The Nissan Leaf is also a halo product
The marketing is just as important as sales, if not more so
Alternative cars are about more than just sales
When at GM, Bob Lutz regularly called the Toyota Prius a marketing gimmick. He once even stated that GM could have — and probably should have — used a fraction of one year’s marketing budget to build their own Prius. Instead, they waited a decade and built the Chevy Volt, and now GM has its own marketing gimmick, as well as a big chip in the battery-powered game.
Now, it’s Nissan turn to acknowledge the marketing prowess of the Nissan Leaf, despite limited sales.
“If Nissan can do a product like the Leaf,” suggests Vice President of Product Planning Larry Dominique, “a lot of people are asking what else can we do.”
Just as many head to a GM dealership to check out a Volt, only to buy a Chevy Cruze or some other GM vehicle, many Nissan buyers lured to Nissan dealerships to see the Leaf leave with another Nissan vehicle.
Is that so bad?
Today the Prius is profitable, and by the end of this decade, the Prius could be Toyota’s auto sale’s leader. Somewhere down the road, both the Volt and the Leaf will try to replicate the profitable lead of the Prius.
So, while gimmickry is a part of the life cycle of these vehicles, the long term goals and potential are very real. Hopefully, they all live up to the hype.
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I’m not convinced that the Prius is “profitable” but rather a subsidized product meant to draw customers to Toyota’s other products.
Most of the car manufacturers have admitted that there is very, very little profit in small cars and that’s why they continue to sell SUVs and trucks.
Even Toyota does this. Their non-hybrid Highlander, Sequoia, Tundra, Tacoma and Sienna Mini-Vans are all major product lines that compete in the same vehicles classes as their American competitors.
The Prius is a signature product – no question but that car’s drivetrain is … not only innovative …but a very complicated piece of machinery.
One would think that if that engine/drivetrain was standard technology that ALL of their cars would have it – AND at a price comparable to the Prius price… Instead.. that engine/drivetrain in …a … Highlander… drives the cost of the Highlander up by about 5K.
think about that. 5K ADDITIONAL from a standard V-6 to a Hybrid V-6 and the MSRP on that car is 38K – twice as much as the Prius.
I give Toyota credit. They are the only carmaker in the world who can IMHO develop an engine/drivetrain as complex as the Prius and at the same time have that car turn out to be among the most reliable and trouble-free of cars.
Time will tell – if the Volt and Leaf turn out to be as reliable with as good a reputation as the Prius but I’d bet not.
but there is no way in my opinion that a Prius with it’s complex powerplant could be in the same price category as – say – a conventional 4 cylinder Yarus.
Doesn’t it strike anyone as ODD that the Yaris does not come in a Hybrid version already?
Would a Yaris Hybrid cost5K more than a conventional Yaris?
You know….
I’ve been reading a lot of articles about the Leaf and Volt being “Halo” vehicles like the Corvette. (mostly from conservative web sites)The more I read them, the less I’m convinced that these vehicles are exactly the same as the Corvette & Cadillac.
The Cadillac and Corvette, after more than 60 years, are “still” Halo vehicles with a premium price. The Corvette now costs $80,000. GM has no intention of ever pricing these vehicles for the main stream market.
The Leaf and Volt, on the other hand, may be higher priced vehicles today, but long range plans have these vehicles moving into the main stream market.
Folks made similar remarks about the Prius in 2000, but in less than 10 years, Prius is being sold in quantities and at a prices that puts it more in the main staream market.
The Volt need never turn a profit since GM is backed by the Federal Government as a “TBTF” corporation.
I’d love to see the Leaf continued to be refined. One good, solid battery tech breakthrough could make the Leaf a mainstream car.