Nissan dealers salesmanship

[darandon]

Hey guys,

Quick question... Do dealers have any special way on getting information or being educated about the leaf? Up here north of the boarder, things dont seem to be that well... If you walk into a dealership and ask any of the staff any question regarding any of the ICE vehicles, they know things but when it comes to the leaf they avoid telling you anything about it as if it were to be a cursed car... :shock: Each dealership only has 1 guy that is the ""expert"" for selling the vehicle and ""the guy"" doesnt even know anything about the upcoming MY13 or its pricing or availability/release, yet they seem to push the 2012 for a price that is much higher than the 2013. I know the conversion is not the same and stuff but I dont know if its Nissan Canada or the dealers are not even bothering with the car when it comes to attempting to sell it.

Can some one please explain to me what is the broken link here because as a buyer I would expect the seller to know what they are selling and to be reasonable with their negotiations.

Cheers

-D-

 

[Shaka]

Specialty cars always have this issue. I've had my share of unique cars, some which were only made 5,000 for the USA for example. It isn't uncommon for such low production cars to have very little data rolled out to dealers. Additionally if they don't sell many, they won't take the time to educate themselves. Sad, because the while chicken/egg syndrome-- if the dealers knew more they would sell more and so forth.....

Anyhow I doubt you're going to find a dealer who cares if they only have a few a year if that. Your best bet to educate yourself is reading online, taking most independent reviews with a grain of salt. Same with these forums--- sift through the BS, read up, learn about what "real mileage" ranges you get etc and educate yourself. And then decide if the car is right for you.

Keep in mind too that probably 90% or more of the people posting on these forums have a LEAF already.. so we may all be a bit biased hahah....

 

[cwerdna]

I hope someone at Nissan at reading is the OP's complaint and will take action to improve the experience there.

 

[brg2290]

Anyhow I doubt you're going to find a dealer who cares if they only have a few a year if that. Your best bet to educate yourself is reading online, taking most independent reviews with a grain of salt. Same with these forums--- sift through the BS, read up, learn about what "real mileage" ranges you get etc and educate yourself. And then decide if the car is right for you.

I agree with this advice. It's likely you will come to know more about your prospective purchase than the salesperson. You may even teach him / her a thing or two. Your salesperson may also teach you a thing or two as well. However, my credo when dealing with a car salesperson is to verify everything they tell you.

Remember, you are advocating for yourself. You have the right to ask questions, to take the time to verify the accuracy of the answers, and the right to call BS when you know something is incorrect or misrepresented. Don't put undue pressure on yourself to make a snap decision, and most certainly do not allow a salesperson or dealership to do so. That's my 2 cents, hope it makes sense.

Gary

 

[darandon]

Thanks for input guys.

You are right... Odds are I will come in there knowing way more than the salesperson does. I have been sleeping on these forums and paid very close attention to what people say. I generally am the guy that would read and not write too much. Honestly I have been debating on what will my next car be. I would love for it to be the leaf because it is a car that is unique pure electric and very fun to drive, but the prius C has been a car that is cheaper, probably not as fun but the toyota dealers seem to be way more educated and good at raising the stakes of the car. (just to be clear i dont want to start bashing any cars or to be bias but im just using it as an alternative)

I really hope that Nissan becomes more active in these forums. Its free market research for them all in one site. If they were to pay a little attention here and provide the answers those cars can be hard to be kept on the lots. There are so many people that when I show them the car and talk about it they are very impressed of it but if they get the same treatment as i did then without any research I highly doubt they would even consider buying it.

Also Nissan Canada should refine their pricing because the only difference between the US and Canadian models are that the Canadian ones have daylight running lights and last time I checked that did not cost $8000 more.

 

[cwerdna]

FWIW, I've spoken to one Nissan employee (no, not somebody at a dealer) who does read MNL.

As for dealer knowledge, I can tell you a common complaint on Priuschat is people encountering Toyota dealers and salesman w/a lack of Prius knowledge as well.

 

[darandon]

FWIW, I've spoken to one Nissan employee (no, not somebody at a dealer) who does read MNL.

As for dealer knowledge, I can tell you a common complaint on Priuschat is people encountering Toyota dealers and salesman w/a lack of Prius knowledge as well.

Yea I meant the Nissan sales people should be at least able to sell the car. At 2 locations the sales person didnt know the car as if it were a car from a different make. They just knew it was running on electricity and they tried to sell me a pathfinder or a versa....

I am not saying the toyota guys know their cars perfect. I have caught them with mistakes too but they at least are capable of trying to sell you the car and get information regarding it. So far unfortunately I have not seen Nissan provide even similar or equivalent level of interest to sell the car.

 

[Shaka]

Honestly I have been debating on what will my next car be. I would love for it to be the leaf because it is a car that is unique pure electric and very fun to drive, but the prius C has been a car that is cheaper, probably not as fun but the toyota dealers seem to be way more educated and good at raising the stakes of the car. (just to be clear i dont want to start bashing any cars or to be bias but im just using it as an alternative)

I don't think anyone here will knock you if you get a Prius instead of a LEAF. The decision has way too many facets - your drive needs, your electric prices based on where you live, so many other factors. You need to decide what car works best for you. However, and this is my $0.02 -- I would not let the dealership experience dictate my purchase of a car. I've bought plenty of cars from dealers I'd never buy from again, but they had the car/price/etc that I wanted at that moment. Even if they are d!cks to work with, the headache might be worthwhile. Uneducated dealers or not, there are ways for you to learn whatever you need/want about the LEAF using places like these forums.

As a side note: based on the electric prices in Ohio, the fact that we have a 2nd car that is gas for long trips, and the knowledge that I'd have less CO2 output and it would be NOT in the urban areas, we selected the LEAF is a good option over a hybrid car. The cost per mile was $0.04 for the LEAF versus $0.07 for a Prius. This may not be your results, but something to compare... also consider that a hybrid will have oil change and other service needs the LEAF will not.

Also, with regards to your other comments (not quoted), as cwerdna said, Nissan probably DOES read these forums. You'd be surprised to know that all the big forums do indeed get seen by the mfg's -- but they are smart, they read only, and rarely post. They take a passive review of the data typically. They let their lower-level (read: dealership/salesman) be the active participants. They do the higher-level things needed (buybacks, etc) when they have to step in. But you'll rarely find corporate participation in forums -- that is for smaller companies, like Tesla, etc.

 

[adric22]

One issue is that the salesmen aren't really interested in selling a Leaf. The reason is simple. They are paid on commission. And since they would have to refer you over to the "specialist" they make zero money for spending time with you. That is also the same reason that EVs are never recommended to the laymen who walks onto the lot looking for a "fuel efficient" car. And from what I've seen, half or more of car sales are made by people just showing up with absolutely no idea what kind of car they want. Then the salesmen shows them some different cars. Well, again, no reason to show a person a Leaf because you would have to give up that sale to the specialist.

So until the Leaf becomes a bit more mainstream, this will be the situation. Its almost a catch-22 situation.

 

[Shaka]

One issue is that the salesmen aren't really interested in selling a Leaf. The reason is simple. They are paid on commission. And since they would have to refer you over to the "specialist" they make zero money for spending time with you. *(snip)* Its almost a catch-22 situation.

What do you mean by a specialist? In my case the sales person I had dealt with was not assigned to me. It was just the guy who they had on-site who I lucked into. We had been to another dealer, and it was standard fare. You deal with a sales person, who has a manager too. No specialist who "had" to sell us the LEAF. Perhaps Ohio is different than other markets in the USA?

I've been to high-line dealerships where you see that sort of thing happen (Think Audi R8, or Porsche Carrera GT). But we're not talking about quarter million dollar cars here. Of the two dealers we interacted with, any sales person was free to sell the LEAF and gain the commission from that sale. Same as they could all sell any car.

For Nissan, the only program at least in Ohio that I'm aware of that is similar is the GT-R program. Only certain dealers are certified to service a GT-R ... but 95% of the dealers around here have been certified, and have the plaque proudly on display.

 

[garygid]

I suggest shopping for a dealer with a positive, helpful
attitude and a good price, within the geographical area
that you feel matches your needs.

Then, you might offer to spend some time educating
the LEAF specialist with accurate information from
this forum (not everything is perfectly correct in every
post, but some time spent reading will usually give you
a good foundation).

Let the specialist explain what he knows best, how the ordering
options, and lease/purchase details are handled by that dealership.
Each dealer is different, with different policies on openness,
honesty, and helpfulness.

No matter what they are, or appear to be, use you brain...
modify your expectations to fit the reality that you encounter,
and try to be a positive force in the universe.