Overseeing the new-car sales department is the sales manager, who's more than just the mythical guy behind the curtain who can approve or disapprove a sale for the price you've offered. A big part of the manager's job is ordering new cars for the dealer's inventory, with the goal of having enough cars on the lot with the right colors and options to appeal to the largest number of customers. It might sound easy, since you know what model, color and options you want ... but try guessing combinations that will meet the needs of virtually any buyer, with many models having dozens upon dozens of options, packages and colors. Typically a dealer wants to maintain about two months of new-car inventory. According to Ragsdale, there should be enough cars for customers to choose from, but not so many that they sit unpurchased for a long time. "It is critically important that he keep the proper day supply of cars," he says.

The sales manager orders vehicles through the manufacturer's computerized system, which not only allows him or her to specify models and options, but also to check on the status of orders already in progress and make last-minute changes to vehicles that aren't already on the assembly line.

Everyone is familiar with the oft-cited "dealer invoice" price of new cars, but like the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price, that's really just a starting point for pricing. Dealers receive a percentage of the invoice price back from the manufacturer - like a rebate - called "holdback." Holdback (also referred to as a "pack") is usually two or three percent of invoice or MSRP, which is why a hungry dealer can sell a car at invoice and not necessarily lose money, though they are rarely considered negotiable by anyone in the business. Since dealers must pay the manufacturer when they order the car, not when it's sold, the holdback is supposed to cover the cost of financing the vehicle during this time. All or part of the financing cost will be recovered through the amount held back by the manufacturer if the car is sold in less than 90 days. The longer the vehicle is on the lot, the more of the holdback profit gets eaten into. But again, most dealers won't disclose this amount, and unless highly motivated, they certainly won't begin negotiations on the basis of invoice price less the holdback - though it can give you some wiggle-room if the salesperson insists that the deal you're asking for has him losing money. Though these hidden figures are frequently part of everyday business for the sales department, not all vehicles have holdbacks; check the pricing page of the vehicle you are interested in to see the base holdback amount.

For vehicles that aren't moving as quickly as the manufacturer would like, there are also rebates - not the retail rebates that go to customers, but wholesale rebates that go to the dealer. Both manufacturers and dealers prefer these rebates to retail ones because they aren't advertised, and thus they don't erode the brand's image and residual values via a fire-sale atmosphere. They also give the dealer more room to negotiate discounts with consumers, leaving the buyer feeling like a hero for "talking them down." Meanwhile the dealer can still pocket some of the money.

The first responsibility of a new-car salesperson is to introduce customers to the dealer's products, highlighting their key features and encouraging a test drive. Then, if he's successful in his pitch and sells a car, the salesperson will show the buyer how to operate all of the car's controls. There are so many new electronic gadgets and doodads on today's vehicles that instruction is needed for a buyer to get full use of his or her new purchase. Why pay thousands for a navigation system, a high-end entertainment system with a DVD player, or an advanced climate control system and not know how to use them?

Buyers also need to be made familiar with the normal operation of safety features, so when, for example, the brake pedal vibrates during anti-lock braking, or when the engine's power is reduced by the traction control system, the driver knows what is happening and why. Customer satisfaction will be poor if the owner finds his car confusing or unresponsive. Because salespeople are key to customer education and satisfaction, manufacturers send trainers to dealerships to keep the sales force informed about the latest models' features and specifications.

Of course, the salesperson's main job is to close the deal, so plenty of training focuses on encouraging hesitant customers to buy a vehicle. A good auto salesperson convinces shoppers that he's on their side, rooting for them against the sales manager, employing the classic good-cop/bad-cop strategy. But don't be fooled: Salesmen are paid by commission, which means their income depends directly on how many cars they sell at how much profit.

In-store promotions and sales races can give salespeople incentive to move an extra unit or two, at little or no profit - especially if they are close to reaching a particular sales goal that would put cash in their pocket or earn a weekend in Vegas. This is why shopping at the end of the month is a useful negotiating tool for savvy shoppers.

Once a sale is made, the salesperson sees the vehicle through its final preparation by the service department, while the buyer sits in the finance and insurance office arranging financing if he or she didn't do so beforehand.

If a customer wants a car that isn't on the lot, the sales manager has a couple of options for getting the buyer together with their dream machine. The fastest solution is to query other dealers of the same make to see if they have the combination the customer is looking for. A quick check of the computer shows what cars other dealers have in inventory. If the right car is found, the dealer who made the sale buys it from the other dealer's stock normally for the same price that dealer paid. A hot property might command more, or a dealer might not even let it go.

Import automakers allow dealers to grab cars other dealers have ordered to match their needs when they come into port. The grabber then substitutes for the other dealer a similar model. When ordering cars for inventory, rather than to fill specific orders dealers are not overly concerned with which exact car they get, as long as it has popular options and isn't saddled with something no one wants. Import manufacturers tend to not offer the extensive option lists domestics do. This means fewer variations are possible, all of which should be available from somewhere in the U.S.

For domestic brands, custom-ordering from the factory isn't the months-long ordeal it used to be, as the sales manager always has a stack of orders at the manufacturer, constantly replenishing his dealership's inventory. And, because automakers have increased their manufacturing flexibility in recent years, a sales manager can contact the manufacturer and change the specifications of a car that has already been ordered but not yet built. Thus, a green sedan with cloth upholstery and no sunroof can become a red one with leather and sunroof only days before the factory starts assembling the car. By substituting these custom orders for existing spec orders, a sales manager can obtain the exact car a customer wants in only a week or two (depending on the distance from the dealer to the factory). Prior to widespread dealership computerization it was difficult to make such last-minute changes, and custom orders simply had to wait their turn to be built.

Financially, dealers are able to maintain large inventories of new cars because they don't usually pay off the cars until they're sold. The dealer maintains a line of credit through the manufacturer's finance company, which pays the manufacturer when a car is delivered to the dealer. Then, in turn, the dealer pays the finance company when the car is sold. Meanwhile interest accumulates, but the rate is usually very low, encouraging dealers to keep a large selection of vehicles on hand. Many manufacturers' finance companies even waive interest for the first twenty days a car is on the lot.