CarMax

Johnnie27 · 07-12-07, 11:22

I have car that I'm going to selling and I've talked to a few people who've sold their car to carmax. They seemed to have gotten fair value but I was curious if anyone else has sold a car to carmax. My father-in-law sold his truck to them. It blue booked at about $11k and they gave him $9k. Not bad since he was looking to get rid of it right away.

J

TigerMike · 07-12-07, 12:01

Well, better make sure the car is in near perfect condition and never been wrecked or sustained any other damage. I tried selling a car to them and their offer was completely pathetic...about $10K below Blue Book, despite the car looking 95% perfect! Of course, the process is free and will only cost you your time, so you have nothing to lose by getting a figure from them. They will not negotiate on price either, so whatever they spit out is the final offer. I don't much care for that either.

Basically, you are selling your car at wholesale value (or below) to them, much like most other trade-ins if you buy a new car from a dealer. If that is acceptable then go for it....if you are looking for top dollar, forget it...waste of everybody's time involved.

Mike

yakky · 07-12-07, 12:38

I used to work for Carmax a long time ago when I was in college, but I still know a few people that work there and things haven't changed much since then. At least process wise, but the quality of their cars has gone way down due to the sheer volume that they sell now.

They are pretty picky about what they want. Like Mike mentioned, they want a car with no prior body damage. Bumper sprays are ok, anything else will mean your car goes to their wholesale auction. You will get either of two offers, one that is about $1000 less than KBB trade (unless they REALLY want your car because they need them, yes they keep track of particular cars in special demand for that time of year) or they will lowball you really bad.

The lowball is a polite way of saying they do not want your car, but for that offer they will take it and sell it at their wholesale auction.

Its all free so, its usually worth your time to know where you stand. Most autopians will do really well compared to other dealers REAL tradin values (sure they can fudge them to look like you are getting a great trade, but look at the overall price). I've had a few offers that I know I couldn't have done as well in a private party sale. I usually go for the heck of it, let them appraise my car while I take a few test drives to pass the time.

ir13 · 07-12-07, 02:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by yakky

I used to work for Carmax a long time ago when I was in college, but I still know a few people that work there and things haven't changed much since then. At least process wise, but the quality of their cars has gone way down due to the sheer volume that they sell now.

They are pretty picky about what they want. Like Mike mentioned, they want a car with no prior body damage. Bumper sprays are ok, anything else will mean your car goes to their wholesale auction. You will get either of two offers, one that is about $1000 less than KBB trade (unless they REALLY want your car because they need them, yes they keep track of particular cars in special demand for that time of year) or they will lowball you really bad.

The lowball is a polite way of saying they do not want your car, but for that offer they will take it and sell it at their wholesale auction.

Its all free so, its usually worth your time to know where you stand. Most autopians will do really well compared to other dealers REAL tradin values (sure they can fudge them to look like you are getting a great trade, but look at the overall price). I've had a few offers that I know I couldn't have done as well in a private party sale. I usually go for the heck of it, let them appraise my car while I take a few test drives to pass the time.

I also used to work for carmax not too long ago and this guy here nailed it on the dot. If your expecting to get KBB trade in value of excellent condition then carmax will probally offer you KBB good or fair value for it. They are a business that is out to do one thing.....Make Money!