An Internet car salesperson I talked to recently said that business was so brisk at her dealership she often had to hand off customers to the regular guys "working the [showroom] floor.""There are some salesmen at my dealership I would never send a friend or customer to," she said.

"Why not?"

"I know what they are going to do."

This was getting interesting. I had to probe a little deeper. "Really? What will they do?"

"Oh, you know, the usual..." She didn't want to go any further. This was like the brotherhood of silence among cops. She didn't want to rat out a fellow salesperson.

"Let me put it this way," she finally said. "I like to be up-front with all my customers. I show them all the numbers. I don't try to hide things or put extras into the contract at the last minute. I don't want any misunderstandings. But not everyone at my dealership feels that way. So I have a list of salesmen I use and others I'd never use."

There are good and bad car salespeople. Big surprise, right? But for you, the customer, it's important to know who you are dealing with. How do you know if you got one of the good guys? How can you "test drive" the car salesman?

Several years ago I ghost-wrote a book called Used Cars — How to Buy One with Darrell Parrish, who had worked as a car salesman. After a year of moving metal, he had a crisis of conscience, became an engineer and devoted his spare time to informing consumers about unscrupulous dealers. He coined the term "test-drive the car salesman" and we listed a number of points to consider. Since I ghost-wrote that book, I have been buying cars for Edmunds.com and referring friends and family to salespeople that I've met. In the process, I have compiled a list of qualities I feel a good car salesperson should have.

First, I need to say that most car shoppers don't realize they have a choice when it comes to salespeople. They walk onto the car lot, browse the rows of gleaming cars until a cheerful voice hails them: "Morning, folks! Welcome to the Quality Car Lot. How can I help you?" Now, at this point, you are basically stuck with this salesperson. That is, unless you want to raise a fuss, go to the sales manager and demand someone different. And most people don't have the stomach for that.