Good Book : The Insider's Guide to Buying a New or Used Car

This is a review of the book The Insider's Guide to Buying a New or Used Car by Burke Leon and Stehanie Leon. I have the 2nd edition from 1997. The book is now in its 3rd edition.

The book is a complete guide to buying either a used or new car. They discuss topics such as : researching cars, getting loans, doing a trade in, test drives, figuring dealer costs, buying tactics, countering the dealers sales pitch, and good and bad negotiating tactics. There are two major sections of the book the first is on new cards and the second is for used cars.

There are a lot of things I like about The Insider's Guide to Buying a New or Used Car. Its a thorough guide to car buying for a car buyer. There are a lot of good tips on negotiating sales and I think that's the section I got the most out of. Americans do not haggle for many purchases so negotiating for price isn't something many of us are as experienced at. The book has other tips on getting a good deal like 'how to dress' and there's a chapter specific to 'special concerns of women'. There is also an appendix with several car buying checklists. The author has been a car dealer for years so they know the industry.

On the down side I didn't like that the authors seemed pretty open and friendly to using a lease to purchase a new car. I'd never look at a lease and I think its a very poor financial choice. I also prefer buying used cars and the book focused more on new cars.

I would recommend reading The Insider's Guide to Buying a New or Used Car if you are considering buying a car and are new to the process or looking for some tips. Look for it at your local library or thrift stores.