Ever since the latest Volkswagen Golf R launched in America, I’ve been consistently getting emails from customers asking me to work my deal-making magic on this hottest of hatches. But for a long time, for various reasons, it could not be done. Now that inventory has reached almost 1,000 units, some dealers are offering great prices on the Golf R.
Over the past year, I put in pricing inquires on dozens of Golf Rs across the U.S.. Most of the time the answer was “Sticker price, take it or leave it.” Sometimes they would offer a few hundred bucks off and act like they were doing me a huge favor. Why no deals? It’s a limited-edition, limited-supply car with a lot of demand behind it. And while the Golf R might be worth its MSRP to some people, in the midst of Dieselgate when some GTIs were selling for $5,000 off sticker, the numbers didn’t add up for most enthusiasts in the market for one.
That is slowing starting to change. There are still some dealers holding strong to the MSRP or even putting markups on the R, but some careful shopping in the right metro areas reveal some pretty killer discounts. We’re talking $4,000 to $5,000 off the Golf R’s nearly $40,000 MSRP.
Some of these prices seem a bit too good to be true, and you would be right to have some reservations. I can tell you from experience that the dealers in the Washington D.C/Baltimore metro area conveniently leave out the $820 destination charge and add in on the back end.
Also, some of these prices assume a $1,000 rebate you may not qualify for. However, even if you filter out the internet pricing games, and add that stuff back in, you’re still looking at a Golf R at under dealer invoice price.
So if the prices near you are still bonkers, it might be worth opening up your shopping net nationwide and either taking a long drive or having a car shipped. Of course, make sure you get all the numbers in writing and run the math to see if it still works out in your favor.