2014 Nov Plugin Sales Discussion : Leaf 2,687 - Total 9,535

Big questions for Nov/Dec sales numbers - will Leaf hit 30k figure ? It just needs (less than) 3k per month.

Leaf 1876

Volt 1154

Expecting my Volt to take another beating by Leaf sales.

Ian B

I hope Leaf is closer to 3k. Would be unfortunate if they don't make it to 30k - given a very good year.

Will the Soul have any significant sales volume, e.g. greater than 100-200?
And will the i3 continue to sell at the previous two monthly numbers?

I think the Leaf should be at least comparable to the previous months and the Volt will continue to drop off as the news of the new one spreads. The Soul will be negligible as it turns out to be just a compliance car with no aspirations for sales higher than what is required. The i3 should be as well as last month, if not more, with the 3 day loaner programs and the aggressive pricing that BMW is pushing.

jelloslug said:

I think the Leaf should be at least comparable to the previous months and the Volt will continue to drop off as the news of the new one spreads. The Soul will be negligible as it turns out to be just a compliance car with no aspirations for sales higher than what is required. The i3 should be as well as last month, if not more, with the 3 day loaner programs and the aggressive pricing that BMW is pushing.

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I heard at some point they were having inventory issues with the i3 due to a shortage of carbon fiber. I guess we'll see if sales are affected.

jelloslug said:

I think the Leaf should be at least comparable to the previous months and the Volt will continue to drop off as the news of the new one spreads. The Soul will be negligible as it turns out to be just a compliance car with no aspirations for sales higher than what is required. The i3 should be as well as last month, if not more, with the 3 day loaner programs and the aggressive pricing that BMW is pushing.

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Last I heard the Soul was to be rolled out nationwide in the first half of next year.
Has there been news pushing that back?

Zythryn said:

Last I heard the Soul was to be rolled out nationwide in the first half of next year.
Has there been news pushing that back?

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FWIW:

evnow said:

Walks like a duck ... quacks like a duck ...

http://insideevs.com/kia-soul-ev-exclusive-rollout-information-live-images-from-2014-la-auto-show/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

According to the Korean automaker, the Soul EV’s current rollout status does not include plans to go nationwide. Basically, Kia tells us that the Soul EV will only be available in California, Oregon, New York, New Jersey and Maryland.

We repeat…at this point in time, Kia has no plans to expand to Soul EV’s rollout to states other than 5 listed above. Bummer.

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Zythryn said:

Last I heard the Soul was to be rolled out nationwide in the first half of next year.
Has there been news pushing that back?

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Nope, just a compliance car even though they said it would not be.

How depressing
Well, I was in no terrible hurry, back to waiting for the next gen Leaf or Tesla Model 3.

I think that they honestly originally intended to push this out nationally. The Kia dealership in Longmont (here in CO) was even going to get a CHAdeMO L3 as part of the rollout, but last I heard (and saw in person and on plugshare.com) they do not have that yet... so maybe they did change their minds as far as roll out states...

dgpcolorado said:

Zythryn said:

Last I heard the Soul was to be rolled out nationwide in the first half of next year.
Has there been news pushing that back?

Click to expand...

FWIW:

evnow said:

Walks like a duck ... quacks like a duck ...

http://insideevs.com/kia-soul-ev-exclusive-rollout-information-live-images-from-2014-la-auto-show/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

According to the Korean automaker, the Soul EV’s current rollout status does not include plans to go nationwide. Basically, Kia tells us that the Soul EV will only be available in California, Oregon, New York, New Jersey and Maryland.

We repeat…at this point in time, Kia has no plans to expand to Soul EV’s rollout to states other than 5 listed above. Bummer.

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BoulderLeaf said:

I think that they honestly originally intended...

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Makes one wonder just what paved road Kia's Soul is on, and what its destination is. ;-)

2,687 Leafs for November.

Higher November LEAF sales than I expected, actually.

Plunging gas prices are certainly altering the cost/benefit analysis for many BEV/PHEV buyers.

Last month Nissan set a record for most plug-in vehicles sold in a calendar year in the United States, this month they further improved on that number by delivering a further 2,687 LEAFs in November.

Novembers result represented a 34% improvement over the 2,003 EVs sold a year ago. This also marks the 22nd consecutive month that the Nissan LEAF has set a new personal monthly record for itself – pretty not too shabby...

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http://insideevs.com/nissan-leaf-us-sales-november-2014/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Then they are right on course to break 30,000 units for 2014:

InsideEVs said:

So far in 2014, a total of 27,098 LEAFs have been sold, 35% better than the 20,081 sold through the first 11 months of 2013. Which means, that in order to be the first EV to crest the 30,000 unit sold level in any country, Nissan will have to sell 2,902 cars in December – certainly doable.

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It will be close...

US inventories are also up to record levels:

InsideEVs said:

On the production front, by our count Nissan once again managed to make just slightly more LEAFs than they sold in America, and inventories pushed past the 5,000 mark for the first time in…well, forever.

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To me, that is an indication that Nissan is comfortable with the new battery technology and is not afraid to ramp production, both in terms of customer acceptance as well as degradation that may happen on their dealers' lots.

nice:

We have several reports of Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn claiming that the automaker has real plans to double the range of the LEAF within “only a few years away.” Here’s how the conversation went down:

Host: Is Nissan working on new batteries?

Ghosn: “Yes.”

Host: Can you tell us more?

Ghosn: “No.”

Host: Will the range double?

Ghosn: “Yes.”

Host: That means more than 400 kilometers?

Ghosn: “Yes.”

edatoakrun said:

Higher November LEAF sales than I expected, actually.
Plunging gas prices are certainly altering the cost/benefit analysis for many BEV/PHEV buyers.

Last month Nissan set a record for most plug-in vehicles sold in a calendar year in the United States, this month they further improved on that number by delivering a further 2,687 LEAFs in November. Novembers result represented a 34% improvement over the 2,003 EVs sold a year ago. This also marks the 22nd consecutive month that the Nissan LEAF has set a new personal monthly record for itself – pretty not too shabby...

Click to expand...

http://insideevs.com/nissan-leaf-us-sales-november-2014/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

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Impressive. Gas prices are pretty amazing (export ban is likely helpful). Wonder if there is a little bit of hold out for the Volt Gen II. We are looking at one for our household in 2016 with our current Volt (36K electric only miles) going to a son. It is a rare day now in IL that I don't see another Volt or two.

scottf200 said:

edatoakrun said:

Higher November LEAF sales than I expected, actually.
Plunging gas prices are certainly altering the cost/benefit analysis for many BEV/PHEV buyers.

Last month Nissan set a record for most plug-in vehicles sold in a calendar year in the United States, this month they further improved on that number by delivering a further 2,687 LEAFs in November. Novembers result represented a 34% improvement over the 2,003 EVs sold a year ago. This also marks the 22nd consecutive month that the Nissan LEAF has set a new personal monthly record for itself – pretty not too shabby...

Click to expand...

http://insideevs.com/nissan-leaf-us-sales-november-2014/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Click to expand...

Impressive. Gas prices are pretty amazing (export ban is likely helpful). Wonder if there is a little bit of hold out for the Volt Gen II. We are looking at one for our household in 2016 with our current Volt (36K electric only miles) going to a son. It is a rare day now in IL that I don't see another Volt or two.

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The sample size is still pretty small, but it seems like BEVs are more insulated over PHEVs from the demand generated (or diminished) by the current price of gas.

Personal thought only: I assume this is because PHEVs owners (and would-be buyers) are still making trips to the station regularly and that those vehicle are utilized more conventionally using petrol, whereas a BEV purchaser's top priority in many cases is not likely to be the cost of fuel, but rather in being "eco-chic" and/or just avoiding the pump altogether.

scottf200 said:

...Gas prices are pretty amazing (export ban is likely helpful). Wonder if there is a little bit of hold out for the Volt Gen II. We are looking at one for our household in 2016 with our current Volt (36K electric only miles) going to a son. It is a rare day now in IL that I don't see another Volt or two.

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Amazing how quickly the economic realities of gas and battery prices have changed since the 2011 LEAF/Volt intro:



If gas prices stay below $3-a-gallon, and if battery prices have fallen as quickly as they appear to have (presently ~ $200-$300/kWh) it would seem PHEVs (and even hybrids) have very poor future prospects.

Volt sales atrocious again, thanks GM. As soon as good offer comes, I am dumping it for a BMW i3. On the other hand, still loving my 2011 Leaf.

Ian B