1. A great way to buy a car nowadays is to use the internet. Your can search multiple dealers at once and wait for good incentives. You can print of all of the best deals and take them with you to the dealerships. Having proof of a lower quote can be a great bargaining tool.

2. I highly recommend visiting FightingChance.com for the best deals currently available on new cars. It is a great resource for excellent advice when buying a car. Visiting this site before you go out to purchase a vehicle can potentially save you thousands.

3. You should purchase your new car at or around Christmas time because with everybody buying their Christmas presents, not many of them are looking to buy a new car, and it forces dealerships to up their sales strategies. Salesmen are more willing to haggle down to your prices to close the deal.

4. Between July and October is another great period to purchase a car. Dealerships are trying to get rid of older stock quickly so that they have space for the new models that are released.

5. Avoid being desperate to buy a vehicle. Dealers can smell desperation a mile off and will try to take advantage of the situation. Start searching for a new car before the one you have gives up the ghost. This way you still have transport while your are looking for the best deal possible.

6. Make sure you have a copy of your credit report when you visit the dealer. You can use this to get more favourable rates on a car loan.

7. You can avoid a common scam that dealerships pull. You will often hear that your financing fell through and that you have to respond by paying more money on your loan. Don't believe it. It's another reason for you to get a copy of your credit score.

8. Another scam attempted by the dodgy dealerships is to try to get you re-sign your loan papers, saying that they require it to get you a better rate. Don't fall for this. They are just trying to get your finacial information so that they are in the driving seat when it comes to negotiating a deal. A quick visit to Equifax.com to get your credit report cost only $15 and can save you thousands.

9. If your current car is still under finance, do not try and trade it in. Dealerships hardly ever give you enough to cover the remaining payments or pay them to the bank on time either. This could mean you incurring late fees from your bank.

10. Dealers may not have the exact model with the optional extras you want and may have to order it in for you. They will ask for a deposit payment, usually between $500 and $1000. Avoid paying more than $500 and use your credit card to make the payment. This covers you should the be any unexpected 'price increase' and will give you room to dispute it.