Sending that final car payment off is a sweet feeling. And no matter how your loan is structured or how much you owe, there are ways to get to that day a little faster.

The easiest way to a short car loan is to design it that way in the first place. By increasing the down payment, borrowing less and taking larger payments over a shorter term, you can design a loan that takes less time to pay off. If you are buying a car, get pre-qualified with Credit Acceptance to get information about your options.

But even if you are not buying a car right now, there is much you can do to pay off your existing loan much faster. Here are some ideas.

 Round Up Your Payments

It is worth noting that you can pay off a car loan at any time, provided that you have the money to do so. If you don’t have that money, there are some strategies you can pursue.

For example, one relatively painless option is to round up as high as you can go every time you make a payment. Maybe your finances are better now than when you bought the car. Or maybe you can find some room in your budget to nudge it along. Aim for $100 and you’ll be amazed at how quickly you can pay off your loan.

Let’s look at what a round-up means on a five-year, $30,000 car loan with a 7 percent interest rate. Your regular monthly payment would be about $594. Adding $100 to every monthly payment will save you about $972 in interest and shorten your loan by roughly 10 months. Adding $50 extra each month will save about $533 and cut the term by 5 months. Even just $25 extra each month will save around $280 and get you out of that loan about 2 months earlier.

The most important step here: make sure that extra payment is going toward your principal loan balance and not toward future interest payments.

Switch to Biweekly Payments

This one is a brilliant, financial sleight of hand. You’ll be fooling yourself into thinking you’re paying the same amount of money, but you will be paying more.

Instead of paying every month, you switch to paying exactly half of that monthly payment, but send the payment every two weeks.

It’s a trick, because calendar months and weeks vary. In the end, you will make the financial equivalent of 13 payments, rather than 12.

If you want to see how this will look for your loan, there are online tools to help you make those calculations. One free tool is offered by the American Institute of CPAs.

Use a Windfall

If you get any kind of a windfall, like a tax refund, bonus or gift, you can apply a lump sum toward your principal and dramatically chop down your loan amount. Even $2,000 can help clear that loan out half a year ahead of schedule.

Just make sure it is applied to the principal balance of your loan.

Refinance Your Car Loan

Interest rates rise and fall over the life of your loan, all of which is beyond your control. But a shift in the right direction can be a big savings for you if you can refinance your loan (meaning you basically get a new one) and obtain a lower rate. But you don’t have to rely on the U.S. Federal Reserve, which sets interest rates, to get you a better deal.

Perhaps your credit score and income have improved since you took out the loan. Or maybe you had a co-signer and you’re ready to make it a one-person loan.

If any of the above is true, you may be able to refinance your car loan.

To do that, you will have to meet certain criteria. For example, if your car has more than 100,000 miles on it or has a salvage title, the lenders may turn you down. Much depends on the Loan-to-Value ratio (LTV). Generally, the car must be worth more than the loan you need. You can use an online calculator like the one offered by RateGenius to see if your LTV hits the sweet spot.

Trade in Your Car

Of course, you may also be able to trade in your car and buy a new one, obtaining a new loan with a shorter term. Much will depend on the value of your car, how much is left on your loan and other factors. But it may be an option.

If you are interested in buying, start by getting pre-qualified with Credit Acceptance. It will also give you all the information you need to set a budget and begin looking for your next car with confidence, knowing that your auto financing is in the bag.