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.
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.
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.
A most comfortable interior for a Jeep.
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!
Thanks to fellow CarMax tracker and blog reader Cannon for bringing this track-ready, limited run 2019 Subaru STI S209 to my attention. There were only 209 made, and CarMax (of course) has one available. This one is #113 of 209 as far as I can tell – if you can make out the image below better than I, maybe it’s #115? No matter, it’s a rare and fast unicorn.
First, Cannon taught me the Subaru STI S209 was assembled by STI (Subaru Tecnica International), the motorsports arm of Subaru. STI takes possession of WRX STI’s and from the main Gunma, Japan factory, and then ships them to their shop in Kiryu-Kougyo, Japan to complete the S209 modifications. For starters, the power plant is beefed up from 305 hp to 341 hp from it’s turbo flat-four cylinder. Mated to the six-speed manual transmission, the car rips low four second 0-60 mph runs.
The 2019 Car and Driver review noted the “0.6-inch-wider track necessitated fender flares to cover the model-specific 265/35R-19 Dunlop SP Sport Maxx GT 600A summer tires. Bilstein dampers, stiffer springs, and a 20-mm rear anti-roll bar deliver a dog-pukingly stiff ride.” The sedan pulled 1.04 g lateral grip on the skidpad. The car brakes race car hard. I cannot get over that race car wing though.
The Subaru STI S209 has bluetooth, Apple CarPlay, seat heaters, and a rear view camera but not much else in comfort features. Not why one buys this car though. And the kicker? The S209 listed for $65,000 when new. That said, many sold for a premium above MSRP given the limited run. That price was also $25,000 above a regular WRX STI. As Cannon said, this is probably a decent collector car in the making. MaxCare may be cheap also, given that this low mileage car is still under manufacturer warranty. And be prepared – it’s still selling for above MSRP two years later! Find this little race car here in Plano, Texas.
$162,998. That’s what you wanted to know. But that’s not all you need to know. This 2020 Porsche 911 Carrera 4S is hardly a unicorn by my old $35,000 ceiling (that I am so going to blow through soon) but it is the most expensive CarMax car I’ve ever seen. Thought it was a misprint when Mustafa sent it to me last week, and when it disappeared from the web within minutes I was sure. But it’s back. Is it a good deal?
I think 7/11 designed the cup holders just for Grosse Gulps.
No. Well, maybe in a relative way. There are 12 of these for sale on Autotrader.com today, and as it turns out this is a fair price for a 2020 911 Carrera 4S. But according to Car and Driver the 4S model gives you only AWD over the regular 911 S. Everything else about the car….trim, output features….exactly the same. Oh and a gas tank that holds about 3/4 of a gallon more fuel. The additional charge for a 4S over an S is $7,300 according to Car and Driver. But wait there’s more! Car and Driver’s as tested model had a base price of $121,000 and with options and AWD topped out at $140,000. So not only is AWD the only plus to this car (and that’s not insignificant, for what it’s worth) the car is selling used for more than it sold for new! Damn. Puts it in the same league as the Chevrolet SS and Corvette C8!
Pretty slick shifter?
The car includes the Porsche cargo bay tub. Surprisingly the 911 front end will hold a standard suitcase.
The 911 4S does outperform the standard S. How much? I’ll leave you with the Car and Driver narrative. “The 443-hp twin-turbo flat-six, eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, and all-wheel-drive system all feed a ruthless launch-control program that turns air and gasoline into effortless and repeatable performance. Is 2.8 seconds to 60 mph better than 2.9 seconds? Objectively, yes. Is it worth $7300? We’re uncertain about that one.” Well, I am certain that if you can afford this car you can afford MaxCare, even though the 2020 Porsche 911 Carrera 4S here in Tampa is still under manufacturer warranty.
The Lexus RC F is a pretty impressive car in vanilla form. The luxury coupe sports a 5.0 liter V-8 with 467 hp and every feature you could want. They sold new in the mid-$60,000 range and CarMax has a half-dozen regular RC F’s with low mileage for under $50,000. Those cars are capable of low-four second 0-60 mph runs and a 168 mph top speed. But anybody can own a vanilla Lexus RC F. Only 50 Track Editions were imported to the USA. That alone makes them a unicorn.
What’s so special about the Lexus RC F other than the limited production? Honestly not much. A big-ass wing for starters that adds 58 pounds of downforce when you hit that 168 mph straightaway. Carbon fiber on the hood, roof, and decklid that shaves 121 pounds. I never get such little weight loss. Add my wife as the passenger and we’re back where we started! Throw in a cooler of beer and I’m slower than before! Seriously though you get a little bit more upgrades on the RC F Track over a standard car but not much.
The same motor makes only five (yes 5) more horsepower than the stock RC F. Coupled with the weight loss that reduces 0-60 times by .3 seconds. Not a fan. The Track Edition also gets a front splitter, tweaked adaptive dampers that are more aggressive, and drops the torque-vectoring differential for what Car and Driver calls a more benign handling attitude. Meh.
The Lexus RC F interior is wonderful for a luxury coupe. Never liked bordello red for a car but many buyers do. What I have never been able to figure out is the hump protruding from the hump that boxes in the driver’s heel. I have been tempted more than once by RC F’s as bargain V-8 coupes but I cannot get my size 12 foot to work the gas pedal around that mound. Again, the regular RC F seems to be a bargain unicorn and I’m struggling, other than exclusivity of owning a 1 of 50 unit, to get why I’d want this once $97,000 car that’s only depreciated to $85,998. It does have only 4,000 miles on it since purchased almost two years ago, and with existing dealer warranty and Lexus reliability there’s really no need for MaxCare. Find this 2020 Lexus RC F here in Tampa, Florida.
August 10, 2017 I blogged “First Five Fabulous Unicorns“, with absolutely no idea what I was doing or where this would go. I used PDF’s for photos until my son Chris told me it made the blog look wonky. I still don’t know what I’m doing or where this will go but I know why I do it, I’m a car nut that loves “driving rich” in a way more expensive car than I can afford to repair. And I really enjoy the folks I’ve met here – some through comments, some by email, and even a few I’ve met over coffee or a beer to talk CarMax unicorns. All good people.
The 2007 Mercedes CL550 above was the very first car in the “first five” unicorns that I wrote about. I think I’ve covered 350-400 cars in the 302 blog posts over the past four years. Some will never be available again – Jaguar S-Types and XJ8’s, Pontiac G8GXP’s, a Chevrolet SSR, the Saturn/Opel Astra, Buick Lucerne Supers, Audi S4 V-8’s and probably more. Would be fun to go back and rue the ones that got away. Thinking V-10’s and the Audi W12. Sigh.
Honestly, I don’t think I ever actually covered this 2006 Chevrolet SSR but it was in my files and I meant to. It might have boosted my readership, although I can’t complain. Visitors have gone from 10,000 my first full year (2018) to 17,000 last year, and views have topped 100,000 since 2017. I’m very grateful for the 159 readers who have signed up to be bothered by email with each new post. I’ve enjoyed the comments, mostly by Hans, Scott, Jerry, and Roger, although all four of you get crushed statistically by CBD oils, Cialis scams, vaping supply web sites, and hair weave stylists who bombard my blog with spam by the hundreds. I may have a fix for that. Other fascinating things WordPress tells me about the blog? I get 50% of viewers from search engines, and the other 50% when I link a post to David Fesz’s “Unique Cars for Sale 2.0” Facebook page. He’s got a good site. Check him out. I also learned I post about 80 times a year. I should do more. In the past month alone I missed a rare BMW M6 V-10 (I thought they were no more!), a Mercedes CL65 V-12, and a Volvo S80 V-8….among others. And the data says while readers have clicked on the CarMax links to cars I provided thousands of times, readers very rarely click on the links to car magazine reviews of the cars I’m blogging about. Could be more productive if I knock those off, I guess.
The numbers also tell me that this 2009 Porsche Cayenne GTS above, covered here in September 2019, had the most viewers of any post I’ve done, bumping the 1 of 248 Grand Marquis I covered in March, 2018. Pleases me, in that the Cayenne more closely represents the unicorn theme than the Marquis.
I one heard an unsourced quote, that “the Germans invented the automobile, the Americans made it into an appliance, and the Italians the car to dance and sing.” I love my German cars and I really appreciate my 1971 Fiat 124 Spider. I get the value of a car as an appliance, and perhaps the Grand Marquis represented that. And lo and behold the modern anniversary gift for year four is….an appliance! Guess I’ll be shopping for an American car this year? Thanks to each and every reader that shares my enthusiasm for affordable high-end, deeply depreciated cars. If I can ever be of help let me know. If I’m off the mark on these cars, please let me know. Now back to the cars!
A 2009 Audi S5 by itself isn’t all that much of a unicorn. Lots of ’em out there. But every day I surf the CarMax website to see what’s in the older car bin and today was rewarded with this cheap 12 year old German pony car. CarMax has 43,678 cars in their nationwide inventory as I write, and only 67 2009 models. When I started this blog four years ago CarMax told me they only sell cars 10 years old and newer. Over time I learned that wasn’t quite right as there were always 11 and 12 year old cars for sale. But CarMax has been quite disciplined about European cars, and it’s rare to see one older than 10 model years for sale.
Before we go over the features, specs, and performance that make the S5 a cool daily driver, and other than being old, what I like about this Audi is that it’s only $14,998. There are 85 of these first-generation (2007-2012) S5’s with similar mileage (less than 100,000) on Autotrader today, and most are actually selling for more than CarMax is asking. And of course, I’d be real surprised if any of those are offered with an optional three year warranty up to 150,000 miles. This car has 98,000 miles, so you can pretty much buy the equivalent of a new car warranty with MaxCare for this old car. Did I mention it’s 12 years old? I did?
So about the car. The first generation S5’s were equipped with the 4.2 liter V-8 motor making only 354 hp, and yet they ripped high-four second 0-60 mph runs. All of them are AWD. When I returned from Germany in 2010 I saw my first S5 in Virginia downshift and scream up an exit ramp in a rush. The acceleration was awesome and the noise ear-splitting. Loved it. Later I was stunned to learn how relatively low the horsepower was compared to it’s rivals – BMW and Mercedes six-cylinders make almost the same output. But the S5 is more raucous and fast. All of the reviews I read from 2009 were complimentary both on performance, and the “stunning” design (used by several car magazines). This car also has seat heaters, auto cruise control, nav and rear view camera, blind spot monitors, and Bluetooth. Find it here in Southlake, Georgia. Well, damn. Took me 20 minutes to put this piece together and it shows now as “Currently Not Available”. But that’s the beauty of having the stock number – you can always track it! I’ll try to post if it becomes available again.
Two years ago my CarMax car buddy Mustafa alerted me to how few Lexus GS460’s were sold in the US – just 23 units in 2011. In fact, other than the 1,600 sold in 2008, each year after saw only a few dozen leaving dealer lots. Makes it a fairly rare unicorn. I was pleased to see this 2011 model in tan over champagne – a color combo I’ve always associated with luxury. It’s in CarMax’s Coming Soon section so very much available.
Low production isn’t the only reason to like this vehicle I dig the Italian design by Giugiaro and once lusted for the second generation Lexus GS400 as a nice sleeper sedan. This 2011 GS460 has a 4.6 liter V-8 rated at 342 hp, good for a mediocre 0-60 mph in 5.4 seconds. Slightly better than the comparable Infiniti M45 but 40 ponies less than the same year Mercedes E550, and 58 hp short of the 2011 BMW 550.
But it is a high-quality highway cruiser with an eight-speed automatic transmission, auto cruise control. adaptive variable suspension, luxury package, cooling seats, and good old fashioned rear wheel drive. Not sure I’d even spring for MaxCare – not much going to go wrong here. (However, CarMax actually offers MaxCare for five years and up to 150,000 miles!) Probably sold for $55-60,000 new back in 2011 and selling for $22,998 now – $1,000 more than the same model I reviewed two years ago! Not as much depreciation as I’d like. Here’s a review of the GS460 from Left Lane News when the car was new in 2011.  This 2011 Lexus will be available soon here in Irving, Texas. Also full disclosure – the above two paragraphs I totally plagiarized from my 2019 review – curious if anyone actually makes it this deep in the blog! 🙂
The two-tone paint scheme caught my eye. Something special about this car. A quick Google search and I’m fascinated that for the last few Academy Awards Genesis has been partnering with Vanity Fair and rolling out five special edition models for “nominees and influencers” to arrive at the gala in style. Who knew?! The photo above is the 2018 Genesis G90 Ultimate unicorn currently for sale by CarMax. The photo below is from the 2018 Genesis press release announcing the five special edition cars.
What’s more challenging (aka impossible for me) is to learn whether Genesis sold replicas of the five Academy Award cars, or if this is actually one of the five. I’ve spent an hour or two so far and the only thing I know for sure if that Genesis presented a model just like this one at the 2018 Academy Awards, and the cars were on display at one point in Seoul. I’ve not found any two-tone cars for sale on Autotrader or Cars.com. There is a Car and Driver piece covering two-tone flagship G90’s as concept cars only. Thought I would post here and perhaps blog readers who are smarter than me (this means you!) may have some insight. This one first sold in October 2018.
Regardless, the 2018 Genesis Ultimate is plush and very well equipped. Heated and air conditioned seats and heated steering wheel. Heads up display. Auto cruise control. DVD system. Adjustable suspension. Car and Driver notes the interior includes “22-way power adjustability for the driver’s seat, 16-way for the front passenger, 14-way for the right rear passenger, and 12-way for the left rear. ” Nice. That said, the reviewer was disappointed with no hands free (or whatever it’s called) autonomous driving for this luxury sedan.
Car and Driver also moans a bit on the 420 hp V-8 – a good enough engine that will get you to 60 mph in 5.1 seconds. Certainly adequate and yet not world class. Of course, make any comparison to the Lexus LS or Mercedes S class and online forum discussions go berserk. Trying to learn more about this special edition car I waded into a few of those. I found G90 owners to be quite proud, and quite defensive about their sedans, and the German equivalents (Dammit! They aren’t equivalent!) sniff that a South Korean car could never compete. What gets your attention, though, is that the G90 Ultimate sold new for $75,000 – a good $25,000 below it’s competitors. This G90 is selling for $49,000. Here’s the tricky part. If it’s really a one of five Academy Award/Vanity Fair car maybe it’s special and worth it. BUT it’s a two accident car (one in the front and one in the rear) and that never bodes well for resell if nobody cares about the Academy Award part. Then again, Genesis only sold maybe 2,500 G90’s in 2018 so there is a bit of exclusivity anyway. Oh, and skip MaxCare. This beauty is still under Genesis’ generous manufacturer warranty. This one-owner car is the first Genesis to make it to my blog and is coming to Jensen Beach, Florida soon! Here’s the link.
