Drive a Bargain

Here are the best prices available on five compact sedans. Prices include destination charges, customer rebates, and factory-to-dealer incentives, but exclude fees and regional advertising expenses. All cars have air conditioning and automatic transmission.

CarBargains, which provides the data for "Drive a Bargain," is a new-car shopping service that, for $165, gets bids from five dealers in your area on the car you want (800-475-7283).

Compact Amount over (+) Factory

Sedans Best Amount under (-) invoice

sticker price price factory invoice cost

Ford Escort LX

$13,480 $12,072 -$500 $12,572

Nissan Sentra XE

14,119 12,236 -1,000 13,236

Chevrolet Cavalier LS

14,921 12,934 -1,050 13,984

Mazda Protege LX

15,525 13,772 -500 14,272

Honda Civic LX

16,045 14,469 +200 14,269

Source: CarBargains