re: Getting pre-approved financing for a car loan - what steps to take?

Another vote for Penfed.org
Easy to work with. I negotiated with the dealer and they assumed I would finance with them all the while I had a blank check from Penfed (with a pre-approved limit.) We went back in forth on price. They are gonna talk monthly payment and not actual price. Once they gave me an actual price and increased the trade in value I simply wrote the check from Penfed.
With your credit score, you should be approved in no time with Penfed.