May Deliveries! Or... May(be)?

[Coffee_Slurry]

I'm starting to think "May" is not really a true date -- it's just a big bucket for everyone who has ordered and isn't getting one by April. As we get closer to May, they will get spread out again, with most pushed out to June or beyond.

Like spreading frosting on the cake -- big gob on the knife, and spread out until even thickness.
There are just too many May cars, collecting the orders for a six month span. I don't buy it.

 

[townsat]

I'm in the same situation and I'm finally losing my patience with Nissan. I reserved 4/20, ordered 9/23, was given an April delivery date, which was then moved to May. I'm in the SF Bay area and my PD is North Bay Nissan. I originally ordered an SV, although as soon as the expansion of the EV Project, I immediately called Nissan to inquire about changing my order to the SL+quick charge. Weeks later, I still haven't been given the etec survey.

Although we're coming up on a year of waiting, I typically wouldn't complain. The timing isn't really that important to me, but the $5K California rebate is an important part of this purchase equation for me, so I'm not at all happy about them putting people who ordered four months after me AHEAD of me in line. It seems to flatly contradict the messages that Nissan has been sending up to now.

I've lurked on this forum for a while and have really learned a lot. And I definitely want this car!

 

[Rat]

Rat,
Did they give you a VIN #? If not how likely is the car to actually have been built?
Call me skeptical.

No, no VIN yet. I believe it has been built because:
1) Nissan called me when the eTec program expanded to the Bay Area (actually the day before) to see if I wanted to upgrade. That was a Wednesday, the announcement by Ecotality was Thursday. The Nissan rep told me my car was going on the assembly line that Friday so I had to decide quick.
2) I checked the dashboard configuration. Where the color was shown, there was the edit button next to it so I could still change the color at that time. After getting a price from the dealer on the upgrade to SL+QC I called Nissan back and authorized the change that evening. The rep said he would put in the change that night.
3) My dashboard did not change the next day. It still shows SV to this day. However, on the Friday he said it would be in production, the edit button on the color disappeared. That button has never reappeared. So I conclude it has already been painted.
4) My dashboard changed to show April delivery sometime around there. Later it changed to May.
5) I have called both Nissan and my dealer a couple of times and they verify that my request to change to SL was received and the car was shown as being in production, but no one could say whether an SV or SL was actually built.
6) The dashboard still shows SV and the color is still not-editable. Still shows May.

If the car was built in early February, then why is it not due here until May? They did not put the April date in until after the car was in production. So what changed after it was built? The explanation about diverting to fill Japanese orders does not make sense with this set of facts. The car was supposedly built to my specification. If they diverted mine to someone in Japan, then they would be building mine, i.e. a second one for me, later and the color should become editable again. They did not tell me how long it takes to come off the assembly line, but I can't imagine it takes three weeks per car. So presumably it has been built and is sitting there waiting to be shipped or maybe it's being tested somehow. If they are suddenly holding up a shipload of cars that are already built an extra month, then I can only figure it's either a QA problem or glitch of some kind, or they have committed the shipping to Europe or elsewhere transocean, but not Japan.

 

[Glenn]

3) My dashboard did not change the next day. It still shows SV to this day. However, on the Friday he said it would be in production, the edit button on the color disappeared. That button has never reappeared. So I conclude it has already been painted.
4) My dashboard changed to show April delivery sometime around there. Later it changed to May.
5) I have called both Nissan and my dealer a couple of times and they verify that my request to change to SL was received and the car was shown as being in production, but no one could say whether an SV or SL was actually built.
6) The dashboard still shows SV and the color is still not-editable. Still shows May.

If the car was built in early February, then why is it not due here until May? They did not put the April date in until after the car was in production. So what changed after it was built? The explanation about diverting to fill Japanese orders does not make sense with this set of facts. The car was supposedly built to my specification. If they diverted mine to someone in Japan, then they would be building mine, i.e. a second one for me, later and the color should become editable again. They did not tell me how long it takes to come off the assembly line, but I can't imagine it takes three weeks per car. So presumably it has been built and is sitting there waiting to be shipped or maybe it's being tested somehow. If they are suddenly holding up a shipload of cars that are already built an extra month, then I can only figure it's either a QA problem or glitch of some kind, or they have committed the shipping to Europe or elsewhere transocean, but not Japan.

FWIW, Russ, I don't think the "Edit Color" button option means anything now. From the day I ordered, Jan 20, that button has never appeared on my dashboard. I even asked folks on the Forum where the button is located, as I was sure I was missing something important. My delivery date, like so many others here, showed "Pending," then "April 2011," now "May 2011." Given our overall dissatisfaction with the Nissan CS and website, I'm not sure we should be relying on those two signposts as we negotiate the path to our actual delivery dates.

Glenn

 

[Rat]

You may be right about the dashboard, but I was told by both Nissan NA and my dealer that my car was in production, so I believe it was. I don't think any of us are at the point that we think everything on the dashboard is totally meaningless. When a change occurs, that must mean someone did something to it for some reason. The absence of a change may not mean much, but when April changes to May, someone made a decision to cause that to happen, so there is something behind it.

I'm not among those concerned about some of the fairness issues. Nissan never promised that orders would be filled strictly on a first-come-first-served basis. Obviously they want to roll things out to different markets at times that suit their strategy, i.e. based on climate, local governments commitment to infrastructure, tax breaks, etc. It also makes sense to group cars geographically so you have a full boatload or full truckload going to a particular location. So if you've got buyer #20 in the Fresno area, say, and you don't have a full & economical Fresno truckload until buyer #1000, they may jump #1000 ahead so that #20 doesn't have to wait months. That sort of thing. Their production line for the SL may be different for the SV, or they may do all blue cars one week, all red the next, etc. They will no doubt crank them out in the order that is most efficient and consistent with marketing strategy. I don't have a problem with that.

P.S. Oh yes, I just realized that once a U.S. car is built it CANNOT be diverted to Japan because Japan has the right-side steering wheel (and of course the software displays are in Japanese). If my car was built as I was told, then it is sitting there waiting for me. So ship it already!

 

[garygid]

I suspect that the "in production" does not mean it is being assembled and painted. Rather, it probably means that it has been entered into the computer-controlled "production" pipeline that handles parts procurement, etc. that eventually ends up with an actual "assembly" date, a specific day when everything "comes together".

Then, the car probably gets handed off to a system (database) for QC, special orders, shipping scheduling, loading, and port delivery. Finally another scheduler (database?) probably handles in-port QC, accessories, and scheduling of delivery to the dealer.

The "edit color" was never on the dashboard screen. One had to click the "> view your config" link at the bottom-center of the dashboard (my account) screen. Then, near your chosen color, there was (when your date was "Pending") an "edit color" link.

 

[charlie1300]

An alternative consideration
the phrase "in production" could mean that your order has been entered into the production management system, and changes to the order are locked, as opposed to a physical car being on the assembly line. Then your sequence in the management system queue is bumped by the Japanese orders to make their March 31 deadline. So your leaf may not even be made yet.

edit: Whoops, Gary can type faster than me!

 

[charlie1300]

I'm starting to think "May" is not really a true date -- it's just a big bucket for everyone who has ordered and isn't getting one by April. As we get closer to May, they will get spread out again, with most pushed out to June or beyond.

Like spreading frosting on the cake -- big gob on the knife, and spread out until even thickness.
There are just too many May cars, collecting the orders for a six month span. I don't buy it.

I love the frosting metaphor (as long as it is chocolate!). But, May could be real dump of Leafs on the west coast.
Here is my speculation:
Nissan is being able to sustain production of 4k+ Leafs per month
Japan is done, time to focus on the US
They want to move on to phase II region, so they are targeting to deliver all of the west coast orders by end of May.

On another thread, Mossyleaf reported that Nissan asked how many truck loads of Leafs he could handle PER DAY. That sounds like a serious push of product.

 

[Beachcliffs]

Here is response I received today from Nissan chat with regards to why someone with a January order date would trump my early October order date ...

• Your delivery timing cannot be compared with any other order because they are individual orders, and vehicle delivery dates can vary due to production schedules, shipping logistics, and many other factors. Each dealer has an order cap per month, a production cap per month, and shipping cap per month.

Not a very satisfactory response (especially the first sentence), but at least it is confirmation of dealer quotas.

 

[ttweed]

This is what I got from my chat:
"As part of normal production sequencing orders get adjusted to meet factory planning. The timing has just been adjusted slightly to meet the specific content of your order and plant scheduling."

Weasel-words if I ever saw them.

And there was this when I mentioned the source of my info:
"I wouldn't have a way to verify someone else's order that you are stating reserved three months later and have a different timeframe....
Information posted by non-Nissan parties on forums may be inaccurate and I would have no way to verify. The correct dates are those given by us and appear on your account online."

So apparently, all you people posting that you made orders in Jan. and got delivery dates in April are not to be believed. Ah, I can rest easy, now.... :evil:

TT

 

[Stoaty]

So apparently, all you people posting that you made orders in Jan. and got delivery dates in April are not to be believed.

OK, you caught me. I set up an elaborate ruse, pretending to be interested in the Leaf for the last 6 months and posting about 100 messages here. I never slipped up, but the geniuses at Nissan Leaf Chat have uncovered my true motive... it was all a lie to upset you :lol:

 

[mossyleaf]

All part of a Vast left wing conspiracy no doubt! :lol:

 

[Glenn]

All part of a Vast left wing conspiracy no doubt! :lol:

Or, as no doubt the majority of reservationists in the forgotten 36 must believe, a left COAST conspiracy!

 

[DaveEV]

Here is response I received today from Nissan chat with regards to why someone with a January order date would trump my early October order date ...

• Your delivery timing cannot be compared with any other order because they are individual orders, and vehicle delivery dates can vary due to production schedules, shipping logistics, and many other factors. Each dealer has an order cap per month, a production cap per month, and shipping cap per month.

Not a very satisfactory response (especially the first sentence), but at least it is confirmation of dealer quotas.

Which is completely BS - I've stated before that jcesare has the same exact dealer as me and same car. The only option I got was floor mats, which I expect everyone is getting. Both of us are in the EV Project. The only physical difference is that he got blue and mine is silver and he ordered Jan 25 (Jan order month) while I ordered Oct 22 (Sept order month).

So unless there is a shortage of silver (unlikely as there are other silver cars with an April delivery date who ordered well after me) either Nissan has screwed up deliveries or the dates are not accurate.

 

[Beachcliffs]

So unless there is a shortage of silver (unlikely as there are other silver cars with an April delivery date who ordered well after me) either Nissan has screwed up deliveries or the dates are not accurate.

Let's both hope that it is the latter rather than the former AND that Nissan rectifies the matter sooner rather than later. It sure would be nice if they were a bit more forthcoming about the process.

 

[jcesare]

Here is response I received today from Nissan chat with regards to why someone with a January order date would trump my early October order date ...

• Your delivery timing cannot be compared with any other order because they are individual orders, and vehicle delivery dates can vary due to production schedules, shipping logistics, and many other factors. Each dealer has an order cap per month, a production cap per month, and shipping cap per month.

Not a very satisfactory response (especially the first sentence), but at least it is confirmation of dealer quotas.

Which is completely BS - I've stated before that jcesare has the same exact dealer as me and same car. The only option I got was floor mats, which I expect everyone is getting. Both of us are in the EV Project. The only physical difference is that he got blue and mine is silver and he ordered Jan 25 (Jan order month) while I ordered Oct 22 (Sept order month).

So unless there is a shortage of silver (unlikely as there are other silver cars with an April delivery date who ordered well after me) either Nissan has screwed up deliveries or the dates are not accurate.

Well there is one major differance, I noticed in the spreadsheet that you stated "September order, held up by eTEC and dashboard problems." It could be a software screwup pushed you back in the queue. What's your EV Project task#?

 

[ttweed]

Well there is one major differance, I noticed in the spreadsheet that you stated "September order, held up by eTEC and dashboard problems." It could be a software screwup pushed you back in the queue. What's your EV Project task#?

I didn't have dashboard problems, but I am in the same boat as drees regarding my Sept order being delayed because of my etec home assessment and my delivery date slipping from April to May. My task # is SDR-0073. Why do you think that makes a difference, and what can you glean about this delay issue from a task #?

TT

 

[mikek]

I am in a similar situation. September order month, ended up ordering the first day possible from Mossy Poway on October 1st. After a couple of weeks of April, my order month is now May. It is quite easy to scroll through the google spreadheet (quite cool by the way) and find multiple people that ordered in January that have April and May delivery estimates!?! Nothing against them, however I feel as if I was unfairly passed by for some reason...

EVPID: SDR-0033

 

[Kataphn]

I am in a similar situation. September order month, ended up ordering the first day possible from Mossy Poway on October 1st. After a couple of weeks of April, my order month is now May. It is quite easy to scroll through the google spreadheet (quite cool by the way) and find multiple people that ordered in January that have April and May delivery estimates!?! Nothing against them, however I feel as if I was unfairly passed by for some reason...

EVPID: SDR-0033

Me, too...same situation exactly except went with Costa Mesa dealer. EV project LAR #147.

 

[Coffee_Slurry]

There were quite a few "September order month" folks that got their order in at the beginning of Oct (1 & 2). We all seem to be May deliveries.


It's clear Nissan thinks they're going to make a whole lot of cars for May delivery, so the bottleneck might move to some other part of the delivery system. If they are just scheduling based on factory, they might say "aw screw it, everyone who ordered before Jan gets their car, so now we don't have to care about order at all any more."

It's all guesswork and uninformed rumination at this point. We probably all have March production months.


My best guess is that "May" is a large bucket, and some will get further pushed out to June, and some will get pulled into late April, depending on delivery capacity.