Update
July 20, 2011: Leaf outsells the Volt; both insignificant.
June 14, 2011: Nissan taking folks off waiting list for the Leaf because they don't have the $2,000 electric plug-in installed in their garage. $2,000 for an outlet. Can you spell "scam"?
Some customers who have signed up to buy a Nissan Leaf electric car have reported getting the run-around from Nissan. According to Bloomberg, customers have reported being removed from the car’s waiting list and having their estimated delivery dates change wildly.
Bloomberg reports that Nissan is delaying some orders because potential buyers don’t yet have a 220-volt charger installed.
The problem may be due in part to the Leaf’s complicated sales process. Potential buyers must register online, pay a $99 deposit, and have a 220-volt charging station installed in their home. Nissan will then contact the buyer when a Leaf electric car is available. Given the slow rate of production for the car, that could take some time.
June 1, 2011: Sales smoking. Nissan Leaf -- 1,142; GM's Chevy Volt, flat at 481. The fact that they are powered with coal is of concern for those watching the carbon footprint.
June 1, 2011: The GM Chevy Volt scam. Incredible. Thank goodness for the internet.
April 16, 2011: Guilt by association. Garage fire may have been started by the Volt. I wonder if overheating electrical wires could be a problem in older homes/garages where Volts are charged? By the way, thank goodness for the internet and Matt Drudge. Without either, we would not have known about this latest Volt story. Interestingly, some folks blame GM's problems on Drudge, who simply links the news, rather than on Government Motrors, but I digress. The overheating of old electrical wires is a very serious problem, and where are electric cars best suited? In high density urban areas where houses are more than 100 years old, like Boston.
April 1, 2011: Chevy Volt doubled their March sales over February -- they sold 608 Volts in March. They have now sold a total of 1,210. This compares with 50,000 Chevy Cruzes sold to date. Interesting car to compare sales with.
Original Post
Remember, one month ago GM spokesman said sales of the Chevy Volt was "red hot."
Well, the numbers are in for the month of February.
- GM sold 281 Chevy Volts in February, LOWER than the 321 sold in January. Wow.
- Nissan Leaf isn't faring any better: 67 sold in February, LOWER than the 87 sold in January. Double wow.
- Volt: 928
- Leaf: 173
And, I still haven't seen any advertisements for the Chevy Volt. [Update: 5:45 a.m., Friday, March 4, 2011: I caught the last second or so of the first Chevy Volt commercial. I had just turned the television on. I believe it was on MSNBC, " Morning Joe." Thoughts on time of day and show? Maybe more on that later.]
For other posts on the Chevy Volt:
We won't see any ads for the Volt in the midwest unless you're in a major metro area. Most of those ads are purchased on the local level. Of course they'll say sales are "red hot". Microsoft still claims Vista was a huge success. Meanwhile the sky is blue and water is wet.
ReplyDeleteWell said.
ReplyDeleteI do a lot of traveling, spending a lot of time in Los Angeles (2 months/year), a lot of time in Boston (4 months/year), and I now call San Antonio home (6 months/year).
By the way, it's hard to believe but San Antonio is the second largest city in Texas (behind Houston) and ahead of Dallas (#3). San Antonio is the 7th largest city in the US, and still feels small.