According to the VW website, MSRP is $31,675 (including destination charge). Is this what I should be targeting? This would equate to a $520 savings ($32,195 is what they are advertising).
Thanks all for the advice. Going for a test drive on Monday.
As pointed out in a couple of other posts, there are also dealer fees such as documentation etc,. This changes drastically from State/Province to State/Province and from dealership to dealership. Some of these fees are legit, others aren't and the ones that are legit usually have insane markups - so best to find out what fees in your area are legit, what they're really worth and negotiate them.
For example, where I live, a base GTI has a MSRP of $31,495. PDI and some Government taxes on A/C and tires is about $1,875, sales tax is another $4,004 so that brings the OTD price to $37,374 - anything else is dealer added fees and markups which is where you can negotiate, maybe not in price, but maybe with some accessories thrown in.
Personally, with the example I gave, depending on how much the fees my dealer asked for, I'd negotiate some accessories to be thrown in (mats, splash guards, etc.) to make up the difference - anything above $38,000 I'd walk though. Again, thats just me - all depends on how bad you want the car. In my situation, I've been dealing with the same place and person for 20 years, so we don't BS each other - so for me, thats an added bonus.
You have to decide yourself what your comfort zone is. Just know what the MSRP and legit fees and taxes are, compare that to what the dealer is asking for and given the supply issues right now and the increase in demand for these cars (depending on where you are), negotiating is quite different then it was 2 years ago. Maybe your willing to pay a few extra thousand dollars because you really want the car, and thats cool, but if you want to get the car for a rock bottom price, you might have to be patient.
Have fun shopping though, and enjoy the experience 😁
