Tier 2 pushed back to Summer 2011???

[garygid]

Dealers need special, clean, isolated service bays, special tools and battery jack, possibly a special lift for the car (with center free to access the battery), etc.

 

[smkettner]

I do not understand what the slow down or delay is all about. I thought Nissan had sold out 2011 with the 20,000+ reservationists. Seems like if Nissan reopened reservations October 1, 2011 for 2012 model year they would have plenty of orders and such with no delay. The second year should be far easier and Nissan will not need the lead time as they did this year to sell out the 2011s.

 

[LEAFer]

Uncertain quick-charge standard raising its ugly head again ?

 

[kmp647]

tavares said this at the launch press conference: Nissan is dedicated to making sure that any reservationist that ordered a car in our first seven launch markets will be driving their Nissan LEAF—at the latest—by the end of Summer 2011question, can somone list the "first seven launch markets" ?

thank you (hope Va is one of em) :ugeek:

 

[jhm614]

tavares said this at the launch press conference: Nissan is dedicated to making sure that any reservationist that ordered a car in our first seven launch markets will be driving their Nissan LEAF—at the latest—by the end of Summer 2011question, can somone list the "first seven launch markets" ?

thank you (hope Va is one of em) :ugeek:

I'm guessing:
1---
CA
OR
WA
AZ
TN
1a ---
TX
HI

 

[kmp647]

bummer

so order by end of aug or september in Va

get car December 2011 or jan 2012

better be a 2012 model

have cold weather spec option for sure

Maybe even a new color , how about green metallic

and a darker interior,,,,, are you listening Nissan?

 

[rnkepler]

In order to fulfill interest and meet demand in initial launch markets, Nissan plans to reopen reservations in the first half of 2011 as well as shift timing of additional markets until the second half of 2011.

This was from their press release for the first delivery. It sounds like they just want to focus on the initial markets first. They are getting a lot of cheap publicity out there with these deliveries. Interesting that they'll be reopening reservations before taking orders from tier 2.

 

[garygid]

Some AREAs will be LATE to get LEAFs. Nissan has consistantly said that Deliveries will be limited to certain [more ready] areas. Having a Reservation in NOW provides you with a place nearer the front of the line when your AREA does open up for deliveries. You can always cancel out and get your $99 back.

 

[mitch672]

Well, I'm probably done with the Leaf, the PHEV conversion of my 2010 Prius looks better and better all the time, 40-60 miles of EV for $13K or so, and I can get it in early 2011

 

[SeattleBlueLeaf]

Another possible reason for delays - we all really want the car! I've heard rumor that 80% of reservations have turned into potential sales so far. I believe Nissan thought the number would be much lower. That discrepancy could account for a lot of the delay. In short - the oversold.

 

[Coffee_Slurry]

I still say again, either the line is slowed down

or lots of other lucky people are getting a Leaf
who are not paying with US $
its one or the other

It's a good question -- are there Leaf deliveries elsewhere in the world?

What's the Japanese equivalent of MNL? I imagine if there are deliveries anywhere to real customers, there will be people talking about it excitedly, no?

 

[jludwi2]

Watched the Event video on YouTube. "Little Carlos" was worth listening to. Does anyone think that the slower rollout in North America is due to the Dollar/Yen problem? From a financial standpoint Nissan might be wanting to put a few more LEAF's on Japanese roads for 2011. Its been talked about elsewhere but if I were a betting man this is where I would place my wager.

I've read at current exchange rates Nissan sells the car for 45k in Japan where they make them.
OR: they can ship them over here to sell them for 32k.

In other words, if Nissan said tomorrow, "surprise, the price of the LEAF in the US is going up by 13 thousand dollars", there would be much less demand and those willing to pay the price would get there cars much earlier.

 

[Jimmydreams]

I've read at current exchange rates Nissan sells the car for 45k in Japan where they make them.
OR: they can ship them over here to sell them for 32k.

In other words, if Nissan said tomorrow, "surprise, the price of the LEAF in the US is going up by 13 thousand dollars", there would be much less demand and those willing to pay the price would get there cars much earlier.

Yeah, but I think the US car market is MUCH bigger than Japans....and if Nissan tried going for the throat on looking only at initial profitability, they wouldn't find many takers here in the US.

Nissan is being smart about this...they're behaving like a drug dealer; limited supplies drive up demand, the first taste is free (or reduced price), generate reliability and repeat customers and hook us for the long haul. I, for one, like their approach because it will FORCE other companies to act accordingly.....I don't foresee any more bailouts for GM, so if the Leaf does what it says and is as popular as it seems to be initially then GM will have to move quickly to create a real competitor. Not another hybrid-in-EV's-clothing.

 

[TRONZ]

Does anyone know Nissan's overall numbers as of yesterday? They said 20,000 reservations and 6,000 in Japan. Is that 26,000 worldwide or 14,000 in just the USA? I thought 26. And how many orders have been completed as of yesterday's announcement? I mean are we talking 2,000 cars or 20,000 cars now promised over the next 8 months??? Anyone have the actual order total so far???

 

[LakeLeaf]

Hi,I am from Maryland and recieved my email late yesderday. To be honest,I having second thoughts on buying a 2010/2011 leaf in 2012. It appears to me that I would be buying a leaf with all the flaws of a first generation with the 2nd generation just a few month down the road. Also I do not like he idea of waiting 16 month to buy a car it does not feel right to me. I welcome any thoughts.

I don't think we've heard anything about when a Gen II product might come out - but my speculation is that this version of the Leaf will be selling for longer than a normal car would sell. I don't think you are going to see any substantial changes in the car until everyone who wants one, and then some, have a Leaf. That may be 5 years or so. No reason to add more features when the features you do have continue to sell.

 

[malamastra]

You Make a good point, thanks, but I hope that they can extend the range a little in the next few years. I do not need a lot of range but 150 would allow me to get to the Maryland beaches.

 

[Coffee_Slurry]

I'd take faster charging over increased range. Opportunistic charging will be much more viable at 6.6kW than 3.3.

 

[TimeHorse]

I think the easy upgrades, like Cold Weather Package Trim and 6.6kW charging and even new colors seem possible in the 2012 series since none of these would be major changes to the architecture. I do think new, more efficient cells for the battery with the same form factor may also be possible but I don't expect that technology to change substantially in time for the 2012 car.

The pessimist in me sees it more in context of the Rav4 EV, though. Limited release, with the potential to completely abandon it at a whim before they're in too deep with too many cars on the road. Like the Mini-E or the EV-1, they might then want to recall it and make like it never happened before it ever reaches the eye-poked 8 or the forgotten 36 or the 13 what-aboot-us-eh? Sure, it's unlikely that a distant 3rd Japanese automaker under French ownership would do something as terribly risky as to kill a market it just opened (it's not GM, after all, and GM was never #3!) especially with such stiff competition from Korea and now China and India.

Of course, personally, I'd prefer 16kW charging! Thank you Clipper Creek CS-100!

 

[tps]

If Nissan makes any changes before next year when those of us in the "forgotten 36" get to order, I'd like to see:

1. Larger on-board charger, 6.6 kW or 7.2 kW. This is probably reasonable for Nissan to do in short order. Bigger than 7.2 kW might not be necessary, as the main use will be destination charging, and right now I'm guessing that most public L2 will not provide more than 30A.

2. Larger battery capacity, maybe 40 kWh, which would translate to 160 mi range. This would likely be really hard for Nissan, so I'll not hold my breath.

I take as a given that the cold weather package will be available next year, and may well be a necessity for those of us who park outside in colder climates.

I don't see Nissan abandoning the EV market; that would be a complete about face from the message they've been sending.

 

[Jimmydreams]

I don't think we've heard anything about when a Gen II product might come out - but my speculation is that this version of the Leaf will be selling for longer than a normal car would sell. I don't think you are going to see any substantial changes in the car until everyone who wants one, and then some, have a Leaf. That may be 5 years or so. No reason to add more features when the features you do have continue to sell.

I think Nissan WILL update the car as it goes along. They can't leave a Leaf 1.0 out there for year after year. I don't anticipate a major redesign or anything, but tweeks to the batteries etc. over time will show up to keep the car 'fresh'. Those in the forgotten 36 will get a better car than some of us.....that's the payoff for having to wait.