Following the overwhelming interest in its Tasmanian and Victorian electric vehicle bulk buy rounds, The Good Car Company is set to offer the drivers of Canberra the chance to purchase a relatively affordable second-hand electric vehicle, expanding its community bulk buy offering to the national capital.
Announcing the Canberra bulk buy on Thursday, the company said there would be up to five models of Nissan electric vehicles available for purchase through the bulk buy program, including four Nissan Leaf models with between 110km and 350km of range, with indicative maximum prices of between $20,800 and $57,900.
The Nissan eNV200 Van, with up to 100km of range and comes in two options, as a five seater or a seven seater model, with maximum prices of $24,500 and $28,800, respectively.
The Good Car Company has sought to take advantage of the right rate of turnover of vehicles sold in Japan, where incentives make it common for new cars to be sold into the second hand market after just a couple of years of use, with the value of the cars significantly depreciated.
The significantly discounted prices have seen the company swamped by interest from potential buyers, eager to purchase an electric vehicle, but who have otherwise been deterred by high purchase prices.
The Good Car Company found that it was cost effective to purchase these second hand, but still relatively new, models of electric vehicles and import them into Australia from Japan. The company says it is able to offer cars with less than 80,000km of travel , and retaining more than 80 per cent of the vehicle’s original charging capacity.
By importing the second hand vehicles from Japan, the company is able to offer electric vehicles at a significant discount to the cost of purchasing the vehicles brand new locally, with the latest model of the Nissan Leaf retailing for $49,990 new.
However, there are some limitations on the support offered with the purchase of the second hand models, with the Good Car Company offering a 2 year or 24000km battery warranty on the vehicles it sells, which is less than the 8 years or 160,000 kilometre warranty offered by Nissan on new models.
The company will team up with local environmental group SEE-Change Canberra to offer the bulk buy round to Canberrans, and already has plans to undertake further bulk buy rounds for customers in Sydney, Melbourne, South Australia, Brisbane and Geelong.
“We are proud to be partnering with SEE-Change Canberra to deliver a range of affordable quality electric vehicles to people in the ACT,” the company said.
The ACT is an attractive jurisdiction for potential purchasers of electric vehicles, with the ACT government waiving registration fees for EVs and will offer zero interest loans of up to $15,000 to be used towards the purchase of a zero emissions vehicle.
ACT emissions reduction minister Shane Rattenbury confirmed on Thursday that second hand electric vehicles will be eligible to purchased using the zero interest loans under the government’s Sustainable Household Scheme.
“Including second-hand electric vehicles helps ensure it’s not just people who can afford a brand new car who benefit from government incentives. It’s an important equity issue, and it helps bring the cheaper running costs of EVs to more people, as well as improving air quality for everyone,” Rattenbury said.
“The infrastructure you need to charge an EV at home can put people off getting their own EV, so we’re pleased to be making these upgrades eligible for interest-free loans, too.”
The ACT government has also committed to supporting the roll-out of new public electric vehicle charging infrastructure throughout the territory to support Canberrans to take up electric vehicles.