Best Practices For Buying A New Car

By Amy E. Feldman

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Thinking of buying a new car? Avoid the sticker shock.

A Virginia Chevy dealership has apologized to a customer who bought a new car for $5600 less than the dealership later realized it should have charged so it had him arrested. That's some hard bargaining.

Threat of incarceration aside, there are other ways that a dealership can get you.

Most people understand that there's a base price for a car, and then the customer can decide to pay more for additional features. But in addition to that, there may be other common extras you don't realize you're paying for: credit life insurance, paint sealant, rust proofing, and an additional warranty for example.

There may also be administrative fees like title fees, 30 day permits, shipping charges, truth in lending record retention, and car fax. And, if you don't read the contract carefully, you may "accidentally" be charged double for an item, or be charged a flat fee up to $500.

Best bet is to take a piece of paper with you, and write down the negotiated price. To that, make the salesperson write down every additional charge and explain it to you.