Man who bought a brand new Tesla Model Y in March 2022 for $62,990 left in disbelief at how much it's worth now
Published on Dec 16, 2025 at 6:40 AM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid
Last updated on Dec 16, 2025 at 1:27 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
This Tesla Model Y owner has been left ‘genuinely shocked’ after finding out how much his car had depreciated in just three years.
It’s no secret that almost all cars lose value after being driven off the lot.
But some vehicles are worse hit by depreciation than others.
EVs, including Teslas, are often among the cars seen to drop the most in value over a shorter period of time, and that was certainly the case for this man.
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The Tesla Model Y owner said the drop in value was ‘borderline criminal’
Earlier this year, a British Tesla owner took his car to WeBuyAnyCar for a valuation and was surprised to see how much it was worth.
More recently, a Tesla Model Y Long Range driver in the US took to Reddit to share his shock at discovering the EV’s depreciation.
In the post, he explained that he had bought the car new in March 2022 for $62,990, and that he was now forced to sell it because he was relocating for work.
The Tesla driver went on to say that while he knew ‘depreciation is part of car ownership’, he felt the drop in its value was ‘borderline criminal’.
He received a handful of ‘brutal’ valuations, including a Kelley Blue Book private party estimate of between $38,000 and $41,000, a Carvana offer of $36,800, and a CarMax offer of $37,200.
The lowest valuation came from a Tesla trade-in.
There, the driver said he was offered just $35,500.
Summing up the figures, he said he was set to lose ‘’somewhere between $22,000 and $27,000 in less than three years’.
“That’s roughly $650-750/month in depreciation alone, not counting insurance, charging, maintenance, nothing,” he added.
“Just pure value evaporation.”
He went on to say he’d also received some ‘lowball’ offers on Facebook Marketplace, but admitted he could see why.
“Why would someone pay $40,000 for my 2022 with 41,000 miles when they can get a brand new 2025 for $44,000?” he asked.
Expert explains why Tesla EVs lose value so quickly
The exasperated Model Y owner asked if other Tesla drivers had experienced anything similar, and got some responses from folks saying their cars had actually dropped even further than in value.
Back in July, a car expert from the aptly named The Car Expert shared his thoughts on why Tesla EVs can lose value more quickly than others.
He said that Teslas had become a victim of their own success, explaining that Model 3 and Model Y were ‘far and away the best electric cars on the market’.
“Given that most owners tend to have their cars three or four years, it means that if you’re looking for a two, three, four-year-old electric car there are far more Teslas on the market because there were far more of them to begin with,” he said.
He also said that stronger competition in the EV market had driven down resale prices.
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Claire Reid is a journalist who hails from the UK but is now living in New Zealand. She began her career after graduating with a degree in Journalism from Liverpool John Moore’s University and has more than a decade of experience, writing for both local newspapers and national news sites. Claire covers a wide variety of topics, with a special focus on cars, technology, planes, cryptocurrency, and luxury.
