Leaf sales remain low. Nissan ads missing the target ?

[rumpole]

I've always told anyone who will listen that there's no reason why you can't show ev's sliding sideways over wet pavement with the wheels spinning, as is done with other cars. The sportiness of ev's is a huge as-yet unexploited angle. Or, show a passenger with his head snapped back on the headrest saying "I thought these things were golf carts...."

 

[Chieftan68]

Modern cars require little maintenance, an oil change around 5k to 10k miles or so.. not a strong selling point.

Agreed. $30 to change the oil every 7500 miles. The maintanance issue is a non starter. Petrol vehicles need little maintanance in the first 100,000 miles.

Yeah, nickel and dime stuff like timing belts, serpentine belts, radiator flushes, transmission fluid changes, air filter changes. :shock: Shoot, oil changes alone are only $400 over the first 100,000 miles. Who'd complain about that?

 

[LTLFTcomposite]

I've always told anyone who will listen that there's no reason why you can't show ev's sliding sideways over wet pavement with the wheels spinning, as is done with other cars. The sportiness of ev's is a huge as-yet unexploited angle. Or, show a passenger with his head snapped back on the headrest saying "I thought these things were golf carts...."

Don't you think the Leaf suffers an image problem from its styling to make that work? How do you explain the phenomenon I drive my crappy old minivan around town next to $100k performance cars and $300k exotics and we're all doing the same thing, going the same speed, even accelerating the same and going around corners at the same speed, even though I'm sure they could beat me, they don't... because at the end of the day, a car's image and performance is about a dream of being somewhere other than where you are, being someone other than who you are... just another schlub stuck in traffic. Like the minivan, the Leaf's styling serves as a confirmation of reality rather than the dream of an escape. Tesla should do a lot better in this regard. The Leaf could do much better too if the sheet metal was stamped differently... isn't that basically what the infiniti LE is?

 

[adric22]

I've always told anyone who will listen that there's no reason why you can't show ev's sliding sideways over wet pavement with the wheels spinning, as is done with other cars. The sportiness of ev's is a huge as-yet unexploited angle. Or, show a passenger with his head snapped back on the headrest saying "I thought these things were golf carts...."

I hope, I suspect this will eventually happen. At some point the car manufacturers will realize there isn't much market for the "green" aspect of these vehicles. I mean look at the Prius. I know several people who own them and not one of them is an environmentalist.

I've yet to see a commercial of the Leaf where the car is actually in motion. One thing I've learned about people is that pictures and videos are worth thousands of words. For example, I'm an eBay seller. I sell laptop computers. For the longest time I'd put up a few pictures of the computer and a long detailed description of everything that was included and every specification. But for some reason I'd still get several emails per day asking if the laptop came with a power cord or a battery, or if it had a DVD drive. Obviously if they had read the description, they'd know that. Eventually I started taking pictures of the power adapters, batteries, and a DVD sticking out of the side of the computer. Those questions literally ceased immediately. For some reason, people could see those items in the photos and the message got across. Reading seems to be too much work for most people.

So yeah. I think Nissan needs to show video footage from a helicopter of a Leaf driving down the left-hand side of a busy freeway with the windows down and a hot looking girl driving the car with her hair blowing in the wind. This would convey many subliminal messages to the general public. First and foremost, that it is a real car and not a golf cart. That you can drive it on a highway and keep up with traffic. I've encountered many people who thought for some reason that the Leaf couldn't get on the highway, or that it could barely hit 45 mph. I'm not sure where they get these ideas.

Then the commercials need to focus on some other benefits:

• Convenience - No stopping at gas stations on your way to work.
• Safety - No stopping at gas stations in the bad part of town.
• Responsiveness - Instant torque, no waiting on transmission to shift, no waiting on engine to rev up.
• Quietness - No engine noise. No starter motor noises.
• Low maintenance - No oil changes, belts, spark plugs, fuel filters, air filters, PCV, etc.
• Economical - low fuel cost, sometimes free depending on your source (for example, TXU offers free nights now!)
• High tech look, sound, and feel.
• And as a bonus, it is environmentally friendly!

 

[Herm]

Yeah, nickel and dime stuff like timing belts, serpentine belts, radiator flushes, transmission fluid changes, air filter changes. :shock: Shoot, oil changes alone are only $400 over the first 100,000 miles.
Who'd complain about that?

You have to do your car shopping carefully, and stay away from timing belts.. most of that stuff you mentioned should be ok for at least 100k miles. One thing that you dont mention that any time you get close to a dealership your chances getting ripped off on repairs goes up to dangerous levels.

Lets not talk about Leaf battery changes in AZ

 

[EricBayArea]

It would be fun to show the leaf with it's sporty creds. Show the leaf at a stoplight with a mustang and when the light changes, pan to the rear view mirror showing the ice car being left in the dust.

100% torque off the line.

I'm not going to deny that 100% torque off the line isn't fun - because it is. It feels really fast. But the reality is, the LEAF is not a fast car. Perhaps if you pitted it against a Yaris, Fit, Corolla, or Civic that would work. But against a Mustang or any other driver's car would be a non-starter. And anyone whose said that they raced and beat a Mustang, Camaro, BMW, Subaru turbo, etc., doesn't realize that that driver was not racing.

 

[LTLFTcomposite]

And anyone whose said that they raced and beat a Mustang, Camaro, BMW, Subaru turbo, etc., doesn't realize that that driver was not racing.

I routinely out-accelerate those cars with the Leaf not even breaking a sweat. I'm sure they aren't trying that hard or they would beat me, but how long would the transmissions in those cars last if they accelerated away from every traffic light as fast as I do in my Leaf?

 

[smkettner]

Yeah, nickel and dime stuff like timing belts, serpentine belts, radiator flushes, transmission fluid changes, air filter changes. :shock: Shoot, oil changes alone are only $400 over the first 100,000 miles. Who'd complain about that?

I agree for those that stick to the book. However I think most get snookered into some "15,000 mile service" or some nonsense for closer to $500+. Then the dealers find some other things to fix or over maintain for additional charges.

Otherwise the big selling point is the price of gas that is dropping like a rock. Nissan and OPEC might actually be battling this out for some time.

 

[Herm]

Then the commercials need to focus on some other benefits:

domestically produced fuel should be high on that list also.. maybe a veteran driving the car with some discrete medals pinned to his/her suit.

 

[reeler]

All I can say is keep watching that commercial. The 1 second clip of my family getting into the car where it says "room for 5" is the best part. Don't blink as you may miss it.

 

[thankyouOB]

I get a chuckle out of our efforts at telling Nissan how to sell the Leaf.
what we have here in this thread is what pros would call a focus group on Leafs and on its advertising.


I think you all would agree that while ad companies use focus groups, no ad person or manufacturer would base an ad campaign on a focus group made up entirely of members of MNL, and a subset of our membership, at that.

The posts are entertaining, but each one says more about the poster than how to sell the Leaf. That is not to say that I dont agree with some of the sentiments, I just wouldnt take it too seriously from a marketing point of view.

 

[LTLFTcomposite]

I get a chuckle out of our efforts at telling Nissan how to sell the Leaf.
what we have here in this thread is what pros would call a focus group on Leafs and on its advertising.


I think you all would agree that while ad companies use focus groups, no ad person or manufacturer would base an ad campaign on a focus group made up entirely of members of MNL, and a subset of our membership, at that.

The posts are entertaining, but each one says more about the poster than how to sell the Leaf. That is not to say that I dont agree with some of the sentiments, I just wouldnt take it too seriously from a marketing point of view.

Right. It may well be that selling 300-400 cars a month is everything going exactly according to plan and we're just too dumb to understand the strategy. We do sound silly armchair quarterbacking the experts who brought us the polar bear hug.

 

[Herm]

The scary part is that many of us (not counting myself) could do a better job marketing the Leaf.

 

[Train]

Yeah, nickel and dime stuff like timing belts, serpentine belts, radiator flushes, transmission fluid changes, air filter changes. Shoot, oil changes alone are only $400 over the first 100,000 miles. Who'd complain about that?

As opposed to spending $2000 for a 220V EVSE you need installed in the garage from the get go?

As I stated, much of those maintenance items is not needed until 100,000 miles. What, $15 for an air filter every 20,000 miles? It is nickel dime stuff when you compare it to the $10,000 or more that you have to pay for the Leaf iniatially over any comparable sedan or hatchback. Then add the $2000 initially for the EVSE.

And at 100,000 miles, that petrol car will still go 300-400 miles per tankful. The Leaf? Not so much. In five years, the battery will degrade 20% (or more the way things are going) so instead of a 70 mile range you now have about 56 miles. After that, you may as well replace the battery which will be thousands of dollars.

 

[gbshaun]

And anyone whose said that they raced and beat a Mustang, Camaro, BMW, Subaru turbo, etc., doesn't realize that that driver was not racing.

I routinely out-accelerate those cars with the Leaf not even breaking a sweat. I'm sure they aren't trying that hard or they would beat me, but how long would the transmissions in those cars last if they accelerated away from every traffic light as fast as I do in my Leaf?

Me too! It's been one of the pleasant surprises of driving the Leaf. Other cars may have the ABILITY to out-accelerate the Leaf, but for them it's noisy, jerky, and expensive on gas and excessive wear. They are not going to do it routinely, as i do when I'm ok on range.
As I mentioned in an earlier thread, as long as it's safe, I consider it my DUTY to accelerate away from the line quickly to help dispel the "golf-cart" image!

Nissan's "what if everything ran on gas" ad was amusing, but I agree that many of the ideas mentioned here would be far more effective than the current Nissan ads.
It sounds like a lot of us are hearing basic misconceptions when we engage non-Leafers in conversations. I'm glad i was paying attention to the local news article 2 years ago. as i don't think I'd have been sold either by the ads!

 

[Train]

I routinely out-accelerate those cars with the Leaf not even breaking a sweat. I'm sure they aren't trying that hard or they would beat me, but how long would the transmissions in those cars last if they accelerated away from every traffic light as fast as I do in my Leaf?

How long would the transmissions last? Quite a long time. They're built and engineered for the engines that put down that kind of horsepower and torque.

Honestly. talking about outaccelerating Mustangs and Camaros...they're probably laughing. Kind of like a big brother letting his little brother win a footrace because it makes him feel better. They're not racing you because you're no competition.

 

[thankyouOB]

thanks to my 2 friends in FL, who never miss an opportunity to spritzo.
their replies are not really on point.

 

[EricBayArea]

I routinely out-accelerate those cars with the Leaf not even breaking a sweat. I'm sure they aren't trying that hard or they would beat me, but how long would the transmissions in those cars last if they accelerated away from every traffic light as fast as I do in my Leaf?

How long would the transmissions last? Quite a long time. They're built and engineered for the engines that put down that kind of horsepower and torque.

Honestly. talking about outaccelerating Mustangs and Camaros...they're probably laughing. Kind of like a big brother letting his little brother win a footrace because it makes him feel better. They're not racing you because you're no competition.

Train is right, sorry. I'm not saying that the LEAF is slow by any means, it's about average. However, because of the torque off the line it feels faster than you run-of-the-mill Civic, Corolla, Fit, etc., economy car. Which actually makes me think of these old Celica ads where the fitted the GT (slower model) with a body kit:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12CDQ5UlLGU[/youtube] [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7xu-LdnIe8[/youtube]

 

[smkettner]

I routinely out-accelerate those cars with the Leaf not even breaking a sweat. I'm sure they aren't trying that hard or they would beat me, but how long would the transmissions in those cars last if they accelerated away from every traffic light as fast as I do in my Leaf?

How long would the transmissions last? Quite a long time. They're built and engineered for the engines that put down that kind of horsepower and torque.

Honestly. talking about outaccelerating Mustangs and Camaros...they're probably laughing. Kind of like a big brother letting his little brother win a footrace because it makes him feel better. They're not racing you because you're no competition.

LEAF enjoys effortless power. Sure those others are faster but only with great effort.

 

[LTLFTcomposite]

I routinely out-accelerate those cars with the Leaf not even breaking a sweat. I'm sure they aren't trying that hard or they would beat me, but how long would the transmissions in those cars last if they accelerated away from every traffic light as fast as I do in my Leaf?

How long would the transmissions last? Quite a long time. They're built and engineered for the engines that put down that kind of horsepower and torque.

Honestly. talking about outaccelerating Mustangs and Camaros...they're probably laughing. Kind of like a big brother letting his little brother win a footrace because it makes him feel better. They're not racing you because you're no competition.

Until you've driven electric you won't understand; it's really rather peculiar. In the meantime, here's something to amuse you:

http://vimeo.com/19651664#" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;