Why Do Leafs Go to Auction?

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erco

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 6, 2017
Messages
110
Location
Los Angeles, CA
I'm using Carfax to shop around for a 2014 or newer Leaf, and I can see each car's history. Most of them were sold at auction. For instance, https://www.carfax.com/VehicleHistory/p/Report.cfx?partner=CUL_1&vin=1N4AZ0CP9FC302418&compCode=3TXOkBQ9Gt1K8apOCxLpM43tWkSiC%2FHF

... was bought & serviced at Mossy Nissan Kearny Mesa near San Diego, then sold at auction. Currently for sale 89 miles north in Anaheim: https://www.carfax.com/Used-Nissan-Leaf_w536#vdp=1N4AZ0CP9FC302418

Meanwhile, Mossy Nissan has several other used Leafs for sale for considerably more: https://www.mossynissan.com/inventory/?s=leaf

I'm curious why so many Leafs go straight to auction. Is it a weird car in that regard? Does Nissan just not like the used Leaf market? Are auctioned cars likely damaged? And does buying an auctioned car change the warranty in any way?
 
Dealers don't like to try to sell them because they depreciate so much. Residuals are usually too high for lessees to buy them when the lease ends. That leaves the auctions.
 
For me: http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=20285&p=432095&hilit=purchase+fee#p432095.

At the time, NMAC didn't negotiate and the dealers weren't involved any sort of negotiation at lease end. AFAIK, the process has changed now.

Part of it is that cheap leases on EVs and PHEVs continue to be available, besides huge discounts on Leaf purchases. So, if the buyout price is too high, cars will just go back and end up at auction.

The leased car I returned after 2 years and under 24K miles went to auction and got sold there.
 
@LeftieBiker: If you like your car (and know its clean history), why not track the car as it goes to auction and buy it back for $5K?
 
erco said:
@LeftieBiker: If you like your car (and know its clean history), why not track the car as it goes to auction and buy it back for $5K?

A search of Autotrader shows only 4 Leafs for sale in the entire country for under $6k, all of them 2011 models. Cars.com showed none. The cheapest 2013 Leaf SV I could find anywhere using those two websites is $6900, and the car had over 62k miles on it.

My Leaf (see my sig line for mileage and degradation info) had an original residual of $16,700, NMAC offered it to me for $5k off, but in the end it went to auction. I saw it pop up at a CarMax in Oxnard, CA for $9999, later dropping to $9599 before it disappeared from their website.
 
I would only want the car to resell and avoid possible end of lease fees, so no. I could have gotten it for $5k in February, but I wasn't told about that until March. The car doesn't have quite enough range and has no QC.
 
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