So how do you shop for a used EV?
When I say new things, I mean the big thing.
Range Finder
Traditionally buying a used car meant firing up the engine and listening very carefully.
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Are the valves pinging?
Why is this thing not idling smoothly?
Those issues are no longer, well, issues.
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Instead, you oughta confirm the battery isn’t a degraded pile of electrons.
First, find out if the battery has been replaced.
Take all of that into consideration.
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Don’t expect an EV with over 200,000 miles to have the same range as when it was new.
Now it’s time to take a drive.
Ask to take the car out for an hour and give a shot to do a 50-mile run.
If they are nervous about you being gone that long with their vehicle, a 25-mile run will work.
But the more miles you do, the better idea you’ll have about the battery’s state.
Before you go to see the car find out the vehicle’s usable battery capacity.
Not the gross, but the usable.
You’re going to need this number.
Take note of the battery percentage at the beginning and end of your drive.
Use that number to calculate the amount of kWh you burned through during your drive.
The approximate total range of the vehicle is about 200 miles.
But it’s not as simple as that.
you gotta ensure the route is a nice mixture of regular freeway and street driving.
This is not the time to check on the performance aspects of the car.
Figure out how you typically commute and give a shot to recreate that.
This is where you get to negotiate the price.
It’s also time to figure out the warranty.
That’s a big win for you.
But, check the fine print and call the manufacturer to double-check the warranty is transferable.
Get the Carfax
We’ve all seen the commercials with the animated fox.
But really,get the Carfax for the vehicle.
It’ll tell you about any accidents it’s been in and other important life moments for the car.
But don’t completely trust the Carfax.
If an accident was never reported, it wouldn’t appear on the Carfax.
This is where you get to play detective.
Fortunately, bad autobody work is easy to find.
check that you’re free to inspect the vehicle in the daylight or under strong lights.
Someone that won’t let you look at the vehicle outside of a dark garage is likely hiding something.
You want to look for paint that doesn’t look quite right.
Maybe it’s wavy or has a weird texture.
You also want to look for panels that look brighter or darker than other portions of the vehicle.
And keep an eye out for larger panel gaps in one spot than on the rest of the vehicle.
Maybe a headlight on one side of the car doesn’t fit as well as on the other side.
That’s a sure sign of a fender bender.
This also goes for dealerships.
A large established dealership might not be on the up and up.
Don’t let the big shiny showroom distract you from a proper inspection.
Tires and Interior
confirm the tires are all the same and from a major manufacturer.
Also, check their tread.
Mismatched tires and tread wear could be the first clues that other things are wrong.
Also, the interior can be a good indicator of how the vehicle was cared for.
Always lift up floor mats and the cargo area cover.
Look for rust, mold, and just general weirdness back there.
If you see it, walk away.
A leaking car is a pain to fix and likely has created other issues.
Bring a Friend
We can’t all be car enthusiasts.
Some of us just need to get to work and want to do so with an EV.
Bring them along but remind them about exactly what you want.
You want transportation, not a project.
If you’re like me, cool.
Projects are expensive and time consuming and frustrating, and expensive.
Did I mention expensive?
I have a project car, and it’s definitely not the vehicle I use every day.
New EVs are still very expensive and out of the reach of many people.
Figure out what you need in terms of range and start looking around.
Want to know more about EVs?
We have awhole section dedicated to electric vehicles!
