Dealership Tacks On $50,000 Markup for a 2019 Subaru WRX STI S209

That means you’ll need $115,750 to walk away with this Subie.

byJames Gilboy|
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Outrageous dealership markups on desirable vehicles, limited-edition or otherwise, are no new phenomena. We saw it with the Honda Civic Type R, the Toyota GR Supra, and the Jeep Gladiator. And now, we're seeing it with the ultimate Subaru WRX, the STI S209, of which only 209 will be built. Subaru's recommended MSRP on these cars is a hair under $64,000, but for one Californian dealer, that's not quite enough.

Serramonte Subaru in southwest San Francisco, California has listed its S209 allotment (car number 195) with a $49,995 markup, so with a few options tacked on, its asking price reaches a dumbfounding $115,750, according to a photo uploaded to Facebook by Jason Shaffer. For reference, you'll be able to get a 2020 Audi RS 6 Avant for similar money when it launches stateside this year. Unsurprisingly, the internet isn't a fan of $50,000 markups on Subarus, and one irate six-star diehard has gone as far as threatening to ruin the dealer's Yelp rating over the listing.

Yelp

As this Yelp review is nearing three weeks old, and the controversial S209 isn't listed in Serramonte's online inventory, The Drive checked with the dealer whether the car had sold between then and now. Serramonte's sales manager Ron Antonelli confirmed to us that the S209 was still in stock, and that because the S209 is a limited-edition model the dealership's management feels no obligation to fulfill the price-match guarantee it proudly promises in its email responses to customers.

Serramonte Subaru

Antonelli told us he wasn't responsible for this S209's price—so don't shoot the messenger—and that management is comfortable allowing this special-edition Subaru to sit on the lot until a buyer shows them the money. That probably won't be for some time, because according to a CarGurus search, at least 33 of the 209 S209s built are still sitting on Subaru dealer lots, most of them at or near MSRP. At this rate, Serramonte's S209 will still be without an owner when the next-generation Subaru WRX drops in April of 2021 if Japan's Best Car is to be believed.

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