If you're looking to lease, why do you care about the MSRP anyways? One $30k car could lease for X and another for Y. It really depends on the value of the car when it comes back, some hold and others fall quick.
You need to state the payment you're looking to be around to really find your sweet spot.
While I think that you want to focus on the difference between sales price and residual vale, I think the rest of this is crap.No one pays MSRP, so focus on what you can get for a sales price.
DO NOT focus on the payment amount. That is a trick for salesmen. You need to understand what you are paying for and how it translates to a monthly payment BEFORE you walk in the door.
We are talking about a lease... So I'm just saying why would Sheik care about the price of the car? What's important in this situation is monthly payments if it is a lease.
Wrong. The price of the car matters the same whether buying or leasing. You negotiate the price of the car, not the lease payments.
But a $30k Ford will lease for a different price then a $30k Honda...
But you negotiate both the selling price and residual value. Deal with them separately and get a better deal. If you focus on payment, then you might as well give them your wallet.
No you don't negotiate the residual value. The residual value is set on a table as a % of the MSRP and will vary by year of the car and/or how many miles you choose and/or the length of time you choose in the terms of your lease. It's actually to your benefit to have a higher MSRP for your lease agreement (drives up the residual).
However, you negotiate the purchase price of the car. You do this typically by knowing the invoice and working up (not working down from MSRP). That said, now with the internet, it's easy to see what others are paying for cars. Go to Truecar.com to see what your car is selling for in your area. My mother just leased a new car right before New Year's and actually got it for below invoice due to the promotions running at that time.
Usually, luxury cars are going to have higher residuals than lower price cars. You don't want to lease a vehicle that doesn't retain value well. There are pros and cons for buying and leasing. One isn't necessarily more expensive than the other as it completely depends on which car you're buying and how long you typically keep/use your vehicle.
If you want to truly understand leasing, read
The Lease Guide. It's 15 pages long but is very well written and will help you calculate your lease payments. Once you get the concept down, it's very easy to negotiate a good lease. The only things you need to know are the MSRP, the purchase price of the car (this is what you negotiate), any fees associated (can sometimes get this lowered, but depends on the company), the residual based on the length and mileage of the terms of the lease, and the money factor or interest rate (this can be negotiated as well, although if they have a lease special, it's going to be hard to get it lower).