<prompt> Human: I have a loan with GM Financial that Im trying to pay off faster. My plan is to pay 500 a month, instead of the minimum payment of 381.Does it matter if I just pay this the normal way or is there a way to call in and have the payment applied to the principal instead of the interest? With my mortgage, I have to call to do this, but I havent had a car loan in a while and forgot to ask about it at the dealership and Im not clear on what Im finding online.  <response>: Best thing to do is call them, that way you are 100 sure its going to the principal. There are companies that apply it directly to the principal when extra payments are made online, but most of them just apply it to the interest without even telling you. 