I posted this in another thread, but here it is
I ran across this really short video from a professor somewhere about using game theory to get the best price on a car.
Youtube Link, 2m46s. I'd wanted to try it for years, so I decided that I would buy the new Subaru this way.
Do this:
Don't call like the video suggests. Reach out to the internet manager of each dealership. You can use the email form on the various subaru websites to initiate communications. Here's what I wrote:
Hi! I'm interested in price proposals from a few dealerships for a factory order for the car below. Could you please send me the price for the car and the itemized out-the-door price (including DMV fees, sales taxes, and any dealer charges for documentation, etc.)? Since this is a factory order, it would be useful to know your factory order deposit requirement as well.
Here's the exact build I'm interested in, with the standard and optional accessories I'm after. (See below.)
Thank you!
And here is where I pasted the exact build I wanted as copied from the Subaru car-builder website thing.
After I got each of the initial offers, I took the lowest offer and sent that back to everyone one at a time to see if they would beat it. One signal that the Doug Smith offer was good is that the Nate Wade salesman said, "That's a great deal; I can't beat it. I would take it in a heartbeat."
One important note: don't tell them about your Subaru Ambassador coupon. Wait to give that to them until just before you sign the paperwork. The coupon is a payment directly from Subaru to the dealership, so you don't want the dealership to know that you have it before they settle on the lowest price.
Once they give you that out-the-door price, keep a copy with you and you shouldn't have to haggle at all. It was definitely the fastest car-buying experience I've ever had.