Knowing the blue book value of a car can help when negotiating price for a used car. Through AutoSMART, a new auto buying resource from Patelco and Credit Union Direct Lending, you can obtain blue book values from Black Book, Kelley Blue Book, or NADA--all for free!

Keep in mind that the blue book value is only an estimate of the listing prices being asked by dealers. In other words, it's a suggested retail price and not what dealers are actually getting. In most cases, the buying price is substantially lower than asking price.

To determine what similar cars are selling for, you'll want the actual market value. Armed with this number, you'll be able to negotiate a fair price.