If you've recently browsed a second-hand car market, you may have observed a notable shift: Smart cars bearing green license plates, merely two or three years old, are now prominently displayed on dealers' lots at attractive prices. In the first quarter of 2026, a staggering 404,600 new energy second-hand vehicles were traded nationwide, reflecting a 32% year-on-year surge. A nearly new car, driven for just a year or two and priced 30-50% lower than its brand-new counterpart, complete with a large screen, intelligent driving capabilities, and voice assistants, seems like an irresistible bargain.

However, numerous owners report encountering issues shortly after purchase. The car's app fails to bind, remote unlocking malfunctions, and the original owner's account remains logged in. Manufacturers often revoke promised intelligent driving rights post-transfer, citing a simple 'exclusive to the first owner' clause. Some owners discover a sudden drop in driving range, realizing the battery has been 'locked.' Worse still, if the car's brand has ceased operations, repairs become an impossibility. Beneath the green license plate, the true challenges of owning a second-hand smart car often emerge after driving it home.

So, what are the hidden risks in the second-hand intelligent driving market that distinguish it from traditional fuel vehicle transactions? How can consumers identify and mitigate these risks?

Second-Hand Cars Inundate the Intelligent Driving Market

Why are new energy and intelligent driving second-hand vehicles growing faster than fuel vehicles?

The primary driver is the rapid pace of technological innovation.

Traditional fuel vehicles typically have a replacement cycle of five to seven years. A car sold after three to five years remains in good condition and technologically relevant. However, smart electric vehicles have compressed this cycle dramatically. Industry observers note that major hardware updates for smart electric vehicles occur every 18 to 24 months, with facelift cycles shortened to as little as eight months.

This means a smart car purchased in 2024 may have undergone two hardware facelifts and numerous OTA updates by 2026. New models boast higher-computing-power chips and more advanced intelligent driving solutions, while your car, though still functional, sees its resale value plummet due to technological obsolescence.

Data from the China Automobile Data Research Institute reveals that the three-year residual value rate for most new energy vehicles is significantly below 70%, whereas traditional fuel vehicles generally maintain over 50%, with luxury brands even exceeding 60%.

Rapid depreciation has, to some extent, fueled supply enthusiasm. Precisely because technologies like intelligent driving and new energy evolve so swiftly and depreciate so steeply, a diverse and cost-effective pool of second-hand supply has emerged. Data from the China Automobile Dealers Association indicates that in 2025, the annual transaction volume of new energy second-hand vehicles reached 1.6 million units, with growth surpassing 50%. A large number of 'nearly new' cars, aged three to five years, flood the market, still featuring mainstream intelligent driving, cabin, and comfort configurations but priced 30-40% lower.

Meanwhile, consumer attitudes are shifting. Affected by macroeconomic factors, public consumption has become more prudent, with increasing numbers of consumers unwilling to pay the premium for new cars and endure high first-year depreciation. A Seres M7, originally priced at 250,000 yuan, is resold for 139,800 yuan after 90,000 kilometers; a Neta L, originally priced at 149,900 yuan, now costs just 74,000 yuan. For budget-conscious buyers seeking an intelligent driving experience, this is indeed tempting.

There's also a more extreme niche market: bargain hunting for 'abandoned cars.' Models from bankrupt automakers like HiPhi, WM Motor, and Neta are becoming sought-after among bargain hunters due to their rock-bottom prices. A HiPhi X, originally priced at 730,000 yuan, can now be purchased for 190,000 yuan. On social media, within the 'bargain hunting for abandoned cars' topic area, some share their car-buying experiences, while others showcase their dream cars acquired at low prices. Their rationale is simple: core components like CATL battery cells and Qualcomm chips come from reputable manufacturers, minor issues can be addressed at local garages, and the price is unbeatable.

With supply surging, price barriers lowering, and consumer mindsets evolving, these three forces have converged to create a noticeable surge in the smart second-hand car market in 2026.

However, beyond the allure of halved prices, are the rights and benefits of these cars truly intact?

Hidden Dangers Behind Second-Hand Intelligence

If you believe buying a second-hand smart car is merely about 'purchasing an old model cheaply,' you're overlooking the complexities.

The core attributes of smart cars—hardware, software, and data—mean their second-hand transactions face unprecedented risks compared to traditional vehicles. Traditional second-hand transactions focus on the engine, transmission, and chassis—mechanical components that are visible and tangible, with their condition easily assessable by experienced mechanics. However, the value of a smart car lies not just in its physical components but also in its chips, code, and cloud servers. These intangible elements are what truly determine the car's usability and safety.

In the less-than-two-year-old second-hand intelligent driving market, countless individuals have already fallen prey to these risks.

Firstly, control of a smart car is tied to a cloud account. Through a smartphone app, owners can remotely unlock doors, view camera footage, and track the vehicle's real-time location. If the previous owner fails to unbind the account when selling the car, the vehicle's control rights remain in a precarious state: legally, the car is yours, but digitally, it still recognizes the previous owner.

Some consumers have reported to the media that the connected car services of their purchased second-hand vehicles are still bound to the previous owner, leaving them unable to utilize the connected car benefits while the previous owner theoretically retains the ability to view the vehicle's location.

Moreover, the account transfer process varies greatly across brands. Some require both parties to cooperate in submitting application forms, ID cards, and vehicle registration certificates, with the process taking three to five business days via email; others cannot complete the transfer due to outstanding vehicle loans or mortgages. The cumbersome process leads many to choose 'making do for now' during transactions, which is precisely where hidden risks lie.

Beyond account control issues, there's the problem of orphaned cars and automaker bankruptcies. According to LGI Consulting, as of May 2026, 23 new energy automakers have entered bankruptcy, liquidation, or complete shutdown, with approximately 850,000 compliant new energy passenger vehicles sold cumulatively.

Mr. Chen from Shenzhen purchased a WM Motor car for 140,000 yuan in 2021. After the automaker went bankrupt, he discovered that all WM Motor 4S stores in Shenzhen had closed when he sought maintenance, leaving him to rely on third-party garages for basic upkeep. Early this year, his vehicle developed a power battery fault, and the third-party garage informed him that the three-electric system detection procedures and fault codes were encrypted by the automaker, making repairs impossible without original equipment; if he sourced a dismantled battery pack from informal channels, the quote was nearly one-third of the original car's price.

The plight of Mr. Wang, a HiPhi owner, is even more disheartening. He spent a substantial amount on his car, only to experience frequent blackouts on the central control screen, with nearly all his paid navigation and remote control functions disabled. Worse, after the automaker shut down, multiple mainstream insurers refused to underwrite his vehicle damage insurance, leaving him to drive with only compulsory traffic insurance, 'bearing all losses himself in case of a major accident.'

The 'first-owner exclusive' nature of intelligent driving rights also warrants attention. Second-hand owners are often treated differently regarding high-level intelligent driving functions.

Intelligent driving is a core reason many people buy smart cars. However, in the second-hand market, the ownership of intelligent driving rights has become a gray area. A second-hand buyer of a Leitao L90 complained that while the App's promotional page prominently displayed the vehicle's bundled 10-year high-level intelligent driving rights as 'vehicle-bound,' the restrictive clause that 'rights are exclusive to the first owner and expire upon transfer' was hidden in the fine print. After the vehicle transfer, the manufacturer provided only a one-year grace period before directly revoking the rights.

According to the 'Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of Consumer Rights and Interests,' operators shall not include standard terms that exclude or restrict consumers' main rights. However, a vast gap exists between legal claims and actual rights protection.

In summary, the risks are further amplified when intelligent driving vehicles enter the second-hand market. Second-hand car dealers generally avoid recycling such cars, as 'dismantling for parts is more profitable than selling the whole vehicle.' Those who buy such cars essentially inherit a ticking time bomb that may lose intelligent functions at any time, become unrepairable, and even lack comprehensive insurance coverage.

Where Will Second-Hand Intelligent Driving Cars Go?

As smart cars accelerate into the second-hand market, with growing transaction volumes, more and more irregularities are being exposed. Why does the second-hand intelligent driving market frequently encounter problems? How can these risks be avoided?

Ultimately, the root of the risks lies in the fact that current institutional designs have not kept pace with the rapid evolution of smart cars.

At the automaker level, the iteration speed of intelligent driving hardware far exceeds the vehicle's normal service life, with facelift cycles compressed to just a few months. Today's high-end configuration may become obsolete due to insufficient computing power after an OTA update tomorrow. The intelligent driving premium paid by consumers when purchasing a new car often becomes an 'unclaimed negative asset' in the second-hand market.

At the policy level, stringent access standards have been implemented, raising the quality baseline for new cars from the source. However, while factory compliance is ensured, transparency in circulation is not. Whether intelligent driving rights transfer with the vehicle, how many years of OTA support remain, and whether functions are still effective lack mandatory disclosure requirements in second-hand transactions.

The 'Provisions on the Administration of Automobile Data Security (Trial)' implemented in 2021 established the right to delete personal information, while GB/T 44464-2024 'General Requirements for Automobile Data,' effective from January 2026, further clarifies that automobile data processors shall complete the deletion of sensitive information within 10 working days upon a personal request for deletion.

However, these clauses primarily govern deletion requests initiated by owners and lack dedicated regulations or standards for data clearance and account unbinding during second-hand vehicle transfers.

In response, domestic experts have proposed relevant suggestions. Some recommend introducing a multi-party participation system during second-hand vehicle transfers, with the DMV acting as a witness to oversee the digital account transfer on-site according to the automaker's provided materials and procedures, safeguarding the data security rights of both old and new owners. Zhu Keli, Executive Director of the China Information Association, advocates that manufacturers should establish a mechanism to automatically revoke the previous owner's permissions upon transfer, ensuring the new owner can smoothly take over.

To address the after-sales vacuum caused by automaker bankruptcies, the industry is calling for the establishment of an automaker after-sales liability fund, mandating companies to contribute a guarantee based on sales volume, and promoting the establishment of a third-party after-sales certification system to break brand monopolies on parts and diagnostic data. Unlike traditional fuel vehicles, new energy vehicle parts are often exclusively supplied by automakers, making third-party intervention difficult. This is the biggest difference from traditional fuel vehicles and the institutional root of after-sales dilemmas. Therefore, stricter automotive production technology standards need to be formulated to promote the standardization of key components and reduce after-sales brand lock-in from the source.

However, implementing these solutions still faces practical challenges. Questions remain about how to set the funding standards for the after-sales fund, who will manage it, and whether the funding sources are sustainable, all of which create tension with industry innovation vitality.

From the moment a smart car is delivered, its ownership should be completely vested in the consumer who purchased it. This includes the keys, accounts, data, and every digital right associated with the vehicle. Otherwise, 'intelligence' is merely a pseudo-concept lacking true control.

The second-hand intelligent driving car market needs not just reasonable prices but also a set of rules that ensure digital identities transfer with the vehicle and control rights are fully handed over. Perfecting these rules requires automakers to abandon their obsession with 'first-owner exclusivity,' policies to fill the gap in digital transfers, and every second-hand car buyer to ask one more question before signing: Who does this car truly listen to now?