Ordering an S4 but guaranteeing a price over invoice
 

I am considering pulling the trigger on a 2013 S4. I reached out to one dealer about pricing and received this response:

[AUDI DEALER]
"All of the S4 sold are with an understanding of being at MSRP. If we find we are getting a large allocation we maybe would give a curtisy discount . I will also tell you from what we have heard those big allocations are a thing of the past .

I would like to place an order for you with an understanding when we get pricing / allocation you at that point can cancel or move forward .

FYI we already know a few dealers will get only one or two RS5's ,most will get none , so those cars will be over list everywhere ."
[AUDI DEALER END]

My question is how are you guys "locking in" a price over invoice when you order your cars now? And since they will be a popular car, presumably, what's to keep a dealer from getting "your car" in or eventually getting the price and then turning around and selling it to whoever they want for MSRP or close to it?

Help a fellow enthusiast out with how o best handle this situation....or maybe I should just go to another dealer.

P.S. You can ignore the RS5 comment, as I also inquired about that car. I thought you may find the "will be over list everywhere" comment interesting.

Is that really how they spelled "curtisy" in their email to you?

Yes, it most definitely is how they spelled it. :)

I think you should do some extensive cross shopping with other dealers, target around 500 over invoice maybe you will be able to do a bit better than that.

also dealers tend to be more flexibile in person. this is not the rule but very common.

Definitely talk to more dealers. And, write this back:

"None of my previously purchased cars were bought at MSRP. If I find with a large amount of money to burn I might give you the courtesy of my business without any discounts. I will tell you that from what I've heard that I'm not likely to have money to burn anytime soon.

If you would like to place an order for me with an understanding that you will be offering a reasonable discount from MSRP on a new MY2013 S4 let me know."

Run, do not walk away from that dealer. FYI, there are quite a few Audi dealers that really try to sell at close to MSRP. If you like paying more than you need to, by all means order your car from those dealers. But there are quite a few dealers that will discount their cars AND they have allocations to actually get you a car. Be prepared to drive an hr to get the car you want at a decent price. Also, if you check out the dealerships that participate with the Amex /zag buying plan, you will usually get a decent price from them. You ask what is your protection against the dealer selling your car out from under you. Its your deposit (no more than a refundable $1000) . The deposit actually is a protection for you, not the dealer. It binds the dealer to produce a car for you at a specific price. But you can walk away at any time and get your deposit back.

My local dealership always starts out the same way regardless of the model ("These cars sell at MSRP"), but I've sent emails to other dealerships asking for a better offer. Someone always goes lower, even if by a little bit. I then sent the counteroffer back to all the dealerships and asked for a lower offer.

They go around and around until they hit their lowest, then bow out. It might take you several days or weeks but you can get them to outbid one another.

Some of them may try to get you to quote a price in order to halt the negotiations ("Give us a figure that will earn your business" or "name your price"). If you get that line then make sure to go low.

If someone says, "Will $XX,XXX earn your business?" you don't have to reply right away. You can forward that email to the other guys and see what they counter.

This method can be time consuming and exhausting, but if you have time, patience, and energy it works pretty well.

Where are you located? Maybe someone nearby can recommend a better dealer.

Also, don't feel like you should hide the dealer's name. If they are sending emails like that, then everyone deserves to know and to take their business elsewhere.

That is totally bogus. I do agree that you should go in person as I think the dealer doesn't want to give you a good price over the phone and then you use that at another dealer for them to beat. I ordered my 2012 and we finalized the sale price while the car was still on the assembly line in Germany.

Take your business to a dealer that is straight-up and doesn't play games.

After you buy an audi, they do some follow-up surveys about your buying experience. I gave my dealer (3rd audi I bought from them) great responses while I gave another dealer truthful answers about the way they were giving me the run-around with real prices when I was there in person! The dealer I use used to claim they are the largest audi dealer in the World!

What dealership "doesn't play games" in some form or another? Will they negotiate price? Do they offer any incentives (even free floor mats)? I think that qualifies as playing games. The car sales business model is entirely based on gamesmanship.