The reviews are in! Read what the industry and the media are saying about The Used Car Buyer's Manuals I & II:
- The Used Car Buyer's Manual: How To Find the Best Buy on a Used Car. Library Journal, May 1st, 1998 p.51.
- Find the Best Buy on a Used Car: Oregon Motorist (AAA Oregon/Idaho, March/April 1997, p.9.
- Book Review:ALA Booklist, October 15, 1996. Published by the American Library Association.
- Buying Used Made Easy: Carguide, October 1996, p. 13.
- New Nonfiction Books Cover Vast Territory: The Register Herald, October 6, 1996.
- Books on Review: The Argus Observer, September 22, 1996, Sec. C, p.1.
- New Products: Potentials in Marketing, August 1996, p.32.
- New Book Illustrates Better Way to Buy Used Cars: Golden/Jefferson City Transcript: (Automotive Supplement) August 9-15, 1996, p. 6.
- Book Review:Intercom, January 1996, p. 2. Published by the Conference of Consumer Organizations (COCO).
This book describes car dealership sales tactics and how to handle them, as well as buying from private parties, how to evaluate a potential used car, and how to control the buying process. Easy to read, it comes with a checklist, reliability ratings, and other buying tips. The author's Used Car Buyer's Manual II focuses exclusively on private-party sales.
Research: Forty-seven million consumers are expected to buy a used car this year. Do you know how to accurately price a used car?
Auto-broker David J. Buechel, author of the Used Car Buyer's Manual, claims it is not through Blue Books or by checking used car lots. The most accurate way to price a specific car, says Buechel, is by calling private-party classified ads. Contact the seller about a month after the ad was placed. Find out the selling price of the vehicle. Resale prices can fluctuate from city to city. Five or six of these calls will provide a good indication of the market value for a certain car in a given community. This information provides buyers with important negotiation tools.
Money-Saving Tips: The Used Car Buyer's Manual offers a new approach to car-buying, spotlighting private-party sales. More consumers are buying used cars from private sellers and finding the best deals through private-party sales. The book includes easy to use checklists for buying, selling, vehicle ratings and auto maintenance. It is available for purchase through the AAA Travel Stores.
Don't be put off by the amateurish drawings or the profusion of capital letters - this is a good book on a subject almost everyone hates. The author is thorough, knowledgeable, and, above all, full of common sense. Taking the reader through every agonizing part of the used-car-purchasing cycle (research, search, examination, test-drive, negotiations), Buechel addresses the non expert car buyer who has the interest and the time to take the job seriously (other non experts should buy new cars).
Rarely belaboring the obvious, the text spells out what to say, what to look for, when to compromise, and how to get out gracefully. After beginning with how to buy a used car from a private party (the much preferred method), Buechel tackles what he believes to be the more difficult route: buying from a dealer. Advice on maintaining and selling a used car concludes this eminently practical guide. - Leon Wagner
There are numerous self-help books out on racks today. The ones that deal with cars and trucks typically cover how to fix them, few discuss how to buy and sell them. The latest book titled The Used Car Buyer's Manual, by David J. Buechel, is one of the few.
Easy to read and written by a car broker, the Buyer's Manual takes you step-by-step throughout he whole process. Broken into three parts with two appendices, the book covers: how to buy a used car from a private party; how to buy from a dealer; and how to sell and car for your used car.
In the appendices there is a directory of reliable used cars and a copy-ready vehicle inspection checklist. Within the nine chapters, Buechel discusses everything from researching a car and selecting a mechanic to negotiation strategies and maintenance tips. This is not a book you need to read cover to cover to get your money's worth, just the applicable parts.
The only complaint is that the book is designed for an American audience. On the bright side, most of what Buechel presents in his book is fully transferable to us Canadians.
Next to a house, the biggest purchase for most of us is a car, new or used. That's why a good guidebook is helpful. David J. Buechel's The Used Car Buyer's Manual is an excellent one, with tips that should keep consumers from making serious mistakes. I know I've made some mistakes in buying cars in the four decades I've been doing it. If I'd Buechel's paperback book along, I probably wouldn't have made them.
An auto broker for the past 16 years, Buechel obviously knows his "beasts," as he refers to cars and trucks. The 175 page book has tips on what to look for in used cars, ones to avoid and ones to seek out, how to deal with private owners and dealers, how to have a mechanic check out a potential car, tips on maintaining your vehicles, etc. Perhaps the most useful sections are lengthy ones on negotiating with private parties and dealers.
Buechel even includes a section about selling your car, including the necessity for proper detailing. Dealers detail all their cars, so don't you think you can bypass this step, the author wisely advises.
Except for the lack of an index - something all nonfiction books should have - this is a good guidebook that avoids tech talk or explains it carefully when it's used.
The Used Car Buyer's Manual - How to Find the Best Buy on a Used Car
Anyone in the market for a new/used car will want to purchase this easy to read paperback written by David J. Buechel. The first five chapters are dedicated to buying a used car from a private party. Suggestions are given on how to research a car's history, where to find used car bargains and how to inspect and test drive a car.
The next section of the book deals with buying a car from dealer. Through Buechel's advice, you learn how to stand you ground and not get taken by a shrewd salesman. Through possible scenario's he prepares readers to do battle on the car lot. He also discusses the steps necessary in getting a good price when selling your car.
A directory of reliable used cars is also presented in the book. Printed by Pyramid West Publishing, the book is available for $9.95 plus $2.50 for shipping.
The Used Car Buyer's Manual is packed with step-by-step advice that will accompany users through the entire process. Provides tips on researching reliable sources, narrowing the field, checking out the mechanics, the test drive and more. The book offers advice on buying a used car from an individual as well as a dealer. It also shows how to get top dollar for a trade-in. It makes a sensible, valued premium for loan institutions, dealers or insurance companies. Contact Dave Austin, Pyramid West Publishing, Newbury Park, CA; 805-499-7828.
The most accurate way to access a used car's value, according to auto-broker David J. Buechel it is not through Blue Books or by pricing them at used car lots. The most accurate way to price out a specific used car is by calling private-party classified ads for the exact same model/year cars about a month after they were published. By this time the cars will have been sold and, after explaining your need to research the market, you can ask the ex-owner what their car sold for. Because supply and demand can fluctuate resale prices on used cars from city to city, five or six calls will give you the exact market value for a certain car in your community. It is information like this that allows you to play hardball during negotiations.
This is just one of countless money-saving tips that can be found in The Used Car Buyer's Manual, by author David J. Buechel. With 16 years of buying and selling tucked under his belt, his book offers a new approach to car-buying which spotlights private-party sales. The author states that: "more and more consumers are buying used cars from private sellers. People are finding that the best deals to be had are through private-party sales." Buechel said.
For those more interested in dealership sales, the book offers a wealth of information on handling salesmen. Included are two fictional scenarios to show consumers exactly how to apply sales tactics. The book also offers chapters on how to sell one's own car and vehicle maintenance. The manual can be ordered at leading book stores (provide ISBN: 0964778009) or can be purchased through mail-order.
This little book (175 p.) has three main parts: How to buy a used car from a private party; How to buy a used car from a dealer; and How to sell and care for your used car. It also includes a directory of reliable used cars and a vehicle inspection checklist. There is a wealth of detailed information that covers every imaginable aspect of buying a used car from either a private person or a dealer. It also has a checklist that could be invaluable when you go to examine and/or test drive a used car.
In the section on buying from a private party, the author gives a good guide to problems of evaluating the person from whom you are buying the car and the proper control of you own disclosure of your intentions and needs. He also presents an excellent guide to the important points a buyer should check by a visual inspection of the used car. Then he gives us a guide to the things one should note or listen to during a test drive.
In any case, whether one is buying from a private person or a dealer, the buyer is well advised to bring along a friend with some mechanical expertise in automobiles to help inspect and test drive the vehicle. Of course, a professional automobile mechanic's inspection and report is always preferable.
At the end of each chapter, the author gives "golden rules" that sum up the main points of the chapter and should serve the consumer as a guide to action. Despite the fact that much has been written about how the consumer should go about buying a used car, this book summarizes all that is necessary to protect oneself and is well worth the modest $9.95 price.