When it comes to buying a vehicle, whether you’re buying a new vehicle from the showroom or thinking of buying a good quality pre-owned vehicle, you want to pay the best price possible. Of course, sellers will often inflate their prices, giving you some negotiation leeway, driving them down in price to pay a price you’re comfortable with.

There are a few things you can do to improve your car deal and secure the best price possible. If you’re not a professional car dealer, you’ll need to know where to start to ensure you get the car you want at a price you can afford.

The first step to any successful car deal is research. Once you’ve identified a vehicle that you think is right for your needs, you’ll want to see what price they’re selling it for right now and how many companies are selling it. You can find a selection of this particular type and model of vehicle at numerous dealerships in your area, which opens you up and gives you the upper hand when it comes to the bargain side.

Call dealers directly. The good news is that you can do it from home, which can save you valuable time and energy. Identify whether vehicles you’ve seen online or in an ad come with a service history, are roadworthy, and require any work. Talk to the dealer about a warranty period, especially with a used vehicle. Some dealers will offer you a thirty, sixty or even ninety day warranty when you purchase the vehicle to give you complete peace of mind.

Talking to each of the dealerships about the vehicle is just more information you can gather to highlight your car negotiating skills. You will be able to narrow your search based on the information you have collected. You’ll also be able to identify vehicles that may require a small amount of TLC, giving you even more room for negotiation moving forward.

Once you have this information, you can begin negotiating your car over the phone with the dealer before wasting time looking at a vehicle where there is no room to move when it comes to price and it ends up outside of your budgeted price range.

Make sure that when it comes to buying another vehicle, you don’t trade in your current vehicle. Better sell your current vehicle on your own. While this may be a headache you don’t want, you’d be surprised how much more money you can make by selling your vehicle privately compared to what you’ll be offered if you trade in your vehicle.

Pit the dealers against each other to see which one will fall for your car dealing tactics. If dealers have the same vehicle in similar condition at different prices, then you can use this to your advantage, giving you room to bargain to see which one will offer you the best deal when it comes to buying a new vehicle.

When you are satisfied that you have negotiated the car for the best price, you can arrange to test drive the vehicle. During the test drive, you may identify other issues where you can negotiate further to lock in the price you want to lock in.

Only once you are completely satisfied and comfortable with the deal should you go ahead and sign on the dotted line, taking possession of the vehicle.