I agree with you; pricing is secretive and complex. I find it odd that sewing machines are treated like cars when it comes to pricing.
I had dealt with the only Janome dealer in my area for a number of years and wanted to upgrade to a Janome 8900. I found their price was $900 more than anywhere else. I ultimately bought it from a dealer in another city who was having a show special. What's interesting is that the show the special was in conjunction with wasn't anywhere near the shop. It was baffling, but I was happy to take advantage of their pricing, and they in fact did become my dealer because they are way better than my local dealer in every way - service, instruction, friendliness, cleanliness, and price.
What surprises me about your situation is that there would be such a big difference on a machine that price and that the dealer must have realized that you could easily find out the MSRP.
I have found there are times where I like who I'm dealing with enough that price is not my main consideration. For example, with the dealer I ended up purchasing from, they are so much nicer in so many ways that I will purchase from them in the future even if their price is a bit higher.
Lynda