Carmax blows......
08-04-2007, 04:09 PM
#1
Race Car
Thread Starter
Carmax blows......
I have been looking at '02's lately, really itching for the improvements over the MkI's. So, I have been inquiring about cars at various dealers and asking what roughly my trade in would be before making 200-300 mile trips. I did not want to waste my time plus racking up miles on a low offer. All of them said I would get $23-24k for my car. Ouch, a little lower than I expected but fine, I really want an '02.
I did'nt consider the local Porsche dealer initially because of their high prices but friends told me to try them out, so I did. They were willing to give me $24k for trade and agreed to find the car I wanted. Well, they could'nt find one so I decided to look to Carmax.
Carmax had a couple of '02's I was interested in and lots of people said to try them out as they offer more for trade-ins than most other dealers. Wrong!!! After a one hour appraisal, telling me they had to bring in an expert and the reason for the long wait, they gave me an offer of $18k. WTF!
The offer was so low that I laughed at the guy and walked out. Everything was in good condition to excellent according to the appraisal form with a final qoute saying, "We would love to buy your car today". Yea, I bet. Ok, enough ranting.
My questions are, if your car is a little dirty, does that affect trade-in substantially? Do you really need to detail it to show you take good care of it? Do appraisers judge a car by its exterior? I would be more concerned with the cars fluids and other maintenance items than I would the cosmetics if I were appraising a car. After all, what is a clean, detailed car if the mechanicals are not sorted? This is my thinking but maybe appraisers judge your up keep by a carwash?
Or maybe, Carmax is not what everyone thinks they are?
I did'nt consider the local Porsche dealer initially because of their high prices but friends told me to try them out, so I did. They were willing to give me $24k for trade and agreed to find the car I wanted. Well, they could'nt find one so I decided to look to Carmax.
Carmax had a couple of '02's I was interested in and lots of people said to try them out as they offer more for trade-ins than most other dealers. Wrong!!! After a one hour appraisal, telling me they had to bring in an expert and the reason for the long wait, they gave me an offer of $18k. WTF!
The offer was so low that I laughed at the guy and walked out. Everything was in good condition to excellent according to the appraisal form with a final qoute saying, "We would love to buy your car today". Yea, I bet. Ok, enough ranting.
My questions are, if your car is a little dirty, does that affect trade-in substantially? Do you really need to detail it to show you take good care of it? Do appraisers judge a car by its exterior? I would be more concerned with the cars fluids and other maintenance items than I would the cosmetics if I were appraising a car. After all, what is a clean, detailed car if the mechanicals are not sorted? This is my thinking but maybe appraisers judge your up keep by a carwash?
Or maybe, Carmax is not what everyone thinks they are?
08-04-2007, 04:33 PM
#2
Setting a value for a car isn't that difficult. All CarMax will do is to find out what your car has been selling for at local auctions which is where they get at least 90% of their cars. If they offered you $18K, this means that they can pick up a car similar to yours for $18K at an auction. If you asked the Porsche Dealer what they would pay you for your car without purchasing a car from them, it would probably be around the same $18K amount that CarMax offered.
08-04-2007, 05:20 PM
#3
Three Wheelin'
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Holy smokes, my brother's '99 996 Coupe was appraised for $24K at a Houston Carmax last summer. He thought the offer was too low, so he kept it instead. Has the auction value dropped that much since?
08-04-2007, 05:31 PM
#4
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Regardless of cosmetic condition Carmax is not the best place for trading in a 996 or any other high end vehicle because it's not their market.
Personally I wouldn't buy a car from them, but I've helped several girl friends sell vehicles to carmax. They were "main-stream" cars (jeep, civic, camary) & in each case carmax paid top end of trade inn book value. Surprisingly it seemed like the appraiser didn't notice or deduct for things like a slipping clutch, previous body work or lack of service history. Probably could have got a little more with a private sale but the transactions were quick & painless and we didn't have to deal with a bunch of yahoos & tire-kickers.
Personally I wouldn't buy a car from them, but I've helped several girl friends sell vehicles to carmax. They were "main-stream" cars (jeep, civic, camary) & in each case carmax paid top end of trade inn book value. Surprisingly it seemed like the appraiser didn't notice or deduct for things like a slipping clutch, previous body work or lack of service history. Probably could have got a little more with a private sale but the transactions were quick & painless and we didn't have to deal with a bunch of yahoos & tire-kickers.
08-04-2007, 06:58 PM
#5
Regardless of cosmetic condition Carmax is not the best place for trading in a 996 or any other high end vehicle because it's not their market.
If you go to a Porsche Dealer and ask them what they will pay for your car and compare that figure to what Carmax offers, you'll find the prices to be very similar. Of course you'll be able to squeaze a few hundred more from a Porsche Dealer if you buy a car from them, but otherwise they all go by the same auction prices and not some book values. As one Dealer told me why should I pay you x for your car when I can buy the same car at an auction for .8x.
If you go to a Porsche Dealer and ask them what they will pay for your car and compare that figure to what Carmax offers, you'll find the prices to be very similar. Of course you'll be able to squeaze a few hundred more from a Porsche Dealer if you buy a car from them, but otherwise they all go by the same auction prices and not some book values. As one Dealer told me why should I pay you x for your car when I can buy the same car at an auction for .8x.
08-04-2007, 07:08 PM
#6
Originally Posted by Tippy
I have been looking at '02's lately, really itching for the improvements over the MkI's. So, I have been inquiring about cars at various dealers and asking what roughly my trade in would be before making 200-300 mile trips. I did not want to waste my time plus racking up miles on a low offer. All of them said I would get $23-24k for my car. Ouch, a little lower than I expected but fine, I really want an '02.
I did'nt consider the local Porsche dealer initially because of their high prices but friends told me to try them out, so I did. They were willing to give me $24k for trade and agreed to find the car I wanted. Well, they could'nt find one so I decided to look to Carmax.
Carmax had a couple of '02's I was interested in and lots of people said to try them out as they offer more for trade-ins than most other dealers. Wrong!!! After a one hour appraisal, telling me they had to bring in an expert and the reason for the long wait, they gave me an offer of $18k. WTF!
The offer was so low that I laughed at the guy and walked out. Everything was in good condition to excellent according to the appraisal form with a final qoute saying, "We would love to buy your car today". Yea, I bet. Ok, enough ranting.
My questions are, if your car is a little dirty, does that affect trade-in substantially? Do you really need to detail it to show you take good care of it? Do appraisers judge a car by its exterior? I would be more concerned with the cars fluids and other maintenance items than I would the cosmetics if I were appraising a car. After all, what is a clean, detailed car if the mechanicals are not sorted? This is my thinking but maybe appraisers judge your up keep by a carwash? Or maybe, Carmax is not what everyone thinks they are?
I did'nt consider the local Porsche dealer initially because of their high prices but friends told me to try them out, so I did. They were willing to give me $24k for trade and agreed to find the car I wanted. Well, they could'nt find one so I decided to look to Carmax.
Carmax had a couple of '02's I was interested in and lots of people said to try them out as they offer more for trade-ins than most other dealers. Wrong!!! After a one hour appraisal, telling me they had to bring in an expert and the reason for the long wait, they gave me an offer of $18k. WTF!
The offer was so low that I laughed at the guy and walked out. Everything was in good condition to excellent according to the appraisal form with a final qoute saying, "We would love to buy your car today". Yea, I bet. Ok, enough ranting.
My questions are, if your car is a little dirty, does that affect trade-in substantially? Do you really need to detail it to show you take good care of it? Do appraisers judge a car by its exterior? I would be more concerned with the cars fluids and other maintenance items than I would the cosmetics if I were appraising a car. After all, what is a clean, detailed car if the mechanicals are not sorted? This is my thinking but maybe appraisers judge your up keep by a carwash?
Or maybe, Carmax is not what everyone thinks they are?
08-04-2007, 07:25 PM
#7
Race Car
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by fast1
Setting a value for a car isn't that difficult. All CarMax will do is to find out what your car has been selling for at local auctions which is where they get at least 90% of their cars. If they offered you $18K, this means that they can pick up a car similar to yours for $18K at an auction. If you asked the Porsche Dealer what they would pay you for your car without purchasing a car from them, it would probably be around the same $18K amount that CarMax offered.
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08-05-2007, 01:57 AM
#9
Drifting
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That's a really low number. Do you have a lot of miles? Significant mechanical issues or bodywork?
I recently traded my 2000 996 in on the turbo, I got what I think was a fair deal at 28K and some change. This plus the sales tax difference made it a good deal IMO. My car had 39K miles,no issues etc. According to my sales guy 40K is the cutoff for high miles.
I recently traded my 2000 996 in on the turbo, I got what I think was a fair deal at 28K and some change. This plus the sales tax difference made it a good deal IMO. My car had 39K miles,no issues etc. According to my sales guy 40K is the cutoff for high miles.
08-05-2007, 08:08 AM
#10
I am aware of auction values and have seen the database dealers go by but I found 5 cars ('99's and '00's) with 90-100k miles for $27-29k retail at several dealers.
Did they show you the database? If a Dealer pays $18K for a car, I expect that they would ask mid $20s for that car and then sell it for the low $20s. Keep in mind that there's a big differance between the price that a Dealer will pay you for your car on tradein versus an outright buy.
I invite anyone to look up the KBB good value of their Porsches (even though their cars more than likely meet the excellent criteria), and then go to a nearby Porsche Dealer and ask them what they will pay you for your car on an outright purchase and not a tradein. I don't think that you will like what you hear.
Carmax will pay the most for cars like Mustangs and Cavaliers since they can sell them quickly, but since I do see some Porsches on the Carmax website, they still must pay more than some other Dealers.
Did they show you the database? If a Dealer pays $18K for a car, I expect that they would ask mid $20s for that car and then sell it for the low $20s. Keep in mind that there's a big differance between the price that a Dealer will pay you for your car on tradein versus an outright buy.
I invite anyone to look up the KBB good value of their Porsches (even though their cars more than likely meet the excellent criteria), and then go to a nearby Porsche Dealer and ask them what they will pay you for your car on an outright purchase and not a tradein. I don't think that you will like what you hear.
Carmax will pay the most for cars like Mustangs and Cavaliers since they can sell them quickly, but since I do see some Porsches on the Carmax website, they still must pay more than some other Dealers.
08-05-2007, 09:53 AM
#11
Instructor
Not sure of your mileage, but I just looked up on MANHEIM for the last 60 days. 6 MY2000 996's were sold, ALL for over $25K with the high being $32K. Condition and mileage could bring you waaay down, just deponds on your car.
08-05-2007, 12:13 PM
#12
Race Car
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by TT Gasman
That's a really low number. Do you have a lot of miles? Significant mechanical issues or bodywork?
No mechanical or bodywork
08-05-2007, 12:15 PM
#13
Race Car
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by fast1
Carmax will pay the most for cars like Mustangs and Cavaliers since they can sell them quickly, but since I do see some Porsches on the Carmax website, they still must pay more than some other Dealers.
08-05-2007, 12:20 PM
#14
Race Car
Thread Starter
There was some questions in my little novel. Does anyone know for sure about the appraising side? Lack of detailing lower trade-in substantially?
08-05-2007, 12:25 PM
#15
I have seen 2 cars sold here in the area...with almost 100k miles, with salvaged titles and ROUGH...and they sold for $ 27k and 31K respectively....a 99 and an 00...they are not giving you ANYTHING for your car...just sell it on your own...what you would save on sales tax does not justify getting such a low offer...good luck!