Why are most LEAF owners so unpleasant???-

[espo35]

I am a 52 year old Service Manager at a busy Nissan dealer. I have been in this business for 35 years, as a technician, Service Advisor, Parts and Service Director and Service Manager. I am quite friendly and quite knowledgable in my trade. I have worked at many different brands of auto-dealerships, from Maserati to Kia and I have never dealt with any customer harder to deal with than my LEAF customers.
Maybe they have a deep hatred for dealerships and hope to "escape" their evil clutches by owning such a low maintenance vehicle??? Many act like "junior-engineers", fancying themselves quite the savvy "car-guy". These aren't space shuttles, people...they're cars with electric motors..... the like of which have been around for 100 years.

It is so bad here that my 4 service advisors will walk right by a waiting LEAF owner, just so they don't have to deal with them.

Really.

The time will come when your LEAF will be OUT of warranty and you will have to PAY for a repair.

Guess who you'll want on your side, then.

 

[RegGuheert]

I am a 52 year old Service Manager at a busy Nissan dealer. I have been in this business for 35 years, as a technician, Service Advisor, Parts and Service Director and Service Manager. I am quite friendly and quite knowledgable in my trade. I have worked at many different brands of auto-dealerships, from Maserati to Kia and I have never dealt with any customer harder to deal with than my LEAF customers.
Maybe they have a deep hatred for dealerships and hope to "escape" their evil clutches by owning such a low maintenance vehicle??? Many act like "junior-engineers", fancying themselves quite the savvy "car-guy". These aren't space shuttles, people...they're cars with electric motors..... the like of which have been around for 100 years.

It is so bad here that my 4 service advisors will walk right by a waiting LEAF owner, just so they don't have to deal with them.

Really.

The time will come when your LEAF will be OUT of warranty and you will have to PAY for a repair.

Guess who you'll want on your side, then.

Just thought I would quote your text in case you choose to delete it!

 

[espo35]

I have no desire to delete it, for like it or not, it is the truth.

Noone wishes it was not the case more than I!


ps: I own a 2011 LEAF myself.

 

[TonyWilliams]

Gosh, I guess the obscenely high percentage of engineer early adopters will do that. It must be much easier to deal with soccer moms ! They'll buy the annual brake fluid flush!!!

By the way, my service guy treats me quite nice, and I don't think I've given a buck to the dealer's service department yet. Nissan has sure paid for a few visits, though.

I would not drive this car out of warranty.

 

[leafwing]

I think the number of affected owners is limited and normal.
You may call 1800 NO GAS and ask for a case number. :lol:

 

[espo35]

Gosh, I guess the obscenely high percentage of engineer early adopters will do that. It must be much easier to deal with soccer moms ! They'll buy the annual brake fluid flush!!!

By the way, my service guy treats me quite nice, and I don't think I've given a buck to the dealer's service department yet. Nissan has sure paid for a few visits, though.

I would not drive this car out of warranty.

Assuming you are an engineer, whom do you suppose knows more about your LEAF: yourself, or the engineers who designed your LEAF? You know, the ones who recommend your yearly brake fluid flush?

ps: You might consider an occasional tire rotation, too.

pps: As I deal with 20+ LEAF owners a week, you may take it from me that there are a LOT more soccer moms driving them than engineers. Not surprisingly, the soccer moms seem to have a better grasp on mechanics than their engineer brethren.

 

[Weatherman]

I can't speak for other LEAF owners, but, when I have a problem with my car and I take it to a dealer I want to be confident the problem will be diagnosed and fixed properly. I haven't had much interaction with the service departments at the dealers in my area, but the one contact I had didn't inspire much confidence.

After I leased my new LEAF, I had to go back to the dealer to pick up the check for my trade-in. I was running low on electrons, so I pulled into the service area and asked the representative where the EVSE was so I could get a quick charge. He was totally confused. I tried a whole bunch of other terms like "charging station", "charging dock", etc. and he, finally said I needed to talk to one of the sales reps.

So, I parked my car in the dealer's lot, went into the main entrance and asked if I could use their "charging station" to charge my LEAF’s battery. Turns out the EVSE was located on the back wall of one of the service bays at the far back of the lot and had a forklift parked in front of it.

Needless to say, I felt lucky I didn't have a more serious problem than simply not having a place to plug my car in.

 

[TonyWilliams]

Gosh, I guess the obscenely high percentage of engineer early adopters will do that. It must be much easier to deal with soccer moms ! They'll buy the annual brake fluid flush!!!

By the way, my service guy treats me quite nice, and I don't think I've given a buck to the dealer's service department yet. Nissan has sure paid for a few visits, though.

I would not drive this car out of warranty.

Assuming you are an engineer, whom do you suppose knows more about your LEAF: yourself, or the engineers who designed your LEAF? You know, the ones who recommend your yearly brake fluid flush?

ps: You might consider an occasional tire rotation, too.

I wasn't volunteering me to be your token bad customer. Just the opposite, I hope. As to trusting Nissan engineers; neither I, nor you, have much interaction with them (I'll go on record as presuming I've had more contact with them than you).

I don't believe the engineers came up with annual brake fluid changes for the LEAF. Yes, tire rotations are needed, and my dealer has done that on my LEAF. Too bad they only lasted 24,000 miles (on a tire that the manufacturer warranties for 60,000 miles).

Edit to your edit: oh no you diddddn't.... soccer mom -v- engineer fight.

 

[espo35]

I can't speak for other LEAF owners, but, when I have a problem with my car and I take it to a dealer I want to be confident the problem will be diagnosed and fixed properly. I haven't had much interaction with the service departments at the dealers in my area, but the one contact I had didn't inspire much confidence.

After I leased my new LEAF, I had to go back to the dealer to pick up the check for my trade-in. I was running low on electrons, so I pulled into the service area and asked the representative where the EVSE was so I could get a quick charge. He was totally confused. I tried a whole bunch of other terms like "charging station", "charging dock", etc. and he, finally said I needed to talk to one of the sales reps.

So, I parked my car in the dealer's lot, went into the main entrance and asked if I could use their "charging station" to charge my LEAF’s battery. Turns out the EVSE was located on the back wall of one of the service bays at the far back of the lot and had a forklift parked in front of it.

Needless to say, I felt lucky I didn't have a more serious problem than simply not having a place to plug my car in.

When you say "service representative", I have to wonder if it was a car washer, janitor, porter or the like. Anyone who has any contact with the cars would certainly know where the EVSE was, after all, they come off the truck only scantilly charged.

 

[RegGuheert]

Anyone who has any contact with the cars would certainly know where the EVSE was, after all, they come off the truck only scantilly charged.

Luckily, our Nissan dealerships universally ensure that they are immediately topped off! :roll:

 

[surfingslovak]

Assuming you are an engineer, whom do you suppose knows more about your LEAF: yourself, or the engineers who designed your LEAF? You know, the ones who recommend your yearly brake fluid flush?

ps: You might consider an occasional tire rotation, too.

pps: As I deal with 20+ LEAF owners a week, you may take it from me that there are a LOT more soccer moms driving them than engineers. Not surprisingly, the soccer moms seem to have a better grasp on mechanics than their engineer brethren.

It's pretty clear that this fellow is here to argue and vent. I never had a problem with any of the dealers that I frequent, and I take care to treat everyone nicely. That said, is it appropriate to see a Nissan service manager air the displeasure about his customers on an owners forum? Does that project professionalism?

 

[espo35]

Assuming you are an engineer, whom do you suppose knows more about your LEAF: yourself, or the engineers who designed your LEAF? You know, the ones who recommend your yearly brake fluid flush?

ps: You might consider an occasional tire rotation, too.

pps: As I deal with 20+ LEAF owners a week, you may take it from me that there are a LOT more soccer moms driving them than engineers. Not surprisingly, the soccer moms seem to have a better grasp on mechanics than their engineer brethren.

It's pretty clear that this fellow is here to argue and vent. I never had a problem with any of the dealers that I frequent, and I take care to treat everyone nicely. That said, is it appropriate to see a Nissan service manager air the displeasure about his customers on an owners forum? Does that project professionalism?

I believe my words are civil enough, sir. Remember, I don't work for Nissan, I merely get paid to sell and service their cars. I'm old enough and experienced enough to be able to express my views without name-calling. Believe me, "unpleasant" was not my first choice of adjetives in choosing this threads' title.

 

[smkettner]

Why do so many dealers expect close to $200 for the first year annual service?
Why did the dealers say not to use the Wattstation when it was a Nissan issue?
Why do so many dealers give a hassle to charging a car that was not purchased at that location?
Why such a hassle for AZ cars to get some follow up on losing 3 or more capacity bars in the first year?

And don't even get me started on the Ford dealers and Toyota dealers I have visited.
I will just say I always seem to get ripped off, shoddy work, and a dishonest story about what needs to get done.

Not that independents are that much better. A few are good but it is tough out there for consumers.

BTW my local dealer was very pleasent when I went in for service. So far so good.

 

[espo35]

Why do so many dealers expect close to $200 for the first year annual service?
Why did the dealers say not to use the Wattstation when it was a Nissan issue?
Why do so many dealers give a hassle to charging a car that was not purchased at that location?
Why such a hassle for AZ cars to get some follow up on losing 3 or more capacity bars in the first year?

And don't even get me started on the Ford dealers and Toyota dealers I have visited.
I will just say I always seem to get ripped off, shoddy work, and a dishonest story about what needs to get done.

Not that independents are that much better. A few are good but it is tough out there for consumers.

BTW my local dealer was very pleasent when I went in for service. So far so good.

The 15K annual service includes a HEPA filter ($85.00 installed) and a brake fluid exchange ($100.00). Noone is forcing you to do it.... but if you want someone to work for you, they generally expect to get paid.

Your other questions use terms like "the dealers" and "so many dealers" without any facts so I cannot address them.

 

[davewill]

... It is so bad here that my 4 service advisors will walk right by a waiting LEAF owner, just so they don't have to deal with them.

Really.

The time will come when your LEAF will be OUT of warranty and you will have to PAY for a repair.

Guess who you'll want on your side, then.

Your competitors who care about their clients, obviously.

P.S. please post the name of your dealership so we can carefully avoid ever going there.

edit: P.P.S. I've decided this just HAS to be a troll. I refuse to believe that anyone actually working at a dealership would risk their job posting like this.

 

[surfingslovak]

I believe my words are civil enough, sir. Remember, I don't work for Nissan, I merely get paid to sell and service their cars. I'm old enough and experienced enough to be able to express my views without name-calling. Believe me, "unpleasant" was not my first choice of adjetives in choosing this threads' title.

Believe or not, I worked in service jobs before and I have seen a fair share of difficult customers. I'm not trying to compare, and I have an appreciation for your situation. This is one of the reasons, why I try to be extra nice and accommodating.

While it's OK to commiserate, I'm afraid that you won't find the empathy you might be looking for on this forum. This is a new vehicle, which attracts a technical crowd, and we had our own fair share of frustrations with the overall experience. Not looking to dish out any blame, just stating the facts.

I had a really high opinion of Nissan going in. That's changing however, and although my ActiveE has spent an inordinate amount of time in service, I have a much higher regard of BMW now than I had before. My car is a lemon, but they went out of their way to help me, and I value their customer service.

 

[Herm]

Dealerships are auto repair businesses that sell new cars as a service.. very little profit there. Much more profit in the used car section. Arizona dealers will make a pretty penny (from Nissan) replacing battery packs :shock:

It pays for the service dept to make life pleasant for the customers.

 

[Herm]

Back in the 60s cars would last 50k-100k miles before needing an engine rebuild.. tires, plugs, points and so on were good for 12k miles at most. Customers visited their dealership service dept often and got to know their mechanics as friends.. things have changed with modern cars and owners get upset if ANYTHING breaks in the first 5 years.. its not supposed to break thats what I bought a new car for!. I suspect a large proportion of Leaf buyers are even worse than the average car buyer regarding that expectation for perfection.. its a damned electric car with just one moving part.. how can it be broken!

Nothing you can do about it, just be professional and polite about it. Talk the dealership owner into installing a fast charger.. free charges for any Leaf with a sticker from your dealership and $10 for anyone else. Supposedly Nissan is coming out with a $10k unit soon.

 

[smkettner]

Your other questions use terms like "the dealers" and "so many dealers" without any facts so I cannot address them.

It is all here posted on the forum. Day after day more is written. Probably you will find the answer to your own question too.

 

[espo35]

... It is so bad here that my 4 service advisors will walk right by a waiting LEAF owner, just so they don't have to deal with them.

Really.

The time will come when your LEAF will be OUT of warranty and you will have to PAY for a repair.

Guess who you'll want on your side, then.

Your competitors who care about their clients, obviously.

P.S. please post the name of your dealership so we can carefully avoid ever going there.

edit: P.P.S. I've decided this just HAS to be a troll. I refuse to believe that anyone actually working at a dealership would risk their job posting like this.

PM me your VIN and I'll give you a call at home... how's that for proof?

Why would I be "risking my job" ? Even from the responses I've seen thus far on this thread, my premise is proven correct.