Elektromobilität: Spritpreise machen gebrauchte Elektroautos teurer

High fuel prices are making used electric cars more appealing, yet also more expensive. Between May and August, the residual values for three-year-old electric cars increased by 1.4 percentage points, according to data from market observer DAT. In parallel, the residual values for gasoline cars fell by 0.4 percentage points, and diesel values even dropped by 1.1 percentage points.

The rise in electric car values is unusual, as typically, DAT's residual values decrease slightly over the course of the year due to technical reasons. Currently, the percentage residual values for electric cars are lower than for gasoline-powered vehicles. On average, the resale price for pure electric cars (BEV) represents 51.5% of the list price, for diesels it's 58%, and for gasoline cars, 59.4%.

However, this gap has narrowed significantly over the past year: In November 2025, electric cars were only valued at 48.4%, compared to 62.6% for gasoline cars and 61.2% for diesel. Dealers sell electric cars much faster. The most important driver for the decision towards electromobility is likely to be fuel prices, which have spurred increased demand for both used and new BEVs.

This, in turn, has resulted in relatively low supply of used BEVs. DAT also noted significantly shorter average ownership periods for electric cars. While it took dealers longer to sell an electric car compared to a gasoline car in May and the preceding months, the situation has since reversed. Diesels are now the most difficult to sell, with a mere 92 days on average.

Gasoline cars take 84 days, while electric cars only take 74. The decision to buy a car usually takes some time. Furthermore, the prolonged crisis indicated that the high prices are not a short-term phenomenon, gaining more weight for car buyers. Electric cars still play a minor role on the used market, accounting for 5.3% of all ownership transfers in August, up from 3.9% a year ago.