Dealers, deliveries, distances, defaults

[Yanquetino]

The online "chat" I had today with the Nissan rep was enlightening --but very discouraging. I managed to pin down exactly how the state borders apply to the rollout of the Leaf.

Let's say that a reservation holder lives in Littlefield, AZ, i.e., one of the Tier 1 states. The nearest dealer is in St. George, UT, a mere half-hour away. Nonetheless, if that customer wants to take advantage of her Tier 1 status, Nissan will NOT allow her to take delivery from that dealer, nor the next closest ones in Las Vegas, NV: she will have to use the nearest dealer in AZ. That would be in Lake Havasu --239 miles away!

Conversely, let's say a reservation holder lives in Henderson, NV. Because it is not a Tier 1 state, Nissan will NOT allow him to take delivery from that very same Lake Havasu dealer--even though he lives 103 miles closer than the Littlefield customer!

In other words, the full rule is that BOTH the customer AND the dealer must be in a Tier 1 state. Not just one or the other: BOTH.

This does not make sense to me.

I completely understand the need to roll out the Leaf in tiers of states, but IMHO Nissan could have handled it differently. It would have made more sense to require that the dealer be in the designated state, and then let the customers line up accordingly. Would they end up with myriads of reservation holders in Casper, WY, trying to take delivery from a San Diego dealer? I seriously doubt it. Besides, their order page already places a limitation on the ordering process that would discourage such a possibility: as you all know, one can only designate a maximum 200-mile radius in the pop-up menu when selecting a dealer. Nissan could put a maximum upper limit of 300 miles on that radius, and problem solved.

What does it really matter, then, if a few customers live across a state border within that radius, as long as the dealers are designated by tiers of states?

I feel sorry for the Littlefield and Henderson customers. So near, yet so far. Sigh....

 

[evnow]

With any kind of artificial boundaries (dates, geographies etc etc) - there will always be some lucky winners and unlucky losers.

However I'm uncertain as to any information coming out of chat (my guess is they are outsourced CS people) that is out of usual questions - though in this case I think the information might be correct.

ps : Anyone tried selecting a non-rollout state dealer as the PD ?

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

The biggest reason 4 is this ruling is the preferential atmosphere that was created by the states involved in the initial rollout.

Look at the first 5 states. They do not have any common bonds. They are definitely not geographically linked. 1 could argue that the west Is the initial Launch area and tennessee is included because the factory is there. But tennessee also has Extensive hydro electric resources Which make them a prime candidate Because of lower than average electricity rates.

So yeah geographically You can beat screwed But no more so than someone living in california a few miles from the border of oregon Enjoying the lack of resources Just like its neighbor across the border But still subject to california taxes

 

[mossyleaf]

To sell the car you have to be a leaf certified dealer. The dealer in the non roll out state could not be leaf certified yet.

 

[smkettner]

Did you remind Nissan of the Leaf range? Did they give the L3 charge points? did they offer to ship the vehicle?
I would be annoyed also if I fell into that position.

 

[Yanquetino]

To sell the car you have to be a leaf certified dealer. The dealer in the non roll out state could not be leaf certified yet.

Actually, dealers in the lower Tier states can be --and have been-- "Leaf certified." For example, that dealer in St. George, UT, IS certified --but cannot acquire Leafs until the entire state is given the "green light" in "late fall/early winter 2011."

Did they offer to ship the vehicle?

The chat operator did suggest that maybe, perhaps, possibly, the Lake Havasu dealer would be willing to ship a Leaf the 239 miles to Littlefield. Exactly what that would entail, and how much it would cost, is something the reservation holder would have to negotiate with the dealer. My guess is... it would end up being a bigger hassle, and cost a lot more than simply taking delivery from the St. George dealer a half-hour away, but across a state border. Is it worth the money... or the wait?

 

[defiancecp]

ps : Anyone tried selecting a non-rollout state dealer as the PD ?

Yes. It won't work. My dealer even said it would, but they were told no by Nissan. Your order availability is assigned a state and associated schedule based on your credit card billing address.

 

[Gonewild]

The online "chat" I had today with the Nissan rep was enlightening --but very discouraging. I managed to pin down exactly how the state borders apply to the rollout of the Leaf.

In other words, the full rule is that BOTH the customer AND the dealer must be in a Tier 1 state. Not just one or the other: BOTH.

This does not make sense to me.

Besides, their order page already places a limitation on the ordering process that would discourage such a possibility: as you all know, one can only designate a maximum 200-mile radius in the pop-up menu when selecting a dealer. Nissan could put a maximum upper limit of 300 miles on that radius, and problem solved.

What does it really matter, then, if a few customers live across a state border within that radius, as long as the dealers are designated by tiers of states?

I feel sorry for the Littlefield and Henderson customers. So near, yet so far. Sigh....

That statement is not true.

I called the online chat and had them unlock my dashboard limit. I then ordered my car from Rairdon in Wa and I live in AZ. My dealer is 1,500 miles away. You just have to ask and not take no for an answer.

 

[Yanquetino]

That statement is not true.

I called the online chat and had them unlock my dashboard limit. I then ordered my car from Rairdon in Wa and I live in AZ. My dealer is 1,500 miles away. You just have to ask and not take no for an answer.

Excuse me...?! My statement is true. You just substantiated it: you (AZ) and Rairdon (WA) are both in Tier 1 states. Now, if you can convince Nissan to let you take your Tier 1 delivery from a dealer in Las Vegas or St. George or Albuquerque or Denver... I've got my napkin ready to eat a generous helping of crow.