Thanks to a confluence of market forces, this could be one of the best times ever to purchase a car, according to the St. Petersburg Times.

Although the new-car market has been in the spotlight during the past year because of those sexy zero interest financing plans, the greatest bargains may be found in used cars, the newspaper reported.

Just as every used car was once somebody's shiny new one, used-car prices are rooted in how the new car market is faring, according to the Times. New-car sales shifted into overdrive in the late 1990s, fueled by the go-go stock market and the auto industry's enthusiastic marketing of leasing programs in an effort to get larger segments of the car-buying public into new vehicles.

Used-car prices could begin to rebound somewhat toward the end of the year, according to Paul Taylor, chief economist for the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA). Taylor says he thinks interest rates will remain low through at least the first half of 2003, while demand should increase as unemployment eases.

On the supply side, Taylor expects fewer trade-ins to enter the market as new-car sales cool off slightly from year-earlier levels. "Lately, we've been seeing strong sales and low interest rates," Taylor said. "Strong sales are usually associated with strong (economic) growth, which usually means high interest rates. It's a unique alignment of the stars."