Why Have 2022 Used LEAFs Dropped by $10k in Price in the Past One Year?

[tony17112acst]

I sold my 2022 SV Plus last year at this time for $29,200 privately. On a whim, yesterday I checked and Dealerships are asking $18-$19,000 for the same car (2022 SV Plus with 20k-30k miles)!! That's a $10,000 drop IN ONE YEAR!

WHAT!!? Can anyone inform me of something that happened that is killing the LEAF or something? Is it EV's in general? Is the the Charging protocol (chademo) that's going to be outdated?

Thank you everyone.

 

[lutefisk]

There's downward pressure on prices for EVs and used cars generally.

 

[SageBrush]

yesterday I checked and Dealerships are asking $18-$19,000 for the same car (2022 SV Plus with 20k-30k miles)

And if the used EV tax credit is in play, that might be ~ $14k net before TTL. Pretty awesome if true. I said in another thread that that I valued a new LEAF at ~ 50% of msrp, so that about reaches my threshold.

 

[tony17112acst]

I'm eyeing a 2022 SV plus with 30k miles for $18,000. With the $4k tax deduction, It'd be only $14k for a 2022!! I figure I can drive it for free for 2 years if I sell it for $14k in two years. I also JUST got an electricity program for my house for $110/month for unlimited KWhs, so I'd be driving it cost free too!

Anyone see a flaw in that plan? Will EV's drop even further? Hmmm.

 

[rgs]

A year ago last fall, I sold my 2020 SV+ for $28,000. At the time, it was a seller's market. It's a buyer's market now. The price for used Teslas has dropped significantly in that time for the same reason.

 

[jjeff]

I sold both my '13 and '12 towards the end of last year for $6k and $4k respectively and both were low miles in very good condition, well the '12 was down to 8 bars and the '13 11 bars but otherwise I'd say a strong very good condition on both. Yes it pained me to sell them so low and not much more than a year earlier I was hoping to get $10-11k for just the '13(I'd regularly see them advertised for $12k range) but yes the bottom seems to have fallen out on used Leafs, especially older <100 mile Leafs in a world where everyone seems to want at least a 100 mile range or more like 200+

 

[SageBrush]

To see just how far the used car market has tumbled (particularly compared to the 2021 peak, just look at the share price of the used car online sellers (Vroom, Carvana, etc.)

They got stuck with cars they paid top dollar for, and are now not worth nearly as much. I bought a used 2013 LEAF 'S' model in late 2016 for $7,300, and sold it to an online reseller in 2022 for $9,000.

 

[hradek]

I sold my 2022 SV Plus last year at this time for $29,200 privately. On a whim, yesterday I checked and Dealerships are asking $18-$19,000 for the same car (2022 SV Plus with 20k-30k miles)!! That's a $10,000 drop IN ONE YEAR!

WHAT!!? Can anyone inform me of something that happened that is killing the LEAF or something? Is it EV's in general? Is the the Charging protocol (chademo) that's going to be outdated?

Thank you everyone.

cha cha cha chademo! port

 

[hradek]

cha cha cha chademo! port

finding a chademo port and finding one that works adds adventure to any travel plans. chargepoint seem to support it best but I see new electrify america going up without the chademo port and I have even seen evgateway chargers with permanently connected adapter that work for Tesla but not my Leaf, most annoying!

 

[hradek]

finding a chademo port and finding one that works adds adventure to any travel plans. chargepoint seem to support it best but I see new electrify america going up without the chademo port and I have even seen evgateway chargers with permanently connected adapter that work for Tesla but not my Leaf, most annoying!

Correction that was evcs that converted three chademo charger to tesla for those poor tesla drivers in need of a charge in Palmdale

 

[kitra]

Most Consumers do not want an EV. They are a PITA. Firstly, they are very expensive to insure. We've had a 2013 and a 2020 Leaf. The 2020 Leaf costs more than our Corvette or our Jeep GC Summit to insure. With a Leaf you have to plan your trips carefully and still have to worry about range anxiety. Takes more than 10 minutes to fill the tank. Out here in Oregon, chargers are often broken, busy, or have an ICE vehicle blocking them. And try to find a "working" Chademo Charger. Thieves cut off the charging cords for the copper? Some People are rude and plug-in their EV and then leave only to come back many hours later. When it gets cold out, the range is awful. Our 2013 Leaf refused to charge at 17 degrees outside which left us stranded. EV's have a limited purpose so you have an extra expense insuring at least 2 vehicles. You can't drive across the State or Country in an EV in a timely manner. We drive to North Dakota every October which is 1600 miles each way. It takes us 3 days. In an EV, even a long-range Tesla, it would take double that time and you would really stress the batteries. Friends of ours with EV's don't run the heater or accessories just to save on battery usage. Look at all the Tesla's in Chicago that became boat anchors during the cold weather recently. We did enjoy the 2020 Leaf as a City Car. It was quiet, reliable, no oil smells, and comfortable. But in just 10K miles, the battery lost 7% if it's capacity. We read that over 40% of EV owners will not do it again. We did it twice and may try it again when the range is over 400 miles. NIO already has an EV with around 600 miles of range but is only available in China.

 

[cornbinder89]

I haven't seen high insurance cost on mine, and I have full coverage unlike my other cars. I have not had a problem charging mine at -19F, but both current in and out is reduced when batteries are that cold. either warm them by driving slowly or allow them to charge are a slow rate. My Leaf is kept in a unheated out building that has nothing else going on to make heat in the building (no animals, machines or other heat source). An attached garage would be better and a heated one even better, but not required.
Electrics, like diesels require a little extra attention to detail in the cold. I ran diesels at -35F and can run my electric at -19F. Both require realistic expectations of what they can do and what is required. If you are the type that doesn't want to think about temps, just drive than a gasoline car is likely you best bet. Either it will start in the cold or it will not, and you'll know know before you get out of the driveway if the fuel line is frozen.
Back in the late 70's when gas prices soared and everybody scrambled to make a diesel car, many purchased a diesel and then found them difficult in the cold. Cursed and said they'd never own another diesel. It is not that diesels can't run in the cold, they are on the North Slope of Alaska year around, but they require a little more attention to do so.

 

[Toby]

As to the

I sold my 2022 SV Plus last year at this time for $29,200 privately. On a whim, yesterday I checked and Dealerships are asking $18-$19,000 for the same car (2022 SV Plus with 20k-30k miles)!! That's a $10,000 drop IN ONE YEAR!

WHAT!!? Can anyone inform me of something that happened that is killing the LEAF or something?

Covid happened. China went into lock-down and the automotive sector suffered shortages. It threw manufacturing into a tailspin. For a while used cars became very expensive. We had a 2018 Leaf S. The local Nissan dealer called us up and offered us a deal on a new 2023 SL Plus which we accepted. We will never see a deal like this again. Within six months China's manufacturing picked up and prices on used cars have slowly come down; dealers are not desperate any more. To answer your question, that $10,000 drop looks about right.

 

[Dooglas]

yes the bottom seems to have fallen out on used Leafs, especially older <100 mile Leafs in a world where everyone seems to want at least a 100 mile range or more like 200+

Well sure, why wouldn't everyone want a 200 mile plus EV as long as the price was attractive. I certain would - and did.

 

[pjacobsma]

Most Consumers do not want an EV. They are a PITA. Firstly, they are very expensive to insure. We've had a 2013 and a 2020 Leaf. The 2020 Leaf costs more than our Corvette or our Jeep GC Summit to insure. With a Leaf you have to plan your trips carefully and still have to worry about range anxiety. Takes more than 10 minutes to fill the tank. Out here in Oregon, chargers are often broken, busy, or have an ICE vehicle blocking them. And try to find a "working" Chademo Charger. Thieves cut off the charging cords for the copper? Some People are rude and plug-in their EV and then leave only to come back many hours later. When it gets cold out, the range is awful. Our 2013 Leaf refused to charge at 17 degrees outside which left us stranded. EV's have a limited purpose so you have an extra expense insuring at least 2 vehicles. You can't drive across the State or Country in an EV in a timely manner. We drive to North Dakota every October which is 1600 miles each way. It takes us 3 days. In an EV, even a long-range Tesla, it would take double that time and you would really stress the batteries. Friends of ours with EV's don't run the heater or accessories just to save on battery usage. Look at all the Tesla's in Chicago that became boat anchors during the cold weather recently. We did enjoy the 2020 Leaf as a City Car. It was quiet, reliable, no oil smells, and comfortable. But in just 10K miles, the battery lost 7% if it's capacity. We read that over 40% of EV owners will not do it again. We did it twice and may try it again when the range is over 400 miles. NIO already has an EV with around 600 miles of range but is only available in China.

When I bought my 2020 Leaf SL Plus I took my previous car, a 2015 Altima, off my coverage and added the Leaf. I was surprised when my insurance premium went down, not up. That's the first time I've put a newer car on my insurance and had the cost go down.

 

[Drew21]

"Most Consumers do not want an EV. They are a PITA..."

I get a kick out of lists of everything an EV can't do. Sometimes I'm inspired to extend this logic. It occurs to me that our Leaf (or our Honda Fit) cannot pull a 30-ft trailer loaded with 20 tons of alfalfa hay like the 1974 International truck I grew up with on the farm. Compared to the old truck, neither of our vehicles is good for gathering firewood, or plowing snow, or hauling loads of gravel, or making me feel like a real rootin' tootin' American MAN!

On the other hand, my wife has free L2 charging at her work, so between her commute and the other local driving we do in the Leaf, we generally pay (let me check the calculator...) $0 to operate it. That saves wear-and-tear on the Honda Fit, which we have available when we need to go farther than the Leaf will take us. In other words, we own vehicles that most efficiently (and cheaply) do the jobs we typically need our vehicles to do.

Our life is not all otters and butterflies, however. Last week we bought a sleeper sofa (200-lbs and 6.5 feet long) and I was left scratching my head and feeling like a doofus. Why haven't I been driving a 1-ton dually pickup all along? You know, just in case future me needed to move a sofa or pull a house off the side of a cliff like Mel Gibson in Lethal Weapon 2? Then I remembered that you can rent a cargo van from U-haul and for a couple hours I had a highly efficient vehicle for moving furniture in the middle of a snowstorm, except I didn't have to buy it, or insure it, or do maintenance on it, or store it (neither a truck nor a van will fit in our tiny/narrow 1969-built garage).

Kitra is correct that current EVs don't work for everyone. Guess what? Neither do Ferraris, or Mazda Miatas, or BMW sedans, or Subaru Outbacks, or Ford Explorers, or RAM trucks. If you buy an EV and then complain that it won't get you where you need to go, or that appropriate fast chargers are hard to find where you live, or that it's not the fastest way to drive thousands of miles, or that charging takes longer than refueling an ICE car, that's a good sign that you didn't do your research prior to purchase.

 

[SageBrush]

Then I remembered that you can rent a cargo van from U-haul and for a couple hours I had a highly efficient vehicle for moving furniture in the middle of a snowstorm, except I didn't have to buy it, or insure it, or do maintenance on it, or store it (neither a truck nor a van will fit in our tiny/narrow 1969-built garage).

Yep. I'm also a fan of infrequent rentals.

I just saw today at Lowe's a $20 truck rental for 90 minutes. That covers most of my non-car usage. For the remainder, I ordered my Tesla with a hitch so that I can tow a trailer. My use case is rented heavy equipment like a trencher or a scissor lift.

I may yet buy an electric truck if a compact comes to market but the jury is out.

 

[cornbinder89]

I own a vehicle that CAN do it all (Poorly). It is a 1941 IHC K-7. They were used to pull semi trailers "back in the day" It can haul 5 tons on its chassie, I can drive it to the grocery store, or the doctors office, I can pull a normal trailer. I have done all those things with it. At best it burns gal of gas for 10 miles (unloaded or not). It is limited to about 45 mph, but as I said, it can do it all.
So those that "HAVE" to have one vehicle to "Do it all" then get yourself an antique truck, run a "air pac" and compressor and you too can have a vehicle that can do everything, if you can afford the time and money it takes to all those things.
BUT if you want something that will fit a normal garage, has reasonable insurance costs, fuel cost and repair costs, May be having a vehicle that can do 95% or better of the trips you take, and renting for those that it does not do well or is completely appropriate, you will find you are money ahead.
I needed some 21 ft lengths of pipe. My IHC was down for brakes. My brother and I moved them with his Prius and trailer, using the pipe as the neck of the trailer and the trailer supported the back end of the pipe. All that was needed was light cord extension and a coupler for the ball on the trailer hitch. The pipe was black-iron 1/2" and 3/4" so no real weight.

 

[kitra]

We did do our research before getting the 2013 Leaf. They leased it to us for $2000 down and $99 a month. It was my commuter. I killed the Battery Quick Charging for free every day. But it was a rental and Nissan claimed it wouldn't hurt the Batteries in which I knew that it would.
The 2020 was an impulse purchase as they almost gave it to us. 111 Leaf's at one Dealer rotting on their lot. Drove it 2 years and only 10,400 miles. Got stranded several times with down Chargers. We bought the 2020 Leaf to flip it. So that car made us quite a profit. They are a PITA but are a good city car.

 

[Drew21]

Hey cornbinder, glad to hear you're an International Harvester fan too. My grandpa and dad used to call our International trucks (grandpa's was black, ours was white, both 1974 3/4 tons) "Binders" but I never knew why. Does that have anything to do with your user name?

kitra - If you knew from your research that Quick Charging every day would kill your Leaf battery quickly, then why did you do it?