Used electric vehicles under $25,000 surge as new EV sales crash [View all]

Traffic may have dried up at electric vehicle dealerships after the end of federal purchase incentives, but sales of used electric cars and trucks have only accelerated.

Almost 89,000 used EVs changed hands in the last three months of 2025, up 13.5% from a year earlier, according to Cox Automotive. What’s more, the inventory of used electric machines is turning over in about 50 days, slightly faster than for gas-powered cars. By contrast, sales of new EVs fell 36% in the fourth quarter of last year.

“The buzz word for the year is ‘affordability’ for a really good reason,” said Liz Najman, director of market insights at Recurrent, which provides range estimates and other EV-centric data to car dealers and shoppers. “You can get a two- or three-year-old EV for 50% off and you’re talking about something with a lot of technology and a warranty on the battery.”

For a long time the used EV market in the United States was stagnant. There weren’t a lot of cars for sale and buyers worried about batteries in older models dying out. But EV batteries are proving to be more durable than expected, and in the U.S., they’re generally covered under warranty for at least eight years or 100,000 miles.

New EVs still outsell used ones by a long shot, but analysts say a mature used market will help buttress demand for new battery-powered machines. When shopping for a new car, more than 90% of EV owners choose to go electric again.

https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2026-02-17/used-electric-vehicles-under-25-000-surge-as-new-ev-sales-crash