Recently bought a car and some advice I received that was extremely helpful: do all negotiations upfront via email. Most major dealerships have an internet sales consultant that sits around and deals with offers all day. Some are non-responsive but many will get back to you within hours or even minutes!

I was able to leverage competing offers against each other. It was also easy to get the base and out-the-door price through this method. Best of all, you have documentation of the price you are willing to pay when you go to the dealer and can walk away if it differs for any reason.

I encountered three instances of bait-and-switch when trying to initially test drive the car I wanted. Once I started making offers via email, it almost felt like I was being taken more serious? Using email decreases likelihood of wasted time in dealership.

While I did buy new (used market is pretty horrible in my area) I paid several hundred/thousands less than invoice and "best" pricing on kbb, nada, yourautoadvocate, cargurus, etc. It pays to be patient complete due diligence!