Blogging my nationwide hunt for affordable CarMax enthusiast cars. Automotive Unicorns.
Here’s the short version – the details are in the pages above. I was surprised to find that CarMax carries real driver’s cars, enthusiast’s cars, and has them at decent (for me) prices, with reasonable mileage, and offers spectacular extended bumper-to-bumper warranties that makes owning these cars affordable. I call them “CarMax Unicorns”. I am not affiliated in any way with CarMax and I suspect I’m one of their worst customers. Continue reading “Welcome to the CarMax Unicorn Blog”
“Mazdaspeed” started in 1967 as an independent racing team (per Wiki) and later ran a pair of Group C Junior cars in the 1983 24 Hours of Le Mans, finishing 12th and 18th overall. Surprisingly, I was there in 1983, and these photos of the 717C’s are mine. The Mazdas ran with the 13B Wankel rotary engine that was also in the first-generation RX-7. Another coincidence….my first grown-up car was a 1985 Mazda RX-7! It’s below, albeit with a 12A carbureted motor, not the 13B. A little-known fact is that when you’re young and buy your first two-seater sports car, your wife will become pregnant in months, and the car will be jettisoned for a sedan. Anyway, in 1991, Mazda won Le Mans overall. Wasn’t there for that.
What’s the point? Mazdaspeed was to Mazda what AMG is to Mercedes, and Alpina is to BMW, I guess. In 2003, the first retail Mazdaspeed Protege was offered, followed by the Mazdaspeed MX-5 Miata in 2004, the Mazdaspeed6 in 2006, and finally, the Mazdaspeed3 in 2007. The Mazdaspeed3 continued in production until 2013. And that brings us to the unicorn below.
The first generation Mazda3 was introduced to the USA in 2004 as the successor to the Protege. The Mazdaspeed3 was imported from 2007 to 2013 with a 2.3-liter four-cylinder motor, turbocharged and intercooled. The second generation, launched in 2010, had bigger brakes and stabilizer bars and a number of engineering upgrades to the motor. And the hood scoop was legit, dissipating heat from the too-hot engine.
The Mazdaspeed3 also had a six-speed manual transmission and limited-slip differential powering the front wheels. It zoom zooms to 60 mph in the low five-second range. The top speed is an impressive 155 mph.
The interior of this 2013 model is sparse, though. Bose sound, CD player, Bluetooth, a USB and aux port, and cruise control. CarMax rated it 2 out of 10 on features. Decent seats and a stick to row your own gears. A driver’s car, I guess.
The Mazdaspeed3 has a big old trunk and can haul some gear as a four-door hatchback.
The fun stuff is below a 2.3-liter, 263-horsepower motor with 280 ft-lbs of torque. Reviews suggest some torque steer, although it’s not horrible. It handles well. It’s a bit of a sleeper.
The 2013 Mazdaspeed3 sold for maybe $28,000 new. It’s only lost a third of its value in 12 years. My Mercedes GLE63 has lost a third of its value in the 16 months I’ve owned it! The 2013 Mazda 3 Mazdaspeed is here at the Dulles, Virginia store. Wait a minute! That’s my store! It looks like the car was sold by the Lancaster, Pennsylvania, CarMax and returned a few weeks and a hundred miles later? Wonder what that was about. I wouldn’t bother with MaxCare, really. Just drive.
Stock No: 25925209 VIN: JM1BL1L34D1824997
(By the way, if you’re into the Mazdaspeed3, take a look at this 2010 model I spotted in 2018. It was $19,998 and had only 10,000 miles on it!)
Care to see how the Mazda 3 Mazdaspeed stacked up against its rivals back in the day? Scroll down a bit.
Continue reading “Quick Hit – Zoom Zoom. Last Year Mazdaspeed3”
Reason #1 – I drove the Mercedes GLE63 from Virginia to Seattle and back, with more than a bit of craziness along the way. Most of of it captured on a dashcam. That’s about a hundred hours of video to sort through so I can write a wildly entertaining blog post on that.
Reason #2—My friend (we’ll call him “Jerry”) rented this 2024 BMW to drive his son from Virginia to California, and I flew out to drive back with Jerry. I have another blog post to do on that road trip, without violating his privacy, of course.
Reason #3 – I have been inspired to resume writing a book on my marathon running experiences, which has consumed much of my free time. I had set it aside for years, and now I have a November deadline to complete it. For what it’s worth, there are more than a few similarities between cross-country driving and marathon running. Someday, maybe I’ll write a piece on that!
All that rationalizing aside, I’m taking an afternoon coffee break from writing about running to blog about these Corvettes. I also got a notification this morning that a gentleman, who I believe goes by Jim, just signed up to follow the blog, and I thought I owed it to you all to stop whining and actually write a blog post.
These Corvettes really don’t fit my standard model for unicorns because they are way over my new threshold budget of $45,000. They’re unique because they’ve hardly been driven—less than 999 miles each. I’m still amazed that CarMax is able to buy up so many ultra-low-mileage cars. At the moment they have about a half dozen cars, three years old or more, with less than 1,000 miles on them. In fact, bump that up to 10,000 miles and you get about three dozen muscle cars, most less than $40,000. Does anyone know why owners don’t drive them more?
The standout here is the 2016 Corvette Z06 above. Over eight years old and less than a thousand miles on it. And a convertible to boot. The C7 Corvette was manufactured from 2014-2019 and was the last of the front-engined cars. The C7 was developed to offset the research suggesting the C6 Corvette had become an “old man’s toy”. The head of Chevy marketing thought too many people saw it as the car of “the successful plumber.” (thanks to Wiki for that – no offense to plumbers?)
Our next two contestants are newer C8s: a red 2020 Corvette Stingray and a black 2023 Corvette Stingray—both in 3LT trim. The 2020 was the first year for the C8, and the mid-engine was GM’s first since the 1984 Pontiac Fiero. These 2020 and 2023 models have targa tops that can be stored in the boot. Not quite a convertible.
The 2016 Z06 (below) surprisingly offered Apple CarPlay with the MyLink 8-inch touch screen, a heads-up display, and air-conditioned and heated seats. The interior looks damned near new, as it should with so few miles. The 2016 Z06 had the Performance Data and Video Recorder with Navigation feature. and front curb-view cameras. Nice to have. The GM of old, though, continued to use the same switches and buttons across more pedestrian models like the Impala and Suburban, detracting a bit from this sports car’s panache.
I don’t know why I said panache. I never use that word, and if I did, I should have saved it for the C8 interior below. It’s very…panachy? As modern and high tech as the whole car. I love that whole bank of buttons on the right side of the console. Pretty sure zipping around turns my passenger wife would be gripping that and accidentally turning stuff on and off. I once sat in a C8 and found it way more roomy and comfortable for my 6’4″ 225-pound frame than the C7. The bulkhead behind the C7 driver’s seat prevented me from reclining the seatback to get more hip room. Not so in the C8, even with the big motor behind me. That said, I found it harder to ease through the C8 doorway and into the cockpit than the C7, and pretty sure I’d be banging my door into every car I parked next to. It was not for me as a daily driver.
The 3LT trim upgrades the 2LT interior to leather-trimmed everything, and Napa leather sport seats with carbon fiber accents. The 3LT upgrade was $4,650 on top of the $7,300 for the 2LT features – an additional front HD camera and HD rearview camera, rear cross-traffic alerts, and blind-spot monitoring. The 2LT also provides heated and cooling seats and a heated steering wheel. Read in Top Flight Automotive: “A feature you might choose for your 2LT trim is the automatic front-lift tool. With just the click of a button in the center console, this tool elevates your front bumper about two inches from the ground to keep your Corvette scrape-free. It’s important to note that this option isn’t standard and is only offered for the 2LT and 3LT trims at an additional price.” I can’t tell if these 3LTs have that – CarMax doesn’t have a tab to search for it.
The 2020 Corvette Stingray has a mere 693 miles!
And the 2023 looks like only 724 miles. (Unfortunately, CarMax’s photo of the 2016 Z06’s dash was taken with the display turned off, so no mileage display. The service history shows an inspection in late August at 940 miles. I’d bet that’s close now.)
The 2016 Corvette Z06 is powered by a monster 6.2-liter supercharged V-8 (above), making a whopping 650 horsepower. With an eight-speed automatic, it will knock out 60 mph in just three seconds. The top speed is 186 mph. Supercar performance on the cheap?
The 2020 and 2023 3LTs are powered by far less powerful naturally aspirated V-8s, also 6.2 liters, producing “only” 490 horsepower. But with the eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, no manual available anymore, the C8 is still faster to 60 mph, hitting it in 2.7 seconds. Top speed is 194 mph. Highway mpg is 27….obviously not at that speed.
The 2016 Corvette Z06 sold new for maybe $90,000. It hasn’t depreciated very much in eight years. It’s a one-owner, accident-free car that’s been in California from the start. Right now it’s here in Palm Springs. Although the car hasn’t been driven enough to deserve an oil change it has been serviced. I’d still spring for MaxCare for another five years and 150,000 miles. And drive the hell out of it. Quickly.
Stock No: 26422360 VIN: 1G1YU3D62G5601343
The 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray 3LT listed new for perhaps $71,495, although if I recall, nobody was getting the first-year C8 Corvette out the door for under $90,000. I may remember wrong. Of interest is the photo above, which shows a price drop of $2,000. Since I started writing, it has dropped another grand to $69,998. Is CarMax getting itchy to unload this Corvette? It’s a one-owner Florida car currently here in Fort Lauderdale.
Stock No: 26412626 VIN: 1G1Y82D41L5113752
Finally, the 2023 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray 3LT sold new for about $78,000, or at least that was roughly the MSRP. However, I still don’t think they were really available for that. This one has hardly depreciated in a year, although it was in a “moderate” accident in Greenville, South Carolina, which might give me pause. It’s still under manufacturer warranty, but I’d still do MaxCare. It’s not a coveted 70th-anniversary car, but it’s still a world-class sports car. It’s currently reserved for a drive here in Augusta, Georgia.
Stock No: 26128144 VIN: 1G1YC3D44P5105218
Now back to marathons!
I still can’t understand the CarMax applications. When I searched on my desktop PC, I found that this 2013 Mercedes ML63 AMG was not visible. It is on my iPhone app, though. I saved it in my CarMax favorites so I could find it while writing on the desktop. It shouldn’t be this hard to keep track of unicorns! I would hate to lose track of such an affordable AMG SUV.
Fun fact: When I lived in Alabama in 1993-1994, a couple of states in the US were competing to land the new Mercedes factory that would build the ML-class SUV. Alabama won and threw in an incentive to have the Alabama National Guard clear the land for the factory. The first generation ML rolled off the line in 1997 as a 1998 model, the W163. The second generation ran from 2005 to 2011 (W164), and the third generation from 2012 until the naming convention changed to the GLE class in 2015. And 20 years after that factory opened, I own a fourth generation, if you will, GLE63 AMG! When I lived in Alabama, I drove a Merkur XR4ti – a German sedan with an American motor. My GLE63 is American-made, with a German motor. Not sure what to make of all that.
The ML63 AMG is an excellent sleeper SUV, with almost nothing on the outside giving away the performance it’s hiding. The 5,100-pound SUV will hit 60 mph in about four and a half seconds. Maybe 154 mph top-end governed. It sports active damping control, active anti-roll bars, and airbags. Braking happens by AMG 15.4-inch front with six-piston calipers up front and 13.6-inchers in the back. The ML63 has Distronic Plus active cruise control, although not listed on the CarMax site as a feature – drives down the price? Also has blind spot detection, active lane-keeping assist, and Parktronic parking assist. Quite a lot for a 12 year old Mercedes.
Inside, the ML63 offers a 13-speaker Harman Kardon LOGIC7 sound system, heated and air-conditioned seats, and navigation. Alas, there are no seat massagers. However, it’s a comfortable enough two-row SUV. There are people who need three rows, and this ML63 wouldn’t work for them. I only need two rows and have an aversion to hauling around a third row buried in the cargo floor, presuming I’m losing trunk space. Who knows if that’s true?
The 2013 Mercedes ML63 is so fast because of the 5.5-liter twin-turbo V-8, which produces 518 horsepower, mated to an AMG Speedshift 7G-Tronic transmission and AWD. A performance package was available, pumping horsepower up to 557, but I have no reason to believe this one has that. Mercedes spotters might know.
The 2013 Mercedes ML63 AMG, similarly equipped, sold for $107,000 new. This one-owner, accident-free SUV has spent its entire life in California. It’s selling for just over a quarter of that now. Throw in MaxCare, of course, to protect yourself when that motor or the airbags go bad on you. That’s the whole point of this, right? You can find this affordable 2013 Mercedes ML63 AMG here in Los Angeles, California.
Stock No: 26336149 VIN: 4JGDA7EB8DA121582
Regular readers know I’m a bit of a dinosaur. Addicted to fossil fuels. My decision tree on car motors starts with the number of cylinders (12 preferred) and works down to eights, sixes, and an occasional four for special cars. Entertained a plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHEV) once when feeling guilty about my gas guzzlers, but never a true electric vehicle (EV). I know they’re economical and luxurious and quick and quiet. Just can’t see myself in one just yet.
But this one is consistent with my unicorn theory as an enthusiast’s vehicle and deeply depreciated. Like $200,000 new down to $87,000 depreciated. And crazy fast. Like shot out of a cannon. Speaking of which, thanks to reader Cannon for bringing this to my attention and pointing out why the Porsche is special.
The 2020 Porsche Taycan Electric Turbo S is rated at 750 horsepower and 774 lb-ft of torque with both electric motors spooled up, and with AWD silently screams to 60 mph in 2.4 seconds, per Car and Driver. Shocking! The third quickest vehicle they’ve ever tested. As fast as the Bugatti Veyron. Their review also points out this is the first EV with a multi-speed transmission (2 to be exact) and will hit an estimated 162 mph. The down side is range – 192 miles. A Tesla will do over 300 I think. (Read somewhere that 95% of the EVs sold in America are still on the road today. The rest were able to be driven home. 🙂 )
Car and Driver also notes the Taycan will charge from 5 to 80 percent in 22 minutes at the most powerful charging stations, although they are far and few between. Last, Car and Driver distinguishes the Taycan over other EV’s by writing, “Equally unusual, there is no one-pedal driving in the electric Porsche. The Taycan bucks EV convention and provides minimal or no regenerative braking when the driver lifts off the accelerator, depending on which of the three selectable modes is in use.” I have no idea why that matters.
The 2020 Porsche Taycan Electric Turbo S has a handsome interior, with Apple CarPlay, air conditioned and heated seats, and a Bose audio system. (You know what Taycan owners listen to on the Bose audio? AC/DC, ELO, or something current.) Not a very long list of features for a $200,000 car. Can’t see it in this CarMax photo, but Car and Driver also notes, “The Taycan’s hood slopes away too fast to see it from the cockpit, framing the road between its suggestive fenders. ” Having owned a 911 I sort of get that, although “suggestive fenders” sounds like something you’d see in an online dating app?
Front and rear boots have plenty of luggage space for those 192 mile trips.
Making light of this Porsche Taycan Electric Turbo S, and yet this is a serious high performance EV that I wouldn’t say no to if it showed up in my driveway. Still steamed that CarMax is sometimes weaseling customers with only one key. On such a high end car no less. The Porsche may be under manufacturer warranty for a bit, and MaxCare is available for five years and up to 125,000 miles.
At the moment this single owner, accident free EV race car is reserved here in San Jose, California. It says price unavailable, but it’s listed for $86,998. Cash or charge (ha!). Track it with the stock number and/or the VIN below if it doesn’t show up in your search. Thanks again, Cannon!
Stock No: 25631535 VIN: WP0AC2Y11LSA71904
The most rewarding part of being an amateur blog writer is to hear from readers that share an interest in finding CarMax unicorns, and especially when they’ve bought a few of their own. I’ve exchanged email as with as many of you as I can keep up with and even met a few for coffee or a beer. Last week I got a wonderful email from Seth Steiner, a writer himself, who stumbled on this blog after he bought a pair of CarMax unicorns – a 2017 Mercedes GLS550 and a 2017 CLS550!
Here’s his 2017 GLS550 and the email (shared with his permission), with some commentary from me if I can figure out how to distinguish it from his email:
Hello!
My name is Seth Steiner, and I just stumbled across your website today and I found it really interesting. (Chuck Comment: At this point, I’d publish anything Seth sends me. I’m that easy.) I (as I imagine you do as well) enjoy perusing the CarMax website looking for the most interesting vehicles they for whatever reason choose to have in inventory. This comes after our family ourselves picked one of these cars up. Back in September of 2023, my family decided to begin looking for a new car, which from the get-go was decided would be a Mercedes, likely a GLS. What we didn’t know going into this hunt was what we’d stumble into; a Designo Cardinal Red 2017 GLS550 WITH a Designo Quilted Espresso leather interior. A spec I have not seen a single other example of.
(Chuck Comment: Designo, is pronounced “di-ZEE-no”, I was told, after saying it wrong. Per Google AI “Mercedes-Benz “Designo” is a program that allows customers to personalize their Mercedes-Benz with custom paint, leather, and interior trim options. The “Designo” package is available for select models and includes a multi-layered process that uses nanotechnology to protect and ensure the durability of the materials. Some of the options that are available through the designo package include:
Paintwork: High-gloss colors or matte finishes.
Upholstery: Nappa leather in solid or two-tone colors, and ceilings with a Dinamica suede appearance.
Cabin trim: Exotic woods, hand-stitched leather, and stone granite can be selected.”
Back to Chuck – I have seen indications that the paint was another $6,000+ and the interior $3,000 + in 2017 – maybe a $10,000 upgrade to Seth’s GLS550? I would have to agree that this is a rare GLS550!) My estimate is Seth’s GLS550 was easily a $100,000 SUV.
(Back to Seth) What makes this even better is the fact that it was listed online for $42k, but said $48k on the window sticker. Because of this blunder on CarMax’s part, we ended up getting the car for the lower of these two prices! We had to order the car in from CarMax of Tampa into our local store (Capital Blvd Raleigh) for $199, but upon first seeing the car we knew it was the one. Driving it and feeling the 449hp Biturbo V8 just confirmed it.
I asked Seth to share his buying experience, as I never want to appear to be just a CarMax shill, and maybe others don’t have the same pretty good engagement I have had. His response follows:
The buying experience on both cars was lovely. Ordering them to our local store was a breeze. Both of the sales guys we interfaced with were super friendly and easy to work with, and the express pickup option worked especially nicely, as it made paying for the cars easy considering we didn’t have the money quite ready to pay for the cars immediately (just had to transfer but that took a day or two.)
Thought it would be a hoot to see what comparable Mercedes’ might be available if Seth’s GLS550 got your attention, and this was the best I could do. Not bad, but it’s not a Designo (found a pair of lesser Mercedes Designo SUV’s at CarMax today and will add those at the very end!) This is a 2018 Mercedes GLS550 that is pretty much the same platform.
Motor Trend reviewed the 2017 Mercedes GLS550 and confirmed it was the “the S-Class among SUVs.” It’s a luxury SUV with heated and cooling seats, seat massagers, and Apple CarPlay. Oddly, doesn’t say it has auto cruise control. Can that be?
The Mercedes GLS550 (both Seth’s and this 2018 model) sport a 4.7 liter twin turbo V-8 pushing 449 horsepower through a nine-speed transmission, good for a very low five second 0-60 mph sprint. This is one roomy and luxurious SUV that doesn’t suffer in performance. It’s available here in Hillside, Illinois, just outside of Chicago. It was once a (maybe) $90,000 SUV available for half that.
Stock No: 25956099 VIN: 4JGDF7DE9JB127877
From Seth: We loved the powertrain of this car so much that we had to get another car with it, leading for us to get a CLS550 (in a more boring spec) from CarMax, but it only had 36k miles, which was great! Snagging two cool cars that totally fly under most people’s radars from CarMax has been awesome and I totally see why you have a blog dedicated to it! (Chuck Comment: Love you man!)
Anyways, the CLS is a 2017, just like the GLS. We did not end up opting for MaxCare just because we’ve got a guy who has a little shop that has done good work on our other, non CarMax Mercedes (an 05 E320 and 06 ML350.)
So like the GLS550 I had to do my best to find a CLS550 available now at CarMax that might compare. Again, found a pretty good but lesser vehicle. This time a 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLS550 at a low price, with low mileage.
This 2014 CLS550 is almost identically equipped as the 2018 GLS550 above, even with seat massagers, sans Apple CarPlay. It’s a rich silver over tan car, but has the older interior compared to Seth’s CLS. Both cars are second generation. The CLS550 ended in 2023. 🙁 The original, first generation CLS was to me one of the most original designs of its generation. Unfortunately, while based on the E-class platform that fit me fine, the CLS roofline raked a bit dramatically behind the driver, and pushed down on my head.
The 2014 Mercedes CLS550 sold for maybe $72,000 a decade ago. It’s available now for 40% of that here in Modesto, California. It’s also good for MaxCare for five years and (almost) 100,000 miles!
Stock No: 26040071 VIN: WDDLJ7DB3EA101376
I asked Seth to share his buying experience, as I never want to appear to be just a CarMax shill, and maybe others don’t have the same pretty good engagement I have had. His response follows:
Funny thing is we have a free oil change for the GLS that CarMax gave us a pass for, but we can’t seem to get them to pick up the phone and let us book it (advice on scheduling service there would be appreciated!!) (Chuck Comment: Sorry Seth, I missed your question when we were swapping emails. Best I can tell you is I have had a wonderful experience with my Dulles CarMax by wandering in, hanging out in service, and doing my best to be a non-demanding customer with the customer service reps. They have come to know my cars, and when my primary guy ((Ryan)) is out the others are very nice and helpful. Ryan is a superb rep, and I leave him a Christmas card with a gift card for a local restaurant every year (and an extra one he can give the CarMax mechanic who busts his knuckles on my cars). He loves talking cars and I will stay and chat until it seems I’m in the way. I think so many customers are unpleasant, shall we say, and demanding, the reps appreciate a patient one. I actually HATE the CarMax phone menu trying to book service. It blows.)
Final comments from Seth:
The buying experience on both cars was lovely. Ordering them to our local store was a breeze. Both of the sales guys we interfaced with were super friendly and easy to work with, and the express pickup option worked especially nicely, as it made paying for the cars easy considering we didn’t have the money quite ready to pay for the cars immediately (just had to transfer but that took a day or two.) The positive experience on the GLS is what had us buy two other cars from them. (There’s also a 2016 GLE350 we bought before the CLS but that was traded because we didn’t like how it drove lol.)
So far both cars have been absolutely repair free. The TPMS sensors on the GLS have been a little wacky and it’s just thrown the A0 service light, but otherwise it’s been perfectly fine. The CLS (which we’ve really only had for 2 months so far) has been PERFECT and an absolute joy to drive.
Both cars we bought, barring a few minor issues (GLS having weird rear bumper fitment issues, mostly) have been perfect, and the experience as a whole is what has me checking out the CarMax website all the time looking for whatever seems cool. It’s been a lovely experience overall.
What follows is a pair of Mercedes SUV’s with Designo trim; an older 2014 ML350 (before switching over to the GLE) and a 2018 GLE43 AMG. The quilted seats are the give away. My take? The ML350 is a damned good buy if you’re not hung up on horsepower and all vain about AMG stuff like I am. Interesting that someone would splurge for Designo on a basic ML350, though. Similarly, the GLE43 is more modern with some AMG credentials, and yet I’ve driven the six cylinder GLE43 and GLE53 and found them wanting for horsepower. My twisted logic is if it doesn’t have the AMG badge, adequate performance and luxury SUV features are great. But if you want horsepower and the AMG mystique, it needs to have a V-8 (or V-12!) under the bonnet. But that’s just me.
If you’ve made it this far, thanks, and thanks to Seth for sharing!
Stock No: 25600326 VIN: 4JGDA5JB8EA391200
Stock No: 25740989 VIN: 4JGDA6EB2JB078969
Time for another Popeye’s “Mild or Spicy” batch of cars. All are low mileage, third generation Mercedes SLK unicorns, diminutive retractable hard top convertibles with quite different personalities. They are a bit rare for different reasons. One is 50% less expensive than the other two. Worth it to upsize?
The Wiki page on SLK’s let me know “”the former name “SLK” was derived from sportlich (sporty), leicht (lightweight), and kurz (short).[1] . Sounded unfamiliar to me, in that I have never been caller sporty, lightweight, or short. The SLK was produced in Bremen, Germany from 1996 until 2020, although renamed the SLC in 2016 when Mercedes changed their naming convention.
(Apologies for vanishing since June – made a trip to Ireland, returned to a full work week, and generally recovered and goofed off for a few days. Thanks to new reader Seth for unknowingly giving me the nudge to complete this today!)
The “mild” version is a 2013 Mercedes SLK250, with 31,000 miles. Front seat heaters, Harman Kardon sound system, panoramic sunroof built into the hard top, and otherwise pretty basic. What makes it special?
As I understand it, the SLK250 was the last Mercedes sold in the USA with a manual transmission! The six-speed manual, offered from 2013-2015, makes this baby-SL a bit more fun, given it only has a 1.8 liter four cylinder pumping 201 hp and 229 lb-ft of torque. Car and Driver coaxed 60 mph in the low six second range. Mercedes only sold a little over 4,000 of the SLK250’s, and only a small number of those were manuals in the US.
The SLK is a “compact executive roadster” – a UK term I hear, designed by Bruno Sacco, an Italian-German engineer and designer. The interior is handsome and tight. No big infotainment screens back in 2013. The trunk (below) includes the same kind of protective panel as in my 2013 M3 – the retractable hard top cannot be stowed in the trunk unless the cover is in place.
Car and Driver reviewed a nearly identical 2015 model and enjoyed the handling and the “well-sorted” manual transmission – the little turbo motor not so much. A small turbocharged engine can be fun in a small roadster, and I suspect this 3,300 lb car could be fun with the top down on a windy road.
The 2013 SLK250 sold for less than $50,000 when it was new almost a dozen years ago. It’s now about half that, and with pretty low miles. It’s a two-owner, accident free car that’s spent its time in Ohio and Kentucky, Find it here in Houston, Texas.
Stock No. 25731536 VIN: WDDPK4HA9DF051406
The SLK was also sold with a 302 hp, 3.5 liter, V6 that was probably faster than the SLK250, but didn’t have the manual transmission. For a real spicy SLK, though, the SLK55 AMG is the bomb. (Do people still say that?) Same starting point with the chassis and body, upgraded with an AMG touch. This one is a 2013 model.
The ”spicy” SLK is the fire breathing SLK55 AMG version, stuffing a naturally aspirated 5.5 liter, hand built V-8 into the engine bay, making 415 hp. With the seven-speed automatic, Motor Trend ripped 4.2 second 0-60 mph runs in the SLK55, faster than a comparable Mustang GT. They also noted the SLK55 cost about twice as much as a Mustang GT, though – maybe $80,000 vs $40,000 comparably equipped. (Can you really equip a Mustang to match a Mercedes?)
The SLK55 AMG interior don’t look all that different from the more civilized SLK250. Chronometer peeking up from the dash gives it away. The burgundy seats grow on you. So does the “Air Scarf” neck ventilation in the SLK seat backs – same as the SL class. As I write it’s well over 90 degrees here in Virginia and I passed on driving the M3 with the top down today. If I had Air Scarf……. All three SLK’s have the $2,500 option “Magic Sky Control”, what Motor Trend calls “the cool nanoparticle party trick that turns the glass roof from clear to opaque at the touch of a button.” Car and Driver was more kind, noting it “adds to the airy sensation, and it brings extra relief to the tight cockpit.” I kind of like the idea of having a sunroof in a hard top convertible at all!.
Forgot to mention this SLK55 has only 16,000 miles on it. Hardly broken in! The 2013 Mercedes SLK55 AMG is an accident free, three-owner car from Texas, Tennessee, and Missouri. Right now it’s here in Dallas.
Stock No. 25989143 VIN: WDDPK7FA8DF065589
This one is a 2014 Mercedes SLK55, also low mileage and also well within unicorn price range. In fact, had I not seen the 16,000 miler above I would have been all silly over this find alone.
I do prefer the tan interior more. Not much else different. Ran the CarMax “Compare” feature and it tells me the only difference is the 2014 does not have the sunroof (it does) and the 2014 doesn’t have the driver assistance package – I cannot tell if that is accurate.
I can tell the 2014 only has one smart key per the photo, and that just frosts my butt. The 2013 SLK55 has two! And try as I might, I could not get a high enough resolution screenshot of the AMG engine builders’ signatures on the motors to see if the same builder put together the 2013 and the 2014 motors. Thought that would have been cool as hell!
The 2014 Mercedes SLK55AMG is maybe the best deal here at $32,998 – $7,000 less than the ultra low mileage 2013 above. Use that $7,000 to buy Maxcare! All three are eligible for the extended warranty for 60 months and up to 125,000 miles. That’s anywhere from 90,000 to 109,000 miles of worry free driving on 10 and 11 year old Mercedes. That’s why I dig MaxCare so much. This 2014 Mercedes SLK55 AMG is here in Portland, Maine.
Stock No. 25693278 VIN: WDDPK7FA5EF092489
First, happy Father’s Day to the Dads out there. My Dad was a fan of station wagons, and while I didn’t find any traditional wagon unicorns at CarMax today I did stumble on this Audi Q5 that just might have met my father’s standards for a family car. Cheap. Old. Limited technology. What he would not have appreciated is that it’s the only 2012 European car available of the 61,000 cars on CarMax lots. As I’ve mentioned before CarMax tends to keep US and Asian used cars up to 12 model years old, and European cars up to 11 (they once told me 10 – not so), occasionally an odd car slips through. It was last sold in August of 2023 in Orlando and is “Coming Soon” to the Orlando CarMax, so wondering if they bought it back or it was traded in? This Audi Q5 has only 17,000 miles – makes it a little unique.
The first generation Audi Q5 started in 2008, and this is a pretty simple version. Heated seats, CD player, power hatch, rear view camera and a panoramic sunroof. My Dad was of the “just more stuff to go wrong!” generation and would have preferred roll up windows and the only options would be radio and heater. The seats look brand spanking new.
There were no third row seats, I think, 12 years ago in the Q5’s. Just room to “haul stuff”. My father was a self-acknowledged hillbilly from rural Kentucky and West Virginia, and most of the station wagons he bought were Ramblers, with an occasional Chevy and an Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser with those too cool roof windows! While he might not seem the type to own an Audi, he once surprised us by bringing home a late 60’s Opel Kadett and a VW bus once. Neither lasted long at our house and no idea why. He went back to Ramblers.
The 2012 Audi Q5 came with either a 2.0 liter turbo four, or the 3.2 liter naturally aspirated V-6. This one has the six. It makes 270 horsepower and with the six-speed Tiptronic automatic hits 60 mph in 6.7 seconds. Not great but not awful for 4,400 lbs. As with all Audis, it’s AWD.
This 2012 Audi Q5 is “Coming Soon” to Orlando, Florida. Here’s the link. It once sold for maybe $45,000. (I don’t think my Dad ever spent more than $500 on a car.) MaxCare coverage is available up to 125,000 odometer miles or 60 months – until the car is 17 years old!
Stock No: 24223793 VIN: WA1DKAFP2CA112491
Before I bought the Mercedes S600 I gave the Ford Taurus SHO a looksee and a test drive. Thought the price point and hoped for performance would make it a bit of a unicorn. Decent room inside, felt fast when I drove it, and oddly the center tunnel pushed my driving leg inward and decided I couldn’t live with that. And, of course, my vanity nudged me towards more exclusivity. That has cost me a bit over the years. Never blogged about the Ford Taurus SHO and these two caught my eye. By the way, when looking for YouTube videos hoping for something on how the SHO sounds, I stumbled on this guy’s YouTube channel. It’s “about fat persons and normal cars general public can afford with splash of exotics some times. In this video we will review a 2019 Ford Taurus SHO from a fat person‘s perspective.” Reminded me of my leg hitting the console and generally other cars that don’t work for me. At 6’4″ and 230 pounds I may have to subscribe!
In addition, while shopping this spring for my daughter’s car I ran into CarMax’s change to the two key policy, and so I wrote CarMax to ask about it. They answered, and I see it’s illustrated with these to Taurus’s (Tauri?) and will add some comments at the bottom.
Above is a 2012 Ford Taurus SHO with a low price tag and low miles, and below is a 2018 model with a higher price tag, modern infotainment, but more miles. Still not sure if I had to have one, which one I’d choose. The SHO variant of the Taurus The first (1989-1991) and second (1992-1995) generations had a cool Yamaha built V6 mated to a Mazda built five speed manual transmission. Cool sleeper and had a good friend who owned one. Loved the idea. Back then 0-60 mph in the mid six second range was good for a family sedan. Was looking at old comp’s on Autotrader and found this 1995 SHO with a crazy 8,700 miles on it – for $21k`!
Third generation SHO’s (1996-1999) sported a 3.4 liter V8 motor but with an automatic transmission. Like the idea, but Wiki tells me everything I need to know about the SHO, including a failure rate of at least 1,200 out of 20,000 of these engines at the 50,000 mile mark – a problem that can be fixed, though, by having “the camshafts welded”. Beyond my talent and patience level. But here’s a 1999 on CarGurus in Butler, Pennsylvania for a meager $7k, with 92,000 miles.
Enough plagiarized history. Ford skipped a decade of Ford Taurus production sans SHO and brought back the sport sedan in 2010 with a fresh body, and whole new array of performance and creature comfort upgrades. The latest (and final) generation SHO has a 3.5 liter V-6, with a pair of Garrett turbochargers, a six-speed transmission, AWD, and a brake-based torque-vectoring system and sprints to 60 in the low five second range. It’s significantly faster than the previous generations, despite weighing a thousand pounds more. Crazy.
The 2012 model has a nice two-toned interior, air conditioned and heated seats, Bluetooth and a rear view camera. The 2018 SHO is way nicer, with modern features such as Apple CarPlay, cross traffic alert, blind spot monitor, and a heated steering wheel. The center stack below left on the 2012 looks quaint – almost vintage, and the 2018 on the right, even at six years old, looks relatively “fresh” with touch screen controls. Both of them have the rear power sunscreen as standard equipment, kind of nice.
A must for family sedans is a big boot, and the Ford Taurus accommodates. This is the first time I’ve run into the CarMax photos with the trunk filled with luggage. Pretty sure it’s the same CGI (if that’s the right word) that would fill my house with fake, nicer furniture for the real estate listing if I sold my house, but it works.
The motors are identical and unchanged over the years. Car and Driver did a pretty good review here back in 2013, mostly liking the performance and value, although dinging the car for it’s bulk, torque steer, and throttle lag.
The 2012 Ford Taurus SHO sold new for maybe $40,000 and the 2012 is half that, and been driven about 4,000 miles a year. It’s a four owner, accident free car available here in Salt Lake, Utah after a dozen years in the mid-Atlantic.
Stock No: 24724095 VIN: 1FAHP2KT5CG119231
The 2018 Ford Taurus SHO is $7,000 more and 13,000 more miles, but with the added infotainment maybe it would be my pick if it were a little cheaper – low $20’s. It does have a history that includes a minor front end hit, probably rear ending someone during its six year life in Texas. Both cars are eligible for MaxCare for another five years and up to 150,000 miles, so plenty of road time left on either. This one is here currently in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Stock No: 25313761 VIN: 1FAHP2KT2JG137957
Want to hear about the two key scam? Keep reading.
Continue reading “SHO Me The Money and The Two Key Scam”
I’ve run with this Popeye’s Mild or Spice unicorn theme twice, with this kickoff in August 2023 comparing six pairs of enthusiast and enthusiast-plus cars, and again in December with a couple of Mercedes SL’s. No idea if it’s of interest to you all but I’ll keep winging it. Not going to chicken out. Heh-heh-heh.
Just going with one pair this time, a (relatively) mild and beautiful 2013 Jaguar XK, and a spicier 2015 Jaguar XKR – the last year for the XK’s. Jaguar produced this car from 1996 to 2006 as the XK8 (X100 series), and until 2015 as the XK (X150 model). The second generation XK debuted an all aluminum chassis and body panels, dropping weight by 200 pounds. The second gen also eliminated wood trim in the cockpit. Heresy.
Most of the XK’s I’ve blogged about have been black or silver, with the exception of this green one I transferred in and declined. Surprised me to see a red one. More interesting, the car was local to me – a one owner car that spent its whole life in Vienna, Virginia, 15 miles away from my home.
In my humble opinion, both cars are gorgeous. If you’ve been here before, you know I’ve flirted again and again with buying an XK. Transferred several into my CarMax over the years and couldn’t make the commitment in the end. No sunroof the first time (the ad said it did – turns out none of them have sunroofs!), and the last time I felt squeezed in the leg room – and later found the sales rep left the key box from the window jammed behind the driver’s seat, reducing leg room considerably. By then I was out.
Normally the obligatory motor photos go at the end of the blog, since I’m not convinced most folks care to see modern engine bays that are mostly plastic shields hiding the important stuff. I do. And the motors are what mostly set these two cars apart. The XK hosts a 5.0 liter aluminum V-8 with 385 hp and 380 ft-lbs of torque. The XKR has a supercharged variant of the same motor, making 510 hp and 461 ft-lbs of torque. Both have six speed ZF automatics. The XKR hits 60 mph in 4.6 seconds, not supercar fast but respectable, and the XK in just over five seconds. Both are governed at 155 mph. The XKR gets more performance upgrades in the chassis and suspension. Having driven both, I’d agree the XKR is a bit more stiff. It should be. It’s spicier.
But in the words of Hawkeye, the owner of the dealership where I bought my first car, “why you wanna look under the hood anyway? Nuthin’ under there but a dirty ol’ motor!” Let’s go inside the cabin of these luxury touring machines, shall we?
The 2013 XK (above) and 2015 XKR (below) are identically equipped inside, mostly, with heated and air conditioned seats, heated steering wheel, and Bowers & Wilkins audio. The XKR has the “bespoke” stitching option that I’ve not seen before. The cars are 2+2 seating, meaning two adults in the front and two gym bags in the back. Or two cases of John Smiths’ Newcastle Brown Ale.
The Jaguar XK’s are hatchbacks, I guess, although not as spacious in the boot as say, an Audi S7 due to the slope of the rear. But it’s not nothing and should hold some luggage or golf clubs just fine.
Of all the reviews I read, nobody liked the infotainment controls so I left them out. My wife hated the PRNDL (PRNDS?) knob and refused to drive it, so I left her out too. As we all know, with electronically controlled transmissions, there is no longer a need for a lever of any kind. Rotary knob should do just fine once you get used to it.
The 2013 Jaguar XK sold for maybe $90,000 new and has less than 20,000 miles on it. Pristine. The 2015 XKR was maybe $110,000 and still only 39,000 miles. Both are eligible for MaxCare for 60 months, and up to 125,000 miles. I’d buy the warranty.
The 2013 Jaguar XK is here in Newport News, Virginia. It’s a one owner car, accident free beauty.
Stock No: 25749435 VIN: SAJWA4FB1DLB49808
The 2015 Jaguar XKR below is “Coming Soon” to Austin, Texas. It’s a two owner car, Florida and Texas, and appears to have rear ended someone in Pompano Beach in 2018. Bummer. Here’s the link to the car so you can track when it becomes available.
Stock No: 25870059 VIN: SAJWA4DC4FMB55272
“Well, I got my first truck when I was three
Drove a hundred thousand miles on my knees
Hauled marbles and rocks and thought twice before
I hauled a Barbie Doll bed for the girl next door
She tried to pay me with a kiss and I began to understand
There’s something women like about a pickup man.” – Joe Diffie.
Don’t write a lot about pickup trucks, but I do play that Joe Diffie song at breweries as part of my country music duo. Six years ago I picked out this work truck for my friend Jerry, and reader Brandon Baker clued me in on a rare CarMax Toyota X-Runner. And there’s my silly Fourth of July pickup and Labor Day pickup….. hell, maybe I write about them too much!
A Silverado unicorn caught my eye this week. Wondered what the deal was on “LTZ” and “Z71”, and at first – not much. Most Silverado 1500 LTZ’s had a 5.3 liter 355 hp V-8, even with the Z71 package. BUT, some have the optional 6.2 liter L86 V-8 derived from the Corvette and Camaro cars, and this one does. That gets you an additional 65 hp, and per Car and Driver, aluminum construction, variable valve timing, cylinder deactivation, and direct injection technology from the Corvette LT1, and the Corvette snarl. Performance-wide, that helps you do 0-60 mph in 5.4 seconds.
The Silverado is selling for $38,000, maybe $20,000 less than when new nine years ago. It’s also hardly been driven, with only 13,000 miles. Is it really a good deal? Wouldn’t you really have a Ford Raptor? Certainly the Raptor has a higher profile. The first-gen Ford Raptor SVT had nine less horsepower than this Silverado, and the Raptors that CarMax has cost more and have way higher mileage than this. Second generation (2017 and up) Raptors are powered by a six cylinder with 450 horsepower, more than the Silverado by 30 ponies. They are also pricier and higher mileage than the Silverado. Starting to seem like a bargain?
The Silverado has heated and air conditioned seats, heated steering wheel, Bose sound, and of course four wheel drive. Way too luxurious for a pickup? Looks new inside and it pretty much is!
Here’s a new one for me – CarMax has a webp file showing a dummy, er mannequin, and a car seat in the back, and notes the mannequin is 6’1″ and provides the dimensions of the baby seat. Crazy. Never heard of a webp file. I’m sure the mannequin in the front is not a six footer.
“You can set my truck on fire, roll it down a hill
But I still wouldn’t trade it for a Coupe DeVille
It’s got an eight foot bed that never has to be made
You know if it weren’t for trucks we wouldn’t have tailgates
I met all my wives in traffic jams,
You know there’s something women like about a Pickup Man.”
The chorus. Cowboy poetry.
The 6.2 liter motor is linked to an eight-speed automatic. Car and driver said that’s a good thing – a “greater ratio spread, which aids both low-end grunt and high-speed cruising without incurring a weight penalty.” The down side? Top speed is 99 mph. What the hell?!
“Most Friday nights, I can be found
In the back of my truck on an old chaise lounge
Backed into my spot at the drive-in show
You know a cargo light gives off a romantic glow.“
This is a two-owner, accident free Connecticut pickup that’s currently on reserve in Newport News, Virginia. MaxCare is available for another five years and up to 150,000 miles. Not sure I’d even bother. It’s selling for $37,998. Here’s the link to track it.
Stock No: 25632039 VIN: 1GCVKSEJ3FZ433393
