Beware these pitfalls of used electric cars

South Africans looking for a good deal on a secondhand electric vehicle (EV) should take note of some of the most common problems they may have given the used market for EVs is still relatively young.

With many more fully electric models rolling out in the country in recent years, the used EV market has exploded with more options and better prices.

When MyBroadband searched for used electric cars on AutoTrader South Africa in July 2023, we found 171 models listed.

As of mid-March 2025, that number had nearly doubled to 316 listings, while prices have plummeted.

The most affordable used EVs capable of highway speeds in our July 2023 analysis were two BMW i3 cars price tags of R399,900 each.

The cheapest in our latest analysis was another BMW i3 priced at R279,900.

There were also 30 used EVs across four models under R500,000, compared with less than 10 options under that price two years ago, all being BMW i3s.

However, there is still not as much knowledge or experience among buyers and mechanics about what parts on EVs are most likely to fail.

I recently bought a demo 2023 GWM Ora 03 with 12,000km on its odometer from a reputable GWM-approved used dealer in Johannesburg.

It cost 40% less than when new, and everything seemed to be in order from a test drive and Dekra inspection of the car.

However, it turned out that his particular Ora would not accept a charge on three-phase power despite supporting up to 11kW three-phase charging.

The maximum it could achieve on AC was 7.4kW single-phase. Fortunately, fast DC charging also works, as there is no need for power conversion when using that form of charging.

I only confirmed this issue after lots of self-troubleshooting and a side-by-side test with another Ora with the salesman.

Fortunately, the car still has five years and 100,000km left on its warranty, so the issue should have no significant financial repercussions.

The car was booked in at the dealer for a full diagnostic and repair over three days.

However, there was another concerning issue with the car — it had not yet received a vital software update that was part of a recall from late 2023.

The recall addressed a safety issue where a dangerous electrical arc could form if a user succeeded in pulling the charging connector out of the car while it was topping up its battery via DC power.

While attempting this would be a complete no-go for any seasoned EV driver, a newcomer or first-time tester may not be aware of the significant risks in meddling with charging connectors while power is being put into the battery.

When Top Auto asked GWM South Africa about the impact of the recall in South Africa December 2023, it assured that most of the vehicles were updated prior to landing in South Africa and during pre-wholesale to its Ora dealerships.

“The few remaining vehicles are being attended to by our Ora dealerships prior to any retail handover to our customers,” GWM said.

Importantly, GWM said it had updated its own fleet. However, the car in question was previously part of that fleet and did not receive the update before I took it to a GWM dealership in Pretoria after the initial purchase.

When asked about the servicing oversight, a spokesperson for GWM said they would escalate the issue to the aftersales division and assured any problems with the vehicle would be dealt with.

They also recommended that the dealer be given the opportunity to do a thorough diagnosis and follow the logging process with GWM’s technical support team if it could not resolve the issue itself.

A GWM technical team ended up replacing an AC/DC charging connector in the car to fix the 3-phase charging problem.

Test the charging and get a battery health report

The car has otherwise been excellent and the salesman and technical teams have provided a satisfactory aftersales service.

Nevertheless, I would still advise those interested in buying a used EV to test its charging on as many types of supported AC and DC chargers as possible before completing their purchase.

Being unable to charge at a particular station due to an issue with the car can be a major headache on a road trip.

Convincing a dealer or salesperson to go through this entire process might be a bit cumbersome, but it could be well worth the effort if the car does not have a warranty.

Fortunately, my car’s most expensive component — its high-voltage battery pack — seems to perform as advertised based on the range I have gotten on a single charge.

That suggests the battery health may be in good order, although the dealer’s diagnostics will also have to confirm this.

The capacities of all batteries naturally degrade over time. With the lithium-ion batteries used in modern EVs, this degradation is very slow.

There are now several examples of EVs that put in hundreds of thousands of real-life kilometres before their batteries dropped below 80% of original capacity.

In most cases, the batteries will outlive the rest of the car.

However, certain charging behaviours may shorten that lifespan exponentially, particularly for packs that don’t use the safer and longer-lasting lithium-ion phosphate (LiFeP04) technology.

Many of the cheaper onboard diagnostics readers available on the general market do not support reading the battery health.

If the car is being sold by one of the brand’s own dealers, it may be a good idea to have them perform a battery health analysis and provide a report.

Many EVs — including the GWM Ora — come with a battery warranty valid for eight years or 150,000km, whichever comes first.

That means all recent models will be covered for a full replacement or repair if the capacity drops below 80% of the original capacity before the warranty expires.

MyBroadband also looked at experiences from other countries to learn about the most common problems with EVs.

According to a roadside assistant technician in Australia, a market with similar EV models as South Africa, the most common issues with these cars were similar to those of petrol or diesel models.

They include the inadvertent draining of the low-voltage 12V battery, wheel and tyre damage, and accidental lockouts caused by user error.