Pain meds and some knee pain (you’d think it would be one or the other, but not both?) have me up most nights doom-scrolling or shopping for CarMax unicorns. Last night, I was pleasantly surprised to see an old-school Audi S8 reasonably priced and with low mileage. Thought I had better post it before it sells. (This one is a 2015 model, but if you’re feeling wealthy, here’s a 2023 for $90k!) This is a third-generation S8, the high-performance version of the flagship A8. The only Audi sedan that is bigger and better is the Audi A8 W12, which is no longer in production.
Inside, the car is fairly well equipped with auto cruise control, the driver assistance package with cross-traffic alert, lane departure, and blind spot warnings – things pretty standard nowadays – as well as heads-up display, navigation, Bose audio, and seat massagers. No night vision or heated steering wheel.
Just a big old comfortable family car with a giant trunk that would be as comfortable as anything on a thousand-mile drive.
The heart and soul of the Audi S8 is the 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8, making 520 horsepower. With AWD, it will out-accelerate a Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and the Ford Mustang GT500 to 60 mph in 3.6 seconds and hit a governed top speed of 155 mph. Motor Trend says the positives are “Surprisingly good fuel economy, drives smaller than it actually is, and great performance and handling.” The downside is the “Steering lacks feel and is prone to understeer.” I’m unsure how to reconcile the great handling against the steering description.
Oh yeah. It’s a single-owner car, and in 2018, the single-owner crashed into something in Georgia. The Experian Auto Check Report notes:
Accident or Damage Reported Moderate Damage Reported Right Side Damage or Repair Reported Front Damage or Repair Reported Damage or Repair to Bumper Reported Damage or Repair to Hood Reported Damage or Repair to Radiator Reported Damage or Repair to Grille Reported Damage or Repair to Fender Reported
That sounds like a lot. On the other hand, this was once a brand new Audi selling for $115,000, and it is now under $40k. Driven just over 4,000 miles a year. The Experian report says no frame damage, but it might be worth it to buy the car, get it fully checked out by an independent shop, and if it isn’t right, return it within the 10-day full refund period. I’d throw in maybe $5,000 for MaxCare for the next five years and up to 125,000 miles of no major repairs. This car is currently here in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Just before Christmas, I had a major upgrade to my 64-year-old vintage body – a brand-new high-tech knee. For the first three weeks, I relied on this 2025 Walker, lightweight aluminum frame with a carbon fiber cross member, two-wheel drive up front, and rubber stopper braking in the rear. A whopping 350 pound capacity. The original MSRP was $30. No warranty. Same with the new knee, I presume. Last week, I transitioned to a cane and snuck out to drive my SUV. Gas-to-pedal movement excruciatingly tweaked the knee, so I have canceled my plans to drive to Florida for the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona this year. Sad and disappointed, and to distract myself I sifted through my “saved” CarMax unicorns and sharing a few below. Let’s get started.
Opening with a 2016 Lexus GS F, a relatively high-performance sedan that sold in limited numbers from 2016 until discontinued in 2020. Less than 2,500 were sold in the US, and most of those (1,418) were sold in that inaugural year. Car and Driver dug the torque vectoring differential and thought the car handled exceptionally well, yet dinged it for not being on par with the Audi RS7, the BMW M5, and the Mercedes-AMG E63. I never really thought it was meant to compete with those.
The GS F has heated and cooling seats, Mark Levinson sound, auto cruise control, and a heads-up display. It is a nice-looking four-door sedan with a tidy and luxurious interior. What makes it fun is the 5.0-liter naturally aspirated V-8 motor that makes 467 horsepower. With an eight-speed automatic transmission, it hits 60 in 4.4 seconds.
Car and Driver shared some disappointment with the performance given the $87,000 price tag when new. Eight years later, it’s half that at $43,998. Is it a bargain? Don’t know, but it is a decent, fast family car, and you won’t see many of them on the road. You can also get Maxcare for another five years and 100,000 miles. Is it necessary for a Lexus? This one is on reserve here in Laurel, Maryland.
Stock No: 26838218 VIN: JTHBP1BL8GA001594
And below, we have a trip down memory lane, with the lowest-priced Porsche 911 I’ve seen at CarMax in years. It is not the bargain I found with Etta, my 2008 911, that I loved despite its shortcomings, but given used car prices, maybe track it and see if it drops below $50,000?
This is a 2014 Porsche 911 Carrera, a base model that I’d view the same as my 2008 – an entry-level 911 to test the waters and see if a rear-engined iconic sports car is for you. Enjoy it, thrash it, then sell it and bide your time to get the 911 you really want. Or just be content with this one. The CarMax description says it’s burgundy over black. I can’t see the burgundy in the photos. If it is, it would be nice to have around my town, where we are enjoying the Washington Commanders NFL team making a playoff run (for now) we haven’t seen in decades. (For you non-football fans, the Commanders’ colors are burgundy and gold.)
The 911 is pretty bare inside. No rearview camera. No steering wheel controls. Heated seats, Bose stereo, and navigation. Just a 3.4-liter flat-six-cylinder engine that produces 350 horsepower and 287 pound-feet of torque, 0-60 in 4.4 seconds, and a top speed of 179 mph. Subjectively, it is a wonderful one-of-a-kind engine note from behind and inexplicably great handling. My 2008 911 was a “997” model that I loved, although it really beat the hell out of me on even mildly bumpy roads. Hated that. From mid-2012 to 2016 Porsche produced these 991.1 models, with a wheelbase a good five inches more than the 997 predecessor. I test-drove one, and it was light years more civilized in town and over uneven pavement. I want one. (Starting in 2017, all 911’s are turbos, and I’m not sure I want to give up the thrashing sound of a naturally aspirated motor.) When the time comes to replace my M3, I must find a 991.1 for “cheap,” with more options.
The 2014 Porsche 911 base model sold for maybe $85,000 new, and ten years later, this one is “only” $53,998. That is not a huge amount of depreciation; it is the cheapest 911 we’ve seen in years. My 2008 was also ten years old, but I paid $36,998, and it had only 34,000 miles. I would also offer that I paid another $3,000 for MaxCare, and it was barely worth it. Here’s the lengthy analysis, but the short version is that MaxCare paid for $4,100 in repairs, and because I did not transfer the warranty to the buyer (a dealer) when I sold the car, MaxCare refunded me just over $1,100. The Porsche 911, like my BMW M3, didn’t have expensive mechanical warranty fixes like my Mercedes S55 and S600. I’m too chicken to roll the dice and buy a Porsche 911 without MaxCare, though. If you’re in the market for an entry-level Porsche 911, this car is available in Irvine, California here.
Stock No: 26922560 VIN: WP0AA2A90ES107023
The 2015 Volkswagen CC VR6-4 Motion-Executive below caught my eye somewhat because of the lengthy and interesting name. Really, the VR6 motor got my attention, as I remembered the transverse-mounted six-cylinder from the VW Golf R32, back when the VR6 was a 3.2 liter. By 2015, it was up to 3.6 liters. More on that later.
The Volkswagen CC is to the Passat what the Mercedes CLS-class is to the E-class, a swoopier version of the basic sedan. Loses some rear-end room but comes with more style. The CC VR6-4 Motion-Executive comes with heated and air-conditioned seats, navigation, and, check this out, seat massagers! That’s for the executive butt, I think.
Here’s what I’ve learned from Wikipedia about the VR6 motor that makes this a bit of a unicorn. Wiki says, “The name VR6 comes from the combination of German words “V-Motor” and “Reihenmotor” meaning “inline engine” referring to the VR-engine having characteristics of both a V-layout and an inline layout.” Not sure what to make of that. The engine has only 10 degrees between the cylinder banks, which makes it perfect for stuffing a V6 into a small engine bay. One cylinder head for two banks of cylinders.
More fascinating, the same engine in this VW CC was used to power the six-cylinder Porsche Cayennes from 2010 to 2018. Even more mind-blowing, VW-Porsche-Audi jammed together two VR6 motors to make the over-engineered W12, the 12-cylinder engine that powered select Audi A8s (check out this one I considered from CarMax at a ridiculous s$35,000!) the Bentley Continental Flying Spur, the Volkswagen Phaeton, and even some VW Touregs.
Back to this VW. The VR6 makes 280 horsepower, not a lot, and pulls the AWD (4-Motion) sedan to 60 in an unremarkable 6.4 seconds. This one-owner, accident-free car sold new for perhaps $45,000, and with only 24,000 miles, is now $20,998. It’s on reserve at the moment here in Lexington, Kentuky.
Stock No: 26182579 VIN: WVWGU7AN4FE801791
Back to Japanese cars. Remember the Acura RL? This is not that. The RL gave up the ghost in 2012, replaced by this, the Acura RLX. The RL was pinged for being too small, and reviews suggest Acura got the message. The RLX is a full-size sedan that’s bigger and more comfortable. Just under 18,000 RLX models were sold from 2012 until 2020, and I cannot remember the last time I saw one.
The 2014 Acura RLX was fairly high-tech for its day, with a camera and radar-driven auto cruise control that could bring the car to a halt if traffic ahead came to a stop. Even had lane-keeping assist. I was amused that the two screens in the dash confused the Car and Driver reviewers – nowadays, two or even three screens are considered contemporary. With such low mileage, this 10-year-old Acura looks almost brand new.
The Acura RLX is powered by a 3.5-liter six-cylinder powering the front wheels only and is good for a sub-six second 0-60 mph run. Not bad. Other than the VR6 ingenuity, it’s quite similar to the VW CC – but bigger and faster.
The 2014 Acura RLX sold for $50-60,000 when new and is only $22,998 at the moment. It’s listed here as “Coming Soon to the Laurel, Maryland CarMax, the same place as the Lexus GS F at the top of this piece! I really don’t think MaxCare would be warranted for this car. Last thing – what’s the deal with the headlights? Cool high tech, or bizarre?
Stock No: 26446060 VIN: JH4KC1F55EC000802
One last car. It’s not an enthusiast car by any means. More of a novelty I was unaware of and wanted to share. The 2019 Infiniti QX30 Essential. The Nissan/Infiniti clothed Mercedes GLA250 was sold from 2017-2019 in the US. Engines from Germany. Assembled in the UK. Kind of cool, except the GLA250 ain’t exactly the finest Mercedes ever made. It’s good enough, I guess.
Check out the QX30 above and the GLA250 below. I believe the QX30 has more style.
The QX30 has leather seats, Bose audio, and AWD, and with only 6,400 miles, it looks very fresh inside.
The QX30 is above, and the GLA250 is below. While I love tan interiors, I think I prefer the Infiniti layout. Infotainment display embedded in the dashboard, and not one but TWO cupholders! The Mercedes vents are more impressive to me.
Both cars are powered by a 2.0-liter four-cylinder, good for 208 horsepower and AWD, and a 0-60 in the low six-second range. Not bad.
This 2019 Infiniti QX30 Essential is available here in Orlando, Florida. It was once a $40,000 car. The price is high because of the ultra-low miles. If you really want one, CarMax has 42 QX30s at the moment! I must admit I have been tempted by the 375 horsepower GLA45 AMG as a local runabout, but never the base GLA250 – and didn’t know the QX30 even existed!
I don’t make anything off this money-losing blog. My reward is hearing from other CarMax unicorn enthusiasts about my blog posts, or even better, when you all find cars of your own that support the idea of finding deeply depreciated high-end cars and protecting yourself from expensive repairs with MaxCare. I got a very nice email from a gentleman we’ll call “Ian” to protect his privacy. As far as I can tell, he went through the entire car search unaware of this blog and only found out about it afterward. He was kind enough to share his story, which I greatly enjoyed.
I find it reassuring that I’m not the only one who treats a car search like a Rubik’s cube, with each twist affecting all of the other combinations available to me – or not. Am I all in on performance, luxury, or a balance of both? How much should I spend, and if I spend more (or less), how does that shape my choices? Do I want to recreate an experience I had with a previous car or get something totally different? Once I fill in those blanks, how many different cars fit the bill, and how do I pick between them? Then, I learn something new and start all over again. Reading Ian’s email, it’s clear he and I think alike on the search, and I suspect some of you do, too. So, I’m sharing it below, and I’ll occasionally add some commentary in red (to match his car). Enjoy.
2019 Genesis G70 Advanced $25,998 – 22K miles. Not his car – I picked it to illustrate the starting point for this search. CarMax Stock No: 26658683. https://www.carmax.com/car/26658683
Ian’s Story
The story of my unicorn from CarMax starts with my previous car, a Genesis G70 4-cylinder, I bought five years ago. That car also had an interesting story as I bought it sight unseen with a >20% discount over MSRP. The car was flawless; for a while, it was unique, and I received many compliments. However, it was my second choice at the time, as the car that stole my heart back then was the Audi S5 Sportsback. Right from the start, even though I liked my G70 a lot, I was thinking about other cars. The G70 nickname became “The Unloved.”
The G70 was leased, so around the 3-year mark, I started test-driving possible replacements. Like you (me), I tried to stay open to many options and considered both sedans and coupes. During those test drives, I discovered which features were important to me. Off the top of my head:
AWD, as I live in Washington State, and it rains for eight months of the year.
The engine sound, so V8 preferred, but I was also open to “nice” V6s.
HP, preferably over 400.
A bright color without overdoing it (my G70 was gray).
A moonroof.
Nice interior (which immediately disqualified Mustangs and Chargers/Challengers).
Able to trade in my G70 for tax purposes.
The price had to “make sense” (I’ll explain later that part).
Try to avoid fees from dealerships (VIN etching? c’mon) and transport fees from CarMax / Carvana.
Able to test drive the car (requirement from wifey).
A good requirements list. Not included, although he gets there in the search below, is what’s the mileage limit that will give you a decent amount of driving before hitting the MaxCare cap? (Remember, Chuck writing in red here!)
At some point in the search, I took a 2,000-mile road trip with my G70 and had a blast. After it was over, I kept thinking about how awesome it would be to make a similar road trip in a sports or GT car. I landed on the BMW 6 series with a nice V8 that checked all my boxes. However, the car had seriously depreciated because its engine was infamously unreliable, which led me to the rabbit hole of after-market warranty providers. That’s where I learned (from Porsche forums (that hurts :)) about the great CarMax MaxCare warranty. I added a new feature to look for: under some kind of warranty, whether it was the last 18-24 months from the factory, a CPO, CarMax, or Fidelity (one of the MaxCare underwriters). As is always the case, the target price starts creeping up, and you are over your initial allocated budget sooner rather than later.
CarMax has zero 650’s for sale right now. Just a bootleg photo from the internet for illustration purposes. Don’t mind me.
I found a 2014 BMW 650i at $40,000. However, I couldn’t convince myself to pull the trigger for financial reasons, so I spoke to a financially savvy friend, hoping that he would side with me, but of course, he didn’t. However, he had a great idea: he made me realize I was more interested in the experience of driving a fun car on a road trip but not so much in the actual ownership of the car.
On the one hand, my friends have been helpful to me, clarifying my priorities and evaluation choices. On the other hand, eventually, they will all get sick of hearing about my car searches.
I decided to rent the cars instead I might want to drive to get them out of my system. Over a two-year period, I rented several cars through Turo and took road trips in them. This was awesome as I got to know the cars more deeply, and I kept increasing my knowledge about what I wanted in a car. (I had not heard of Turo until Ian wrote; coincidentally, they’re in the news this week due to the New Orleans and Las Vegas tragedies.)
Some of the most notable ones are below. (I picked the CarMax examples, but they aren’t the ones Ian looked at.):
C8 Corvette: This was the sportiest and flashiest car I drove. It was a blast to drive but also not very comfortable or practical.
Been hoping to write about this one from my saved file. Low mileage V-8 convertible RS5 at a decent price. A real unicorn. Stock No. 25981400 https://www.carmax.com/car/25981400
2014 Audi RS5: the one with a V8, another incredible engine note, but the interior and tech made the car feel cheaper (at least to me).
BMW M5: An absolute beast. A car that big shouldn’t be able to go that fast! Jaguar F-Type P450: It was the Goldilocks car: not the best-sounding, fastest, or most practical, but 9/10 in every area.
BMW M4 Competition: This car won me over, as I wanted to hate BMWs, but I couldn’t. It has great handling, is very fast, and has lots of tech.
Then, it seemed that I would settle for a big-ish car like an Audi RS7. At the beginning of this year, I was so close to a green light on a beautiful BMW M550i, but I got cold feet at the last minute at the dealership, with everything ready to complete the deal. The reason? My G70 was flawless mechanically, serving me well for four years. It was still under warranty, and I couldn’t justify trading it for a 72K-mile BMW with no warranty.
The gamechanger.
The fever eased for a few months until about four weeks ago when I went out with the same friend who advised me to rent a sports car. He recently bought a used Audi TT in a sporty trim, and again, listening to the sound engine reignited the fire in me. Also, even though it had only been six or seven months since I almost got the M550i, I now looked at the G70 in a different light. It had only a couple of months left on its warranty; while the car was mechanically sound it had suffered cosmetically. All rims had curb rash, and tree sap had fallen on several spots. Its value as a trade-in was diminishing because I hadn’t properly taken care of it. I started looking at replacements again. This time, I was looking for smaller cars. At some point, I drove an Audi RS7 and RS5 back-to-back, and while I enjoyed the RS7, the RS5 felt just right, much closer to the size of the G70.
I continued searching for smaller cars, looking at two possible options near me: another G70, but with the V6 engine (after all, I loved the car) (a natural alternative – what if I just got a better version of what I have and love now?), and a red RS5. I test-drove both and disqualified the G70 as the brakes were severely worn (I should know how a G70 drives!), and it was black (not my favorite color). The RS5 became the new baseline. The car was very good (even though I’ve never liked the Audi shade of red), just was on the expensive side, and again, it would need a high-priced third-party warranty on top of the sale price.
After that weekend, I got another friend’s opinion on both cars, needing someone to bounce ideas off. However, when I showed him the V6 G70, he asked an excellent question – “what are you getting for the money you’re paying to trade up your car?” More power. “That’s it?” he questioned. He had a point. If I were going to pay to replace my G70, I would have to get more than just two extra cylinders. I should be happy and excited about the car.
Next, he inquired about my budget. I have always thought about it as “$XX,000 after my trade-in” with bands for 10K, 20K, and 30K. “And what does that mean in terms of a monthly car payment?” I mumbled. I haven’t thought about it that way. What I could do instead is to work backward from a monthly car payment and figure out how that translates to a purchase price. This is usually a bad idea (that’s the strategy used by new car salesmen). I have a great reference point: precisely this month, I’m paying the last installment on my wife’s SUV, which was $625 monthly. There will be no impact on our monthly budget if the payment for my next car is at that price point. And when I check an online car payment calculator with my assumptions (48-month loan, 6.7% interest, trade-in value), I get a top price of $50,000. But that’s all inclusive of tax, title, fees, and, more crucially, third-party warranty.
Using that advice as a guideline, I started looking at the cars I had loved on my road trips. I started with the Lexus LC 500. It wasn’t AWD, but it felt planted when I drove it, and I love its looks. I found a couple of them for sale. They were obviously above what I wanted to pay, but I figured I wouldn’t need a warranty, and they wouldn’t depreciate as much.
I moved on to my next choice, the Jaguar F-Type. F-Types are a bit tricky to shop and compare because there are so many variants: V6 or V8, the original and two facelifts, the packages and options. At least I knew I wanted a coupe instead of a convertible! So I went to CarMax and searched for F-Types… and this one came along: beautiful shade of red, great wheels, price is right, model year 2017, low mileage for the year… and it’s an R, which means 550 HP. On top of that, the car is in Oregon, a 3-hour drive from where I live.
But what am I missing here? What’s wrong with this car? I scrolled down and saw the rental history and theft report. OK, let’s go deeper: for how long was it rented? When was it stolen? Was it crashed afterward? In addition to the Autocheck report provided by CarMax, I retrieved its Carfax. The rental isn’t too bad: it seems it was a rental for about a year, from 28K to 40K miles. I can live with that. In addition, the car was very well taken care of during its first 30K miles. OK, let’s look at the theft report… and it’s nowhere to be found. Alright, was the car crashed? Nope, no record of any crash at all. So, long story short, a CarMax employee likely checked the wrong box when entering the car’s info into the system because I couldn’t find any other reference to the car being stolen. I think the car received very little market attention because of the listing errors. (I have spotted unicorns underpriced because the CarMax lister missed some options on the car. I have also found some unicorns that don’t have what the listing says it has and have been unable to get CarMax to lower the price. Can’t even get them to correct their error in the listing!)
OK, OK, what options does the car have? CarMax rates it a 9/10. I got the window sticker for the car, and the car looks awesome:
– $2,500 for the blade-forged wheels
– $2,500 for the extended leather package
– $2,500 for the Vision package (the most crucial package to have)
– $750 Black package.
Total MSRP when new: $113,000
CarMax price: $44,000. 60% depreciation in 7 years.
Am I still missing something? I cross-checked against all the options available for that model year, and it’s only missing two: color seat belts and a front defroster. Otherwise, it is fully loaded. However, the proper comparison is against the facelifted model years that came afterward. Those have a full touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and optional ventilated seats. But Apple CarPlay can be retrofitted, so I’d just lose the ventilated seats. I figure I will survive.
One last step: how much is my trade-in worth? During the Audi RS 5 test drive, I was offered $19K for my G70. I wanted to get $20K to make the math work. I got a CarMax appraisal… and it came back at $21K! I have no doubt in my mind now I want this Jaguar F-Type. As I mentioned, the car is in Oregon, and I am in Washington State. I can get it transferred for free, but that would involve a wait of a few days, so instead, I decided to reserve it to test drive it right there in Oregon. If I buy it, the drive back home will also give me some highway time to test the car. It’s Friday night, and I make the earliest appointment, Sunday noon.
On test drive day, the car looked better in shape than I had expected. I notice some scratches here and there, but otherwise, it doesn’t look like a seven-year-old car. To my surprise, CarMax allows me to test drive the car for 30 minutes on my own (in Washington, they usually only allow you to take a short drive around the block!). Because I had completed a road trip with a Jag F-Type, I know how the car drives, and when I tested this car, I was surprised to discover it is buttery smooth. I want this car.
MaxCare was more expensive than I expected. I paid $4,500 for 5 years / 100K miles on the odometer, which wasn’t cheap and brought the final sticker price to $48.5K. But I stayed within budget thanks to the appraisal value and the tax benefit when trading in, plus the fact that I didn’t pay any transportation fee. I liked the car, but knowing it made sense financially made the whole experience even sweeter. I fell in love with the car and how I acquired it.
I’ve had the car for a few weeks, and it is simply perfect. I already took it to an independent inspection by a Jaguar Master Technician, and it came back perfect. “Great find”, he commented. I don’t know what else to say.
Anyway, thanks for your patience in reading all of this. I wanted to capture the story now that the details are still fresh on my mind, but I needed some external motivation to write it down, and that’s where you come in. I’m glad to see that I’m not the only one who has had a similar experience looking (and finding!) a great deal at CarMax. I won’t purchase any cars for a while (ha!), and I hope my story shares some similarities to your experiences.
Cheers!
Ian
Thanks, Ian, for a thorough play-by-play on how you got from your Genesis G70 to a 550 horsepower 5.0 liter V-8 powered Jaguar unicorn within budget. Highlights for me the twists and turns a unicorn search takes, and hopefully, we get clarity on what we want and the fidelity of cars available within the budget. It feeds the notion that if we look hard enough, we can have it all, more car than we thought we could afford and protected by the MaxCare warranty from expensive repairs.
If you like Ian’s 2017 Jaguar F-Type R, here’s one in Colorado Springs that I just saw today. It’s almost identical, but it costs a little more money!
