Hey Dave -

I've not found any dealerships in the greater L.A./O.C./Inland Emprire area willing to sell below MSRP. Of course, I wanted the fully loaded model and was completly unwilling to compromise on color/interior/features.

As you and I already know, Carson loves to slap on the premium because of their supposed high inventory.....of base models, mostly. I tried going the Costco-pricing route at Longo, but they literally already had an invoice printed for me w/ MSRP when I arrived after 8 weeks of waiting. When I inquired about Costco pricing, my rep said it "didn't exist" for that car....even though I've read posts on the Edmunds boards there are dealers who are letting it go for $500 below MSRP. My feeling is that you might <emphasis on might> be able to get a base model at this price, since (from what I hear and have read) 70-80% of the shipments from Japan are this trim level.