CLEVELAND -- It's a fear most of us have before the big deal and most don't look forward to it at all: negotiating the best price for a car. NewsChannel5 consumer specialist Angie Lau got some tips from personal haggling coach Joe Daugirdas.

Daugirdas said he could help Newschannel5 intern Karen Zolka shop for her first car, a Toyota Prius.

Daugirdas said all successful car shopping starts with doing some solid research.

According to Daugirdas, "Once they see that you have done your homework, they are more apt to negotiate with you."

Tip No. 1, don't pay the sticker price. You can go on line and find out what the dealer actually paid for the car or the invoice price.

Tip No. 2, some dealerships might be willing to throw in some extras to seal the deal, like car washes or oil changes.

Daugirdas said, "You can negotiate is the extended warrenty, for one thing. It might cost you $1,000 for an extra three or four years, up to 100,000 miles, you can negotiate that price with them. You can also negotiate service deals."

Zokla was ready to try so, armed with an undercover camera, she tried to negotiate with a dealer who only had one Prius on the lot.

After almost an hour, Zolka managed to negotiate for a free oil change, but the dealer wouldn't budge on the price. Zolka walked away.

And that is tip No. 3: Don't wheel and deal the same day.

Haggling coach Daugirdas said, "Don't be intimidated. If you don't buy a car there, who cares? There are five or 10 other dealerships around town."

Zolka went to another dealership with more than 10 Priuses on the lot. There she used her research skills and mentioned she was a student and was able to haggle down to $22,000. That's almost $1,200 less than the asking price.

Tip No. 4, save the trade-in talk until the end.

Daugirdas said, "When you negotiate a price, get all the deals that you can on the car itself, then bring in that you have a car you want to trade-in."

Tip No. 5 is to negotiate your rates. Even though it might only be a difference of $8 or $10 per month, it adds up over the life of the loan.

Timing is also key. Try buying a car at the end of the month, or the year when dealers want to fill their quota. They may be more willing to give you a deal to make their goal.

More Tips For Car Buying

• To compare gas mileage on your current model against one you may purchase go to www.fueleconomy.gov.
• Compare models and price breakdowns of cars before shopping for them. These sites will let you know how much a car will cost at invoice.
  Sites to compare car pricing:
  www.edmunds.com
  www.kellybluebook.com
  www.intellichoice.com
  www.jdpower.com - rates cars
  www.autoweb.com – info on purchasing a car.
• Info on car rebates including some for college graduates: www.edmunds.com/incentives
• Info on car rebates and incentives including some for college graduates: www.carsdirect.com
• Go to www.autosafety.org to find information on problematic cars.

E-mail Lau with your favorite haggling stories and she will post them in her consumer blog so we can all learn how to seal that great deal.