Thanks for the advice to special order a car...I think that's probably the route I'll go unless I can find something used that's reasonable, and I like the suggestions of the toyota corrolla or prius hybrids. I do realize it's a very bad time to be looking for a car, but I don't really think it's feasible to occasionally rent one until the market stabilizes. I can wait a few weeks or maybe months, though.
It's actually not hard for the dealerships to locate a car a state or two away, and to have it loaded on the next truck that's already headed their direction. They send car haulers back and forth all the time to balance out inventories.
The last and only time I bought a new car, the dealership transported it in from 500 miles away for no extra charge other than the "delivery" fee that was already tacked onto the cars sitting on the lot! More importantly, all the cars on the lot had $1000-3000 in add-on options, and I was able to specify my special order base model car not to have any options - not even a decal from the dealership. I even specified the color. I negotiated my offer down from 5 to 2 oil changes as a negotiation reciprocation, but was firm on price.
Don't let any car salesperson talk you into buying more "features" than you need, paying above sticker, or paying crazy financing fees. Tell them exactly what you want, how much you'll pay, how you expect the entire quote with all fees in writing, and how willing you are to walk if you don't get what you want. Also specify in advance that you have no more than 2 hours you're able to spend with the salesperson that day so they don't sunk-cost you 5-6 hours of your life "talking to the manager".
If they come along with some bullshit about the world being out of cars, maybe ask them how the world still has so many car salespeople. When they resist or cause delays, politely say "I'm sorry I was unable to buy a car from you today like I had hoped, gotta go", write your number on a piece of paper and say call me if you change your mind within the next 24 hours. Then go to the next dealership and repeat.
You don't have any leverage until you walk away at least once.You're looking for a salesperson who is willing to cut a low-margin deal (meaning $500-$1000 profit for an afternoon's work) to make their end-of-month quota in exchange for minimal fuss. You're agreeing to buy the car immediately if they meet ALL your firm, written terms. Say "I'm willing to sign on the line right now!" Instead of resisting their attempts to sell you, you are trying to sell them on the idea of the deal. Flip the script, walk away, watch for unexpected fees *accidentally* added at the last minute, don't budge from your initial offer, read every line of every thing, and no matter what be urgent, polite, and businesslike.