The Car Bluebook is a user friendly guide that is updated and published twice a year. It contains information on the values of cars manufactured during the past 15 years. Appraisals offer a retail price, trade in price and private sale price.

Retail prices reflect what you would expect to pay at a car dealership, trade in prices are what the car is worth in trade for the purchase of another vehicle, and the private price is what you can reasonably expect to receive selling the car on your own. Tables and charts facilitate price calculation per model based on mileage, condition and other relevant factors. Cars are listed by the name of the manufacturer and then by the model alphabetically.

The company's website features the same ease of use with a menu driven system to access data. For instance, if you select "used cars" followed by "get Blue Book Values," you will next select year, make and model from easy to comprehend drop down menus. You must specify the price type you are seeking and you will also be asked to specify engine time, transmission, mileage, and the zip code in which the transaction will take place. In arriving at a price the Blue Book uses 75 years of car appraisal experience and takes into consideration the original price and other factors currently at play in the market that effect price.

The comparison process for new cars starts with entering your zip code followed by the selection of make and model. This yields a selection based on year of production which takes the user to a menu of "trims," an indication of how the vehicle is finished out. For instance, does it have cloth or leather seats? The site then suggests three other cars to which your selection is similar and formulates a columnar chart comparing each vehicle point per point. The information is clear and concise and presented in an easily understood visual format. Users are able to request brochures and free quotes.

Finally, kbb.com offers tools to calculate payments based on retail price, down payment, and trade-in value and contains useful information on automotive insurance such as which cars are most expensive to insure and which are the least expensive.

A major component of the auto Blue Book system for used cars is the categorization of automobiles into grades based on condition - excellent, good, fair, and poor. You can determine the condition and the grade of your car by answering a series of online questions. Taken as a whole, this is a comprehensive and easily used source of accurate and up-to-date automotive information. Obtaining the Blue Book value should be the first step you take in setting the price for a used car or deciding if the price you are being offered is fair.

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How the Car Bluebook Works

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