The Hertz thread mentioned that part of their issue with the EVs was low resale value. That got me thinking. Current front runners for my next car are an Elantra N or a WRX. Are there low mileage used EVs in that sub-$35k price bracket that I should also be considering as a do everything (fun street, backroads, occasional autoX or track) 4 door daily driver?
I don't think many EVs have "low resale", I think expensive Teslas depreciate like expensive cars do, and the data is skewed. There was data to back this up, but I cannot find it now.
I think part of the depreciation is the tax credits being applied to some used EVs. They don't seem to really depreciate as much as people think. Of course, this only matters to people who wouldn't have been eligible for tax credits.
Tesla, by volume, is the majority of the EV market. When your boy Elon drops prices by $10,000 with a tweet, it dramatically shifts values within the EV market.
To answer OPs question, the model 3 long range can be found under $30k all day long. Does it make a great autox/back roads car? That's highly subjective, but they're definitely quick
Model 3s are exceptionally fast for the money... but I wouldn't really call them fun.
Mach-Es, on the other hand, aren't as fast but offer a way more engaging driving experience IMHO. They might be worth looking into. I believe they're also around $30k on the used market.
For daily appliance duty, EVs can be great. If you're comparing them to fun cars (hopefully with manual transmissions), I think the EV would be way less fun and engaging.
calteg said:Tesla, by volume, is the majority of the EV market. When your boy Elon drops prices by $10,000 with a tweet, it dramatically shifts values within the EV market.
To answer OPs question, the model 3 long range can be found under $30k all day long. Does it make a great autox/back roads car? That's highly subjective, but they're definitely quick
That's exactly what's happened. Not "dropping prices by $10k with a tweet", but Tesla has dropped their prices considerably and that dragged down the value of used ones. It's not capricious, they're managing supply and demand and they've got the margin to do it. The resale values were holding quite strong until that started. And of course, this has also pulled down the rest of the market.
Your track requirement might take EVs off the table - it's not their best area, and just plain isn't allowed at some tracks. They can be devastating at autox. I do find the 3 fun to drive, but it's a different fun than having to manage a powertrain.
Keep in mind that the weight and acceleration characteristics of EVs like the Model 3 make them unfriendly to tire life compared to something like a Civic Si etc.
EV would make a good DD but I wouldn't consider one for track duty.
An EV can work (quite well) for autocross, but keep in mind that tracks are increasingly banning EVs completely right now because they don't have the firefighting capability to put out a lithium battery fire. Also consider that even with a quick charger at the track (edit: a very optimistic assumption since few tracks have any chargers at all), you're probably going to be doing a number of laps per day that you can count on your fingers and toes.
Sadly with the new bans I think an EV makes even less sense as a track car right now than they did in 2021 when I thought long and hard about whether to buy another ICE vehicle and decided that an EV still didn't make sense as a track car. Part of the problems were the cars themselves, there are a few more track-oriented EVs available now but they all cost 6-7 digits.
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