Choosing an electric car is always an exercise that requires compromises. You either prioritize range or prioritize affordability, unfortunately you can’t have both.

People that want a good balance between price and range often buy used electric cars to save money and get the best value for the money.

However, now in 2020 new electric cars with decent real-world range (above 200 km) that aren’t extremely expensive start to become available. The VW electric triplets UpMiiGo with a WLTP range of 260 km and a price below 20.000 euros (after subsidies) have a good price-range ratio and in the long run we can actually save money with them.

The question is: can we still get a better deal with an used electric car?

To answer this the most important thing to know is how good is the battery.

We can use tools like an OBD2 scanner with a computer or smartphone to know the current SoH (State-of-Health) of a battery, but this software calculated parameter isn’t 100 % reliable. It’s also important to know how good are the cells and the battery pack that contains them to predict its aging process.

Life cycle and cycle life are different things

While most of the times when analyzing a battery cell I write about its cycle life, where we can see how much charge/discharge cycles affect battery capacity retention, this is just one factor that affects the life cycle (aging) of a battery.

The life cycle of batteries is affected not only by charge/discharge cycles, but also by other factors such as time and temperature. Batteries are like people, they work best with moderate exercise (cycles) at moderate pace (C-rates) and moderate temperatures (around 25º C), nonetheless even with great care in the end time still kills people and batteries.

If treated right you can expect 15 years of service for a modern Li-ion battery, some high quality batteries like Samsung SDI can even last 30 years. Samsung SDI is slow/cautious to adopt new battery technologies, but in my book since the launch of the NCM 94 Ah battery cells this Korean battery cell maker developed the best cells we can find in a mass-produced electric car. When Samsung SDI adopts a new battery technology, we know it’s mature. By the way, Samsung SDI will start producing NCM 811 battery cells next year…

Anyway, most EV batteries have a decent 8-year or 160.000 km (100.000 miles) warranty. This is true for all electric cars in this list.

Moving on…

First let’s see what we get with the VW electric triplets, to then compare it with some used electric cars.

New Volkswagen e-up, SEAT Mii Electric and Skoda CITIGOe iV

Year: 2020

Starting price: around 17.000 euros (after subsidies which vary from country to country)

Seats: 4

Motor: 61 kW

On-board charger: 7,2 kW

DC fast charging: 80 % in 60 minutes

WLTP range: 260 km

Total battery capacity: 36,8 kWh

Usable battery capacity: 32,3 kWh

Battery weight: 248 kg

Battery energy density: 148 Wh/kg

Battery cells: 168 (84s2p)

Battery chemistry: NCM 622

Battery manufacturer: LG Chem

Battery TMS: passive air cooling

Battery warranty: 8-year or 160.000 km (100.000 miles)

Battery life cycle: ★★★ 3/5

Pros:

Extremely efficient to use in the city at low/medium speeds.

Simple and reliable.

Cons:

Poor DC fast charging rates prevent it from being practical for longer journeys.

No active TMS (Thermal Management System) to prevent excessive battery aging from high temperatures.

Only 4 seats.

The good news is that with the smartphone App you can limit the charging SOC (State-of-Charge) to less than 100 % to maximize battery life. I strongly recommend it.

Now let’s see the used alternatives…

Used BMW i3 (94 Ah battery)

Year: 2016-2018

Starting price: 18.900 euros

Seats: 4

Motor: 125 kW

On-board charger: 7,4 kW

DC fast charging: 80 % in 30 minutes

WLTP range: 245 km

Total battery capacity: 33,77 kWh

Usable battery capacity: 27,2 kWh

Battery weight: 256 kg

Battery energy density: 132 Wh/kg

Battery cells: 96 (96s1p)

Battery chemistry: NCM 333 (also known as NCM 111)

Battery manufacturer: Samsung SDI

Battery TMS: active liquid cooling

Battery warranty: 8-year or 160.000 km (100.000 miles)

Battery life cycle: ★★★★★ 5/5

Pros:

Great DC fast charging rates.

Great battery that will probably outlast the rest of the car.

Powerful motor with good acceleration.

Good interior.

Cons:

The rear “suicide” doors can’t be opened unless you first open the front door. Some might love it, some might hate it.

Only 4 seats.

The BMW i3 is a premium urban electric car, if you only need 4 seats and don’t mind the “suicide” doors, it’s a great choice.

Used Renault ZOE R90 (ZE 40 battery)

Year: 2016-2019

Starting price: 10.900 euros (battery rental) or 17.500 euros (battery included)

Seats: 5

Motor: 68 kW

On-board charger: 22 kW

DC fast charging: not available

WLTP range: 317 km

Total battery capacity: 44,1 kWh

Usable battery capacity: 41 kWh

Battery weight: 305 kg

Battery energy density: 145 Wh/kg

Battery cells: 192 (96s2p)

Battery chemistry: NCM 622

Battery manufacturer: LG Chem

Battery TMS: active air cooling

Battery warranty: 8-year or 160.000 km (100.000 miles)

Battery life cycle: ★★★★ 4/5

Pros:

Good range.

Great on-board charger that enables 22 kW charging at pretty common public EVSEs.

Good battery that will probably outlast the rest of the car.

Unlike the other electric cars mentioned, this one has 5 seats.

Cons:

Powertrain can be problematic.

Not having DC fast charging capability.

Rear seat can only be folded in one big piece, which isn’t very practical.

Interior is not as good as it’s in the new generation.

In the old days the Renault ZOE wasn’t regarded as a very reliable electric car. Most of its bad reputation came from the old Q210 and Q90 powertrains made by Continental. However, while the R240, R90, R110 and R135 powertrains made by Renault are much more reliable and efficient, they can still be problematic. Renault really needs to fix this problem for good.

If you can avoid the cheapest Life variant and look for the more popular Intens and Zen variants.

Also important is that in Europe there are a lot of public 22 kW EVSEs (Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment) that are free to use. The Renault ZOE with its good range and fast 22 kW on-board charger is the best electric car to make the best use of them and save the most money possible. However, if you do really want to save money in the long run avoid the battery lease.

Summing up.

If you want to buy new and want an electric car with good price-range ratio go for the UpMiiGo triplets.

If you want to regularly use DC fast chargers and enjoy a powerful motor go for an used BMW i3 (94 Ah battery).

If you plan to use free 22 kW public EVSEs and want to save as much money as possible go for an used Renault ZOE R90 with battery included.

People often buy used cars to save money and for this reason, in my opinion the used electric car that offers the best value for money is the Renault R90 with the ZE 40 battery. You can save a lot of money with this electric car.

However, remember that if you buy an electric car from 2016 in 2020, half of its 8-year battery warranty is already gone. This makes it even more important to know what to expect of its battery. If you care about battery quality you can’t go wrong with either the Renault ZOE R90 (ZE 40 battery) or the BMW i3 (94 Ah battery).

Which electric car do you think has the best value for money?