Considering a CarMax purchase......do or don't?

LMFAO! I thought of him as I typed that. But that's only for truck tires. They are the best IMHO. When I was racing I was strictly a Pirelli/Metzeler rider.

 

A grand sounds like a lot to save some hassle, but factor that over a 48 month loan, and its 20 bucks a month. Yup, next time I buy a car Im doing that to not deal with a dealership again.

 

Also consider purchasing a rental car. I got my 2015 Suburban from Hertz and couldnt be happier. Decent inspection of vehicle caught some things that i noticed as well, had all options i wanted and more and was approx $3k cheaper than same vehicle with more miles at other sources.

 

When people ask if Carmax is a good deal I say no. It's a fair deal. Not gonna walk away with a steal but you won't get bent over. At least that's my experience.

 

My current truck is a 2005 that was a fleet vehicle and meticulously maintained. It had less than 50K miles when I bought it and looked brand new. Has been running like a champ since I bought it in 2010 and I have had zero issues with it. Nothing other than regular maintenance. Maybe I got lucky but I have been very satisfied with my CarMax purchase.

 

I bought from carmax. They had the color and exact model that i wanted and it was actually a very good deal. I would use them again.

 

I considered going this route at one time because I was on a lot of trips getting cars that I enjoyed driving, but I know how my coworkers treat rental cars. "Nothing drives like a rental."

 

We've done that with mixed results. Last one less than optimal. Enterprise is self insured and does a lot of service in house. Do not trust the carfax they post to be 100% accurate.

 

Enterprise almost never does service in house. It's performed at a local auto shop, or dealer if it needs warranty work. The maintenance schedule is usually adhered to. Part of being in the local community is helping other small businesses, at least that was their stance when I was there for a little. They also procure their cars from local dealerships.

 

So that's why the repainting on the passenger door of our Flex didn't show on CarFax. Maybe they don't do the work, contrary to what I was told by a former employee, but self insured wouldn't generate a reportable claim.

 

Accident damage is done at local body shops also. Yes, most fixes may not have an accident report/carfax incident, because it's an internal report/work order. If it's a large dent or so, they send it to get it fixed, and pretty quickly too. They don't want their cars driving around with damage.

If the paint/work is off, that's because you have a bunch of employees, most who have no clues about cars, taking the cars back from the body shop after the work is completed. Usually if it's terribly off, they will send it back to the shop when it's time for resale.

 

Preach it Brother Bigbird!

 

My dad has bought a few cars from them. Two recent BMWs, a manual Jetta TDI wagon, and a Mazda 3. The BMWs made a lot of sense, and he has used the warraties on both of those cars to justify the cost. The Mazda and the Jetta were both somewhat rare configs that carmax made easy to find and transfer. I wouldn't rule out buying from them, but haven't had a deal that makes sense.

 

It was awesome when we drove it off the lot with a clear report. Two years later, not so much.

 

I bought the '06 4Runner from CarMax in '09. Its served me well these last 8 years.

Not the best deal, but certainly a fair one.

 

bought my truck at CarMax.

they gave me 3 grand for a run down 06 Rabbit 2.5 2 dr. where fair MV would have been 1.8k.

the purchase was easy peasy and their bank actually got me a rate 2.6% , which was the lowest around. really pleasurable experience

 

Check the history on it, lots were rental cars.

 

yup, mine was a fleet ...

they were upfront with it and it wasn't a dealbreaker for me.also got their 5y extended warranty