this post was submitted on 06 May 2024
872 points (96.9% liked)
Technology
60067 readers
5730 users here now
This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
Our Rules
- Follow the lemmy.world rules.
- Only tech related content.
- Be excellent to each another!
- Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
- Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
- Politics threads may be removed.
- No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
- Only approved bots from the list below, to ask if your bot can be added please contact us.
- Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed
Approved Bots
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
Yes, I'm talking specifically about used EVs. We have an incentive for buying used from a dealer, but that doesn't apply if I buy from the owner directly.
So all it's doing is funneling money to dealers. Why would I buy a car for $20k from a private seller if I can get a similar car for $22k from a dealer with a $4k credit (so $18k net)? The private seller would have to sell for $18k to be on par, so why wouldn't they sell to the dealer for $19k? In this scenario, the dealers pocket the difference. If I could get the credit for private sales, I'd be willing to pay $21k ($17k net), so both I and the seller are better off (seller gets $2k more, I pay $1k less). The result is that prices for used EVs stay higher than they normally would because the private market can't effectively put downward pressure on prices.
It's entirely stupid. The dealer certainly provides some level of value (financing, selection, etc), but the private option should be practical for those who don't need or want what dealers provide. I have never purchased a car from a dealer, and I don't plan to start now (I don't trust them), and it's part of why I don't have an EV.