Brendan from Boardwalk is going to Nashville TN...

[Ready2plugin]

Hi Brenden, long time since we saw you here, welcome back!

As others have suggested, have L2s and a QC available at dealerships would be nice.
Make sure the finance or salesperson know the tax rules on buying vs leasing...and tell the truth about each.
Don't play games with the money factors, I have an over 800 credit score and your dealer would not give me a low rate...forced my hand into buying.
The people driving the car right now are your best salespersons...treat them that way.
I fortunately live in the ideal climate for this car, for the others in hot climates, have corporate bend over backwards to make it right when it comes to their battery issues.
A low cost or free extended warranty should be offered for the first gen people to feel better about owning the car and thus knowing Nissan will stand with them.

I wish you the best and thanks for taking the time to listen.

 

[EVDrive]

+1 on quick charging. If every Leaf dealer had one that was on 24/7, that would be a game changer.
I feel unwelcome at most dealers. They have chargers but they are almost always blocked by dealer leafs that are not charging and I have to beg a salesperson to let me charge and I feel like a selfish freeloader stealing a dollar from the dealer.
I would happily pay $7 for a QC. QCing for most Leaf owners is still a pipe dream.
QC is important and should be a powerful marketing weapon when combined with a QC dealer network.

The Leaf does not go 100 miles in the real world. Claiming it does is counter productive.

Upgrade the style. EV's shouldn't look dorky. Think Tesla.
The rear bumper has bad lines from a good looks point of view. The Nismo Leaf has a great rear bumper, it is flat, use that design in the us where style matters.

The headlights bulging out is odd looking. Most current leaf owners could deal with it or like me accepted it but didn't like them at all. Give us the leaf concept outside mirrors and scrap the headlight warts. Nissan can make beautiful headlights. Think nissan z.

Offer an option to buy a larger battery just like Tesla. And of course add thermal management if even as an option.

Put DC Fast Chargers at Nissan dealers. Let us know which ones are 24/7 and which ones are business hours only.

+1 (And the amenities offered by Santa Rosa Nissan are not too shabby: welcome message on the DCQC to use their f pacilities which include wi-fi, snacks, TV, waiting room,, restrooms. And powered by a 100 kw solar PV array! What a crime for a dealership with solar panels NOT to offer DCQC!)

 

[EVDrive]

Still love my Leaf, limited range, almost sporty looks and all.
Looking forward to the 2013 Leaf so I can upgrade if it is more better. Then you can sell me a new one and sell my old one.

 

[TonyWilliams]

+1 on quick charging. If every Leaf dealer had one that was on 24/7, that would be a game changer.
I feel unwelcome at most dealers. They have chargers but they are almost always blocked by dealer leafs that are not charging and I have to beg a salesperson to let me charge and I feel like a selfish freeloader stealing a dollar from the dealer.
I would happily pay $7 for a QC.

Almost every dealership that I've ever been to has difficult times with parking, it won't matter if the charger is L1, L2, or L3; the spot will get blocked. It might just always have a dealer LEAF sitting there, or the manager's demo car. Or where the mechanics park the fixed cars.

Unless there is a regulatory requirement (like a handicap spot or fire zone), a car will occasionally be parked there. It won't matter that you are trying to shove $7 in their face for their $50,000 equipment.

Dealerships just aren't that place I want to hang out for 15-45 minutes at a pop. That doesn't mean it wouldn't be great for dealerships to get these things; I just don't prefer to use one.

 

[TEG]

...Dealerships just aren't that place I want to hang out for 15-45 minutes at a pop. That doesn't mean it wouldn't be great for dealerships to get these things; I just don't prefer to use one.

I partially disagree.
Dealerships tend to have seating, bathrooms, AC, and maybe even some minor amenties in the service area like a drinking fountain and magazines. The few times I have taken my LEAF on longer trips, I found the Nissan dealers to be a better option than many of the other places where public EVSEs may be found.

Also, I think the chances of being 'accepted' at the Nissan dealer are better than when patronizing the 'wrong brand'. For instance, you are less likely to be competing with a BMW ActiveE for the charge spot, and you probably wouldn't want to try your luck trying to charge your LEAF at an EVSE at a BMW dealership.
I hope that 'our dealers' provide 'our charging stations.' Hopefully they realize that reciprocal charging benefits between Nissan dealers will encourage more LEAF buying across the board.

 

[LindaK]

Hi Brendan,
Thanks for doing this. I want to add me $0.02 about dealerships, since car issues are well addressed elsewhere. First of all, my dealership has only one salesman who is knowledgeable about the LEAF. Seriously? ALL salespeople should know as much about a LEAF as an Altima! How else will they get sold???

And in my service department, only one tech has been trained on LEAFs. I had to wait 1.5 weeks for my software upgrade, just because that individual was on vacation. REALLY? Made me wonder if Nissan cares about LEAF customers.

And finally, I have watched the Nissan sales event commercials carefully and NEVER see a LEAF, even in the background shots. Makes me think that NISSAN really isn't trying to sell these cars. Come on Nissan! We're rooting for you to make this car a viable alternative!!

 

[BrendanDolan]

Thanks for all of the feedback everyone. Keep it coming, and I'll pass it all along.

 

[walterbays]

+1 on quick charging. If every Leaf dealer had one that was on 24/7, that would be a game changer.

I hear Tony's concerns about limited parking at dealers. But it would be a game changer if every Leaf dealer was responsible for a QC. It doesn't matter if it's located at the dealer (most have nice waiting areas), or a fast food restaurant, or a coffee shop, or a gas station convenience store. If some QC were available in the general area of each Nissan dealer the potential market for LEAFs would explode. As Ecotality's 2010 infrastructure plan says:

DC Fast Charging has a significant effect on drivers in relieving “range anxiety”. With the knowledge that there is a facility nearby that can deliver a significant charge in a short period of time, the driver is more comfortable using the full range of the vehicle. Without this safety net, the driver is more concerned about maintaining the vehicle battery at a higher state of charge. Thus the availability of DC Fast Charging will go a long way in the promotion of EVs. There is some question, however, whether the availability of the DC Fast Charging actually causes a higher usage of the equipment. A safety net is only needed in extreme conditions. Consequently, it may be that once established, a network of DC Fast Chargers may be sufficient for a substantial time into the long-range plan.

I believe the LEAF sales slump is mostly a result of failure to build the infrastructure. (http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=225611#p225611) Note that even a 20% battery degradation would not be such a serious issue if you could easily get a quick charge on those few times when you really needed that lost range. The best thing Nissan could do is make an agreement with some retail chain to facilitate guest hosting of QC stations, and make each dealer responsible for siting one station.

 

[LEAFfan]

Dealerships just aren't that place I want to hang out for 15-45 minutes at a pop. That doesn't mean it wouldn't be great for dealerships to get these things; I just don't prefer to use one.

Since there aren't any QCs along the Interstates, having them at Nissan dealerships would allow me to travel to cities north and south of here. Once Blink starts charging for QC, I would only use theirs for long-distance travel.

 

[tcherniaev]

Two comments:
First, dealers could do so much more to promote EV charge stations, but they don't seem to understand (or care) about the connection between infrastructure and sales. I live in Salt Lake City area, and downtown dealer has never made any effort to work with the city to improve EV infrastructure. I know this because I called the city and have been working with them in hopes of getting more charge stations. And installing QC at the dealers would help a great deal.
Second, since lease is the best/easiest/cheapest option for getting into LEAF, push that option as much as possible. Advertise 24/36/39 mo lease costs. Compare lease costs with the cost of gas for ICE. For some, cost of discounted lease is about what we pay for gas for our ICE cars.

 

[TonyWilliams]

Dealerships just aren't that place I want to hang out for 15-45 minutes at a pop. That doesn't mean it wouldn't be great for dealerships to get these things; I just don't prefer to use one.

Since there aren't any QCs along the Interstates, having them at Nissan dealerships would allow me to travel to cities north and south of here. Once Blink starts charging for QC, I would only use theirs for long-distance travel.

What if the dealers charged more than Blink for a DC charge?

 

[JeremyW]

I'd like to personally thank Brendan for coming out to the SF Bay meeting. I didn't get too much face time with him, but he did take in our concerns, criticism and suggestions. He also didn't say "it's normal" to the loss in capacity that owners are seeing. Very refreshing to have someone from Nissan on our side.

Go get 'em in TN!

Jeremy

 

[TomT]

Considering that you can count the number of Blink QCs in southern California on basically no fingers, what real difference would it make!

What if the dealers charged more than Blink for a DC charge?

 

[BrendanDolan]

Thanks for all of the input everyone. I had a great time in TN, and passed along a lot of great input.

I guess Nissan has an issue with people hogging the level 3...

Solar charging.

 

[surfingslovak]

I guess Nissan has an issue with people hogging the level 3...

Great to hear, Brendan! Is that a solar carport?

 

[BrendanDolan]

It is.

 

[NYLEAF]

I guess Nissan has an issue with people hogging the level 3...

Just goes to show what a game-changer L3 is. If they had more of them out there, like at the dealers, this might not even be an issue.

If you're able to share, what was their response on that front?

 

[EVDrive]

Nice pictures from TN.

I quick charged at the dealer in Santa Rosa and it was nice waiting there 20 minutes. Air conditioned, a play area for kids, clean bathrooms. Much better than out in the middle of nowhere like the QCer in San Ramon.

Game changer to have quick chargers at dealers with 30 minute parking limits of course.

To see it is to believe it for QCers as far as future and current Leaf owners are concerned.

 

[mwalsh]

So what was the point of this trip, Brendan? I know that Chelsea Sexton was also in Nashville this week, and that can't be a coincidence. Did you go for a press preview of the 2013?

 

[TNleaf]

I guess Nissan has an issue with people hogging the level 3...

Great to hear, Brendan! Is that a solar carport?

Yes it is.

They've had one at the Smyrna, TN plant for a while.

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=48&t=1051&start=270#p123241" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

His picture was taken at the Franklin, TN NNA HQ

Google image of the location. It's a really nice facility.