<prompt> Human: EDIT: Mandatory RIP my inbox, etc.A couple thoughts after reading the comments: First off, remember that a new car is one of, if not THE worst investment you can make. Only buy new if you appreciate the car as a work of art as well as a mode of transportation ie its not an investment, its a toy, or if you are so god-awful with a wrench you absolutely must have something with a warranty, or if you work in big-ticket sales or similar where the status symbol is necessary for you to do your job. Financially, you are best off buying an absolute piece of shit for 500 cash and driving it for the few months it has until it shits the bed, whereupon you sell it for scrap, rinse and repeat. Yes, youll do better selling your car yourself than trading it in. Much better. But to do it right you arguably should have a lawyer draw up a sales contract to give you a liability shield, and you ought to get a thorough detailing to help bump up the price you get, and dont forget your time. Is it really worth the hassle? Only you can decide. Extended warranties: IMO, theyre for suckers. The company wouldnt sell them if they didnt make money doing it, so youre not likely to pay as much in repairs as you would on the warranty itself. Plus, the extended warranty will run out well before most of the worst problems crop up, and on top of that, theres usually a hefty deductible. Insurance, warranties included, is for hedging risk that you cant reasonably be expected to shoulder on your own. If you cant keep a couple thou in the bank for unexpected car repairs, you need to re-evaluate whether or not you can afford a new car. My approach is what you might call playing hardball, but it is not by any means a license to be a dick, as some people seem to have inferred. On the contrary, be as friendly as you can be while still being genuine about it. Talk about the local sports teams, recommend restaurants and movies to each other, tell jokes. Being nice makes the process more enjoyable for everyone involved. Just dont let niceness translate into paying more than you have to. And of course, Im not an expert and these are just my opinions, shaped by learning some of these lessons the hard way. The best actual advice I can give you is to read a book called Dont Get Taken Every Time, by Remar Sutton.EDIT___1. Decide on an absolute maximum budget and line up financing before you set foot inside a dealership. I cannot overemphasize this.2. Browse manufacturer websites, consumer reports, TopGear, etc. Decide on a shortlist of 4-5 and then go see those cars in person.3. Go look. Dont even drive anything the first day. Sit in, sure - but dont drive. The salespersons job is to get you emotionally attached to THAT car, and the emotional attachment tends to appear when youre driving. Just go, look at the cars in person, get a feel for what the various colors look like in real life, pick up a brochure, and go back home.4. Leave emotion at home. You can start having fun once youve pulled off the lot in the car you got a good deal on. While youre lookingbuying, youre there to purchase a tool to get you from point A to point B. Nothing more. Emotion is how the sales system applies pressure. Not showing much emotion will throw the sales person off their game.5. Okay, youve got your shortlist. Now research the everloving crap out of it. Truecar.com dont register, just put in your zip code and get a feel for what each car is going for in your area. Edmunds.com again, dont give out any personal info. Consumer reports. Google the makemodel of the car with the word recall. Learn everything you can.6. Rank your shortlist and test drive the top 3. Thank the sales people for their time, and firmly say that youre still weighing your options and do not want to discuss price.7. Speaking of price - the salesperson almost certainly will ask you a question like If I can make the payments work for you, will you want to make a purchase today? The correct answer is that you will NOT be making a purchase today. This is called an early close and it puts all the power in their hands if you answer yes.8. By the way dont let them appraise your trade-in until step 9.9. Now youve test driven your favorite 3 cars. Are they still ranked in the same order? Shuffle if necessary, then go to the dealerships for 2 and 3. Find out how much they think youre car is worth. Not how much theyll ALLOW you youll probably hear this word. Find out how much its WORTH. Heck, go to CarMax if you have one nearby and get it appraised there, too.10. Get your information organized. Big yellow legal pad time! Google and find out what are the various fees that your statetown allows. Dont forget sales tax. For your favorite car, figure up your estimate of the OUT THE DOOR price for the average going price you found in step 5. Now do the OTD price for the best price you found. And for the maximum youd be willing to pay.11. Information in hand, head to the dealer and say that Car XYZ is your successful candidate, and youd like to talk OUT THE DOOR price. Theyll lead with something and you dont really care what it is. Counter with a couple hundred bucks LESS than the best price you calculated. Even if the sales person says no, insist they take it to their manager. For conveniences sake, let them appraise your trade-in while you negotiate, but only deal in what the car is WORTH, NEVER what theyll ALLOW you. Trade allowance will just come back in a higher price or fees or whatever.12. Theyll come back with some figure, and again, it wont tell you much. Come up to the best price you found and again insist that they take it to their manager.13. Theyll probably come back with a note from their manager asking for your help if only youll concede to this price, we can make it happen! Horse apples. Stand your ground. Be ready to walk, and mean it. Theyll come running after you if they can take that price or come close see step 14. If not, go home, let them stew for a day or two, and go back tomorrow or the day after and offer a hundred or so more. If they still will let you walk after you raised your price, try another dealership.14. Use your middle and maximum prices for guidance during step 13. Depending on where you are relative to your references, you may want to be a tiny bit more flexible so that you dont waste time going back and forth. If they stop you from walking out, come up a bit but dont go over your middle, and definitely not your max price.15. Youve agreed on a price! Congratulations! Now theyre going to try and sell you extras. You dont want ANY of them. No, you dont want rustproofing. No, you dont want airbag air fresheners. No, you dont want indestructible permanent wax. These things will cost you 500-1000, and they cost the dealership 50. Not to mention you can get better results at a detail shop.16. Read every word of the sales agreement before you sign. If youre confused, google or bring someone who can navigate legalese. Most states have a law requiring that the documents be clear and straightforward.17. Ask them to remove the dealer badge and license plate holders theyre not paying you for advertising.  <response>: I usually negotiate the sale price because taxes and other fees are non-negotiable. I make sure I let them know I am shopping around and wont be pushed into buying things like extended warranty or other random shit. No I dont want 300 nitrogen in my tires. 