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Finance departments are where dealers make most of their profit (well, financing and after-market products).

Their profit lies on something called the "Finance Reserve." That is the difference between the interest rate the dealer is offering you and the lower interest rate (called the "buy rate") the bank offers the dealer.

For example, lets say you have a credit score of 700. The finance manager offers you a conventional loan through Generic Bank at, say, 6.9%.

But what you don't know, as you sit there negotiating, is that the dealer already has a standing arrangement with the bank that says that any buyer with a credit score of 700 can have a loan at 4.9%. If you go for the 6.9%, the dealer keeps the other 2%. That's the "Finance Reserve." For the dealer, it's just gravy. Cash in his pocket.

Most banks cap a dealer at 3% over the "buy rate," but not all do. According to our latest reports, Ford Motor Credit, for example, has no cap on the dealer mark up. That means you could pay anywhere from 1% to 10% more than what you actually qualify for.

Don't worry, the dealers are not out to get you. This financing reserve sometimes works in your favor. It allows the dealer to offer competing interest rates to consumers who have no chance of getting that rate elsewhere!

Regardless of how cards fall, smart car shoppers get their credit report score and look for loan quotes before they walk into the dealership. You can find more information and receive a no-obligation, free auto loan quote at http://www.buyingadvice.com/