Customer Reviews

Used Car Buying Guide 2007 (Consumer Reports Used Car Buying Guide)

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4 star:		(1)
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Buying a used car? Buy the "Consumer Reports Used Car Buying Guide" first.

Rather than depend on the advice of semi-knowledgeable friends, a mechanic biased toward a car maker and not a specific vehicle, or by looking to see what your neighbor drives, you can depend on this.

I bought my last two cars using earlier guides.

In it, I found lists of "Good Bets," which are cars the authors consider to perform well over the years. That is guiding my purchase. I won't buy a car not listed there. I also found lists dividing reliable cars by price range, which cars have had recalls, unreliable models (by year), and detailed descriptions of the pros and cons of each vehicle.

That's not all. There are also articles on safety, buying strategies, batteries, insurance, towing, depreciation, tires and child car seats.

It is not a complicated book. It is straight to the point, with minimal car jargon. Novices like myself are not overwhelmed by information I am not concerned with.

I am interested in safety, performance, cost of repair and related information. I found all of this here.

I fully recommend "Consumer Reports Used Car Buying Guide." I am confident that because I have read it and will refer to it while I shop for an auto online, I am prepared to save money and to buy a better vehicle.

Anthony Trendl
editor, HungarianBookstore.com

The Consumer reports gives Invaluable info to the person looking to purchase a used car.It allows for a clear decision on whats best for your driving needs!
In depth Safety and Reliability charts show you what you can expect from the model that you wish to buy.
Great Tool!

An excellent source for repair records and expected trouble spots for most used cars on the market. Only regret is the infrequency of Consumer Reports updates. Had to order the 2007 issue though we are approaching the end of 2009. Highly recommended for anyone buying a used vehicle.

As far as Amazon's involvement, I received the book promptly in perfect condition. As always a pleasant purchase.

As long as you aren't trying to buy an obscure make or model car, this will be a very helpful tool in picking out your new (to you) car. It was very helpful for me in deciding to shop for Honda Accords.

As a spoiler, I will go ahead and tell you the gist of the reviews - something we all already knew - your best bet is to buy a Honda or a Toyota (or any of its variants). Happy hunting!

Once again they created and easy to use book. I've consulted this book since 1973 when ever I was about to buy a new or used car.

This guide tells you everything you need to know about the used/pre-owned buying process, though you might be surprised at the results of many popular cars. It has a side by side comparison of the certified-pre-owned programs, warning signs when looking at a car, etc.

Overall an excellent guide for purchasing used cars. My only complaint are the hard-to-visually-scan graphics they use for rating reliability history and crash test results. A reference should be easier to scan without having to constantly refer back to a legend that is buried somewhere in the front of the book.

Consumer Reports provides a vital function in today's uber-materialist culture. They report objectively about the many products we purchase. In so doing they cut through all of the hype, distortion, and outright lies of the marketers, ad-men, and other assorted hucksters who bombard us constantly.

This guide is a powerful tool for helping both the new and experienced car buyer with the difficult task of sorting out the lemons from the cream puffs. It provides detailed information on each car and then summarizes the best used car buys and the worst used car buys -- for those with limited attention spans like me.

I could not recommend this guide more highly. It is an essential part of the decision making process of used car buyers.