mmarshall

http://www.carmax.com/

I don't know how many of you have shopped at the Car Max Used-Car superstores, but I was at a local franchise this afternoon with some friends of mine, from my church, who needed a replacement car (their old Accord got totalled, but they're all right). They were so pleased wih the former Accord that they wanted a newer one, and they picked out a nice 2008 LX automatic, gray with gray cloth interior. 4 cylinder, only 14,900 miles, great condition....I went over it, inside and out, and found it virtually flawless, except for some missing caps on the tire-valves. Not a bad deal, IMO.....$16,988 on the (non-negotiable) price, and almost exactly 19K out the door with tax, tags, and an extended, 5/100 bumper-to-bumper warranty. A brand-new Accord LX like this probably would have been around 23-25K out the door, with just a standard warranty.

I'm generally impressed with the Car Max franchises. I haven't bought a used car from them myself (I generally buy new ones), although one of the local Car Max shops here also sells brand-new Mitsubishis.....they also have a Mitsubishi franchise on the premises. I've been there sometimes, off and on, to check on used cars for some other people......for instance, several months ago, for a Mini Cooper S Clubman for a CL member in IL who was interested in it long-distance. The Car Max facilities are clean, have nice, well-done, up-to-date buildings, clean, well-equipped service facilities, customer rest-lounges with playgrounds for children, Internet-access sites, and secured-Internet sites for those who have to access their bank-accounts on-line. That's one thing they are strict on........they won't accept debit-card transactions or private-party checks without first verifying the funds-level in the buyer's account. My friends had to end up writing a personal check because the banks were closed on Saturday afternoons and the debit-account transitions are restricted over a certain amounts. But, except for some minor inconvieniences there and there (and verifying their insurance-coverage, required by VA state law), it was generally a pleasant experience. Most of the people I've seen at Car Max, not just there but at some other shops as well, are pretty nice, and, because they don't just sell one or two brands of car, don't try and B.S. you about how one brand (or vehicle) is better then everybody else's.

They really had some nice vehicles in their B-I-G showroom.....among them, a flawless red Camaro SS with a 6MT (and SS models are generally hard to find), a gorgeous bright-yellow Miata that was nice, but not quite flawless (it had some paint dings), and a big GMC Denali that looked like it just came out of the factory.

Their asking-prices may not be the absolute lowest, but they are reasonable, non-negotiable/no-haggle (like Scion and the old Saturn shops), which makes the paperwork easy, and the processing-fees are clearly spelled right out on the car's sticker-label. No other fees, besides tax/tags are added on unless, like with the extended warranty, the customer agrees to it. The salespeople do receive a commission, but it is the same dollar amount no matter how cheap or expensive the car they are selling......so they don't try and push you into higher-priced cars.

I liked the way they do the extended warranty, though I'm not convinced that the average Honda Accord will actually need it much, as it is one of the most reliable cars on the market if cared for properly. They offer extended-warranties from 50K to 150K miles, in 25K increments, and a choice of $50, $100, $200, or $300 deductable.....the higher the deductible, of course the cheaper the plan. They chose a 100K plan with $300 deductible, which seemed like a good compromise beuween cost and coverage......I wasn't convinced that most newer Accords need it, but they felt better going with it. But, of course, you never know what can happen to any one particular car....even Accords, some years back, had transmission problems.

All in all, generally a nice place. I can generally recommend it if you want a no-nonsense, hassle-free used-car transaction.....but be sure to bring proof of insurance and your bank accounts.

nikko2jzge

I work there part time, they do a good job with customer service and reconditioning used cars.

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Thanks for the "business" review Mike !!

jadu

iTrader: (42)

i concur, havent bought nothing yet from them, but a great place to window car shop hahaha

2000LEX

iTrader: (2)

Really? wow i would never buy a car from carmax. I mean a place that charges thousands more for a car than its worth is a rip off. About 2 years ago i was looking at a 99 acura CL and found one for 6500, I went to carmax and found the same basic car for 4000 more. Now even if you add a extended warranty you are still 2000-2500 too much. Same goes for buying cars as well, I went there numerous times to sell them a car and they wanted to give me less than any other compeditor dealer (and yes there was no trade). Blah

Fizzboy7

I'd sum up Car Max as the place to go if you want to minimize stress. But definitely not the place to go if you want to save money. Depends on what the customer's priority and abilities are.

lamar411

I always go to Carmax to get an estimate on my car's price before i sell/trade in. Cars are a little bit overpriced for me imo.

mmarshall

From what I've seen in this area, they charge around KBB retail.....which is the generally-accepted standard for a dealer-sold used car.

Was it the same car and the same general condition, vehicle-options, and mileage on the odometer? You have to be careful that you aren't comparing an apple and an orange. The condition, equipment, and odometer-mileage on a used car can significantly affect its worth. That's why KBB (Kelley Blue Book) has several rated used-vehicle conditions (poor, fair, good, and excellent) and a list for each vehicle to check off what equipment is on it.

Mbenz528i

I have sold 2 cars to Carmax and both times got more than any other dealer was willing to give me. I have yet to buy from them because I also feel that I can do better in price else where, but I LOVE the customer service. They work hard to provide the best option of cars, including bringing in cars from other locations (here in DC a lot of dealers transfer for free) and I can test drive all I want, from a Civic SI to an M6.

chikoo

They are good, and I consider them a benchmark when it comes time to sell my car.
Last car I sold, I sold it private at 1.5 times the price offered by Carmax.

2000LEX

iTrader: (2)

I make sure the cars compared, they had around the same miles same year and options, so needless to say i laughed at carmax and walked out the door. they might be less stress but to spend over retail for a nomal car without any type of negotiation is ludacris.

IS-SV

Interesting observations and feedback by all, especially helpful for those of us that never stepped foot into a CARMAX store.

LexFather

I think they do a good job of selling clean used vehicles but don't expect any Lexus levels of service .

To me I can appreciate seeing all those different brands under one roof instead of having to go to different dealers. I find their prices comparable.

WHITE93GT

x2 Not the place to get a great deal, but you can get peace of mind. Is carmax a publicly traded company? Sounds like someone in here has a lot of their stock,lol.

ecr527

Carmax was actually owned by Circuit City. Luckily they broke them away and made them their own independent entity a few years prior to them going under. It's amazing to see how the two companies ended up taking such different paths. I used to work at CC and when they first started opening Carmax locations here, they offered all employees a $500 discount on any car purchase.

At one point they were even offering an option of custom stereo installs (at Circuit City of course) on car purchases.