The 2004 edition of Used Car Buying Guide helps minimize risks by steering readers toward the better-performing, more reliable models and away from those with a troubled past or substandard performance. The first part of the book provides all the information needed before stepping onto a used-car lot:
·Step-by-step advice from selection to shopping strategies, vehicle inspection,
negotiation techniques, and closing the deal
·Details about all checks performances, and how to find a good mechanic
·How to avoid a lemon: finding a reliable used car, including lists of the best and the worst
·Safety information: key features to look for, how to interpret the crash tests, the Consumer Reports Safety Assessment, and more
·How to shop for auto insurance
·How to give an old car new life.

The experts at Consumer Reports help take the risk out of buying a used car.

Buying a used car is a greater risk than buying a new one, but can also be the best automotive deal around if the proper homework is done. The 2005 edition of Used Car Buying Guide helps minimize risks by steering readers toward the better-performing and more reliable models and away from those with a troubled past or substandard performance. It is best to be armed with as much information as possible before stepping onto a used car lot, and this book will provide everything needed, including:
o How to navigate the entire buying process, from selection to shopping
strategies, negotiation techniques and more
o Details about all the checks necessary to perform on a car, whether or not a mechanic is
involved
o Lists of the best and the worst vehicles and how to avoid a lemon
o Making sense of safety information
A major part of this book is devoted to the profiles of 256 cars and trucks, presenting all major 1997-2004 models. Each profile contains a photo from the representative year, a write-up of the vehicle, reliability history, crash-test data, and the model years when key safety gear was added and when a major redesign was made.

Finally, a definitive guide to buying and leasing a car from America's most trusted source for automotive information. The SMART SHOPPER'S GUIDE TO BUYING OR LEASING A CAR brings together years of research and experience from Consumer Reports' Automotive Experts, who have developed a practical step-by-step approach to getting the right car at the best price.

With dozens of new models of cars introduced every year and an array of financing options available, shopping for a new car can make even the most experienced consumer's head spin. For the first time ever, the car experts from Consumer Reports have put together the most definitive body of advice available on how to navigate the car-buying process each step of the way, minimizing the confusion, intimidation and frustration often associated with this high-ticket purchase. The buying process can be fast and easy with the right preparation, and Consumer Reports' own experts, Rik Paul, Automotive Editor, and David Champion, Senior Director of the Auto Test Division, will help anyone be a smart shopper and satisfied buyer with guidance in the following areas:
"analyze your needs, know what you want and what you can afford
"where to get key information
"how to understand vehicle pricing and make it work for you
"how to control the negotiation and dealership experiences
"getting the best price on the new car AND on the trade-in

The Consumer Reports Difference
The amount of auto information available to consumers in the past decade has exploded. What is lacking is the credibility and depth that Consumer Reports provides. Consumer Reports is the only auto-testing publication that doesn't accept advertising or freebies. In contrast to other auto publications which borrow their test vehicles from auto manufacturers, Consumer Reports anonymously buys all the vehicles it tests from dealerships, just as the consumer does. Rik Paul and David Champion have bought hundreds of vehicles over the years, and know better than anyone how to get the right vehicle at the best price.