I'm planning on buying a used car in the next few weeks. I've always bought from traditional dealerships, so this would be my first experience with either CarMax or Carvana.

I always come to the deal with my own pre-approved financing, so financing isn't really a factor.

A few questions:

• Which do you prefer, CarMax or Carvana, and why?
• How do they compare when it comes to vehicle condition and the quality of their inspections?
• Is the CarMax MaxCare warranty actually worth it?
• Anything you wish you knew before buying from either one?
• Would you still recommend getting a pre-purchase inspection, even though they inspect their vehicles?

I know traditional dealerships usually have more room to negotiate, but it seems like most dealers now advertise their best price on used cars, so there often isn't much negotiating anyway. Has that been your experience?

Thanks!

I'm looking to buy a car after my last one completely broke down. I don't know much about cars or which brands are the most reliable, so I'd really appreciate some advice. My budget is around $15k. What makes and models would you recommend?

Planning for a baby in a year and looking to trade my paid-off 2023 Mustang EcoBoost for a Honda CR-V. I want to maximize my return and figure out the best financial strategy.
Vehicle Details:
2023 Mustang EcoBoost (Night Package, custom Recaro seat covers, digital dash) 
~15,000 km, zero accidents
Meticulous maintenance history with receipts for everything done
Extras: 10-year ceramic coating, professional undercoating, and tinted windows
Flaw: Some light curb rash on a couple of wheels
What I need advice on:
1. Trade-in vs. Private Sale: Is the dealership tax credit enough to offset a private sale given how clean and low-km this spec is?
2. Financing: Since I'll have a solid chunk of equity from the trade, what is the best loan term (months) to finance the remaining balance on the CR-V without getting crushed by interest?
Appreciate any advice!

Has anyone here actually been able to get a price through Costco Auto?

I filled out the form for a Forester hybrid. It came back with one dealer not close by. I got a voice mail from one guy telling me to come in for a test drive. Then a text from someone saying the same. I asked for the out the door Costco auto price and she responded by telling me I need to tell them what car I want.

IT WAS ON THE FORM.

I didn't respond back.

I like the idea of no haggling but I do not understand how some people are able to do everything over email and whenever I try I get this same thing?

Hi everyone,

I'm a 21-year-old college student with two years left, and I work full-time during the summer. I'm looking to buy my first truck to get me through school and carry me into working a trade after graduation. I have some mechanical knowledge regarding specific components on these older trucks, but I'd love some advice on which option makes the most sense as a daily driver without breaking the bank. Right now, I'm split between two trucks:

2000 Ram 2500 SCLB (2nd Gen, confirmed non-53 block)

1988 Ford F-150 SCSB (5.0L V8)

My main priorities are reliability and daily usability. I need something that can get me to work in winter storms so I can drive a plow truck for shift work, but also function as a nice, dependable daily driver. I don't mind doing some wrenching on the weekends; | just can't afford to get stranded on my way to work or class. If you have any advice on which direction is better or if there's a different truck I should be looking at altogether please steer me in the right direction!

Thanks in advance!

Hello everyone, looking for some insight on a dealer registration situation.

I’m located in South Carolina and recently purchased a vehicle from a California dealership. The car is already in my possession.

The original sale was technically a private-party sale, but I decided to use a reputable California dealership as a middleman because they handle a lot of high-end vehicles (BMW M, AMG, etc.). The purchase was completed entirely through their LLC. All paperwork, payment, taxes, title/registration fees, and handling fees went through the dealership. They told me they would handle registering the vehicle in South Carolina.

My concern is not necessarily the processing time for the plates/registration. I understand out-of-state registrations can take time. My concern is simply whether the paperwork has actually been submitted.
The dealership sent me the South Carolina DMV paperwork to sign on June 26th. That was the last thing they needed from me. It is now July 22nd, and I have not been able to get a clear answer on whether the packet has been mailed/submitted.
The communication has been very reactive.

A few examples:
The transport process was delayed, and after I asked for an update, the truck was arranged that same day.

They forgot to send my second key. After waiting about 3 weeks, I followed up and was told they forgot. They have since shipped it.

Those things are frustrating but manageable. The part concerning me is that when I politely ask, “Has the SC DMV registration paperwork been mailed out yet?” the question does not get answered.
I’ve called and left a voicemail with the finance manager and reached out to the owner (who I have been communicating with directly). The owner responded about the key being shipped, but the DMV paperwork question was skipped.

Am I overthinking this? I’m not expecting my plate tomorrow, but my California plate expired at the end of June, and I just want confirmation that the registration process has actually started.

I’m planning to give them until Friday before following up more firmly. What would you do in this situation? Is this just a case of a slow/disorganized dealer, or should I be more concerned?

I have a 2014 Chevy Silverado. It has 160,000 miles on it. I bought it for $21,765 (total loan at 9.14% interest) back in July 2023. I’m a mechanic so I’ve been able to fix any issues. I had a shop fix the transmission as it failed at some point (known issue in this generation), I’m still having intermittent issues but it’s under warranty and I plan on taking it back. I currently still owe $12,700 on the loan. Should I stick with this truck or should I start looking at trading it in? Never done a trade in and I usually get older vehicles, any advice would be appreciated

I'm in the market right now for a new Ram Rebel, if I can get one at the right price with the features I want. If not, I will keep the truck I have.

I found one discounted from 78k down to 63k which is obviously a great deal, I get that. However, I am not paying above 60, period. It's my hard budget.

I had a car salesman repeatedly ask "so what is your holdup? This car is discounted 21%," and "so how much money do you think I should lose?", and "I have customers come in and have great discounts and want more and I don't get it, they always want more." It was obviously from a place of consternation.

I told him it's not about you losing X, or what percentage discount, or other customers, it's I want XYZ for 60k or less, if not no problem, I will wait. He kept insisting though. I eventually told him "it's not personal, I'm telling you my budget and if we can make a deal, great, if not then no problem, but it's not about you our your dealership or losing x amount, it's about my budget." I was trying to be patient and restate that my budget is 60 in any way that he would understand.

He proceeded to say "I'm not taking it personal at all, I don't even know you," and I told him that I've talked with a lot of salesmen and no one has acted so passive aggressive and as a customer, it's off-putting.

Am I so crazy as to have a hard budget and want "even more" of a discount, even if it's already discounted?

I have narrowed my car search down to the Honda Pilot based on its performance, size, value and reliability. Toyota is just ridiculously expensive but that’s another conversation. Now I’m trying to decide whether I should purchase a new or used vehicle. Sure I can afford a $45k-$50k new car but I would also like to save money where I can. A used Honda Pilot would be somewhere around $34k-$38k. For a little background I plan to keep the car for the next 8-10 years. If I buy used the mileage would be around 30,000-35,000 2023 model or newer. I know finance rates on used cars are higher compared to possibly getting a promotional rate from the dealer (I have excellent credit) but on the flip side insurance rates are higher on new vehicles vs used vehicles. If you were in my situation what would you do?

Hi all, I’m looking to buy this car with a unibody frame that has some rust (from 2015, Midwest car).

Would you say this is too much? I’m hoping the var will last 7 years. I’m mainly worried about safety.

https://imgur.com/a/PeDlekU

I have purchased many vehicles over the years and it's been a matter of researching, choosing what I want online (price is clear), contacting a dealer, going in for a test drive, negotiating any wiggle room and driving off the lot same day. Always at 0% or .99% financing for 60 months. In that time I went from buying smaller sedans to smaller SUVs. The only time I paid a higher interest rate was when I purchased from Honda (and that was a purchase I lived to regret). Now, I'm looking again, in Manitoba and Ontario. I'm running into dealerships that don't list prices online or won't give you an amount without providing your email, 0% interest rates for 24 months only and usually on trucks, 5% plus interest rates on the rest, advertised deals only applying to leasing, etc. I ended up deciding not to purchase anything this year. I'm really hoping that vehicle sizing, pricing and interest rates decrease in the future. I won't hold my breath though. :)

I'm seeing a lot of Nissans in my area suddenly on Facebook. Should I buy a 2020 Nissan Altima for $5,300 with 167,167 miles on it? I intend to get it checked out beforehand by my mechanic but I was wondering if this is a good deal?

Hi all,

This is kind of a vent post but also checking if I'm missing anything when it comes to creating a paper trail, actions taken to support a contract breach claim etc. A week ago i bought a used Honda Odyssey with a dent on the trunk cracked to the metal with rust and a we owe contract line stating I am owed "rear trunk dent repair" .

Started off poorly right away, could not be scheduled over the phone because no one returned my call and had to come in.

Then the salesman tried to tell me their paintless dent repair (my phone keeps autocorrecting it to pointless which in this case is fitting lol) guy can pop it out, clean it, use primer and in the dent repair guy's own words use a silver that "kind of" matches. Absolutely not.

Tried to get ahold of the General manager in writing via contract demand letter email, no response.

Have now sent a follow up to this via email and certified mail with a deadline of this Friday to respond or I will escalate.(DMV, attorney general, small claims).

For my paper trail I have:

• The we owe item on the sales contract signed by a manager.
• The service appointment confirmation scheduled within the 30 day time limit, outlining that it is for the we owe items. (Also got them to agree to at cost timing belt service but idk if I want to trust them on that now)
• The initial demand email from my outbox
• The follow-up demand email and certified tracking receipt (just sent today not delivered yet)
• A pre purchase inspection done by a reputable shop on the date of sale documenting the state of the dent with photos and a description.
• Pending body shop estimate for repair(took the van yesterday), will be getting a second one for good measure.

I think I have a good case for small claims if it gets that far. I despise dealers and their slimy nonsense but the private market takes time I did not have. Am I missing anything?

This will be a weekend/fun/semi daily car

Looking at a 2009 CTSV
117k miles
2 owners (older folks)
Has extensive maintence records on paper and Carfax

Dealer installed item within the last 15k miles

Supercharger
Rear shocks
Front lower arms
Rear differential

Seller wanted 20k we ended up agreeing on $16,500

What yall think???

I (25F) am a first time buyer and have been looking for a used car for weeks and I’m honestly at this point i’m about to break. Being without a car is affecting my two jobs because the cost of lyfts are ridiculous, I’m in the middle of packing for a move in the next two weeks, dealing with family stress, and I’m just mentally exhausted from searching.

I found a 2011 honda cr-v with about 94,000 miles for just under $11,000 ($9,960 with $899 of dealer fees). The mileage is a lot lower than most of the cars I’ve been finding in my budget, which is why it caught my attention.

The dealership is only ten minutes away from me so I could get a lyft to the dealer. I went there two weeks ago to test drive a different car that was out my price range and was also a honda crv year 2015, so I’ve already seen the dealership in person. I didn’t end up buying that car, but the experience there seemed fine overall i guess?? idk i can’t compare it to anything.

At this point, I’m wondering if I should just ask for more videos of the car and i’ve seen the carfax it looks good!! (2 owners, 1st only put 15k miles in three years and second owner had it since) I am not sure if that dealer allows pre purchase inspection, but there’s a mechanic one minute away down the road from that dealership that could drop by and let them test drive for me for whatever fee they have.

If everything checks out, I could buy it online and lyft there to pick it up. I don’t expect a 15 yr old car to be perfect, and I know any used car can need repairs. I’m just looking for a reliable daily driver and I’m honestly tired of spending every day searching.

Does this sound like a good plan, or is buying online still too risky even with a pre-purchase inspection?

Is there anything specific I should ask the dealership or have the mechanic pay extra attention to on a 2011 CR-V with 94k miles?

Here seating outside my car. I still owe 7k to my old car and Lexus planning payoff the rest. And get a “Brand new” IS 350 fsports $850 a month for 72months with 10k downpayment.

(Well i just got my job as a nurse and planning to reward myself)

First I’m so sorry to be joining this group! I’m sure it’s lovely, but UGH, car buying!!!

My partner has a 2003 Dodge Ram diesel - he wants to upgrade to a new one. Not necessarily in a hurry.

- 20 years ago you never pay more than 3% over invoice.

- In 2018: we bought a van using the trick of emailing several dealerships for best price.

- And now?? Post-Covid?? He wants a pretty specific truck (mega cab) so volume is lower than other vehicles but less buyers also.

But, is a certain percentage off the MSRP considered a decent deal or what are we using as the benchmark nowadays?

We got a price from the local dealership and they will not budge nor add an oil changes, mats or a thing. I can’t figure out if we are being unreasonable, if they are or this is the current climate and we will just have to wait it out.

The price is approximately 13% off MSRP but this includes several manufacturer incentives. They have added on a $1200 doc fee, which annoys tf out of me.

Thoughts?

Day 4 of buying my dreaming car

👋 everyone,

Here are two important tips I learned from the Reddit community.

1. Once you‘ve identified your dreamed car, check the insurance costs. The difference can be huge between two cars, so get some quotes, before you fall in love with one.
2. Get a plan B. Always have two cars you’re deciding between. It will put your mind into negotiation mode**, and you won’t feel pressured to overpay just because it’s “the one.
3. Avoid the “Cinderella effect.” Some sellers do some cosmetic touch-ups on their car so it looks its best to potential buyers. Then, after the first car wash, reality hits. Make sure you inspect closely areas known for scratches or rust. Bring a cloth (or even a small flashlight) to wipe down suspect panels and check the paint up close — it’s a simple trick that can reveal a lot.

Those are the part of the tips I picked up along my journey so far — curious if this community has other areas I should be checking, considering I’m still on shopping mode.