I am by no means an expert. But I'll share what I know.
There are generally couple of prices to account for when purchasing a new vehicle.
Invoice pricing is where the manufacturer prices the vehicle at "cost". Dealer cost is generally $1000 to $1500 less than the invoice number depending on the vehicle. This is sometimes called the "dealer hold back".
Obviously, MSRP is where the manufacturer and dealer would like to sell the vehicle.
Generally, you can negotiate better pricing on a vehicle sitting on the Lot the later in the model year that you wait. Dealers are pretty motivated to move current model year units in September/October/November as the upcoming model year is about to come to the Lot.
Of course, by waiting you may not have the all of options/color, etc on the vehicle that you want, but you might be able to get a better price.
Another option is to order the vehicle. By ordering you may be able to get pricing closer to invoice too. You'd also get the options and colors you want. There is less risk to the dealer that the vehicle will sit on the Lot and cost them money.
Lastly, regional demand is a factor too.
I just ordered a 2013 SCrew Raptor. This is the first Raptor my dealer has ever ordered. I was surprised when he told me that for 2012 the 40 dealerships that comprise his "Ford Dealer Group" only 2 Raptors were ordered by dealerships. So in my area the truck isn't that popular.
Based on this forum, that doesn't seem to be the case for the Southwest and California.
You are definitely making the right move by calling around and playing dealers off of one another. In my experience, this is the best way to obtain the best price for your vehicle.
Remember that all businesses need to make money. If you try to take all of the profit out of it, the dealership certainly won't do business with you.
I guesstimate that my dealer will make about $3k to $3.5k on my new Raptor purchase and my subsequent trade in. That's about 5% on $65k of iron. In my mind, that's completely acceptable.
Good luck!!
---------- Post added at 05:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:40 PM ----------
Oh, I forgot to mention. I have the printout that Josh posted. I won't post the printout....but I am willing to post any of the numbers you request.
Let me know.