Hello,
former car salesman here, the biggest tip that I can give is to not finance with the car company go to your bank or credit union.
When you are ready to sign for your new car do not let them force you to finance with them as they will say that you will get a better deal when you do.
Good luck.

hi lou,

thanks for replying...i'm thinking of getting mazda 3...it's 60 months 0% apr...
isn't that a great deal...

i'm considering paying for the 60 months, and pay it all right after that...in most cases, that sounds good doesn't it?

either that, or i'm thinking of just paying it all in cash first time...

bj

[EDIT]: this turned into a long answer!! LOL

Can't beat 0% APR!

Well - you MIGHT. Many times, a car maker will offer either/or - a lump sum of 'rebate', or lower finance rate. You'll need to compare the two and see what works out better for you.

For instance, 0% APR or $2500 cash back. If you can get financing at a bank or credit union for a low rate, and the interest you'd pay over the life of the loan is less than $2500, you'd be better off taking the rebate.

From a former F&I guy (the guy that does your paperwork and sells you bunches of add-ons ):
do not buy credit insurance. if you feel you must, have your regular insurance agent write a rider for your existing life insurance policy. much cheaper.
do not buy service contracts. service contracts do nothing as long as the manufacturers warranty is still in force, except cost you money.
do not be afraid to walk away. if you don't understand what you're doing or signing, or something feels a little 'off', don't be afraid to go walking out the door. there are plenty of dealerships wanting your business

a special note on taking delivery of the car before financing is in place: when you are working a car deal, the sales manager and F&I guy are looking at your credit and the deal. They may, if they feel confident enough that your credit application will be approved, let you take the vehicle (this is common practice, and usually doesn't result in any problems for the dealer).

The problem for you comes if, for some reason, the financial institution that the dealer tried to sell the contract to won't buy the contract as it is written.

The dealership will then call you back in and attempt to rewrite the deal so that it can get financed. Sometimes this is as simple as the VIN being incorrect on the contract, or a missing signature or something of that nature. If that's the case, no big deal. Sign the new paperwork and be on your merry way.

Sometimes, though, the changes the dealership wants/needs to make would fundamentally alter the deal you made - price, down payment, trade allowance, days to first payment, etc. In that case, be aware that YOU HAVE NO OBLIGATION TO SIGN A NEW CONTRACT OR RESTRUCTURE THE CAR DEAL. You can simply get up and walk away. In effect, the dealer has allowed you to use the car for free for that period of time. Do not succumb to the pressure of the dealer (unless the new deal is acceptable to you, of course). Believe me, if they have been given conditions by the lender rather than an outright turndown, there WILL be pressure. If the new deal isn't good for you, just give the car back and walk away.

You need to look at local newspaper advertise and maybe try on Craigslist. Make sure you check the pin code on kellybluebook.com. Good luck!

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autotrader.com has worked well for me.
A credit union is definitely a good choice to finance from what I've seen.
For tracking purposes, the business account would probably make more sense.
Thank you.