I frequently come across “$x above invoice” deals, and some of them look pretty good–at first glance. At some point, perhaps only when the time comes to sign the final paperwork, it’ll come out that the invoice price includes an advertising fee, and that a documentation fee is also extra. Suddenly, you’re as much as $1,400 over the price the ad suggested you’d be paying.

Though they may range as high as $800, I have to grant that advertising fees are in many cases legitimate. The dealer must pay this fee into a local or regional ad fund, and is passing along a per vehicle fixed cost. I regret that TrueDelta does not include these fees in its invoice prices, but they vary by area and information about them is difficult to obtain. Maybe in the future.

Documentation fees I have much more of a problem with. The employee pricing plans popular around Detroit forbid such fees, so the manufacturers don’t see them as legitimate. They’re pure revenue for the dealer–none of the fee gets paid to an outside entity. And they vary widely. I’ve heard of fees as high as $600, an extreme amount to pay for the dealer to handle the paperwork. At the other extreme, some states, including California and Texas, limit this fee to $50 or less.

No matter where you live, know these fees up front and include them in the negotiations from the beginning. Don’t let the dealer pop a surprise after you thought the dealing was done.