Research a New Car Purchase

Know your budget. Prices on new cars can vary from less than $10,000 to more than $100,000. While you want to know what monthly payments you can afford, it's best to approach new car buying with an out-the-door price attitude. Use an auto loan calculator online through a site such as Bankrate to input approximations for the average current interest rate, the term of any loan, as well as the amount you think you're going to finance to figure estimated monthly payments. Use the "financed" amount as your out-the-door price for negotiations.

Determine what type of new car you want and what you really need. You may want to get a nice two-seater sports car, but if you have two kids and a family pet, that's not practical. Vehicles range from the small sports car to the large conversion van, with many in between--minivans, crossovers, SUVs, pickup trucks, station wagons and sedans of various sizes.

Narrow down your choice. Using the amount in Step 1 and the type of vehicle you're considering in Step 2, begin looking for cars that meet your requirements. If you've selected a four-door sedan for less than $20,000, you'll have a wide variety of makes and manufacturers to go through.

Pinpoint which features and ratings are important to you. Through a site such as Consumer Reports, or through the Consumer Reports Annual Auto Issue, which they publish in approximately April of every year, you can read expert reviews concerning fuel economy, survey results, owner costs, safety, as well as receive overall road-test scores from the experts.

Choose your top picks. After narrowing down your new car choices to one or two, make appointments at local dealerships to test-drive the cars. You can feel how the specific vehicle feels to drive and judge how it will fit into your everyday life.