We’ve seen plenty of “it’s over for EVs” headlines in the last 18 months, and OEMs are panic-pivoting to hybrids to offset billions in EV-division losses. But you know what else is happening? Gas pump prices are skyrocketing, and a great crop of late-model electric cars is hitting the used market as they come off leases or are traded in by their first owners. We might be stumbling into an amazing time to become an EV adopter.
A few years ago, going electric either required a big investment (expensive car) or a big sacrifice (being seen in an i-MiEV). That dichotomy no longer exists. A 10-second search of CarGurus listings today turns up a wide selection of nice, new-ish electric cars for under $25,000, with some decent-looking stuff for more like half that. My local VW store has a mint 2019 e-Golf for about $12,000, and there are even better deals on offer if you do any digging.
In fact, for used cars under $20,000, the average used EV these days is two years newer and has 40,000 fewer miles than a gas-burning car at the same price point, according to the Car Dealership Guy site.
The stars have already been aligning for 2026 to be a great time to buy a used EV. Forbes made a compelling case for the value of secondhand electric cars this very month, citing days-on-lot and consumer interest data.
Then there’s the Hertz hangover—the rental car giant dumped more than 30,000 used EVs into the market and basically set a new pricing floor in the segment.
All this to say, if you want a great deal on a late-model used car, look at EVs. Buyers and sellers seem to be catching on. In the mid-March Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index that Cox Automotive just published, the EV Index jumped 6.7% year-over-year, suggesting that we are at or near the bottom of the dip, and in fact, demand might officially be on the upward trajectory.
And all those points above were made before missiles started flying around some of the world’s richest oil reserves and critical shipping lanes were being closed by war. If you somehow haven’t noticed what’s been happening with pump prices, here’s another data point: crude oil values are going to the moon.
The “EV Winter” narrative that the mainstream media was obsessed with late last year has basically set the stage for a real rebound—only it’s happening on the used market, not the showroom floor.
Electric cars are far from perfect—they’re still expensive to insure, and charging infrastructure in many parts of America leaves a lot to be desired. But the selection of used EVs now offers better deals than it has ever, and in real and tangible ways, EVs are looking like better buys than comparable gas cars. But the era of spending $60,000 on a car to save $2,000 a year on fuel is over; the math on pivoting to an electric car is suddenly a lot more appealing. Forget hugging trees, it’s worth considering an EV for your next car just to give $110-a-barrel oil a kick in the nuts.
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