So, it is time for you to buy a car. Many people dread this... because they feel like they are getting ripped off for thousands of dollars.

There are five different ways for you to buy a car today:

• Buy the car from a normal person who has advertised his/her car in the classified ads or something like Auto Trader.

• Buy the car from eBay Motors (an increasingly popular option)

• Buy the car from a used car dealer

• Buy or lease a new car from a dealer

• Buy or lease a new car through an Internet service like Cars.com to get a lower price.

Some places like Car Max and Saturn dealerships offer "No Haggle" pricing. You go in and pay the price that you see on the sticker. On eBay the price is determined by the auction process — you simply have to set a maximum price you are willing to pay and not let the aution process sway you from that price.

But in most other car-buying situations where you are working with a dealer or a private seller, you have the chance to negotiate the price. This makes many people uncomfortable until you read this truly amazing, groundbreaking article:

Confessions of a Car Salesman

This article, written by a writer who went undercover to learn about car selling from the inside, shows you just how smarmy and disgusting the whole car industry can get. You will NEVER look at car buying the same way after you read this article. You will find that there are four different ways for you to get screwed, and how to guard against them.

So read the article and apply what you learn. Or... choose to buy your car from a place where you don't need to negotiate. There are plenty of options.