Used EV listings in South Africa jump 63% as prices drop

From the newsletter

Used electric cars are now selling for less than two-thirds of the price of new ones in South Africa, lowering the barrier to EV ownership. This comes even as the number of used electric cars listed on South Africa’s biggest car selling platform Autotrader has jumped by 63% in the half-year to June 2025. More than 4,000 electric cars have been sold in South Africa to date. 

• The vast majority of vehicles sold in most African countries are used. The availability of used electric cars will reduce prices and make it easier for Africans to afford EVs, which will help catalyse EV adoption.  

• EV companies, mainly from China, are flooding the African market with cheaper electric cars that have better features than older models. This is enticing early EV adopters on the continent to sell their older models and upgrade. 

More details

• Prices of used electric cars are falling drastically in South Africa. For example, a new 2025 BYD Dolphin is selling for R 575,000 ($32,400) on Autotrader, while the same model that has clocked 9,000 km in mileage is selling for R 445,900 ($25,100), a price reduction of 22%. Similarly, a new 2025 BYD Seal is selling for R 1.18 million ($66,600), while a used model with 9,600 km is selling for R 999,900, ($56,500) a price cut of 15%. 

• According to Autotrader, the fastest selling used EV in South Africa is the Volvo EX30, which has sold 64 units followed by the Volvo XC40, which has sold 45 units. BMW i3 and BMW iX3 follow, with 35 units and 29 units sold respectively during the period. Other popular used electric cars include the BMW iX (28), Mini Hatch (28), GWM Ora 03 (16), Audi e-tron (14), Jaguar i-PACE (14) and BMW i4 (13). 

• South Africa, currently Africa’s largest motor vehicle manufacturer behind Morocco, does not allow the importation of used vehicles from other countries, both fuel-powered and electric. This means that the used electric car market in South Africa is made up of vehicles that were originally introduced as new in South Africa. 

• While new EV sales in Africa are small, they are rising quickly, with new electric car sales more than doubling to nearly 11,000 in 2024, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). This shows a nascent base to feed future used-EV supply. Like used fuel vehicles, used EVs will quickly become attractive across the continent where income levels constrain new-car purchases.

• At the same time, Africa will likely be a major recipient of used EV imports from major economies, especially China, Europe, the US and Japan. These markets already have large fleets of older and smaller EVs such as the Nissan Leaf. These used vehicles will come in at much cheaper prices compared to new electric cars and likely dominate the market as it has happened in the fuel vehicle market. 

• Despite these trends, battery degradation will be a major headache that could limit the uptake of used EVs. This will be compounded by the limited number of local EV technicians and supply chains for motors, inverters and batteries, which increase downtime and cost of EV ownership. African countries could be forced to impose technical, age and battery rules for imports. 

Our take

• There will be a split in the used EV market across the continent. On one hand, countries like South Africa, with its ban on used car imports, will see a local, new-to-used EV market develop. On the other hand, countries with more lenient import policies will become major recipients of older, cheaper used EVs from key exporting markets, similar to how they currently import used ICE vehicles. 

• The influx of older, used EVs will inevitably raise concerns about battery degradation. While the affordability is a clear benefit, a car with a severely degraded battery is a liability, not an asset, for the end consumer and the grid.

• The challenge of battery degradation will also present a major opportunity. Used batteries from imported EVs will have a significant residual value for "second-life" applications. Instead of being a waste product, these batteries, which still have 60-80% of their capacity, can be repurposed for energy storage solutions.