Blogging my nationwide hunt for affordable CarMax enthusiast cars. Automotive Unicorns.
Wrote about this lovely low mileage first generation 2009 Mercedes CLS550 here back in early October when it was in Los Angeles. Surprised to see this unicorn now is less than $20,000 – makes it the cheapest CLS550 I’ve seen in two years. And 35,000 miles on a 10 year old car is crazy. It’s here in Las Vegas – latest ad is posted below. Take a chance!
Doing a bit of house cleaning. Have over 200 unicorns in my profile, some more intriguing than others, and thought I’d get 10 of them out here for you to pick through. In my years as an auto enthusiast I’ve learned there are car fans and car clubs for pretty much every car out there. These caught my eye – some I’d actually own – and others because they are an interesting combination of price, performance, mileage, and maybe extinction? Anyway will keep the writing short and get them to press. Here we go.
Only 6,000 miles on this modest beauty. Not yearly – total! A decent 328hp and AWD. Here’s an Autoblog review. This two-owner Maryland car sold for almost $40,000 when new eight years ago and is available here in Midlothian (near Richmond) Virginia for $20,998. Nice car and thought the depreciation would be more. The crazy low miles are to blame.
Drove one of these before I bought my 911 and was really impressed with the all around poise and performance. Reminded me of my old Camaro with the long nose and two door look. Except that was a slow six cylinder. Anyway, this 2010 is both low-priced AND low miles AND pretty well equipped – seat heaters, blind spot monitors, rear view camera and AWD. Sold new for about $58,000. Has the 354hp 4.2l V-8 also found in the Continue reading “10 Low-Grade Low-Priced Unicorns Somebody Wants. Maybe You? (If not I have 10 more!)”
Well, this unicorn is so hot off the press it doesn’t even have photos so stole the one above from the web. This low-mileage 2010 Mercedes S63 AMG is selling for $34,998 and will be gone soon. That’s a small price to pay for S-Class luxury and Corvette performance. The hand-built 518hp twin-turbo V-8 is good for a 4.5 second 0-60 mph run. Check out the 2010 Car and Driver review here. This is a two-owner Nevada car driven only 51,000 miles. Addd MaxCare for another 100,000 miles of risk free high speed driving. Find it here in Reno. If the link don’t work someone beat us to it and it’s sold, on hold, or being transferred. 
The first generation CLS550 remains one of my favorite body shapes. Produced from 2004 through 2010 but not at all dated to me. And CarMax only carries European cars up to 10 years old, so just one more year to snag one of these unicorns and capitalize on MaxCare. Built on the E-class platform but far more style, and not as gigantic as the S-class. Decent power with the 5.5 liter 382hp V-8 and 7-speed automatic. Adjustable suspension.
Air conditioned seats and (finally) Bluetooth – for calls only, as Mercedes has that funky interface in the glovebox for music.  Real cup holders, not the single mechanical robotic piece of crap I had in Guenther, my S55 that had me spilling open coffee cups into the passenger footwell while cruising on the highway, leaving a huge brown stain on the carpet like a murder scene.  Not that I’m bitter.
Here’s a decent review from New Car Test back in the day. The 2009 Mercedes CLS550 sold for more than $70,000 new, and only 2,527 units were sold in 2009. Thinking $21,998 isn’t too bad for a 10 year old German car eligible for MaxCare – the great bumper to bumper warranty good for another 100,000 miles of risk free driving. And this car has really low mileage for a 2009.  Find this two owner car in Los Angeles here. If the link is dead it’s sold, on hold, or being transferred.
 *Quick Hit means I have to post something short and sweet because A) the car may be gone soon B) I don’t have the time to write a lengthy piece and C) I don’t think you all want to read long essays all the time.
Surprised to see this great little Mercedes unicorn show up on CarMax this weekend (would be even better to see a CLK55 AMG!). The CLK550 is a nice coupe sporting a 380hp 5.5 liter V-8 and 7-speed automatic good for a sub-5 second 0-60mph sprint. Checked out the data card and found it has a sport suspension and AMG wheels/skirts package.
According to this lengthy and very positive NewCarTest review from 2009, the car sold new for maybe $57,000. For a 10 year old car, 38,000 miles is very low and should lead to a decent MaxCare warranty plan – maybe up to 150,000 odometer miles and for sure five years.Â
Why the “time is running out headline”? Because CarMax doesn’t sell European cars more than 10 years old, and the CLK line ended in 2009. Maybe there’s time for a CLK55 AMG, but not much. 
This 2009 Porsche Cayenne GTS listed here in Los Angeles got my attention at a price point of only $24,998, and with 57,000 miles it fits nicely in my made up unicorn world ($35,000/60,000 miles or less).
Thinking not bad for a 10 year old SUV (former Porsche CPO), and with a 400hp naturally aspirated V-8, 4WD, a tow hitch, front and rear seat heaters, Bluetooth and Bose, it has the minimum I would need in a work “truck”. Throw in the MaxCare warranty and tax and probably out the door for $30,000. Not bad for a Porsche Cayenne GTS that once sold for over $70,000.
But this Motor Trend review clocked it as a six-second 0-60mph, and while I’m sure it handles well, it’s kind of…slow. It’s a three owner one accident SUV and also lacking a number of features – third row seat, rear view camera, air conditioned seats – so I kept looking.
What I found was this 2012 BMW X5 XDrive50i for $2,000 less and about the same mileage, and also with a 400hp (twin-turbo V-8), 4WD, and a tow hitch (pictured, but not listed as a feature!). But it also has the Cold Weather Package (front and rear seat heaters AND heated steering wheel), Premium Package, Technology Package, rear view camera,
third row seats, and air conditioned seats. Does everything the Cayenne does and more, for less money, and per this Auto Guide review was faster than the Cayenne GTS. And no accidents. Unclear to me how the BMW X5 compares handling-wise, and if it matters, it’s a little less panache than the Porsche. But that’s all. Find it here in Fresno. It’s a bargain.
Continue reading “400hp Low Price Porsche Cayenne GTS Work Truck (And a Better BMW X5!)”
This family rocket sold new for maybe $110,000, so depreciated to $63,000 doesn’t really put it in my unicorn price range, but these are pretty special wagons so thought I’d include it.
Last E63 AMG wagon I covered was this 2018 E63 AMG S that sold for a whopping $92,000. That was a 600hp 4wd model, so I guess for $30,000 less you only get 2wd and 518hp. That said, this single owner 2012 model only has 6,000 miles on it — driven less than 900 miles yearly. Car and Driver had a great review of the car when it was new here. They dug it.
I do too, from the hand-built motor to the auto cruise control (that’s actually the vool night vision control pictured!) to the massive cargo bay. Absolutely MUST get the MaxCare warranty to protect against blowing up the motor or transmission drifting with the kids. Find this beaut here in Costa Mesa, California. 
Wrote about this 2011 Mercedes E63 unicorn here in July, after it appeared and disappeared several times in days. Well it has been off the net for two months and it’s back. It moved from Illinois to Michigan, dropped $3,000, but it’s the same car. Why no pix? I’m finding more and more cars are being listed as “New Arrivals” after transfer or a price reduction, even though they are not. I’m tracking about 200 cars in my profile, so will be watching! If you can’t trust a used car salesman, who can you trust? The original ad and car pix are below. I’d certainly spring for MaxCare – read my 2004 Mercedes S55 saga here, and even my failed attempt at buying an E63 here. Still a great car. If only there was an E65!  Find this model in Kentwood, Michigan here. 
You want this car. You need this car. If I hadn’t already bought a V-12 S600, this would be my car. Not a lot of V-12 unicorns left in the family car world, and BMW has announced it’s dropping V-12’s after this series of 760 sedans.
So here’s your chance to pick up an exclusive 2010 Mercedes S65 that once sold for $200k for a piddly $40k. Only a couple of hundred make it to the states every year. This single-owner car has low miles (6,000 yearly), and yeah maybe with 604 hp and 738 ft-lbs of torque (like a Dodge Ram dualie?) it’s been driven hard, but who cares? That’s where the MaxCare warranty comes in – covers the twin-turbos, the transmission, the air suspension – whatever you plan to tear up while tearing up the highway. And it has night vision!
Here’s the Jalopnik review from 2009. Find this beast here in Irvine, California. 
This unicorn is hot off the press – so hot no photos yet so borrowed a few from the web. Best I can tell from the Mercedes forums is there were only 355 2009 Mercedes SL65 AMG’s imported – and the original price was north of $188,000!
The twin-turbo, 6.0 liter V-12 puts out 604hp and 738 lb.-ft. of torque, good for 3.7 second 0-60mph runs. Per the datacard this one has the Designo alcantara interior.  It goes without saying that MaxCare is a must – how cool to get another five years on a 10 year old supercar? Here’s a review from Road and Track and another from Motor Week. Find this two-owner (Texas and California) car here in Irvine – it says non-transferable but certain sales reps, like my favorite one Si Sultan, can get the car moved. 