Is carmax a good trusty place to buy my 1st car?

Question

I want to get a car this year,but I want to make sure that I get the best quality and good price. I heard about carmax but I dont trust that persons opinion.Or should I just go to an auction?

Answer 1

Know what you want and look at the Kelley Blue Book website for the retail price.  Do not pay more for your automobile than what  KBB recommends.  If you do your research and bring it to the dealership you should get a pretty good deal.

Answer 2

Buyer beware. Have some knowledgeable mechanic inspect the car before buying any used car. A small charge before you buy is very cheap insurance.

Answer 3

In most cases, Big box dealerships purchase vehicles the same way as your local franchise dealer or small car lot.... at the auction. These vehicles are usually off lease or previous finance vehicles. In some cases they purchase, bank repo and accident repaired vehicles. Most Large stores will declare the past history of the vehicle which will afford you a certain level of comfort for any recourse, but, in the end it is still buyer beware. GET THE VEHICLE CHECKED OUT!  There are mechanics that will do this for a small fee. Better to be safe that sorry. As per your question regarding Carmax....They also purchase from the same place. Perform your own due diligence! It may save you thousands in the end.

Hope this helps.

Cheers.

Answer 4

You shouldn't buy a car from CarMax or an auction.

An auction is filled with cars that are usually repos and you cannot always guarantee that you will get a good car.

CarMax is ok from a quality perspective, but are very overpriced and they will not negotiate.

Do your research, find out what you want, and work out the quotes all online.

Once you find something you like from a reputable dealer, test drive it, get the car inspected by an independent mechanic and make the deal.

Answer 5

Avoid the auction unless you have a qualified mechanic to take with you and cash money to spend.  Auctions are very risky if you don't know what you are doing.

Carmax is a good place to buy cars but they are not the cheapest option.  I think they overcharge for almost every car they sell.