I forget the exact amount, but I got my i Sport manual for a tad under invoice. I negotiated a number, then walked because I wasn't ready to make a decision that day, and discovered over the weekend that I qualified for S-plan (which is invoice) through Mazdaspeed. After doing the math, the number I reached was a few bucks under S-plan, so I made the deal. I got 2.9% financing through the dealer, which wasn't bad since I just bought a house in August, still have a small loan on my RX-8, and have two outstanding collections from the city of Cleveland for camera tickets that I refuse to pay. Also, I got the $500 loyalty cash.
I also talked them up from $2,000 to $4,000 on my RX-8, which is what I'm hoping to get for it on the open market. This would have been a great deal for the car, but I bailed on trading at the last second as I like the car too much, but I honestly have no use for it anymore.
My guess is that a base model manual transmission isn't exactly a hot commodity, so I'm sure there are deals to be had. I found a silver i Sport that had been sitting for 53 days, but they weren't willing to beat what I had on the one I bought, so I passed on it.