How we calculate

The official WLTP figure comes from a type-approval cycle. Our summer figure is what a car like this does on ordinary roads, in town and on the motorway, at +23 °C without the air conditioning on: close to the official figure, 82–97% of WLTP. In hot weather with the air conditioning on, or in the cold, it goes less far. The winter figure is at −10 °C with the heating on (ours, or EV Database's): roughly a quarter to a third less than the summer figure, and in a warmer winter the car goes further than that. Each figure is a range, not a single exact number. When we start from EV Database's overall figure, we give that one figure alone, because it already mixes summer and winter driving. We tuned our figures to EV Database's for cars of different classes; theirs are calculated too, not measured. For used cars we also factor in the battery's condition.

The right edge of a range bar is the maker's own figure, named: WLTP, or NEDC for cars homologated before WLTP existed. For an electric car without one, we give no range. For a plug-in hybrid without one, the bar ends on our estimate from the usable capacity, marked «~».

• In a verdict, EV Database's figure is adjusted to the estimated battery capacity. EV Database's overall figure lies between its summer and winter figures, so we give no separate winter figure next to it.
• The −10 °C figure is the same with a heat pump and without one: EV Database's −10 °C figures show no difference between cars with and without one, so ours is one figure too.
• For plug-in hybrids we give only the electric range, with no winter figure: in the cold many hybrids start the petrol engine on their own.

A second-hand EV's battery can't be judged from photos. Unless the seller provides a real measurement, we estimate from cars like the one you're looking at — batteries of the same type (chemistry and cooling), similar age, mileage and climate — and we tell you how reliable that data is (high / medium / low). It is an estimate, not a measurement of that exact car; that is why the verdict includes how to get a real measurement before paying. When a listing declares a measured value, we quote it under the name of whoever measured it.

• We identify the battery version from the first registration date, the power, the version code and the words in the listing. Portals often take the power from their own catalogue rather than from the car's papers, so the ficha técnica or the certificate of conformity (COC) is what settles it.
• If the battery version is not confirmed and the candidates differ in capacity, negotiate as if it were the smaller one until the seller proves which it is.
• The capacity estimate is calculated for the battery type (chemistry and cooling), age, mileage and climate, not from measurements of that exact model. When we don't know how a battery is cooled, the estimate is a general one. The car itself has not been measured: only a measurement — for example a certificate with a QR code — shows its real condition.
• Hot region: batteries age faster in the heat; the estimate leans towards higher loss.
• LFP battery: the car's own health reading is less reliable for this chemistry — an external measurement matters more.
• Battery cooled by air, not by liquid: more sensitive to heat and to repeated fast charging.
• A battery health figure stated in a listing can't be verified without the QR code of the original certificate.
• On a plug-in hybrid, battery ageing depends heavily on how much of the mileage was driven on electricity — that split can't be seen from the listing, so the range is wide.
• Battery check: on a plug-in hybrid a paid battery certificate is optional — the quick check is the electric range the dashboard shows after a full charge.

A verdict says what is left on this car. This is how we count it, and what the law says.

• We count warranty periods from the first registration. If the brand counts from delivery of the new car, the cover may end a little earlier.
• Where a warranty has a capacity threshold, it is measured with the manufacturer's own procedure.
• A manufacturer's general warranty covers manufacturing and material defects. For a car registered before the terms we have read came into force, its terms are our estimate.
• Once the battery warranty has ended, any battery repair is yours to pay. On an electric car a battery measurement before buying is then the only protection left; on a plug-in hybrid a worn pack mostly costs electric km, so a measurement matters less.
• Battery warranty terms in a verdict are those of a battery that was bought. A rented battery is covered by its rental contract: ask for it and check what it covers.
• Anything that neither the battery warranty nor the seller's legal liability (below) covers is yours to pay for.
• Under Spanish law, you can at least claim against a private seller for hidden defects (ones you could not see when buying and that make the car unfit for use), and the claim has to be made within 6 months of handover (Código Civil, arts. 1484 and 1490). If you want more, put it in writing in the contract.
• Under Spanish law, if you buy from a business for private use, it answers for defects the car already had at handover that show up within 3 years; for a used car the contract can set less, but never under 1 year (TRLGDCU, art. 120). If the defect shows up within the first 2 years, or within the agreed period if that is shorter, it is presumed to have been there at handover (art. 121), and the repair is free (art. 118). Normal wear on a used car does not count.

We check battery and charging campaigns for the version, not for the individual car.

• Our sources are the registers each version's file was researched against — KBA in Germany (read through car-recalls.eu, a site collecting European recall notices), NHTSA in the United States and others. «None found» does not rule a campaign out: ask for the service history too.
• We don't search the Spanish recall register. For a particular car, the DGT vehicle report — even the free short one — says whether a recall is still pending.
• Only a car's VIN shows whether a campaign was carried out on it: ask a main dealer of the brand or check the brand's portal. Whether a car falls inside a campaign for part of the production depends on its build date, which a listing never shows.
• A campaign already carried out is a point in favour, not against.
• Battery replaced under a campaign: the ageing clock restarts — a plus for the buyer.

We don't value the car. We say what we know about its price and what arguments you have.

• We give a «reasonable price» and an opening offer only when our database holds at least 3 similar listings. Otherwise they would only be the seller's own price worked backwards.
• Without a battery certificate we count €400–600 off: the cost and risk of measuring the battery are yours. It is a fixed rule of ours, set on purpose below the only reference there is: in a 2024 survey by AVILOO, a company that sells these certificates, buyers in 7 European countries, Spain not among them, said they would pay €550–1,100 more for a car with a certificate. Saying you would pay is not paying. The rule is for electric cars; plug-in hybrids get no such discount. If battery health is stated without a verifiable report, we count €150–300 off until the seller shows the document.
• A battery repair declared by the seller is subtracted with a 30% risk margin: a confirmed fault usually uncovers more. If the seller has already taken it off the price, don't subtract it twice.
• The mileage adjustment against similar cars is a simple rule: €0.03 per km, capped at ±15% of the price.
• Compare cash prices. On dealer listings the big price often holds only if you take the dealer's financing, and in cash the car costs more.
• If similar cars ask clearly more, ask the seller why. A lower price can come from a past as a rental or fleet car, an accident, or a price that only holds if you take the seller's financing. If they ask less, that's one more argument for negotiating.
• Under Spanish law a business seller answers for defects for at least 1 year, a private seller at least for hidden defects claimed within 6 months. That is an argument for paying a private seller less than a dealer asks for the same car.
• Nearly new: a new car's warranty starts from zero, and incentives for new cars may narrow the price gap — check the current programmes before deciding.

If you plan to take the loan, get these in writing before you sign:

• The SECCI sheet (in Spanish «Información normalizada europea sobre el crédito al consumo»). By law they must give it to you free of charge before you sign; it shows the APR, the term and the total you will pay.
• The total you will pay, adding up the down payment, the monthly payments, the opening fee and any insurance, and how many payments there are.
• Whether the insurance offered with the loan (life or payment protection) is compulsory, and how much it adds to the total.
• What happens if you repay the loan early: whether you lose a discount on the price or pay a fee.

What the car costs once it is yours: the price plus the taxes and fees on your route.

• ITP, the Spanish transfer tax, is paid by the buyer on a private sale. A business sale has no ITP: it carries VAT, and the advertised price must include it; if a dealer's ad says «IVA no incluido», ask for the final price.
• The ITP rate depends on the Spanish region where you live, not where the car is. When we don't know your region, we use the listing's and show the range across Spain.
• The tax office charges on the price you pay or on the value in its official table, whichever is higher: if the table says more, you pay more.
• That is why the ITP amount in a verdict is a floor.
• Even at 0%, you still have to file the tax return.
• A car under 6 months old or under 6,000 km counts as new under EU rules: taken from Spain to another EU country, VAT is paid there at that country's rate; brought into Spain, Spanish VAT applies.
• Lines marked «estimate, not verified» do not come from a published tariff.

Steps that protect the deal. A verdict lists them briefly; here they are in full.

• Get the full vehicle report (informe completo) from the DGT, Spain's traffic authority: €8.67 on its online office, with the plate number or the VIN. It shows the registered keeper, how many keepers the car has had, the ITV inspection history and mileage, pending recalls, and any seizures or charges on the car. If it shows a «reserva de dominio» (retention of title), the change of ownership cannot go through until it is cancelled.
• Ask for the VIN (número de bastidor) before you go to see the car. At the viewing, check that it is the same on the car, on the registration certificate (permiso de circulación), on the technical data sheet (ficha técnica) and in the DGT report, and ask a main dealer of the brand, with that number, whether any campaign is pending.
• If you leave a deposit (señal), put it in writing: with the VIN, the price and a promise to refund it in full if the battery measurement or the DGT report turns out bad.
• If you buy from a private seller, pay only the person named as keeper on the permiso de circulación, by bank transfer to an account in their name, and sign a sale contract with the VIN. From signing you have 30 days to change the ownership at the DGT, and before that you must file the transfer tax (ITP), even if it comes to zero.
• If you buy from a business, get in writing, before any deposit, the warranty they give (what it covers, for how long, and any cap per repair) and the final price with every fee: paperwork (gestión), preparation and transfer.
• Tesla: on the day of the sale, have the seller remove the car from their Tesla account in front of you; then add it to yours.
• Tesla: if the ad or the seller mentions FSD (Full Self-Driving), Enhanced Autopilot or free Supercharging, don't assume it passes to the new owner. Ask Tesla, giving the VIN, before you pay for it.
• If the battery is leased: ask for the contract and, before paying, get the leasing company to tell you in writing, for that VIN, whether any payments are outstanding, how the contract passes to your name and what buying the battery costs. Renault says the battery can be bought at any time, but does not publish the price.

New-car data comes from manufacturers' specifications and official price lists. Second-hand verdicts analyse the public data of the listing you send us, plus official service-campaign registries. Every fact we publish has a source behind it, and anything we couldn't verify is marked as such.

These are the sources the catalogue and the verdict engine use. Every catalogue page links to its own sources at the bottom.

• Manufacturers: technical specifications, press releases and official price lists.
• EV Database (ev-database.org) and km77.com to cross-check capacities, WLTP ranges and power figures.
• Specialist press (electrive, InsideEVs, Motor.es and others) for launch dates and line-up changes.
• ADAC: consumption tests and real-range studies.
• Service campaigns: KBA (the German registry where EU-wide campaigns are published) via car-recalls.eu, and NHTSA (USA).
• Battery degradation: published fleet studies by Aviloo/P3, Geotab and ADAC.
• Photos: Wikimedia Commons, free licences, author credited on every page.

For campaigns we consult KBA and NHTSA; the Spanish registry is not consulted. Before buying, ask an official dealer to confirm by VIN.

Estimates are shown as ranges, never as a single exact number and never as if they were measurements. If a price or a fact has no source, it is not shown. Nobody can pay to improve their numbers: we take no money from sellers or dealers.

Our methods improve as real-world data accumulates, so figures can be refined over time. Every verdict and comparison states when it was calculated. When the method improves, we may recalculate a published example from the same listing data, and its page says so, with both dates.

Current version of the range calculation: v0.9. Catalogue prices and specs as of 4 Aug 2026.