Cut-price fast EVs | Six of the Best
So the i4 M60 is good, but it's definitely not cheap. What's out there for less - a lot less - than £70k?
Mercedes-Benz EQE 53 AMG, 2024, 2k, £54,998
Yes, we’ve been here before. But with the volatility around new car sales going nowhere, and thousands of used electric cars in the classifieds at outrageously discounted prices, who could blame us for returning to the subject? Those with good memories might recall that an EQE featured last time around, but this is no ordinary Mercedes electric fastback. It’s a 53 AMG, which means more than 600hp and the usual raft of upgrades throughout. ‘As a piece of engineering, it’s bloody impressive’ was the PH verdict in 2022. Maybe not an AMG classic, but there’s a lot to be said for this much speed, serenity, composure and comfort. Especially when it’s half price: note that this EQE has the 21-inch ‘Y-spoke light alloy wheels’; on the configurator right now, they’re only available as part of a £7,995 AMG Performance Package, which brings the price of a new one to £113,990 without any other options. This 2024 car, after just 2,000 miles is £54,998. Still a lot of money, yes, but it won’t lose that much again. Enjoy that cruise home from Dundee…
Lotus Eletre S, 2023, 32k, £58,980
There’s a lot to like about the Eletre. The interior is beautifully appointed (it really is one of the very nicest cabins on sale), it’s obviously very fast (as well as being very fast charging), it’s super refined and it looks like nothing else on the road. But it was always going to be a struggle to sell it as a Lotus; those who bought the old sports cars probably wouldn’t want a 2.5-tonne EV, and those in the market for a luxury SUV might be wary of the badge - because Lotus only made sports cars until the Eletre. Combine that buyer caution with middling efficiency and the Eletre hasn’t exactly been the roaring success it needed to be - perhaps the new ‘super-hybrid’ powertrain will help its cause. Until then, there are tens of thousands off basically brand-new cars, and then this one: the first Eletre we’ve seen at less than £60,000. The spec is good, the condition is great, and it is nothing if not eye-opening. Just best not think what it might be worth in another three years…
Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, 2025, 1k, £52,995
Sadly, the half-price Hyundai Ioniq 5 N doesn’t exist just yet. But as proof of just how unfavourable conditions are right now, here’s a multi-award-winning car, one good enough to convert die-hard enthusiasts, from a reputable maker, at a sizeable discount. A brand-new Ioniq 5N is £66k, and this thousand-miler is £53k before any negotiation - that’s basically 20 per cent off. And if a car like the Hyundai isn’t immune from the ravages of EV depreciation - a car very much pitched at private rather than fleet buyers - which hasn’t been oversupplied (though arguably it was overpriced), then perhaps nothing is safe. For those who can accommodate its less-than-stellar efficiency and range, it’s hard to think of a better battery-powered family car that’s nearly new for £50k. It’s rapid, massive, it looks cool and it’s huge fun to drive. Which sounds pretty good, does it not?
Audi RS e-tron GT, 2022, 42k, £45,000
Good cars, the Audi e-tron GTs. Really, really good cars. Which is to be expected, really, given they’re built on the same ‘J1’ architecture as the Taycan. And while Porsche made an EV that was perhaps ever so slightly crisper to drive (or at least steer), there wasn’t very much in it, and the Audi could counter with its considerable style. Even a few years after launch, with plenty on the road and even with a facelift version available, the original remains a sleek GT, handsome and cool in a way that the Porsche isn’t. Furthermore, while the latest performance-spec cars can claim the best part of a thousand horsepower, nobody is going to feel shortchanged with the original RS and its overboosted 646hp. Especially at a whole lot less than half price after 42,000 miles: this would have been at least a £110,000 car new, and now it’s on offer at £45k.
Polestar Edition 2 BST, 2023, 27k, £32,992
You’ll be doing very well to have recalled the BST, Polestar’s limited edition, more driver-focused iteration of the 2. Just 40 came to the UK with an asking price of £68,990, kitted out with bespoke Ohlins dampers, stiffer springs, forged wheels, a strut brace and model-specific Pirellis. With, notably, exactly the same amount of horsepower as any other top-of-the-range 2. The BST overhaul was about improving the driving experience, and that it did: the changes made for a car that cornered more keenly, rode in a more sophisticated fashion, and generally gave more back to the keen driver. Up to and including endless fiddling with gorgeous dampers. The BST was a tasteful set of tweaks rather than a total transformation, though, and therefore hard to justify for all but the most dedicated Polestarists. Maybe why two of the 40 are for sale - both with more than £30,000 off after fewer than 30,000 miles…
BMW iX M60, 2022, 44k, £49,500
Truth be told, the M60 is not the most compelling variant of BMW’s divisive electric SUV. The iX is all about effortless, soothing progress, insulated from the rest of the world and cocooned in a beautiful BMW interior. The weirdness of the outside ceases to matter too much from within (thankfully). The M60, with its Hans Zimmer soundtrack and ability to bludgeon its way to 62mph in less than four seconds, didn’t have soothing progress as its USP. But if speed matters more than anything else, then there’s little better. And you wouldn’t have to drive it like an M car the whole time, or any of the time for that matter, instead content in a great cabin with more than ample performance when required. The test car we called ‘stupendously fast, immensely plush, and fearsomely capable well enough to earn it flagship status’ was optioned to £121,495; this 2022 car sneaks in under £50k…
As to the list, I'm surprised that there's no Taycans, given the consensus is that they've no depreciated so far they're only tradeable for a king-size Pot Noodle. I'm out of the UK so I can't tell if this is in fact a myth, or there aren't many for sale, or the PH staff just decided to do something else? My choice: the Audi, which is the nicest looking car of any stripe that Audi have produced for a long time.
The Lotus, apart from being unreliable, is so awful in both concept and looks that is genuinely saddens me to think that the once great Norfolk brand is even associated with it, let alone responsible. I get they had to do something SUV shaped, but it didn't have to be this bad.
Why can't we have pretty EVs? Genuinely, stop-and-stare pretty cars seem to be a thing of the past.
I tested both the Audi and 5N.
For me, the 5N was the better car, so it arrives soon.
I also looked at the Lotus, but my insurance company wouldn’t quote on it, I was told it was due to parts not being available. Not sure how true that is but they just weren’t interested.
Die hard petrol head onto my 4th EV would never have thought it as a company car, too good not to have!
Just fairly normal depreciation on used cars that had very high list prices.
I don’t know if there is something specific to the Merc, but that ^^^ seems like pretty brutal depreciation.
Last August we bought an immaculate 4S with the big battery and almost every option ticked. The original owner kept it at their holiday home and barely used it, covering just 7500 km in their ownership. We paid $100k less for it than they did, but, given their other cars, I doubt they noticed the savage depreciation.
It’s an absolutely phenomenal piece of engineering and absolutely a sports car despite its weight. I say that as a confirmed petrol head - it’s parked next to my Z4M coupe track car and Lotus Exige daily driver.
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202512228...
The Longbow Roadster and Caterham Project 5 are both stunners, fingers crossed they see the light of day.
The Lotus Emira, Maserati GranTurismo and MC20 are the only cars made currently I can think of which are properly ‘pretty’. Car styling generally is at an all time low.
I personally really like the A110 but I know it’s polarising.
Got the wife a Smart #1….. looks like a cross between a mini countryman and noddys car.
But a demo with 2k miles and 6 months old was £20k. Still got many years of warranty and 4 years foc servicing.
It’s a mid spec model, but it’s a 272bhp sleeper - I remember when you needed to buy an amg or m3 for that kind of power.
All the day-to-day car you ever need -> mega performance, mega space, lush interior and super cheap running costs.
That feeling of 1,100 Nm (811 lb-ft) of instant torque
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