Skip advert
Advertisement
Tips and advice

Top 3 used electric cars for £13,000: Nissan Leaf, Volkswagen e-up!, Renault ZOE

"Dear Carbuyer. I've retired from work and would like to switch to an electric car. What would you recommend for £13,000?"

Exhaust emissions are a hot topic. CO2, NOx, gases and particulates are all words we frequently see in the media. With car manufacturers increasingly turning their back on diesel, many motorists are turning to electric cars.

Carbuyer's best electric cars you can buy today

It's true that anxiety about range prevents many from making the switch, but many drivers' daily mileage can easily be handled by an electric car. Range is constantly improving as new models are developed, too: the forthcoming Kia e-Niro has a claimed 301-mile range between charges.

Advertisement - Article continues below

There's now growing demand for used electric cars, so here's three you can choose for £13,000 or less.

The mainstream choice: Nissan Leaf

For: Strong reliabilityAgainst: Uninteresting design

The Nissan Leaf felt like something from the future when it arrived in 2010, and it went on to become the biggest-selling electric car we've seen so far. Over 300,000 have been delivered around the world, and the first generation was only replaced during 2018. Fortunately, there's a broad choice of well kept used examples out there; you'll find a relatively new, high-specification example with a fairly low mileage for your £13,000 budget.

The 16-plate Leaf Tekna we found had covered just 8,135 miles and has the biggest 30kWh battery. Nissan claims that's enough for a 155-mile range, but real-world experience shows 110 to be more realistic. The smaller 24kWh has a lower range and isn't quite as sought-after. Nobody would call the Leaf luxurious, and the controls have dated over the years, but it's well built from robust materials.

Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement - Article continues below

The Leaf finished 38th out of 75 cars featured in our 2018 Driver Power owner satisfaction survey, with black marks given for exterior style, infotainment and interior comfort. It beat most other cars in the survey for its running costs and power system, though, and only 4% of owners reported any faults in the first year of ownership.

The long-range choice: Renault ZOE

Advertisement - Article continues below

For: Decent battery range.Against: Battery leasing can be expensive

Introduced shortly after the Nissan Leaf, the Renault ZOE was conceived more as an 'electric car for the people' and is smaller and less expensive than the Nissan. It, too, has proven very popular. This means there are plenty of used examples around – we found a 17-plate car with sat nav and only 8,973 miles on the clock for £11,995 at a Renault main dealer.

The Z.E. 40 version is our favourite, as its 41kWh battery provides a claimed range of 250 miles on a full charge, although 160 miles is a more realistic target. That still makes it one of the longest-range used electric cars you can buy. Inside, the ZOE resembles the Renault Clio, which many of its fixtures are shared with. It's certainly more design-led than the slightly dour Nissan, but the materials aren't quite of such high quality.

Too few ZOE drivers took part in our 2018 Driver Power survey for the ZOE to be ranked individually, but we have seen reports of niggling faults that Renault workshops struggle to fix. The brand finished in an undistinguished 24th place out of 26 manufacturers surveyed. Be wary, too, of cars where the battery is on lease rather than sold with the car.

The compact choice: Volkswagen e-up!

For: Attractive, well-built interiorAgainst: Only seats four

While the Volkswagen up! remains one of our favourite city cars, the electric e-up! version has always seemed a little underwhelming. Perhaps because it costs around twice as much, you just don't seem to get a huge amount of new car for your money. It stacks up rather better as a secondhand buy, though; we found a 12,000-mile 64-plate example for £10,995.

The e-up! didn't feature in our most recent Driver Power owner-satisfaction survey, but Volkswagen finished in an impressive fifth place out of 26 brands in the survey. Reliability was a strong point overall: only around 11% of owners reported at least one fault with their VW in the first year of ownership.

Skip advert
Advertisement

Richard is a former editor of Carbuyer, as well as sister site DrivingElectric.com, and he's now Deputy Editor at Auto Express. Having spent a decade working in the automotive industry, he understands exactly what makes new car buyers tick.

Skip advert
Advertisement

Recommended

The 10 cheapest electric cars you can buy today
Cheapest electric cars
Best cars
7 Oct 2024

The 10 cheapest electric cars you can buy today

New Nissan Leaf swaps hatchback body for trendy SUV looks
Nissan Leaf SUV render
News
22 Jul 2024

New Nissan Leaf swaps hatchback body for trendy SUV looks

Hot car deal: smart-looking Nissan Leaf EV for just £198 per month
Nissan Leaf - front dynamic
Deals
17 Jan 2024

Hot car deal: smart-looking Nissan Leaf EV for just £198 per month

Most Popular

New BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe: details and first drive of the sleek executive four-door
BMW M235 Gran Coupe front quarter
News
26 Nov 2024

New BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe: details and first drive of the sleek executive four-door

New Ford Puma Gen-E: Britain’s best-selling car goes electric
Ford Puma Gen-E
News
3 Dec 2024

New Ford Puma Gen-E: Britain’s best-selling car goes electric

Best new car deals 2024: this week’s Black Friday offers
Carbuyer best new car deals hero
Deals
29 Nov 2024

Best new car deals 2024: this week’s Black Friday offers

Tips & advice

View All
Car dashboard warning lights: what does each symbol mean?
Car dashboard symbols and meanings
Tips and advice
21 Oct 2024

Car dashboard warning lights: what does each symbol mean?

Electric car charging stations: public networks, charger types, apps and maps
Charging station
Tips and advice
23 Jul 2024

Electric car charging stations: public networks, charger types, apps and maps

PCP vs HP – which type of car finance is right for you?
PCP vs HP
Tips and advice
17 May 2022

PCP vs HP – which type of car finance is right for you?

Average speed cameras: how do they work?
Average speed cameras: how do they work?
Tips and advice
21 Mar 2024

Average speed cameras: how do they work?

Best cars

View All
Top 10 best car interiors
Peugeot 208 hatchback
Best cars
25 Jun 2021

Top 10 best car interiors

Top 10 best electric cars 2024
Best electric cars
Best cars
16 May 2024

Top 10 best electric cars 2024

Top 10 best cheap-to-run cars 2024
The best cheap-to-run cars 2023
Best cars
2 Jan 2024

Top 10 best cheap-to-run cars 2024

The UK's top 10 fastest hot hatchbacks 2024
Fastest hot hatchbacks hero
Best cars
2 Jan 2024

The UK's top 10 fastest hot hatchbacks 2024