Drive a Bargain

The compact trucks below are equipped with five-speed manual transmissions, four-wheel drive, two doors, A/C, anti-lock brakes, dual air bags, power windows and locks, AM/FM cassette (except Mazda, which comes standard with a CD player), cruise control, and keyless remote entry system.

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).

1999 Compact Amount over (+) Factory

trucks Best Amount under (-) invoice

sticker price price factory invoice cost

Nissan Frontier XE 4-cyl

$17,703 $15,484 -$1,000 $16,484

Ford Ranger XLT V6

18,780 15,927 -1,000 16,927

Toyota Tacoma 4-cyl

19,273 16,048 -1,200 17,248

Mazda B3000 SE V6

19,405 16,239 -1,250 17,489

Chevrolet S-10 LS V6

19,471 16,475 -1,150 17,625

Source: CarBargains