A large-scale analysis of nearly 10,000 electric vehicle battery health checks has revealed significant disparities in how different models retain capacity. The study, conducted by the Swedish marketplace Carla using AVILOO diagnostic data, focused on vehicles that have traveled approximately 62,000 miles.
The 97.25% benchmark set by the Kia e-Niro
South Korean manufacturers are currently setting the standard for electric vehicle longevity in the used car market. According to a study by the Swedish marketplace Carla, the Kia e-Niro leads the pack by retaning 97.25% of its original battery capacity after roughly 62,000 miles.. This high level of retention is closely followed by the Hyundai Kona at 97.18% and the Kia EV6 at 95.95%.
These results suggest that the Hyundai Motor Group has achieved a level of consistency in battery management that many Western competitors struggle to match. For consumers entering the secondary EV market, these figures provide a roadmap for which brands offer the most reliable long-term value. This trend follows a broader industry shift where manufacturers are increasingly judged not just on initial range, but on how well that range holds up over years of service.
Volkswagen and Tesla trailing the South Korean leaders
Lower retention rates among popular European and American models highlight a growing gap in battery durability. The Volkswagen ID.3 reported a health level of 91.79%, placing it at the bottom of the study's top-20 list. Similarly, the Tesla Model Y and Audi Q4 e-tron both showed a capacity retention of 92.18%, trailing significantly behind the top-tier Korean models.
This performance gap underscores the importance of looking beyond brand prestige when shopping for a used electric vehicle. While Volvo's XC40 Recharge (94.70%), Polestar 2 (94.35%), and BMW i3 (93.77%) all maintained respectable levels, they still failed to reach the heights of the Hyundai and Kia lineups.
How Tesla Model 3 battery suppliers create a 5% performance gap
Internal battery chemistry can cause massive variations in performance even within the exact same vehicle model. As the report from AVILOO indicates, the Tesla Model 3 serves as a primary example of this volatility. A Model 3 equipped with a CATL LFP battery maintained 93.3% capacity, whereas versions utilizing LG Chem cells dropped to 91.5%.
The discrepancy becomes even more pronounnced when comparing these to the Panasonic variants, which fell to 89.8% and 88.2% respectively . This variation demonstrates that a buyer's choice is often dictated by the specific supplier used for a particular vehicle. Factors such as cell chemistry and internal construction play a decisive role in how quickly a battery degrades, meaning a "good" brand name is no longer a suffficient guarantee of health.
The missing data on charging habits and regional temperatures
The current study leaves several critical variables unaddressed that could influence individual battery health . While the data aggregates nerly 10,000 checks, it does not explicitly account for how local climate or specific charging behaviors—such as frequent DC fast charging versus slow AC charging—impact these specific numbers.
Furthermore, the report does not clarify if the sample size for certain models was skewed by specific geographic regions. Because extreme temperatures are known to accelerate degradation, it remains unclear if the high performance of the Kia e-Niro is a universal trait or if it was influenced by the specific environments in which these vehicles were operated.
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