Cheapies Value EVs in 2026 War Times

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  RockCartel on 05/08/2026 - 16:07

  Here's my cheapest cheapies recommendation.
  Most of the time, buying will cost more then keeping what you have now. Even if you factor in the operating costs.
  You say "possibly in the market", sounds like they don't need to replace the current solution.
  We all like new things, but that will cost more. I keep looking (because I also like new things). But can't justify the cost.
  So I say sit tight. It's what I'm doing.

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  nzsaver on 05/08/2026 - 16:11

  Their Euro car is falling apart. My Frugalist Frugalies lifestyle of the past has taught me that waiting for things to fail is a false economy.

  When things fail:

  1. Your existing item drops in value from hardly anything, to liability (costs you to get rid of it)

  2. If it’s an essential item like a car, or home appliance, you now have added pressure to replace it, meaning that it’s hard to time the purchase to coincide with a sale, or market timing etc.

  3. Their old car is so heavy on fuel consumption that it would likely be cost effective to replace with an EV, EVEN if a loan was involved (they won’t need a loan, and I’m not advocating for loans)

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    mpc on 06/08/2026 - 11:08

    You can get low interest 'green' loans. Spreading it over 3 years at 1% interest is worthwhile considering. While they might not need a loan it's a cheap way of doing it, especially if the money they'd be spending was getting 5-10% return. I'm guessing using it for an electric car purchase would qualify.

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      Everettpsycho on 06/08/2026 - 13:53

      It's worth asking how the repayments work. With ANZ we don't have to pay it off in 3 years and instead opted to match our remaining mortgage term. After 3 years it just reverts to a floating rate mortgage. Our view was I'm not going to overpay so minimum payments over the longest term will maximize our 1% borrowing and put extra money in to an offset to reduce higher rate borrowing. After 3 years we'll just merge the two to the same interest rate and would have saved maximizing the 1% rate.

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  quattroporte on 06/08/2026 - 08:18

  Agree with the earlier commenter re BYD being a great option. They have best battery tech and are essentially the Toyota of China so resale will be very strong. You might find another brand cheaper but will they be in NZ in the long run and will people want it as a second hand option?

  Also ignore the stubborn attitude of “I’ll never buy used”. It doesn’t always make sense. Friends recently bought a 4 year old RAV4 Hybrid done 70ks and they could have bought the same thing brand new for only $5k more. That 70k car will need brakes and tyres a lot sooner and be out of warranty.

  If you are a homeowner most banks will offer 0 or 1% green loans on BEVs (I hear some have stopped lending on hybrid).

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  ace310 on 05/08/2026 - 16:23

  For new, you can have a full list here

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  CheapAzChips on 05/08/2026 - 17:09

  I might ruffle some feathers, but here goes. Warning, opinions ahead:

  Can they afford a second hand EV comfortably? If they can't, that's your question answered.

  If you're not sure, do the calculations, and don't forget to factor in things they mightn't have had to consider before: RUC, distance they need to travel in a day/week, long distance travel, charge capability (home charging off a 10A outlet can be painfully slow, dedicated EV chargers are worth it if you need to regularly do a full charge overnight), electricity supplier plan peak/off-peak pricing vs. when and for how long the vehicle will be charged, charging losses, etc. And weigh up how much driving a nice new (or new-ish) car is worth: fewer repairs and frustrations, etc.

  Even some marginal things like additional tyre wear (EVs are heavier than their petrol counterparts). Yes, brand new EVs are definitely holding more value now than they would have even a year ago. You still pay a penalty driving it off the yard, but IME it's not much more than the ORC in many cases for in-demand vehicles.

  If all that stacks up, then I'd say go for it. EVs are going to be in demand for a while. Stay away from older Nissans (or any Nissan EVs, for that matter), and consider that the range it has now will reduce over time. if you want the purchase to hold value, buy newer and with a range of >400km if you (they) can afford it.

  The other option is hybrid: a good newish hybrid will still holds its value for quite some time I think. Avoid PHEV, they are the worst of both worlds, except in a few niche areas. You'll pay RUC from day one, and over time your battery is unlikely to support much EV-only driving, meaning you're lugging a big battery around which isn't doing much. Fuel costs are generally higher than pure petrol as soon as you're out of EV juice. Especially avoid Mitsubishi Outlanders.

  Creds: We just bought our first EV after watching the market for ages, have had a Prius for years (including replacing its battery), and also own petrol vehicles. Happy to answer any other questions you have.

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    nzsaver on 05/08/2026 - 17:26

    Everyone has their own thoughts on which EV but I’m keen to know yours since you have recently done the DD and considered many important factors (I can tell by your post).

    We personally owned a 2013 LEAF which was great at the time but now no longer good value/tech in 2026.

    I can’t recall specific brands but I heard great things about one brand only to hear a lot of reports 2 years later from owners saying that their cars did not meet their expectations (cheap shoddy build).

    Am keen to know what your research came up with respect to these broad categories:

    • build quality
    • design/technology/features
    • overall value compared to competitors

    Thanks!

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      CheapAzChips on 05/08/2026 - 20:20

      I'll do my best:. First of all, we bought a BYD Atto 2: our first non-Toyota ever. It's a runabout for my wife, typical distances travelled are up to ~100km/day so well within the full charge range (~340km). BYD have consistently proved themselves as producing high quality batteries which are safe and tend to age well, so the lower range in this model was not a big concern for us. We bought a demonstrator, saving a few thousand plus ORC, and basically got a brand new car.

      • Build quality: I didn't look specifically into the build quality of this model, it's relatively new to the NZ market, but I've spoken with others who own other BYDs and they've been very happy with the quality. It's not a top-tier brand or model, but having owned it for a week or so we're also very happy.
      • Design/tech/features: ngl, the Atto 2 isn't the sexiest design, it's pretty plain: it's really BYD's EV version of a Corolla (Cross, maybe). But it's got all the tech we were interested in: smart everything, 360⁰ camera, sunroof, reasonable audio, etc. We also looked at the Atto 3 (didn't like the quirky design) and Sealion 6 hybrid which wasn't nice to drive.
      • Overall value: I know there are other brands with similar features for similar or lower prices (Dongfeng, XPeng, GWM, MG, etc etc) but honestly we were just after an EV "Corolla" that was reliable without the quirks. And who wants to drive a car called Dongfeng anyway? (😂) So for us the value stacked up.

      We still need to buy another car to replace mine which is also falling apart, and we'll definitely be looking for something with better range for longer trips and the ability to tow. Haven't settled on that one just yet.

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  Everettpsycho on 05/08/2026 - 17:48

  What are they moving from? EVs are cheaper to run and maintain but if they are only going shopping you will never recoup that loss.

  Also how big do they need and realistically how far to do they go in a day to day basis? Smaller cars are cheaper as are shorter range. The difference you need to figure out for an EV is you can start each day full. So factor in things like frequent trips but those once a year deals they may just have to live with taking longer using fast chargers.

  We looked at new but ultimately ended up getting an imported 62kWh. It can do 320km on a charge and is big enough for our needs. We chose it as we just couldn't justify more than 50% more money to get less range in a new car when small kids are involved. Unfortunately the newer models just haven't quite reached he second hand market yet but I'm expecting NZ new mg zs, atto 3 and that generation to start appearing more often as they start to have lease renewals.

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    dryburn on 05/08/2026 - 17:53

    What EV did you purchase and care to share the price?

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      Everettpsycho on 05/08/2026 - 17:57

      Sorry I thought I included that, it was a 2021 leaf, we were upgrading from a 3018 30kWh model. They are listed from about $20k depending on battery health.

      We know it's slightly dated battery tech but the amount we will need to charge a 62kWh battery should help prolong the life with fewer cycles. 300km+ just opens up a lot of options for us doing day trips and doubling the price seemed silly.

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