Hybrid electric vehicles are doing much better at retaining their used car values than are plug-in electric vehicles, according to the Blue Book Used-Car Market Report for May. Used electric vehicles are retaining nearly 55% of their original MSRP, while hybrids are much higher with retained average value at 74.3%.
Kelley Blue Book expects the hybrid market to outperform the EVs for quite some time. The EV charging infrastructure is still in early stages and consumers are still getting used to the idea of trying out that new technology. For drivers with short commutes, the purchase is much easier, but that’s not the case for everyone else. When EVs are higher in price than hybrid counterparts, that also hurts EV sales value. Incentives for new EVs is helping but they don’t apply to the used side of the sale.
Black Book also took a look at where hybrids have been going in value retention, and also found strong results for the segment. “As this portion of the market has grown in both the number of players and the retention, acceptability of the hybrid models has improved,” said Ricky Beggs, Senior Vice President and Editorial Director of Black Book. “Closer projection variations will continue, along with more players being available. The level of gas prices, closer to current levels or reaching near the $5.00 level, will ultimately be the driver in the same level or more interest and actual retention.”