about $10,000, nearly a quarter of the car’s original...price....
(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
“Necessarily skyrocket”
My biggest problem with the leaf is its appearance.
This has driven down resale values of plug-in electrics including the Leaf and General Motors Co. ’s Chevrolet Volt, representing another hurdle for auto makers trying to boost sales of alternative-fuel vehicles.
Is it like your printer? The real cost is in the ink refills?
They use to give away safety razors too, the money was in the blades.
I bet liberal heads explode upon seeing it :)
Ping.
Maybe Obama will be able to pick up a used Chevy Volt when he leaves office. #ObamaPromises
We have seen one new Volt here in Wino country since its dismal launch.
We are seeing a few Leafs, they seem very small and fragile.
The Pious seem to be very reliable and people seem more apt to buy another and keep the older one rather than trade the old one in. The owners, both conservative and liberal, like their Piouses.
What gets us are the free charging stations in county and state parks and municipal parking lots. The vehicles get free charging during the workday when the electrical rates for the rest of us are the highest.
A kid with some good mechanic skills can bring a gas car back to good working order.
An electric car will cost more to repair to ok condition than it would to just by a gas car.
It’s like flat-screen TVs. Once they break (especially the screen), they are damn near impossible to fix.
Do the used cars come with rebuilt batteries? No? Seems like buyers are properly pricing in the costs involved in maintaining the car, and actually slightly surprised that gas models aren’t slightly at a premium compared to the battery powered models.
Just remember, one fouled connection in the battery box will require an entirely new battery system, as dealers are forbidden by manufacturers to actually repair anything inside, they must replace the entire unit.
I have prayed that the electric car would go the way of the Edsel. My neighbor bragged about his until low and behold 5 years later it sits in their yard because they cannot afford the new battery.
Its not a matter of being against electric cars but we know they make a lot more waste product in their production and then where do the used batteries go? Is that another form of polution.
Supply and demand. When there’s no demand for these POSs, the price drops like a rock.
And of course the name
/snark
$3,000 for a battery replacement for a Prius - ouch.
But - you DO make up for it in the fuel savings I imagine over the course of those 5-7 years. Of course, that’s probably what they were thinking when they bought the expensive car in the first place. “Well, yes - it is way more than a similar gasoline car, but just think of all the money we’ll save!”
Non emitting cars (at least by state definition) are MANDATED by California and the Northeast States Compact. In INCREASING percentages of the total sold as the years go by.
So they definitely aren’t going away unless laws change.
Sounds like this is just the all electrics. My own Prius has a 4 cylinder in it and I’d never do the all electric just because I want the backup to the battery.
To be honest, the numbers aren’t much different then I would expect for most cars at the 4 year mark. 20K car for 10K at the 4 year mark...sounds reasonable depending on mileage. Doesn’t it lose ~25% soon as you drive off the lot anyway?
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