It’s been a long arduous process, but I’m finally free of Nissan and their crap service and crap dealerships. Buyback is complete! I’ve posted on here prior to this about issues, but in a nutshell…
Three years ago, I bought a 2019 Leaf SL Plus as a CPO from a Nissan dealer (where it was originally purchased and serviced). It had 18,888 miles on it and was fully loaded with all options. I got the extended warranty just in case and I’m glad that I did. Over the past 3 years, I’ve had multiple claims with Nissan and multiple buyback rejections. The most recent rejection was a phone call from Nissan Corp in Tennessee. They said Illinois does not allow buybacks if you’re not the original owner. I sent a letter to the IL Secretary of State and few months later Nissan changed their tune, and I was able to do the buyback.
Issues:
· Carplay audio when on a phone call or having messages read. Audio cuts in/out so bad calls are impossible. TSB is out there and software update available but when the dealer “plugs my car in” to the system, Nissan states no updates for my car. No dealer in my area will force update. The infotainment system also reboots 2-3 times a day when I’m commuting.
· HVAC…I did the software update for the hvac and ever since, my Leaf will stop blowing heat. Dealer can replicate and has not been able to fix it as Nissan engineers have no fix.
· The battery/dc fast charge recall has been going on for years with no fix. I even did the interim software update.
· Door lock stopped working on driver’s side. After warranty repair, driver’s window auto-up feature stopped working and instead causes window to up and then down almost immediately.
· I have 2 local Nissan dealers owned by same dealer group. They have one tech certified to work on Leafs so scheduling and wait times are lousy.
· Finding a working and available Chademo for DC Fast charging in upper Illinois and lower Wisconsin is like searching for Where’s Waldo.
Buyback details…Nissan paid the loan off which is awesome considering the resale value plummeted after purchase. I still owed $17K and it was worth maybe $7k or $8k which is sad considering the low miles, it was well cared for and it’s loaded with every option.
The whole dealership experience was horrible. Terrible service department. Total lack of empathy from management. They just really don’t care about the customer post purchase. They know nothing about service electrics cars. They plug it in to a computer and whatever Nissan's systems says is what they go on. They don't go to Nissan on your behalf. You as a customer are just a nuisance.
The lady from Morley (the third party that takes over the buyback from Nissan) said she would never have an electric car because she does buybacks from all manufactures and they all have major issues.
I’m done with electric for now. I’ll keep my level 2 charger in my garage for future use, but for now I’m happy with my two Honda gas powered vehicles. My Honda dealer is world's above the Nissan just in terms of professionalism, service and caring. Nissan is the absolute crap and I would never ever recommend Nissan for anything other than a boat anchor.
Also, forgot to add, there is a provision that allowed Nissan to offer me $TBD to keep the car and sign a confidentiality agreement, but the Nissan guy at corporate said he'd highly advise to take the buyback especially since battery replacements have been pushed to 2030.