Category: Mercedes Benz

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Good Things Come in Pairs – Sub $20k Old Euro Sedans That Should Make You Rethink Wanting a Camry. Or An Accord.

I have nothing against Camrys and Accords and have owned both.  Mostly I liked the value and reliability.  But they were cookie cutter and that was before I stumbled on CarMax unicorns and the MaxCare warranty that allowed me to own a (once) $120,000 Mercedes S55 AMG beast, Guenther, for less than I paid for either the Camry or Accord.  Changed my life.   If I only has $20,000 to spend on a daily driver I would seriously consider these.

2009 E550I have always loved the lines of the W212 Mercedes E550, understated and elegant before Mercedes went all sharp and scary in 2010.  Not as high end as the S-class, but a decent daily driver with 380hp and a sub-5 second 0-60.  And this one has such low mileage the V-8 isn’t even broken in.  Here’s a Motor Trend review of this once $70,000 car from back in the day.  It’s now a $17,000 2009, two-owner Illinois and Pennsylvania car is all wheel drive and should be affordable to drive for another 100,000 with the MaxCare warranty.  Find it here in Charlotte, North Carolina.  If the link is dead it’s sold, on hold, or being transferred.

2009 MB E550 $16,998 35k

2008 750LiThe E65 2008 BMW 750 Li, on the other hand, is a little slower, a little older, a little uglier (I hate the bubble butt trunk), has higher mileage, and yet looks to be a decent cruiser.  And it’s cheap.  And it’s the long wheelbase model, so like a living room on wheels.  It’s a two owner Texas and Vegas car.  Jalopnik noted, “You don’t look at the car and think “beautiful.” But if you think about it, you think “perversely attractive.”  It has the loathed I-Drive knob.  But at $17,599 it still seems like a bargain.  I should note, every BMW 7 series I looked at the MaxCare warranty was significantly higher (perhaps double!) than comparable sedans.  If that’s the case….not so much of a bargain.  Find it here in Georgia.

2008 750Li $17,599 58k

 

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Good Things Come in Pairs – Mercedes S63 Unicorns: 0-60 4.6 Seconds! (W221)

2010 S63Don’t often see S63’s in my unicorn range, and here’s a pair that remind me so much (sadly) of Guenther, my first CarMax unicorn.  Style, executive comfort, stupid fast for a 4,700 lb sedan.  Ignore the bubble-butt trunk if you can.  Both are 518hp V-8’s with Active Body Control (ABC), auto cruise control, and just about every option you could imagine in a $150,000 S-class.  And as with my S55, these cars are outrageously expensive to repair (the ABC fails after 50,000 miles – $5-7,000 bill) and you don’t want to own without MaxCare, which makes them free (to you!).  The 2010 is in Fredericksburg, Virginia (too close to home!) and the 2008 is in Los Angeles.

2008 MB S63 $34,998 39k

2010 MB S63 $34,998 55k

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A First! Reader Buys the Mercedes S600 and Already Recovers MaxCare Cost!

S600First sale of a car I posted to a blog reader (that I’m aware of).  Had the opportunity to collaborate with the reader who bought the 2009 Mercedes S600 (V-12) that I declined to buy last fall and taunted me as it moved up and down the East Coast.  The car was over $175,000 new and sold for $29,998.  The blog reader made contact and got my take on the car, the MaxCare warranty, deductibles, repairs at CarMax vs Mercedes dealerships, and took the plunge – bought the car just over a month ago.  We maintained contact as I wanted to know if his experience with a high-end CarMax  unicorn and the warranty were the same as mine – I’d feel bad if my experience was an anomaly.

The good news is he absolutely loves the S600.  The bad news is I didn’t buy it.  Also in the good news column, he did a post-purchase inspection and found trouble with the lower control arms, an oil pan leak, and valve cover leak.  Later a headlight failed.  ALL were covered under the MaxCare warranty.  Because they exceeded CarMax’s service capabilities the car was sent to an independent/specialist shop for the suspension and leaks, and to a Mercedes dealer for the headlight.  The reader noted the independent service rep advised the repairs were $6,800 – all covered by MaxCare.  He seems to be happy so far.  Because he lives some distance from a CarMax he intends to have future repairs done at a dealer or independent shop, and eat the $50 deductible (that $50 is waived when you go to CarMax).  Will continue to

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Cheapest S-Class Ever (2007 S550)….and Ignore the Risk of M273 Meltdown!

2007 S550By themselves, S550’s aren’t really unicorns ($35,000 or less, 60,000 miles or less) given that today CarMax has six of these on lots nationwide.  Not rare. And this one technically isn’t either, with 67,000 miles.  But rarely do CarMax S550’s drop below $25,000.  Snaring an S550 for less than $20,000 is a deal.  Of course, it’s only a deal with MaxCare bumper to bumper protection, because this three-owner model will be expensive to fix.  I suspect the warranty will be offered to 125,000 miles, and five years from the date of sale.

And the warrant is CRITICAL for a 2007 S550 per Jalopnik and their piece “For The Love of God, Don’t Ever Buy A 2007 Mercedes-Benz S550” from 2016.  Jalopnik warns that this model is cheap to get into, but has a little gear called the “M273” that will catastrophically fail and meltdown your S550 engine.   And that takes me back to the premise of the CarMax unicorn – with the MaxCare warranty I really don’t care if pistons explode through the hood into the night sky.  Jalopnik warns that the cost of used replacement S550 engine with installation is around $6500.  CarMax or Mercedes wouldn’t put in a used engine, so it will likely be a new engine and this car will run forever!

I don’t think you’ll find a more luxurious ride at this price.  Find it here in Irving, TX – if the link is dead it’s sold, on hold, or being transferred.  I suspect this car will move in days.  2007 S550 $18,998 67k

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Cheap V12 Executive Race Car – 2007 S600

S600I passed on a “once in a lifetime” Mercedes S600 V12 at my local CarMax at $30,998, and was agitated when it showed up in Boston a week later at $29,998.  Thought I’ll never see a V12 Mercedes at that price again.  This morning, a cheaper one pops, with lower miles even!  It’s in Miami, and yes, the Carfax shows it backed into another car (common there?) and had some accident damage some time back.  But at $23,998, and with another $3,500 you can get 100,000 miles of MaxCare bumper-to-bumper warranty, this thing is a steal.  With 510hp, 612 ft-lbs of torque, night vision, every luxury feature including auto cruise control (Distronic Plus), AND the warranty, I can’t imagine there’s another 11 year old car that’s such a bargain.  The CarMax link is here – if dead the car is being transferred, on hold, or sold.

2007 S600 $23,.998 37000

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2008 Mercedes CL63 AMG for $30,998 – $138,000 when new!

Love these big coupes, their 518hp engines, and exclusivity.  One of 1,476 made in 2008.  I love depreciation, too!  Here’s the 2008 review from Automobile magazine.  Beautiful car and with the MaxCare warranty you can get another 100,000 miles and five years of worry-free driving.  Here’s the CarMax link – find it in Atlanta, Georgia.  I think this goes in days.  Added some sample MaxCare menus at the bottom at a reader’s request.  Thanks.2008 CL63

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Mercedes S600 V12 – $29,998. Giving Me A Tough Case of Buyer’s Remorse

Ugh.  The one that got away?  I snagged this unicorn when it first popped at my local CarMax, held it under several names, and actually went in to buy it last month.   It was priced at $30,998.  Has everything.  Designo interior.  Over 500 hp.  Night Vision! Was over $150,000 new.  One owner.  But my wife pointed out I can always get a big sedan.  And CarMAx refused to replace a gouged tire.  And I’ve wanted a sports car so instead I bought a 911 last week.  Love the 911, but jeez – this big V12 haunts me.   It’s up in Boston and dropped $1,000 since I passed.  Link here.  Somebody buy it so I can stop thinking about it. S600

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Prices Dropping? Unusual Number of Unicorn Alerts

Over the past 24 hours I’ve gotten emails alerting me to price reductions on five of the 43 cars* I have saved in my CarMax profile.  Not a lot – $601 per car, but in the year I’ve been tracking unicorns I’ve never gotten this many.  Curious….New Year’s sale (CarMax doesn’t do sales) or is this related to the massive increase in inventory I blogged about last month ( The $577 Million Car Loan and Other Fascinating CarMax “Analytics” ) .

*I have 110 cars in my profile but many are listed as “No Longer Available”.  I keep them because more than a few resurface in another city, or even a few have been sold back to CarMax and show up back on the market.  That’s how I knew the 2010 Jaguar XKR I declined in January 2017 sold in Maryland, and was traded in and offered again in Virginia in December for $1,000 more than last year!

Here’s the unicorns I’ve been alerted to today:

Mustang GT Price Drop

$17,998 – Stupid Low Mileage 2006 Mustang GT

 Link – If Dead Car Sold/Hold/Transferred

VW EOS Price Drop

$12,599 – Rare 250hp V6 VW EOS

CarMax Link – If Dead Car Sold/Hold/Transfer

PT Price Drop

$10,599 Low Mileage Retro Cruiser 

CarMax Link – If Dead Car Is Sold/Hold/Transferred

Continue reading “Prices Dropping? Unusual Number of Unicorn Alerts”

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Five Obscure Unicorns for $10-$24k……. or Beauty Is In The Eye Of The Beholder?

Writing this post for my new friends at the Facebook page “Obscure Cars For Sale 2.0” who think like me.  There are unusual cars out there that somebody loves.  Here’s my first five CarMax “unicorns” aka Obscure Cars for Sale.  I hope you enjoy them.

2006 Ford Mustang GT 7k $18599 Cincy
How do you drive this car only 600 miles a year?

The only think obscure about this 2006 Mustang GT is the crazy low miles – 7,000!  It’s brand new inside and out, and priced the same as a Honda Civic and way more fun. Throw in a MaxCare warranty for about $2,000 and you can drive this car until 2023 – when it’s 17 years old – and another 143,000 miles without a repair bill.  It’s a 300hp V-8 in Cincinnati.  Love it. Here’s the link to the CarMax ad.  If it’s dead the car is either sold, on hold, or in transit to another dealer.  I’ll keep tracking it.

2008 VW Eos VR6 $12,998 58k
Do NOT call this a chick car!

 

 

It’s cute as a button, German, cheap, and has a convertible hard top.  But this little guy has the underappreciated VW-Audi 3.2 liter six-cylinder pumping out 250 hp.  It also has a DSG transmission.  What’s that you ask?  It’s a Direct Shift Gearbox, an electronically controlled dual clutch automatic designed by Porsche that snap shifts stupid fast.

This is a sleeper version of a Golf-R32.  Find this one-owner VW in Naperville, Ill and the CarMax page here.

Continue reading “Five Obscure Unicorns for $10-$24k……. or Beauty Is In The Eye Of The Beholder?”

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The $577 Million Car Loan and Other Fascinating CarMax “Analytics”

Small 73000
The total cars on the lot around noon, November 18th 2017.  The numbers fluctuated by hundreds between the beginning and completion of this blog, rendering all my calculations estimates.

The CarMax nationwide inventory jumped from just over 40,000 cars in the summer of 2017 to over 73,000 today.  That’s the highest it’s been since I started tracking CarMax unicorns a year ago and it got me pondering on all things cosmic CarMax.  For example, that 33,000 plus-up in stock equals a staggering $577 million* investment in cars in just a few months.  I’m thinking like you and me, CarMax didn’t pay cash and owed somebody a helluva lot of money.  You think they get dealer financing? I’m thinking CarMax needs to move some cars and hoping there are more unicorns and lower prices!

*The average CarMax vehicle sells for $19,677 with a gross profit of $2,178, indicating a rough guess each car costing CarMax $17,489.  See “CarMax Reports Second Quarter Results, September 22, 2017″.

So I decided to do my own homemade “analytics” and dive deeper on what makes up an inventory of 73,000 cars.  CarMax knows what they’re doing, and I suspect their inventory largely reflects what America wants in a car.  So here’s what I learned. Continue reading “The $577 Million Car Loan and Other Fascinating CarMax “Analytics””

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