We checked the online classifieds and found 1510 used electric cars on just one website
So what about the other used car websites? Well before you do further checks let us share how we stumbled on this information.
A regular DSF.my reader from Penang island messaged us asking for used car advice. This was a recently retired lady who wanted to buy a USED simple electric car just for Penang island commuting.
She will only be driving to see friends on the island, visit her place of worship, weekly wet market visit and the occasional foodie hunt on the island.
For trips across the bridge she had her husband’s petrol sipping hybrid which they will not give up. Now her current car is a petrol sipping Japanese car which is about 10 years old and so it was time for a something newer. A retirement gift to herself.
This lady had all the right points to be an electric car owner as mentioned above, plus she had full solar panels at home. This meant only AC home charging (using solar power) for her EV which really saves the environment and reduces running cost.
Meanwhile, she wanted a used EV because she was unsure about future used values and having read my previous articles, she knew that 4 to 5-year-old EV’s still had a factory warranty and their depreciation will be high. Best to buy used.
Incidentally, a recent study conducted by American EV marketplace Recurrent does showed that there is evidence to suggest drive battery replacements may actually be a rare occurrence than the scare stories floating around on social media. In fact, its data actually shows for less than 1 percent of battery packs in from EVs 2016 and newer had required a replacement.
We checked the classifieds to find a suitable used EV and this was when we stumbled on 1510 units of used EV’s on sale from various brands, including super premium EV’s.
After some swiping and clicking on our mouse pad we decided that a 5-year-old Nissan Leaf would be best for her. Nissan distributor Tan Chong had strong presence on Penang island and the asking price was just RM60,000 before negotiations. A phone call and short conversation with the dealer and there was room to negotiate further.
At its launch, this fully-imported from Japan Nissan Leaf retailed for RM188,888 (for Peninsular Malaysia, on-the-road price with 10 percent sales tax, without insurance and valid for private individual registration), with a three years/60,000km maintenance service, three years/100,000km vehicle warranty and eight years/160,000 lithium-ion battery warranty.
Please note that the latest version of the Leaf which was launched in May 2023, the selling price dropped to RM168,888.
With instant acceleration from its 320Nm of torque and a 0-100km/h acceleration time of 7.9 seconds, this is probably the best value USED electric vehicle (EV) for Malaysians looking to enjoy simple city commuting electric vehicle with total green motoring.
With a full battery charge (remember, this is a full battery powered vehicle with NO petrol engine) this Nissan Leaf will provide its driver with about 270km of range (realistically in Penang traffic about RM230km or so) if driven ‘without excitement’. The real world range for a used version might be 200km which is still pretty good as a daily urban commuter vehicle around Penang island.
