The tools that keep the deal on your side.

Sales tax, title, registration, and license. This is money the dealership collects and forwards to your state — none of it is theirs to keep. Arguing over these wastes the leverage you need for the lines that matter.

Destination or freight belongs here too. It is set by the manufacturer, printed on the window sticker, and identical at every dealer selling that model.

• •Check the tax rate against your county's, not the dealership's.
• •Confirm destination matches the window sticker. It should never appear twice.
• ✗Do not accept a second "registration service" charge stacked on top of the real one.

Paperwork processing. The work is real, the amount usually is not. Some states cap what a dealer may charge; others let the dealership set it at whatever the market will carry, which is why the same fee varies wildly across state lines.

Here is the part that matters: even where the fee cannot legally be waived, the selling price can come down by the same amount. A dealer who says the doc fee is untouchable is telling you the truth about the fee and avoiding the truth about the price.

• •Look up your state's doc fee rules before you sit down.
• •Negotiate the out-the-door total, not the individual lines — it makes the fee irrelevant.

VIN etching, nitrogen-filled tires, paint sealant, fabric protection, pinstriping, wheel locks. These appear on a second sticker beside the factory one, often already applied, and the pitch is that they cannot be removed.

Whether it can be removed and whether you have to pay for it are separate questions. You did not order it. You can decline the charge and let the dealership decide whether the sale is worth more than the markup on a bottle of sealant.

• •A second window sticker in a different font from the factory one.
• •"Dealer prep" — the manufacturer generally already pays the dealer to prepare the car.
• ✗Bundled "protection packages" that price four cheap items as one expensive line.

Sometimes labeled additional dealer markup, ADM, or market value adjustment. It is a number added above MSRP because the dealership believes demand supports it. There is no service behind it and no cost it offsets.

It is not illegal and it is not a trick — it is a price. Treat it exactly like one. A price you disagree with is a reason to shop a different store, not a fee to dispute.

• •Get out-the-door quotes in writing from three dealers before you accept any adjustment.
• •Adjustments soften as inventory builds. Time is leverage if you are not in a hurry.

GAP covers the difference between what you owe and what your car is worth if it's totaled or stolen while you're still upside-down on the loan. It can be genuinely worth it — if you put little down or financed a long term.

The catch is where you buy it. Dealers routinely mark GAP up several times over its cost, buried inside your financing where you'll never notice.

• 1.Your insurer — often a few dollars a month added to your policy.
• 2.Your credit union or bank — usually a flat, modest one-time cost.
• 3.A reputable direct provider — if the first two don't offer it, for far less than dealer pricing.
• ✗The dealership F&I office — the same coverage at the biggest markup. Decline it here.

A service contract pays for certain repairs after the factory warranty ends. Whether it's worth it depends on the vehicle's reliability, how long you'll keep it, and the contract's fine print — what's covered, the deductible, and who administers claims.

Like GAP, the dealer version is typically the priciest, and it's negotiable even when they imply it isn't.

• •Read the exclusions, not just the brochure — that's where coverage really lives.
• •Check whether there's a waiting period before you can first use the coverage.
• •Keep in mind a VSC gets more expensive the more mileage the vehicle has — and many providers have mileage limits.
• •Compare a direct provider's quote against the dealer's before agreeing to anything.
• •Never let it get folded into your monthly payment unexamined — price it as a standalone number.
• •You can almost always buy it later. There's no need to decide under pressure at signing. (Note: if you're financing the VSC, there's a limited window to fold it into your loan — check with your lender and local regulations.)