The impetus for the creation of this review was a series of publications — first in foreign, and later — in local media, which discussed the significant pace of replenishment of the Ukrainian fleet with electric cars, and in general the interest in them in the market of the country, part of which is occupied, in addition, active hostilities continue actions Also, these articles often mention the prices of electric cars, which can be lower than in other markets.
Experts of the Institute of Car Market Research checked this information and came to the conclusion that during 2023, the prices of used electric cars in Ukraine really decreased significantly — by a total of $3,000. It is clear that for the team of analysts, it is not enough to just state the fact, that is why it was decided to investigate the question more deeply — why the "transport of the future" has so "sunk" in its market value.
In order for the conversation to be as objective as possible, the research will be conducted within the framework of one brand — Tesla, because it is these cars that are now the quantitative leaders on the Ukrainian secondary car market, in addition, the price reduction for these cars belonging to the "premium" group is most noticeable .
Among the four main models of this American manufacturer, the Model 3 was the most popular according to the results of auctions in 2023. The Roadster is present in Ukraine in one copy, the Cybertruck pickup has not yet arrived.
The slice of average prices, obtained on the basis of the study of data collected by the aggregator Automoto.ua, which processes about 100 sites for the sale of motor vehicles in Ukraine, shows that the average prices indicated in ads for the sale of Tesla cars for the year decreased from 20.2% to Model Y up to 27.7% on Model S.
In practice, this means that the average difference, expressed in terms of money that owners asked for at the beginning of 2023, and at the end of it, is about $10,000. The minimum prices were also “asked”: now it is quite possible to find a Model S on the go (first editions) at a price of $15,000, the much newer (but slightly smaller) Model 3 starts at $20,000. A year ago, these requests were $10,000 higher.
If you once again pay attention to one of the slides above, which contains detailed information about Tesla cars, two figures are important for further research: more than 70% of these cars are newly arrived (imported), and a total of 80% of them were previously bought on sites of insurance auctions, i.e. have been in an accident or had other damage (hail, vandalism, theft, flooding, etc.). These numbers prompt a look at the statistics (history) of average prices at American auctions, since that is where most Tesla electric cars come from.
For the most popular car on the market, the Model 3, according to the analytical portal autoAstat, the average lot price at the beginning of 2023 was $20,006. As of the beginning of 2024, the order of the numbers is as follows: the average rate is $10,850, the minimum is $100, the maximum is $29,675. Of this set of numbers, the most important thing is that the average rate for the year has decreased by 45.8%. That is, almost half.
Passenger electric cars in Ukraine are exempt from most import taxes (only the excise tax remains, 1 euro per 1 kWh battery), and from the first registration fee. However, they are not exempt from auction fees, insurance, shipping costs from Europe or the US, certification, and the need for repairs (if auction cars are considered).
Accordingly, a 45.8% decrease in the average "input" price at auctions quite logically led to a 25.7% decrease in prices in our turnkey market for the Model 3. Similar principles are fair to apply and to other models — with a difference of a few percent, they will have a similar decrease in the average value of the lot.
However, these are not all the factors: the supply of electric vehicles has once again begun to significantly outpace the demand for them. In particular, active ads for the sale of Tesla are now three times more than actually purchased cars during the month. Which in one way or another forces some sellers to compromise on the price to speed up the sale. Added to this is natural aging, during which market prices for cars decline: Model S sales began more than 10 years ago, in 2012, Model X — in 2015, Model 3 — in 2017, Model Y — in 2020.
Why is Tesla getting cheaper?
So, a significant reduction in the prices of used electric cars, in particular Tesla, has indeed occurred and partially continues to occur. The reasons for this phenomenon were the fact that a large part of the market (80%) is filled with auction cars, for which the average bid has halved in a year, the increase in supply (and its triple advantage over demand), as well as the natural aging of early models. In addition, last year there was a decrease in the prices of new Tesla cars, which also had an impact on the secondary market.
- As for forecasts, how long this price reduction will last and where its "extreme point" is, such information is provided only upon separate request.
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