Farewell 2009 and the 2010 Euro-Purge Complete? (And a Beautiful 2010 Cadillac Consolation Prize)

September 24, 2021September 24, 2021

Farewell 2009 and the 2010 Euro-Purge Complete? (And a Beautiful 2010 Cadillac Consolation Prize)

A number of times I’ve written about the CarMax “policy” (meaning I think a sales manager told me this but I cannot find it written) of offering for sale cars not more than 12 model years old, and 10 for European cars. Recently a sales rep told me that’s because of the CarMax policy of offering MaxCare on everything they sell, and they need an underwriter that will cover even those older cars. Given that we are well into the 2022 model year – there are right now 33 CarMax used cars from 2022 – the purge of “old cars” is underway.

Hey Mick! This van looks badass and I think has your name on it.

Two weeks ago there was a lone 2009 Acura MDX available that is gone. If my arithmetic is correct that’s 14 model years ago! In fact, the choice of years on the CarMax website now begins with the year 2010 (although on the iOS version you can still choose years going back to 2007 – just not going to get any hits). Last week there were a handful of 2010 European models for sale. Today there are none – not a single European car from 2010 – only 142 2010’s at all of the almost 42,000 cars CarMax is selling today.

This low mileage single owner accident free Cadillac may be worth its own blog post!

So we are truly down to American and non-European foreign cars that are 13 years old, and for 2011 – of which CarMax has all of 338 models of all kinds on the lots, there are only 25 European cars. Makes me a bit wistful. Anyway, for what it’s worth, the best unicorn left from 2011 happens to be this bargain Boxster with low mileage and a low price. Get it while you can here in Clackamas, Oregon – and you can still get a five year, 125,000 mile MaxCare warranty! If I were a betting man I’d say 2011 European cars will be scare shortly at CarMax.

September 21, 2021September 20, 2021

1 of 101 – 2017 Camaro SS Indy “Official Vehicle” (NOT a Pace Car)

Don’t get too excited. Unless you’re a die hard Indy 500 fan, or you know the car was used to shuttle Takuma Sato around town, you’re probably not going to be too excited about this 2017 Chevrolet Camaro SS Official Vehicle. There were 101 of these special edition Camaros produced for the 101’st running of the Indy 500 and used as “festival” cars – ferrying officals and VIP’s around Indianapolis. Actually, 51 were used as festival cars and 50 were never driven, and all 101 moved to dealerships after the race for sale. In years past “festival” cars, having been driven around Indy, were subsequently sold as used cars. Chevrolet’s strategy now is to sell 50 as new cars and the 51 as used. Who knows which this was? I’m thinking since it was titled with 2,800 miles it was one of the 51. Regardless, it’s not a 50th anniversary 2017 Camaro SS Indy Pace car. A unicorn-lite?

So what do you get when you buy a 2017 Camaro Indy Official car? Well, according to the Indianapolis Speedway web page:

The 2017 Festival Camaros feature a Summit White exterior, blue center stripe, black convertible top and Adrenaline Red leather interior. The Festival Camaros carry the unique production option code designation (Z4Z) that signifies Indianapolis 500 Festival-only option content. Included in the (Z4Z) package is a body-length blue stripe with a watermark Indianapolis Motor Speedway Wing and Wheel logo, red fender hash marks, gloss black lower front splitter, special SS grille with red accents and black Chevrolet bowtie emblems. The 101st Running of the Indianapolis 500 event logo adorns the doors, and a special rocker stripe completes the package.

That’s it?! Reminds me of when my best friend bought a brand new Chevrolet screamer back in 1981 (I think) called a Citation X-11. Had a high output 135 hp six cylinder and tweaked suspension. I wanted one too and went in to a Chevy dealer to ask about buying one but they were all out. The salesman tried to put me in a regular Citation scoffing, “the X-11 is just an appearance package!”. Ha! He had no idea what a hot rod a real X-11 was. (Turns out my buddy’s X-11 was a total piece of crap and melted down early.) Well, this Indy Official Car thing really, truly is an appearance package – but one only 101 other Camaro driver’s have. I guess that’s a unicorn.

In fairness, the Camaro SS is still a pretty decent sports car with an LT1 6.2L V-8, which offers 455 naturally aspirated horsepower. This particular convertible also has air conditioned and heated seats, a heated steering wheel, Android Auto and Apple Carplay, and a Bose audio system. What’s interesting is CarMax has six other 2017 Camaro SS’s identically equipped around the same price and mileage point without the Indy livery – being 1 of 101 means it ain’t selling at a premium at all! So if you want to think positively about this car, think you get to have a rare car that costs you nothing extra? And that’s where I started this piece – if you dig Indy a lot or were there in 2017 and want a great souvenir, well you can find this single owner one coming soon here in Columbia, South Carolina. And skip MaxCare – this one is probably not coming into the pits any time soon.

September 19, 2021September 19, 2021

Apologies From a Selfish Blogger on September Absence (Hint – Instead of Writing I Bought Another CarMax Car)

THE SHORT VERSION: I haven’t blogged for a few weeks because I’ve been frantically searching the CarMax app for my next car, ignoring the unicorns that have come and gone. Also preparing to sell my remaining two cars and working too much. Pathetic excuses. I bought a car and will be back to blogging shortly! What follows are my three test drives and one purchase.

My latest ride – 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited

THE LONG VERSION: Not what you were expecting? Me neither. A couple of months ago I zeroed my SUV search down to the BMW X3 M40i and the Mercedes GLC43 AMG. And if you’ve been here before you know I tend to change my mind as more information becomes available. Or my whims change. Well, I really, really don’t want to get pinned down to only an SUV and a business car (my Mercedes S600) and headed in a different direction. It’s complicated. I’m selling my vintage 1971 Fiat 124 Spider after some minor repairs shortly (will post here soon) after taking first place in the annual Fiat gathering in July. Right after the Fiat goes I’m selling the S600 as it approaches 95,000 miles. The big Merc still has over two years and 30,000 miles of MaxCare coverage. Both cars are as marketable as they’re going to be. That leaves me, the CarMax guy, without a car. So for the past three weeks I’ve been going nuts on how to manage my replacement strategy and not get boxed in to cars I don’t want. Been searching night and day at the expense of blogging about cars for you. Don’t get me started on the unicorns that got away this month. Maybe they’ll be back? So this past week I went on the road and looked at not one, not two, but three CarMax unicorns.

In short, this is why I bought this SUV – fully loaded with every modern feature, reasonably priced, only a few years old, and nearby. It also had a V-8. There were lesser equipped Jeep’s out there but savings were minimal. And all similarly equipped Jeeps were thousands more. And while I knew it was a compromise for a Euro-luxury guy, when I loaded all these features into the CarMax website and asked it t spit out a BMW, Audi, or Mercedes, they were all $15-20,000 more than this Jeep. It started to feel like a bargain. It’s also just a stopgap car until my wife gets around to replacing her SUV, and I find successors for my Fiat, the 911 I sold earlier this year, and my S600. So as a short term vehicle it’s not bad.

Rolled the dice and took the train from Washington DC up to Newark, Delaware to look at the Jeep. The risk was there might be something wrong with the car that would interfere with the sale and I’d have to hitchhike back. But the purchase went off almost without a hitch. The auto cruise control isn’t working and will be fixed if we keep the Jeep. MaxCare was $3,800 for the $50 deductible up to 150,000 miles. Driving home was pleasant with Apple CarPlay going, air conditioned seats, and the V-8 adequate at best with only 360 hp. I got 23 mpg at a steady 70-75 mph. Interestingly, the trip odometer / fuel economy info had not been reset for the past 9,000 miles, and it looks like the previous owner enjoyed a whopping 11.9 mpg. Had to be all city driving. But I didn’t drive straight home. There was another unicorn I had to see that same day!