I bought and sold my kawasaki ZR7 for around ~3k, half of what even some of the cheapest road legal E-Bike costs, more like a third of the price if you look at average.
The inclusion of “even some of the cheapest” here confuses me. And the idea that 3k is a third of the AVERAGE price?
Some of the cheapest from specific brands, maybe. A Trek eBike will put you out a significant chunk of cash, sure.
But the cheapest eBikes are not $6k, and the average eBike is not $9k.
My Aventon Level.2, a class 3 eBike which will pedal assist up to 28mph/45kph and which I regularly ride on roads, was a little under $1800. Plus $40ish dollars for the oval 52T chainring so I can actually sustain that 28mph. And Aventons are sort of middle-of-the-road, price-wise. Not cheap, not excessively expensive.