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Thread: Nissan may have miscalculated... (manual vs. automatic demand)

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    Senior Member AlphaMicra's Avatar
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    Nissan may have miscalculated... (manual vs. automatic demand)

    When I went in to pick up my oil filters and crush washers last week, I spent some time talking to my salesman. I asked him about the ratio of people wanting a manual transmission to those wanting an automatic, and he admitted that it's been about 50:50. Looks like Nissan was off the mark considerably when predicting the demand for stick shift.



    In our culture obsessed with absurd excess, the Nissan Micra is my counterculture car of choice.
    Be sure to visit my blog at mymicra.com!

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra SV manual: 6.4 L/100 km ... 44.3 mpg (Imp) ... 15.7 km/L ... 36.9 mpg (US) ...


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    MetroMPG (07-16-2014)

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    Administrator MetroMPG's Avatar
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    Very interesting!

    I wonder if they miscalculated the demand for base S Micras, too... just based on the number of them in our forum garage, they're appearing at much more than the 4% rate the company predicted.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra S manual: 5.0 L/100 km ... 56.5 mpg (Imp) ... 20.0 km/L ... 47.0 mpg (US) ...


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    Administrator MetroMPG's Avatar
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    Adding some anecdotal info...

    I contacted my two closest Nissan dealers by e-mail this week in the hopes of taking a 5-speed Micra for a spin to make a fresh comparison with the SR automatic Nissan Canada loaned to me, and they both replied back that they have ZERO manuals in stock. (Kingston Nissan and Smiths Falls Nissan).

    I didn't ask whether they had sold out, or didn't order any, or ??

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra S manual: 5.0 L/100 km ... 56.5 mpg (Imp) ... 20.0 km/L ... 47.0 mpg (US) ...


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    Administrator MetroMPG's Avatar
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    Wow: "no manual Micras available" in Ont/Que?

    So I contacted a 3rd dealer (Cornwall) today to ask about driving a manual Micra and got this reply:

    I wish we could help you but there are no Manual Micra’s available that we know of in Ontario or Quebec. They are rare!

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra S manual: 5.0 L/100 km ... 56.5 mpg (Imp) ... 20.0 km/L ... 47.0 mpg (US) ...


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    Administrator MetroMPG's Avatar
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    Here's more on this subject from a sales person who works at several Nissan dealers.

    Personal (unofficial) opinion:

    Nissan did not expect the demand and that is why they do not have enough. I work at several Nissan Dealers and it's the same for them... customers want them but not enough available.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra S manual: 5.0 L/100 km ... 56.5 mpg (Imp) ... 20.0 km/L ... 47.0 mpg (US) ...


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    Administrator Daox's Avatar
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    Haha, thats interesting, and IMO great to see. Its getting so hard to find manual transmission cars. Its great to see people wanting them more.

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    Senior Member AlphaMicra's Avatar
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    Could it be possible that manual transmission 2015 Micra's might be momentarily worth more than what we paid?

    In all seriousness, I always felt Nissan missed the mark on this car. To market it as the cheapest car in Canada was a mistake. The Micra is, to Canadians, and North Americans, a modern day classic. Many of the people who would buy a Micra want a Micra proper...give us packages with varying degrees of high end features, but it absolutely must have a manual transmission. It's no secret that the manual transmission is the transmission of choice in Europe, and that's what we want in the Micra...a taste of European sensibilities. It's a polarizing car to be sure, some people love it, some people love to hate it, but it is what it is...a piece of history. With the manual transmission, the Micra hits closer to the original classic than the Mini Cooper and the new Volkswagen Beetle ever could.

    Nissan, I hope you're reading this, because the Micra is every bit the pillar to your company that the Fairlady Z is. It's our answer to increasing petrol costs in North America. You should have never gotten rid of it in this market, but because you did, your losses created a unique opportunity that will make you the envy of all of the automakers that market in North America. Your buttery smooth manual transmission is the heart and soul of this car. Please rethink your strategy for the 2016 model year and consider greater engine options and features that matter. You can own this market, but your opportunity to do so will be fleeting. You need to turn this around now before it's too late.

    In our culture obsessed with absurd excess, the Nissan Micra is my counterculture car of choice.
    Be sure to visit my blog at mymicra.com!

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra SV manual: 6.4 L/100 km ... 44.3 mpg (Imp) ... 15.7 km/L ... 36.9 mpg (US) ...


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    Senior Member PocketRocket's Avatar
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    I believe the real issue is, alike almost all companies (whether it be a car manufacturer or a good manufacturer ) now, they refuse to take any input in from the public until they have made the initial mistake and the only way to remedy it is to go to the consumer and directly ask what they want. That being said the value of the manual transmission lies in their assumption that sub %7 ( 6.89 i believe was the last adjusted number ) is all the micras they intend to import with manuals is kinda stupid. Yes autos are much more popular due to the fact that no one wants to learn how to drive, or re-learn how to drive a stick. In all honesty though 7 out of 100 micras being a stick, is a bit optimistic that people will either want to pay for the auto at base level, or the manual at SR.

    That being said, a car company is only so interested in moving a vehicle onto a dealership lot if it makes the dealer profit....... the micra is a bit of an issue in that respect. The best way to see this, and the true value of the vehicle is to look at international websites...... 9 820 England( 9 820 pound = roughly 17k to start ) 14 998 euro in ireland ( almost 20 k ) 11 250 euro in italy, even in mexico their msrp is 150k peso, which is roughly 12k, to start before taxes. I doubt if the micra will stay at 10k to start after the first year of sales.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra S manual: 6.5 L/100 km ... 43.7 mpg (Imp) ... 15.5 km/L ... 36.4 mpg (US) ...


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    Administrator MetroMPG's Avatar
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    Just checked: 14 out of 17 Micras in our owners' garage/gallery are manuals! (Not counting the loaner I had.) 12 out of 15 of the Canadian cars.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra S manual: 5.0 L/100 km ... 56.5 mpg (Imp) ... 20.0 km/L ... 47.0 mpg (US) ...


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    Senior Member Howie's Avatar
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    Yeah, I have to admit they seriously underistimated the demand.. The local dealer has tons of SR/SV autos.. Not a single manual and even less in the S/Auto trim like mine.. Guess they ordered a lot of fancy models when were all eating KD..


        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra S automatic: 7.9 L/100 km ... 35.7 mpg (Imp) ... 12.6 km/L ... 29.7 mpg (US) ...


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