CarMax

CarMax

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Overall Rating1.7 out of 5
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About CarMax

CarMax Reviews

ConsumerAffairs has collected 1,211 reviews and 1,341 ratings.

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Page 1 Reviews 0 - 5
Price

Reviewed July 20, 2023

Very good experience. 30 days return policy was the key for me to have a peace of mind. No price haggling also helped making the experience better, knowing that you are getting the same fixed price as anyone else. They were also nice to take care of some minor scratches and re-did the window tinting on the used car I purchased. I think most of their used cars also comes with new tires and quality check. Overall a very good experience.

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Price

Reviewed June 24, 2023

I traded in our Tahoe and drove a Ford F150 off the lot. The experience was painless. They gave us a fair price for the Tahoe that we were happy with and with the trade in towards the truck, we saved over $1000 in taxes. We were very happy with the overall experience.

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    Reviewed March 18, 2023

    I was buying a new car and wanted to trade in my existing vehicle. The dealership offered a 20% lower price than CarMax's instant online offer. So, I sold the car to Carmax. It was super easy and took all of 40 minutes. They honored the online offer after a quick inspection. I am very happy with the entire process.

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    Reviewed Jan. 23, 2023

    I sold a used car at CarMax. I got an online offer in five minutes. The offer was 50% more than three competitive offers, including the dealership (not CarMax) from that I was buying a new car. I went to the CarMax location the next day. I was in and out in about an hour with a check for the full amount of the offer. It was easy, quick, and painless. Great customer service!

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    Reviewed Jan. 10, 2023

    I never thought I would buy a car online, but when I totaled my car just before Christmas, injured my shoulder and couldn't drive for one of the two weeks my insurance provided a rental car, found myself in the middle of a full scale blizzard and no dealerships within 60 miles of me had any inventory in the two cars I was interested in, I searched Carmax and found the exact same car I had totaled with a few modifications (better color, cloth seats - which I prefer for dogs) and it looked brand new, I was hooked.

    The $250 shipping charge was a hiccup that almost kept me from getting the car of my dreams. It's well worth it to have the HUGE inventory to search. The pictures, car history and 30 day guarantee convinced me it was worth it to give it a shot. I will never buy a used car any other way again. I cannot speak for other online dealerships, but my experience in Fort Wayne was amazing. They could not have been nicer or more accomadating. I LOVE my car. To get the same car that I had with less miles, a prettier color and NO dog hair (yet!!!) was worth the extra money I had to put with my settlement. I look forward to driving this car for a long time. I recommend Carmax without a smidge of hesitation.

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    Contract & Terms

    Reviewed Sept. 20, 2023

    If I could give this review zero stars I would. I purchased a 2012 Ford Focus with 50,000 miles on it last October. Nine months and 10 thousand miles later my check engine light comes on and my car starts accelerating on its own and skipping gears. The screen on the dash shows, "Transmission Malfunction Service needed." WHAT?

    I contacted a transmission specialist and they notified me that year of Ford cars have a part that has been advised to be replaced. To only find out from several Ford dealerships and transmission mechanics that this particular part has been on backorder for the past four years. When I purchased this vehicle the salesperson Robert sure **'d his way through the sale sugar coating the entire process. CarMax already knew that they were selling me a faulty vehicle. My car is almost non-drivable now. I have been given a quote by a transmission specialist if the part that is required to make the repair ever becomes available at $4000.00+ for parts and labor. There is no reason that I have to pay for this repair when I haven't even owned this vehicle for a year yet. I am getting ready to return the contract and the vehicle back to CarMax Modesto and tell them where to put this defective vehicle.

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    Customer ServiceStaff

    Reviewed Sept. 19, 2023

    Updated on 09/20/2023: This is addition to a review posted on Monday 9/18. Just before leaving the Lynwood, WA CARMAX location Monday afternoon (9/18), I was told the cashier's check I had presented during the purchase “would be returned to the lender”. On Tuesday 9/19, I was informed by my bank that CARMAX had in fact deposited the check. Why would they deposit the check knowing I didn’t want the car?

    Original Review: Last week I made a reservation to test drive a 2021 Toyota Highlander on Saturday 9/16/23 at 11:30 at CARMAX of Lynwood, WA. We arrived a little early and were directed to go look at the car before our assigned sales rep would be ready. Everything went smoothly until the sales rep went to bring the car up front for our test drive. She was gone for a while and then returned and told us she had to jump start the car because, “the battery was dead, someone had left a light on”. This told me no one had prepped the car before our arrival for a test drive that day. Why did we bother to make a reservation?

    I also asked if the car just needed a new battery and was promptly told this wasn’t the case. Also, there were three maintenance messages still present on the touch screen of the car. They all dated from June 6th, 2023. When I asked about these messages no one was able to tell me what, if anything, had been replaced nor what the problem had been. It seems there are no mechanics on duty at CARMAX on the weekends.

    The test drive went very well, we continued with the purchase and eventually drove the vehicle home. 36 hours later on Monday morning (9/18) when we tried to start the car it wouldn’t start. I called their service number and was automatically transferred to a towing service. 2 hours later a tow truck arrived at our house and towed the vehicle back to the dealership. I called a customer service number and was told someone would meet me at the dealership between 3:30 and 4:00 pm that afternoon. I arrived at the dealership about 30 minutes early and was greeted by a sales manager who claimed to know nothing about the car. I had spoken with this gentleman directly the day we purchased the car. I told him what had happened and that I would like to receive a full refund. I was then asked to have a seat in the waiting area.

    After about 45 minutes I was handed a form to sign stating the amount to be refunded. I had placed a $6K cash deposit the day we bought the car. I was told I would receive a check for that amount within 7 to 10 business days and the cashier's check for the balance would be returned to my lender. When I asked if they could just write me a check for the deposit I was told, “We’re not set up for that”. At no time was any offer made to fix the car, replace the battery or consider another car of equal value.

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    Customer ServiceSales & MarketingStaff

    Reviewed Sept. 14, 2023

    I bought this car because it went through a 125 point inspection but after one month, the brake rotors were warped and bad. It is obvious they were patched as an inspection would have revealed this problem with the brakes, yet they patched it (resurfaced the brakes) in violation of DOT specifications. A month after I bought it the brakes were warped and shaking the steering wheel. The text number, which the sales associate THEODORE had been talking to me since I bought the car, went radio-silent as soon as I mentioned a problem. When I got home I called a different dealer only to find out I was within warranty on May 24th when I complained about the brakes, but not later when I complained again.

    This place is a SCAM and sells substandard vehicles in need of repair that have been polished to make it look like it's ok until the 90 day warranty is over. I was scammed, subterfuged and redirected until it was too late, now they answer the phone and say, "Sorry we cannot help past 90 days." Complete sham, I am paying several grand to an atty to get me out of this deal so I lose 5k instead of 27k. Worthless service, worthless sales honesty and most of all, worthless vehicle they misrepresented. DO NOT BELIEVE THESE PEOPLE, take the 24 hour test drive and take it to a competent mechanic. Carmax will sell you a piece of junk and tell you it's a gem.

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    Financing

    Reviewed Sept. 14, 2023

    I financed the purchase of my car thru CarMax. I agreed to allow my credit to be run once. I qualified for financing but they tried to transfer my account to another lender and ran my credit over and over, hurting my credit score in the process. On another occasion I paid for a truck in full and drove it 25 days before returning it for a full refund. After transferring ownership back to Carmax, they failed to send it into the DMV for more than a year. I received bills and notices of delinquent title with penalties. I told Carmax who said it would be taken care of immediately but I received more DMV warnings and threats that the FTB could garnish wages for delinquent fees a year after I returned the truck. I was told they were short staffed and would need to get back to me. Very bad service.

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    Customer ServiceStaff

    Reviewed Sept. 12, 2023

    This company should be out of business! I have never in my entire life had such a debacle and stress from trying to buy a vehicle. Ran my credit, approved for a truck, then they sold the truck out from under me and said that I have to get a different vehicle! Called several days and continued to get the runaround about what happened, they ran my credit again dropping my score and raising my approval % to 12.7 instead of prev 11% int. rate. and the down payment went from $1,000 to $5,650 on a $2000 more expensive deal! WTF, I will never deal with these people again and am writing every place online to forewarn others to NOT Buy here, we ended up getting a much better vehicle elsewhere and service elsewhere was 1 million times better than Carmax! They will ruin your credit and manipulate you to SELL you. That's it, otherwise they could care less about your business.

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    CarMax author review by Emma Simon

    The prices on CarMax are non-negotiable, meaning there’s no need to haggle. The site exclusively offers used vehicles. However, there are a moderate amount of cars with very low mileage. CarMax spends an average of 12 hours prepping each vehicle for purchase — each car must pass a 125-point inspection and undergo a thorough cleaning before being put up for sale.

    • Store-to-store shipping: CarMax has 200 locations nationwide. If you find a car online that you like, it can be shipped to any of CarMax’s locations for you to pick up.

    • 7-day guarantee: If you are dissatisfied with your car, no matter the reason, you can return it within seven days of purchase, no questions asked.

    • Multiple financing options: Customers can apply for financing through CarMax Auto Finance or several other third-party institutions. Options are available for those with weaker credit.

    • Extended service plans: You can protect your car by purchasing an extended service plan that will help you pay for repairs you may need down the road.

    • Filters to narrow down searches: Find the perfect car by selecting the right price, type, brand, year and location. You can also search using the “lifestyle” option, depending on whether you are outdoorsy, living in a big city or want a family car.

    • Test drive before buying: If you find a car online, that means it’s available at a CarMax location. You can test drive any car before buying.

    by Emma Simon ConsumerAffairs Research Team

    As a member of the ConsumerAffairs research team, Emma Simon is dedicated to creating accurate and valuable content that helps consumers make difficult decisions.

    CarMax Company Information

    Company Name:
    CarMax
    Website:
    www.carmax.com