D.C. Area Nissan Dealers: Who will go the lowest?

In December, when the metro Washington area is able to RAQ on a LEAF, one major question remains: how low can you go! It's too early to see a bidding war out here yet, but by my count there are currently no less than 19 LEAF-certified dealers in the capital area market. Now, that said, it's a real pain to buy a car out of state around here. Virginia will try to charge you sales tax once you register your car in the Commonwealth, even if you already paid it in Maryland, and the Maryland registration is much more expensive than the one in Virginia so they don't want you registering your cars here. And D.C. loves its 10% sales tax; there's no way they're gonna let you skip that if you live in the district. Not that you can't work some of these things out, like having Maryland not charge sales tax since you're bring it immediately across the border, but it is a hassle. None the less, if a sweet deal can be struck, with all the legalities set in order, that's 19 dealers to choose from. Surely someone's gotta give!

I work for Pohanka and we have 2 Nissan stores here: fredericksburg VA, and Salisbury MD.

I will be buying mine from Fredericksburg (if they ever get Leaf certified) and i will talk to the managers of both stores and see if they will make a special deal for forum members!

I have a december order date (reserved 04/20)


Kevin phillips

kmp647 said:

I work for Pohanka and we have 2 Nissan stores here: fredericksburg VA, and Salisbury MD.

I will be buying mine from Fredericksburg (if they ever get Leaf certified) and i will talk to the managers of both stores and see if they will make a special deal for forum members!

I have a december order date (reserved 04/20)


Kevin phillips

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Thanks, Kevin! Don't know if I can get the LEAF all the way from Fredricksburg but I think I should make it at 64.3 mi via back roads (69.1 via the Beltway). Let me know if you can get them to budge and get certified as I would certainly consider Pohanka as I like their business.

will do, I will be talking to both store mgrs and urging them to become certified and to make an offer to forum members

maybe even an advertisment is in order!

AS my order month approaches (december)I will keep you updated, Pohanka would like to get your Leaf order!


Kevin

December is just around the corner and I am looking to order from a sane and practical dealer. Would a larger dealer be better to maximize my chances to get my car in April? Would a discount be better with a larger dealer. These are questions which keep me up at night. Good luck to all the Mid-Atlantic buyers!

virg012 said:

December is just around the corner and I am looking to order from a sane and practical dealer. Would a larger dealer be better to maximize my chances to get my car in April? Would a discount be better with a larger dealer. These are questions which keep me up at night. Good luck to all the Mid-Atlantic buyers!

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what part of Maryland are you in?

I am just outside of Frederick MD but that doesn't matter much because we have obtained cars from dealers in Harrisburg PA down to Sterling VA. Why do you ask?

just trying to figure what nissan dealers are close to you.

have you talked to any? on price

Definately locate the dealers within about 50 miles, start with the ones that are:
1. LEAF "certified"
2. located conveniently nearby
3. have a good service reputation

Then, call them, tell them what, and about when, you will be ordering, qualify yourself a bit, and ask them if they will be selling the LEAF for MSRP, or less.

Gather data, read topics and ask questions here, if necessary.

Find a good "compromise" in price, distance, sales knowledge and honesty, and service quality.

Firm up the chosen dealer's offer details, and make that dealer your PD. Make sure you give them your contact information and ask for the "deal" details to be confirmed in an email.

About a week before you can order, call and re-check the details.

On RAQ day, confirm again, ask them when they will respond, and submit the RAQ. If they are "ready" for you, you should be able to "order" about 5 minutes later.

That's some GREAT advice, Gary. Comprehensive and complete. ( Make this a "sticky" ? )

The east coast may not have the kinds of below-MSRP deals we've seen here on the left coast during the early ordering phase ... but I went local at a slightly higher price than what I could have paid with a dealer far away. Keeping the dollars local and setting up a good relationship with the dealer were my motivation. Also, due to distances around here I expect to charge at that dealer occassionally ... an after sales "perk" (even if they are required to make some L2s publically available).

An additional note: decide early whether you want to lease or purchase. Although you definitely want to have the "transaction price" firmed up in writing, if you lease, also get the confirmed details (#months, miles/yr, downpayment, etc).

Your best bet in Fredrick, MD is Criswell in Germantown, MD, near the DOE. I've been there, talk to Marcio or Chris, probably best Chris, tell him I and the EVA/DC sent you (or don't, it won't matter) but give him a call, talk to him about your needs as a heads up and then be ready when his dashboard opens... (see a forthcoming post about that). Also, you'll see in a moment why I say Criswell but for now just know they took the MSRP pledge and the No Unexpected Option Guarantee, so you can't go wrong with Criswell!

I've contacted at some level all 40 or so LEAF-Certified Dealerships in the D.C. Area and hope to put up more Meet Your Dealership posts in the http://aecn.timehorse.com/ blog soon. For now, watch that space for some very important and exciting news!