I guess the early adopters are kind of the "low hanging fruit," the easiest customers from whom to get MSRP. There are people who will choose to get it now at any price and I don't fault them for it. But they're fewer in number than people who will buy later if the deal improves.
As initial demand settles down, Kia is going to confront brand snobbery working against them. I remember when Japanese cars transitioned from great values to great cars. It took a while for the perceptions of the average car buyer to change. They continued to believe what they'd always believed, despite growing evidence to the contrary. And that was when the competition (US cars) were really pretty terrible with respect to reliability. European cars were scarce, parts were hard to come by, and most were very expensive (the VW bug being the notable exception). So, the Japanese faced much less of a head wind establishing themselves as cars you'd actually prefer to own than Kia will among those who haven't had hands-on experience with one. Really, the only serious competition for the Japanese makers was VW in the beginning. US cars were of a completely different variety.
So, along comes Kia, a brand that has worked its way up the quality ladder in a way that is very impressive if you've been paying attention but a lot of people haven't been. And some of those who have, still view the brand as the source of great little cars in the budget category (even though there have been higher-priced and high-quality models available for a while). But breaking into the ranks of established luxury brands is going to be tough, even more so for Kia than their Genesis stable mates. It's a pretty big leap for Kia. I think once the low hanging fruit have laid down their money, Kia will have to offer more attractive deals, either through lower prices, more bells and whistles, or both. Their strategy may be to wait until the second model year of the Stinger and equip it then with a lot more goodies. But in the meantime, a lot of potential customers may have found something else that appeals to them. It's a tough world out there, with lots of competing options to choose from.
With most premium brands I've dealt with, not only are add-ons not the norm, there isn't even much of a need to haggle. I typically contact multiple dealerships via email. If I prefer a dealership that isn't giving me the best offer, I show then that offer and ask if they can meet or better it. My brother was in the business, selling Mercedes, for years. He reinforced something I already knew, that it can be counter-productive to try badgering a dealer into lowering the price until blood starts oozing from their eyeballs. With premium dealerships, I've had sales people give me an honest appraisal of what they could sell a car for. Having done my homework, I typically find that what they come up with is pretty close to what I should be expecting. Sometimes, they'll throw in a little something extra. But the whole process is a far cry from what used to happen, where they wouldn't ever quote a price below MSRP and kept insisting that the customer tell them what he or she was willing to pay. The Internet has changed that a lot, as we all have better information now.
So, a little bit of back-and-forth may still happen and may get the buyer a little something extra. But the haggling sessions of old really shouldn't happen anymore and when I find a dealer going into that mode, I generally leave the dealership. We each have our own comfort levels for these sorts of things and I value my time too much to spend it haggling when I can get straight answers from someone else. If Kia insists on playing the haggling game or on pumping up prices through add-ons, they simply will be undercutting their attempts to be seen as a premium brand. The customer experience is a big part of what is expected in that market segment. Undermining the experience is really shooting themselves in the foot. I think better dealerships will recognize that. If they can't sell below MSRP because they're confident that they will sell at that price in short order, they'll at least explain that courteously and will refrain from tacking on any added costs. If they don't, not only will customers walk away from that deal, but they may never return in the future. Dealerships can't afford for that to happen for very long.
just send an email to all three dealers using the same message. cc all three dealers or multiple sales people and ask who's going to give you the best reason for walking in the door. that's it. the rest will happen by itself. usually anyway.
