Deals on wheels: Part 2: you've calculated dealer costs, taken your test drives, and mapped out your payments. Now you're ready to deal

Tools of the Trade, Sept-Oct, 2005 by Michael Springer

Some aftermarket options added to your vehicle after the sale also may diminish original warranty coverage. Utility bodies, stake beds, snowplows, and other commercial equipment added must be rated for your specific truck and installed by manufacturer-approved upfitters to maintain the original warranty. The added items themselves will be warranted separately by their manufacturer. You can sometimes buy already assembled equipment configurations on a new truck directly from the upfitter, but they won't let you finance. It's usually cheaper and easier to arrange purchase though a dealership.

THE LAST LAP

Following the steps in both parts of this article should help you gain control of the purchase and finance negotiations, and put you on the road to getting the best deal possible. Educating yourself and going in prepared eliminates guesswork and enables you to drive a hard bargain. The result of all that work should be that you drive off the dealer's lot in the truck you really wanted, at the price you had negotiated.

BEST PAYMENT OPTIONS

Loan offers like 0 percent financing can be enticing, but take a close look at the numbers because 0 percent isn't always the best way to go. For example:

* SCENARIO 1: You take the special 0 percent offered without the rebate by the dealer for three years to finance $20,000.

* SCENARIO 2: You get a bank loan at 6.49 percent for the same term (three years) while taking the $3,000 rebate.

OUTCOME: The bank Joan in Scenario 2 has interest cost, but since you're only financing $17,000 this way, interest totals $1,754--which generates a savings of $1,246 over the life of your loan.

Michael Springer is a writer and builder. He owns Ulterior Design in Boulder, Colo.