Survey | the tide of price increases spread second-hand new energy vehicles, car dealers said that the low retention rate of "price increases is just a bubble"

The used car trading market in Beijing's Huaxiang over the weekend was very deserted.

"Affected by the epidemic, the market has been sluggish recently, the circulation of used cars has not moved, and some cars we are selling at a loss." Zhang Ming, a second-hand car dealer, told the first financial reporter.

Beijing Huaxiang Used Car Market is the largest used car trading market in China, where a number of brands of used cars are gathered, and there are currently more than 9,500 vehicles on sale. However, the first financial reporter recently found that in this huge trading market, there are few new energy second-hand cars.

"It's good to have more than a dozen new energy used cars on this street, and many stores don't accept new energy used cars." Zhang Ming said that at present, tesla such quasi-new cars are popular, most of the new energy second-hand cars are not welcomed by the market, and car dealers who do not have the right price do not dare to collect. After the recent price increase of new energy vehicles, the price of second-hand new energy vehicles has also risen. However, most car dealers said that the price and retention rate of second-hand new energy vehicles are unstable, and for most brands, price increases are only short-term behaviors and "fleeting bubbles".

It is difficult to collect the car, and the quasi-new car becomes a sought-after commodity

The reporter saw a second-hand Tesla Model 3 in the Huaxiang Market, which has a mileage of only 80 kilometers and is priced at 278,000 yuan, while the official guidance price is 299,800 yuan.

"This is a quasi-new car, there are too few of these cars, and we have to try our luck in collecting the cars." Tesla's quasi-new cars are particularly easy to sell, sometimes sold the next day after the same day, but this kind of car is not easy to find, and there are few in the entire Flower Township market. Second-hand car dealer Wang Can told reporters that Tesla's new car order will wait for half a year, so quasi-new cars are particularly popular.

Due to factors such as subsidies and rising raw material prices, tesla and other new energy vehicles began to increase prices this year, while the cycle of waiting for cars has been extended, and the price increase of new cars has also been directly transmitted to the second-hand car market.

"In fact, the water is rising, how many new cars are rising, and how many second-hand new energy vehicles are rising." Taking Tesla as an example, if it is a Tesla bought last year, opened for a year and then sold this year, the owner will not lose money, because Tesla has increased its price this year, and it is difficult to pick up the car. A Tesla Model 3 that will be licensed in 2020 has driven more than 30,000 kilometers and can now sell for 240,000 yuan. "Wang Can said that there are many people looking for Tesla recently, since the oil price increase, there are more people looking for second-hand new energy vehicles, but there are very few people who sell new energy vehicles, because electricity is cheap, and people who originally planned to sell trams do not sell takeaways." Generally, it is to find Tesla, Weilai and Ideal, and few other brands ask. ”

"Now we have a total of four new energy vehicles, which is relatively large, including a Model Y, and several Volkswagen ID cars. The official guidance price of this ID4 is about 240,000 yuan, the 4S store is discounted by 20,000 yuan, and the terminal price is more than 220,000 yuan. This car only ran 40 kilometers, and we sold for 208,000 yuan, which is equivalent to a quasi-new car, which is more than 10,000 cheaper. "Zhang Ming told reporters that it is difficult to collect new energy used cars now." Like these ID models are ordered by a company from a 4S store, I don't know what reason I don't want it, we will receive it. Under normal circumstances, the price of this quasi-new car bought from the individual is not so cheap, and the price difference with the new car is not much. This ID4 is the license plate in April, go to the 4s store to buy a new car after the formalities are priced at about 230,000 yuan, we recovered the price of about 210,000 yuan, and then the sale price will be 220,000 yuan. In other words, the seller loses 20,000 yuan, we earn 10,000 yuan, and you (the buyer) save 10,000 yuan. We make thousands of dollars in addition to fees, etc. ”

At present, affected by the epidemic, the recent car market is relatively weak, and the transaction volume of second-hand cars has dropped sharply. According to data released by the China Automobile Dealers Association, the national second-hand car trading volume in March was 1.3181 million units, down 15.99% year-on-year, and the turnover was 91.127 billion yuan. The downturn in the second-hand car market has forced second-hand car dealers to speed up the circulation of vehicles by making concessions, so the mentality of new energy used cars such as Tesla is also to make money and sell.

"The epidemic has had a great impact on the second-hand car market, and many customers from other places cannot go to Beijing to see the car. When business was good, it could sell forty or fifty cars a month, and now it can sell up to more than ten cars a month. In order to make the used car circulate, we earn a few thousand yuan and sell it. The turnover period of used cars should be fast, mainly to go. Second-hand cars have been put away for a long time, one is that it will depreciate, and the other is that it will occupy funds, and the risk is relatively high. Wang Can told reporters.

On the other hand, the reporter learned during the visit to the market that it is difficult for new energy second-hand cars to collect cars at present. First, there are too few quasi-new cars such as Tesla, and second-hand car dealers have to try their luck; second, due to the rising factors in oil prices, many new energy car owners are reluctant to take out cars; third, the price is not suitable, which is also the most important reason, it is difficult to find a balance between car dealers and the first car owners in price.

For some second-hand car dealers, they do not reject the new energy used cars other than Tesla, but often the price cannot meet expectations, and it is difficult to collect the car. Taking the Lexus brand, which has a high retention rate in the field of fuel vehicles, as an example, its pure electric vehicles are not popular in the market. Li Feng, the manager of a 4s store in charge of the second-hand car business, told reporters that Lexus' product retention rate is very high, but new energy vehicles are an exception. "I almost collected a Lexus pure electric car UX 300e before, but the price was too low for the first owner to accept." This car was just bought when the original price, now the 4s shop new car can be discounted 80,000, because the pure electric car is not easy to sell, so the 4s shop price reduction, but this for the first batch of car owners, it is too much to lose. When this car was first listed, it sold for 360,000 yuan, and now the price of the 4S store is 280,000 yuan. Equivalent to the first batch of owners have not yet opened on the loss of 80,000 yuan, we collect second-hand cars must be from the basis of 280,000 yuan and then down, if opened for a year, ran more than 30,000 kilometers, basically to collect at a price of 220,000 yuan. There are car owners who want to sell, but they lose 140,000 yuan in a year, and no one can accept this price. ”

Most car dealers "do not touch" second-hand new energy vehicles

For most second-hand car dealers, they dare not touch new energy used cars, which is also the main reason why there are fewer used cars in the Huaxiang market. When it comes to new energy second-hand vehicles, most car dealers bluntly say that the price is unstable, they believe that the current price increase of new energy vehicles is only a temporary market behavior, and the price increase of second-hand new energy vehicles is just a bubble.

"In fact, Tesla, which has a high retention rate, has increased its price, and there are some quasi-new cars. For the entire market, new energy used cars have not increased in price, this is a short bubble, new energy used cars price increases are only for hot cars like Tesla. Recently, the circulation of the second-hand car market has not moved, not to mention the new energy second-hand car with low retention rate. Those models with low retention rate, the price is high, we will definitely not charge. Zhang Ming told reporters that there are many factors to consider when receiving second-hand new energy vehicles, not only to consider how much the first owner lost money, but also to consider whether there was anyone to buy.

"No one buys expensive, and you can't buy cheap." Wang Can said that in addition to Tesla, Weilai, Ideal, other new energy second-hand cars do not dare to collect, because the price is particularly unstable. "If the price of the car is expensive, it will be expensive to sell, but no one will buy it." If you sell it cheap, you can sell it, but you can't get a car at a cheap price. The main thing is that most of the new energy used cars do not maintain their value and are easy to smash into the hands. For example, a domestic new energy second-hand car naked car price of 150,000 yuan, running for several months to sell, even if it is 100,000 yuan to collect the car, when selling can not be sold, and the owner of the car for a few months to lose 50,000 yuan is not willing to sell. ”

However, the retention rate of new energy vehicles has increased compared with before. According to the "2022Q1 China Automobile Retention Rate Ranking" released by the Auto Finance and Retention Rate Research Committee of the Automotive Industry Branch of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, compared with the same period last year, the one-year retention rate of new energy vehicles has generally increased. Taking the five hot-selling models of Tesla Model 3, NIO ES6, Xiaopeng P7, BYD Han EV and Hongguang MINI EV as examples, their one-year retention rate in the first quarter of this year increased by 11.23%, 3.3%, 7.35%, 4.02% and 4.84% respectively compared with the third quarter of last year. The top three pure electric cars with a mileage of more than 400 kilometers in the 1-year retention rate are Tesla Model 3, Porsche Taycan and Xiaopeng P7, of which the Tesla Model 3 has a retention rate of 79.58%. In the 1-year retention rate ranking in the field of pure electric SUVs with a range of more than 400 kilometers, tesla Model Y ranked first, followed by Model X. However, as far as the entire new energy vehicle market is concerned, the current transaction volume is still low. According to a data provided to reporters by the above-mentioned committee, in January and February this year, the monthly trading volume of new energy vehicles was more than 20,000 units, and the average transaction price was only 75,000 yuan.

"New energy vehicles will lose a lot when they buy them, in fact, it is the most suitable to buy second-hand new energy vehicles." But we also dare not collect, because new energy vehicles are too unstable, the price is too fast, and it is easy to lose money. Nothing but Tesla. Zhang Ming told reporters that like domestic new energy vehicles, BAIC, BYD, etc. are also bought, and this part of the people is cheap. There are also some people who want to occupy the license plate number, but most people come to the second-hand car market to find new energy vehicles, basically looking for Tesla.

"We collect very little new energy vehicles, and only when the price is low will we collect." A new energy used car is also collected a month, but other brands, only one brand can collect more than 20 cars a month. Li Feng told reporters that some domestic brands of new energy second-hand cars are also profitable, and second-hand car dealers generally have a relatively low price when they receive such cars, and they can make money when they sell them.

"In fact, with the collection of fuel vehicles is a truth, Toyota such a high retention rate of second-hand cars do not worry about selling, everyone rushes to buy, so the turnover is fast, second-hand car dealers do not need to collect at a low price, often at a high price to recover the amount." Like some models with low retention rate, it is not easy to sell after receiving, so the price will be lowered when the car is collected, and the price of the low retention rate will be risked when it is sold, so the new energy second-hand car does not make money depending on whether the price of the car is low enough. Li Feng said.

(At the request of the interviewee, Zhang Ming, Wang Can, and Li Feng are pseudonyms)