Manheim recorded a record-breaking £1.2m sales performance after holding its annual pop-up premium commercial vehicle auction for Hitachi Capital Vehicle Solutions (HCVS), but admits that there is still a big price difference between electric and diesel markets.
The sale of six Nissan e-NV200 electric vans helped contribute to the total amount.
Hammer values between both markets differed: Manheim recorded an average joint value of £12,750, with the EVs achieving “116% of their CAP value and more than double (214%) that of diesel”.
The e-NV200s had completed 11,000 miles on average and were 49 months old. The average value of these vehicles, Mannheim said, “was £10,975 vs £6,000 for an equivalent diesel variant”, showing the gap between the two fuels.
Mathew Davock, director of commercial vehicles at the auctioneer, said: “With the London ULEZ now live and an increased awareness of the planned clean air zones, we are seeing pent up demand for used electric vans. This outstanding result proves the confidence in the used market for the proven technology.”
However, Davock does admit that “with only 6,500 electric vans registered in the UK, these are a drop in the ocean of the 4.3 million vans on UK roads. We are still seeing very few electric vans in the lanes. In the last 18 months, volumes have only represented 0.2% of total vans sold.”
“Historically, the early phase vans were not OEM, such as the Eddison Transit and Azure Connect. As battery range improves and more OEMs develop or build their BEV product, we need some electric price parity to diesel. No doubt used electric vans will be in strong demand in the next 10 years and beyond”, Davock concludes.
