The Toyota GR Corolla is undeniably one of the best hot hatches and maybe one of the best cars the brand makes right now. It’s fun, it’s fast, and it’s functional too. That combination has a few dealers doing everything they can to squeeze extra cash out of Toyota’s customers’ pockets, sometimes to the tune of $30k over sticker.
Toyota gave the base GR Corolla an MSRP of just $36,995. Even the hopped-up Circuit Edition is set at a very reasonable $42,900, while the super-rare Morizo Edition has an MSRP of $49,900. Despite those price tags set by the automaker, we’ve found three dealers charging enough that one could buy a second brand-new car for the markup alone.
First up is Lone Star Toyota of Lewisville. According to a user over on Markups.org, the dealer sent him the sheet seen below with a grand total price on a base GR Corolla of $59,993. To get to that figure the dealer has the audacity to charge $15,000 in pure markup in addition to a $1,995 “Lone Star Appearance Package”. If I were tricked into buying this car the last thing I’d want to do is advertise for the shady dealer that raked me over the coals in the process.
Read: Ridiculous Markups On Toyota GR Corolla Begin With 50% Over MSRP
Next up is Roseville Toyota which has a $19,995 “dealer added mark up” on its base GR Corolla. Due to options, its MRSP is $40,168 (window sticker below). The markup represents a 49.7 % increase in price. Is that the kind of excellent customer service that Toyota is hoping its dealers provide to young enthusiastic buyers? Interestingly, Toyota Marin, not far from Roseville Toyota, seems to have a GR Corolla priced at $40,469.
Finally, North Park Toyota of San Antonio is pretty sure it can get away with an asking price of $70,576 on a base GR Corolla with an MSRP of $40,576. That is $30,000 and 73.9% more than Toyota says that the buyer should pay for the car. Again, these aren’t the super special and limited Morizo Edition cars and they’re not even the mid-grade Circuit Edition either.
Ultimately, there’s little we can do aside from exposing these greedy and brand-damaging markups. Study after study finds that customers are less likely to return to a brand after a dealer has charged over MSRP.
That shouldn’t come as a shock when automakers advertise one price and then dealers ignore that and add thousands to the final price. Until people stop paying these outrageous fees or automakers find a way to crack down on dealers, the practice will likely continue.
