Will Low Resale Value Of Electric Cars Keep Its Sales Behind Petrol Cars?

EVs have a lower resale value than a petrol car simply due to the difference in terms of overall sales. Electric cars are a fraction of petrol car sales which still command a higher resale value.

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Electric vehichles (EV) are indeed being touted as the future but one of the key questions arising out of potential electric car ownership is the resale value of one. Electric car sales have increased considerably due to increasing interest and more availability of models across various price brackets.

However, with an electric car, the ownership cost in the long range could be a doubt in regards to its resale value. EVs have fewer components and are much easier to run with lower service and ownership costs plus of course they are cheaper than a petrol car in terms of the electricity cost.

However, one big question mark is the resale value and while being a relatively new phenomenon, EVs have a lower resale value than a petrol car simply due to the difference in terms of overall sales. Electric cars are a fraction of petrol car sales and petrol cars still command a higher resale value.

The second is of course the battery which is the single biggest component of an EV and takes upto 40 percent of the total cost of an electric car. It is the most important part of the car and needless to say, dictates the resale value single-handedly.

EVs have a 8-year warranty and due to this, the lifespan of an EV is short as the range depletes after some time. Most car batteries have to be replaced after 8 years and that is a huge cost along with a reason why it will cost the EV owner a lot once the warranty expires.

While the battery pack comes with a certain kilometre limit, some EV owners have reported that the battery pack had to be replaced much earlier hence, making it clear that the electric car might be cheap to operate in the short run but in the long run, a high battery cost is involved.

With changing battery technology, current EVs also will go down in terms of resale value as they are bound to improve over the years with new technology.

So as of now, EVs continue to lag behind petrol cars in terms of resale value.