I believe there actually is some book written with vbulletin in mind, but I can't recall what it's called and I have no idea what is in it. You can search amazon.com for it. Other than that, I know there are some queries posted in a few threads over in the vb.com Tips forum to do some common things, but otherwise you just need to take a look at the database, see the fields you want to select, then read up on how to write a mysql query to pull those fields for yourself.
And yes, you are right, I would have no idea how to replace the oxygen sensor on a 93 corvette. Now, an 86 corvette would perhaps be a different story.....