Reliability
Tesla Model 3 is a beautiful car, and I'm sure I would have been happy to get it, but overall reliability was one of the main reasons I chose to get a Leaf instead. Here are the Consumer Reports and JD Powers articles that influenced my decision:
"Consumer Reports Still Ranks Tesla Reliability 27th Out Of 28" (19.Nov.2021)
https://insideevs.com/news/549130/consumerreports-tesla-reliability-poor-2021/
"Unlike other manufacturers, Tesla doesn’t grant J.D. Power permission to survey its owners..." (18.Feb.2021)
Tesla was fourth in the bottom for dependability; only Jaguar, Alpha and Land Rover were worse.
https://www.jdpower.com/business/press-releases/2021-us-vehicle-dependability-study-vds
"Nissan LEAF Awarded In 2020 J.D. Power Vehicle Dependability Study" in the compact car category (15.Feb.2020)
https://insideevs.com/news/398848/nissan-leaf-award-vehicle-dependability-study/
Distance to Dealership
While the Tesla is more sporty and stylish, those considerations kind of fade after a year, especially when you have to drive to a distant Tesla Service Center to fix a quality problem and wait in the lobby or at a hotel. My Nissan dealership is only 6 miles away if I need a repair, so I could take a Lyft/Uber back home if necessary. As an example, there are 49 Nissan dealerships in Pennsylvania, but only 3 for Tesla. Here is where you can check in your state to compare:
https://www.nissanusa.com/nissandealers/location/
https://www.tesla.com/findus/list/services/United%20States
Road Noise
Another big issue for me was road noise (I have tinnitus) and there are too many negative YouTube videos by the Tesla owners themselves about Model 3 road noise:
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=tesla+road+wind+noise
Immediate Availability and Zero Interest Financing
I don't know what kind of financing Tesla offers, but I got zero percent interest from Nissan for 6 years and drove the Leaf off the lot that afternoon, no waiting 4-9 months. Taking into account the $7500 tax rebate, rising inflation (versus my fixed payments), the lower sticker price of the Leaf, the lower expected maintenance costs/hassles versus the Tesla, and my plan to invest the $10,000+ I'm not paying extra for the Tesla, then the Leaf was just too good overall. (I'm a fanboy of financial independence.)
Obsolete CHAdeMO
It's best to avoid any kind of rapid charging, so the CHAdeMO port is not a big deal. My utility company has a "Free Nights and Weekends" plan, which means that my electricity bill won't go up at all (the free weekends offset the higher weekday rates, leaving the nights for Leaf charging for free). Check with your utility company to see what plans are available to you. You don't need to buy a third-party EVSE for scheduling your at-night charging, that's built into the Leaf's dashboard already.
This forum helped me make a decision regarding Leaf vs. Tesla (thank you!) so that's why I'm posting the above, to help others like me who visit here who want to make an informed decision, whatever that decision might be. I can only relate my own thought processes. If you get a Tesla, great, enjoy it! I'm very happy with my Leaf.
Tesla Model 3 is a beautiful car, and I'm sure I would have been happy to get it, but overall reliability was one of the main reasons I chose to get a Leaf instead. Here are the Consumer Reports and JD Powers articles that influenced my decision:
"Consumer Reports Still Ranks Tesla Reliability 27th Out Of 28" (19.Nov.2021)
https://insideevs.com/news/549130/consumerreports-tesla-reliability-poor-2021/
"Unlike other manufacturers, Tesla doesn’t grant J.D. Power permission to survey its owners..." (18.Feb.2021)
Tesla was fourth in the bottom for dependability; only Jaguar, Alpha and Land Rover were worse.
https://www.jdpower.com/business/press-releases/2021-us-vehicle-dependability-study-vds
"Nissan LEAF Awarded In 2020 J.D. Power Vehicle Dependability Study" in the compact car category (15.Feb.2020)
https://insideevs.com/news/398848/nissan-leaf-award-vehicle-dependability-study/
Distance to Dealership
While the Tesla is more sporty and stylish, those considerations kind of fade after a year, especially when you have to drive to a distant Tesla Service Center to fix a quality problem and wait in the lobby or at a hotel. My Nissan dealership is only 6 miles away if I need a repair, so I could take a Lyft/Uber back home if necessary. As an example, there are 49 Nissan dealerships in Pennsylvania, but only 3 for Tesla. Here is where you can check in your state to compare:
https://www.nissanusa.com/nissandealers/location/
https://www.tesla.com/findus/list/services/United%20States
Road Noise
Another big issue for me was road noise (I have tinnitus) and there are too many negative YouTube videos by the Tesla owners themselves about Model 3 road noise:
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=tesla+road+wind+noise
Immediate Availability and Zero Interest Financing
I don't know what kind of financing Tesla offers, but I got zero percent interest from Nissan for 6 years and drove the Leaf off the lot that afternoon, no waiting 4-9 months. Taking into account the $7500 tax rebate, rising inflation (versus my fixed payments), the lower sticker price of the Leaf, the lower expected maintenance costs/hassles versus the Tesla, and my plan to invest the $10,000+ I'm not paying extra for the Tesla, then the Leaf was just too good overall. (I'm a fanboy of financial independence.)
Obsolete CHAdeMO
It's best to avoid any kind of rapid charging, so the CHAdeMO port is not a big deal. My utility company has a "Free Nights and Weekends" plan, which means that my electricity bill won't go up at all (the free weekends offset the higher weekday rates, leaving the nights for Leaf charging for free). Check with your utility company to see what plans are available to you. You don't need to buy a third-party EVSE for scheduling your at-night charging, that's built into the Leaf's dashboard already.
This forum helped me make a decision regarding Leaf vs. Tesla (thank you!) so that's why I'm posting the above, to help others like me who visit here who want to make an informed decision, whatever that decision might be. I can only relate my own thought processes. If you get a Tesla, great, enjoy it! I'm very happy with my Leaf.