Haven’t seen many hardtop Jaguar XK’s on CarMax and even longer for an XKR unicorn. A little dated but the lines are still lovely. I don’t think this one will be available long so winging it with a blog post by phone.
It’s a 2012 model with 57,000 miles and if you go to the CarMax website you’ll see some of the worst marketing photos ever. Maybe that’s why the price is reasonable?
Identical to the Jaguar XF inside, the car has a heated steering wheel, air conditioned and heated seats, and a rear view camera. Adequate but not overly equipped. For a car that sold new for $103,000 I’d expect a little more.
The power plant is impressive. A 5.0 liter supercharged V-8 with 510hp good for mid-four second 0-60 mph runs. It’s not a 550hp XKR-S, but plenty faster than the 385hp XK. Choose your poison. This three owner, accident free California-Florida car is here in Mobile, Alabama.
My sixth annual journey to Florida for the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona race is coming to an end, and as with anything automobile related, there is a CarMax link. Hang in there with me. My original plan was to drive my ’71 Fiat convertible here from Virginia, but some minor electrical gremlins and possible bad weather prompted the prudent switch to the Mercedes S600. I still took a few days to meander the back roads here in splendid comfort. Tomorrow we load up on the auto train for the 900 mile overnight trip home.
I won’t bore you with too much on the race details. Lots of web sites will tell you how it went. If you’re new to endurance racing though, it’s five categories of cars racing simultaneously at Daytona; three classes of prototypes and two classes of race-prepped sports cars. Usually four drivers taking turns at the wheel per car, although a few teams had only three drivers. Here’s the winners for three of the categories, and their (sorta) CarMax equivalents. (The other two prototype categories have no road car lineage as far as I can tell.)
I stole this photo. Credit goes to…whoever took it and put it on the web.
Yes, for the first time, an Acura prototype (not an NSX) was the overall winner at Daytona, completing over 800 laps. Fascinating, and frustrating, that after 23-plus hours the Cadillac prototype was hot on its tail looking for a way to pass. Cadillacs have taken the last four overall wins here. But seven minutes – SEVEN MINUTES – before the finish the Cadillac had a tire puncture and pitted. Acura earned the win.
I actually too this shot of the winning Acura in the winner’s circle from the BMW Champions Club rooftop.2014 Acura TL SH-AWD – with a stick!
And this is the best I can do to find the CarMax unicorn that might be fun to drive. It’s a stretch. A good 305 hp 3.7 liter six cylinder, AWD, and a six speed manual transmission. Not a rocket at a six second 0-60 mph sprint, but no slouch. This was the last year for the TL, and especially a manual transmission one. The car was a good $44,000 new, and can be had for less than $20k here in Parker, Colorado.
In the for what it’s worth category, the 24 Hours of Rolex is ridiculously fan friendly, even during a pandemic. I splurged on the BMW Champion’s Club, with infield roof top views from the start finish line, an open bar, great food, and lots of TV’s for replays. The Club was horribly run and a bad deal this year compared to last. The infield has more than a few vantage points and bleachers for watching racing close up through the infield turns.
The grandstands, though, offer spectacular views of the tri-oval, Turns 1-5, and the high banks. And so few people attend the race you can sit anywhere you want. I tend to spend much time up here. But back to the cars.
Borrowed. Credit to someone other than me.
The Corvette C8R won the GTLM class, completing 770 laps. Second place went to another C8R just 3.5 seconds back. First win here for the Corvettes since 2016 when they also placed 1-2. Last year the C8R debuted at Daytona and struggled a bit, but went on to win the championship for the 2020 season. If you weren’t sure about Corvette making the switch to mid-engine, be a believer now.
The 2021 GTLM winning Corvette crossing the line!2020 Corvette C8
Earlier today when I was pondering this blog post there were a handful of 2020 Corvettes for sale by CarMax. Tonight there are none. I wrote about this first 2020 Corvette on CarMax’s lot last August. I have since seen the street version live. Beautiful car. Allegedly the list price on 2020 models started at $59,000, and pretty clear nobody ordered base models. The used ones on CarMax, albeit with very low miles, are selling in the mid to high $80,000 range. This first one was offered up at $95,000!
Sunrise at Daytona is always special. Unlike Le Mans, run in June, Daytona’s winter race happens a little more than 50 per cent at night. But when the sun rises, there’s still almost nine hours of racing to go!
And in the morning, from the Champions Club roof, I can see my lonely S600 in the infield! I may dig my V-12 sedan, and yet it got none of the attention my ’71 Fiat got here last year. Sigh.
Back to the race cars. In the “lowest” class of all, the GTD (GT Daytona) winner was this Mercedes AMG GT S. It completed 745 laps and was just 16 seconds ahead of the second place car – another AMG GT S. They were dominant as hell on Sunday. And lucky for you, there’s one available right now at CarMax!
2016 Mercedes AMG GT S
This Mercedes has been on and off the net and recently dropped $1,000 to $82,998. Once a $130-150,000 car it seems like a bargain. Entry level exotic. Over 500 hp and a mid-three second 0-60. Stunning to the eye. I have been tempted. Sat in one, though, and was way more cramped than in my 911. The gigantic center console has something to do with that. But I so love this car, currently for sale here in Covington, Louisiana.
I’ve run out of patience with CarMax for this post, and despite this being the third and fourth Mercedes covered in a row I gotta get it done. A very affordable badass Mercedes ML63 and an even more affordable and well equipped ML550 have been on and off the CarMax website for days, and I have been unable to catch them on the web on the same day for a post – so here it is anyway. Let’s start with the ML63 AMG, even though it’s not currently available I have not gotten the CarMax update that it’s gone.
This 2013 ML63 AMG (I think) was offered for $35-37,000. Fairly loaded with auto cruise control (Distronic Plus), seat massagers, heated and air conditioned seats, upgraded Bang & Olufsen audio – there’s a lot of luxury in the cabin. On the outside some slick running boards and black wheels. But that’s not why you want this SUV.
You want the ML63 because of its hand built, 5.5 liter 518 hp AMG motor. That, along with AWD and an adjustable suspension turn this family hauler into an SUV racer. Motor Trend turned a 4.8 second 0-60 mph run. And it’s got a tow hitch, if you need to ring along your cigarette boat. Admittedly, this SUV is a one accident vehicle, that drives down the price. But it sold new for just under $100,000 and is now a third that. Find this three owner 2013 Mercedes ML63 AMG here in Kansas City, Missouri. Hope it comes back on the market!
The Mercedes CL-class became the S-coupe in 2014, but it’s the same premise; an S-class from the (missing) B-pillar forward in every way. The 2010 CL coupe is the same as my 2010 S-class (S600) for the driver and passenger. At $24,998 there’s a ton of luxury in this unicorn at a bargain price. Again, room in the wallet for MaxCare I would not do without. Thanks to reader Cannon for alerting me to this beauty.
The CL550 has automated cruise control (Distronic Plus), air conditioned and heated seats, seat massagers, a heated steering wheel, AWD, and the cool (but totally unnecessary) night vision assist. CarMax gives it a 9 out of 10 on the features and yet I cannot think of what it does not have.
Okay, it doesn’t have a rear seat to speak of, similar to the CLS63 I covered yesterday. It’s about the driver and passenger. It has a filthy engine bay (shame on you CarMax) with a 5.5 liter V-8 that makes only 382 hp – adequate but not even close to the 500+ in the CLS63 AMG. But not everyone is a horsepower hog like me and most will find this plenty good for a luxury cruiser. The CL550 is a unique alternative to the CLS63, and $13,000 cheaper! Find this two owner, accident free car here in Fort Bend, Texas.
Going to keep this short since CarMax unicorns keep showing up and disappearing on their website faster than I can get to them. What we have here is a low mileage (40,000) 2012 Mercedes CLS63 for a really decent price. Leaves spare change for mandatory MaxCare. It sold new for maybe $95,000 and maybe more. I cannot tell if it has the far more expensive Performance Package – the red calipers suggest it might. What say ye, readers?
For $38k you get a luxury four door, four passenger coupe with a 5.5 liter, 518 hp turbocharged motor, adjustable suspension, and auto cruise control (Distronic Plus). Perfect for stop light launches and highway cruising. Car and Driver claims a crazy 3.8 second 0-60mph run here. But wait! There’s more!
The car is pretty much the same as an E63, although the coupe design limits interior room a bit. But it has seat massagers, heated and air conditioned seats, blind spot monitors, lane departure, rear view camera, and Bluetooth. Not bad. Hard to go wrong with a car like this! I like gold cars – reinforces the idea of “driving rich”! Find it here in Irvine, California.
My plan to be faithful to my blog and sell Etta, my 2008 Porsche 911 unicorn, to either a blog reader or auto enthusiast who wanted a starter 911 with another two years and 15,000 miles of MaxCare protection has fallen apart. I turned the 911 in to Intersport Performance, the 911 specialists nearby in Ashburn, Virginia to do the 60,000 mile service and detail the car in preparation for putting it up for sale, and lo and behold they made me an offer I could not refuse. The car sold for $6,000 less than I paid for it. No doubt it is worth more, and I’ll cringe when I see what it’s offered for on Intersport’s web site. But the sale was immediate and painless. And I have another car being transferred in.
I was soooo happy to buy my 2008 Porsche 911 three years ago. It was my wife’s idea. She said I’d always wanted one, and I wasn’t getting any younger. I should buy a 911 while I could still get in and out of one. Here’s the whole saga. It was a good buy at $34,998. Only one or two 911’s have been offered by CarMax for less than $40,000 since. I paid $2,999 for MaxCare – $50 deductible and good until 75,000 miles. The 911 had just under 34,000 miles when I bought it. I had Intersport do a PPO when I bought it and they found $2,000 in service that had not been done, and CarMax immediately remedied. Repairs at CarMax using MaxCare totalled $4,100, and included replacing the serpentine belts and water pump belt, inner and outer tie rods, hood and trunk supports, ignition coil screws and spark plugs, the known Porsche issue of a bad factory battery cable (11 hours of labor- $1200!), power regulator, and one of my favorites – replace the crappy Porsche cup holders at a cost of $285 – CarMax broke them during other service work! My first service I did at a Porsche dealer thinking it would be smart to baseline the car at a dealer, at a cost of $648 – and turns out it was just an oil change. I was a fool. The next one I did at Intersport was $250. I replaced the rock hard summer tires with all seasons for $950 and dramatically improved the ride. The brake pads and rotors were replaced within the first year at a local Goodyear shop for $1,124. I spent another $700 last week doing the 60,000 mile service in preparation to sell the car, including some make fluid swaps like rear differential, brakes flush, and power steering flush. I had hoped to demonstrate my good faith to the next buyer by going all in on service. A little bittersweet to do all of that at Intersport and then have them make me an offer on the car I just paid them to prep…for them! But it was all fair. Unfortunately, Intersport declined to transfer the MaxCare plan. Fortunately, for the first time I tested CarMax’s MaxCare refund policy for the unused portion. CarMax refunded $1,119 of the $2,999 I paid. Once again, the $1,880 net cost of MaxCare was far less than the $4,100 cost of repairs. I stand by MaxCare as a bargain for high end cars that are expensive to fix. That said, maintenance costs were not insignificant, and writing this reminds me that it is terribly important when the car is eligible to be returned, to push CarMax to fix things like brakes and tires that may not be below the failure threshold, and are not covered by MaxCare, but will be expensive to do once you own the car.
I’ll have a cold Pilsner in Etta’s honor. She was my “starter” 911, thinking when I bought it I’d sell it without much loss if I hated it or trade up if I loved it. I loved it. Drove it hard sometimes and it handled and accelerated like nothing I’ve owned before. The only complaint I had was despite mounting all season tires, road noise was annoying. I’m cool with the terrific engine growl but tire drone was draining. I have test driven a 2015 911 (991.1) and the extra five inches of wheelbase made for a far more comfortable ride. I’d welcome the chance to own a later model 911 and that may or may not be in my future. At this time, CarMax has almost no 911’s! We shall see what’s next for the fleet.
I shared my 1,200 mile elk country drive here. But I also took a far shorter, but exhilarating romp through the Shenandoah mountains not too long ago that seemed designed for the Porsche 911. I read about this loop in Car and Driver magazine as an alternative to Skyline drive and thought I’d give it a try. Took Route 7W to Berryville then south on US 340 to Front Royal. From there eight miles west of Front Royal Virginia on SR 55 until the borough of Waterlick, and then a left on 678 Fort Valley Road. That’s when it got interesting.
The road is just west of the mountain spine and and has zero traffic through 28 miles of turns. Maybe a top speed of 60 mph here and there and some hard braking and accelerating but the field of view is always good and safe.
The road comes to a tee and a hard left onto Route 675 – Camp Roosevelt Rd. The turns are tighter and closer together for a fast 12 mile dash down the hill to Luray, home of Luray Caverns. Then it’s 17 miles through Shenandoah National Park up and through Thornton’s Gap to Sperryville. After all the hard driving, it was relaxing to return through 50 miles of rolling countryside to Gainesville – then highway home.
The Porsche 911 is just so engaging to drive even though it’s a base model with only 325hp. The most I’ve done in the car was 140 mph on a wide open I-95 down south, but the windy roads through the hills and mountains really gets the blood flowing. Pretty much anything will do 140 mph nowadays!
Goodbye Etta. I don’t know whether ownership costs were good or bad. I know that I first went to Le Mans in 1981 and watched these iconic sports cars go toe to toe with more modern machinery, and wanted to own one. Now I have, and it was everything I wanted it to be. I can confidently say I will own another. Maybe not my next unicorn, but I will own another. Thanks for taking this journey with me!
The word is out and several of you have written me about this. Seems too good to be true. But it is. I’ve booked my first 24 hour test drive for a Mercedes I have inbound. The test drive is limited to 150 miles. (The car will do 186 mph. Would be a hoot to max out mileage in 45-50 minutes!) And as I’ve written before, the customer has the most leverage to have repairs done that even MaxCare doesn’t cover during the return period. Plenty of time to get a PPO. Enjoy.
Happy New Year! Our first car for 2021. This 2019 Corvette ZR1 is not the first 755hp Corvette we’ve seen at CarMax (check out this Great Pumpkin from October 2020) but it is the most expensive at $129,998. In fact, it’s the most expensive unicorn ever offered by CarMax by a good $10,000. The ZR1 sold new for about the same price it’s offered here a year later. I prefer depreciation – this thing may appreciate! Special thanks to reader Cannon for bringing it to my attention!
Familiar C7 interior with an eight speed automatic. I like my interiors pre-stained for my coffee spillage.
It’s the fastest Corvette to date with a 2.8 second 0-60mph sprint and a top end of 212 mph. The Corvette team chief called this Corvette “the most we know how to do” according to this Car and Driver review. There will be faster C8’s for sure, but for now this LT5 supercharged 6.2 liter 755 hp V-8 is the bomb. With only 5,000 miles, like the October ZR1, it’s still under manufacturer warranty – but of course I would still spring for MaxCare and drive the snot out of it up to 150,000 miles. Well, I would if I fit. Corvettes don’t have the front seat room that my 911 has. So if you’re shorter than 6’4″ but your pants include deep pockets, your 2019 Corvette ZR1 chariot awaits here in Garland, Texas.
These are not them. The cars above are in fact the fleet of cars available at CarMax 18 months ago I covered here that reflected the 600+ horsepower club. A BMW 760, Audi S8, and a couple of GM products. (Since then there’s even been this monster 760hp Mustang GT500!). Anyway, when I covered the high-horsepower cars I wanted to write a piece on impressive high-output four cylinder unicorns – the 300+ horsepower club. And fate has dealt me a cruel Christmas, in that I’m down with Covid and need things to do while in solitary confinement (doing fine, thank you!). So why not take a moment to write about the seven CarMax unicorn models that top 300 horsepower from little four cylinder motors. Some may surprise you.
2018 Subaru WRX STI.
The granddaddy of these cars is the Subaru WRX STI. Not the fastest or best handling, but almost 20 years ago Subaru rolled out the Impreza WRX and a road ready rally car. The Impreza and WRX split in 2014, and the STI is the most potent Subaru you can buy at CarMax. Rumor has it the 2021/2022 WRX will pack a more powerful 400hp motor!
With a 2.5 liter 305hp engine and a six-speed manual transmission the car is good for a low-five second 0-60mph run. It’s AWD and yet Car and Driver was only able to eek out a 0.93 g lateral grip, far less than some of the hot hatches to follow. The car sold for maybe a hair under $40,000 new, and is offered here in Parker, Colorado – fittingly just an hour north of Pike’s Peak!
The upstart 2017 Honda Civic Type R
With a wacky but innovative three-pipe exhaust, a monster wing, and lots of scoops and wedges the Honda Civic Type R is hard to miss. The first Type R to make it to the US, the 2017 model debuted at $35,000 and seemed like a bargain for such high performance.
Red motor and red interior to remind you this is not your commuter Civic. With 306hp from a 2.0 liter turbo and a six-speed manual, the powertrain pulls this 3100 lb “sedan” to 60 mph in about five seconds flat. Some reviewers have gotten less. Here’s the Car and Driver review from 2017 where they gushed over the Type R entry into the US, and in a later test they were able to pull 1.02 lateral g’s on the skid pad. Impressive in that it’s only 2WD. It also comes with Apple CarPlay and automatic cruise control, if you just want a commuter. The car was $35,000 new and is now here in Richmond, Virginia almost at MSRP!
2017 Ford Focus RS
Sticking with hot hatches, but pivoting from Asia to Germany – here’s a badass Ford Focus RS, with a whopping 350 hp from a 2.3 liter turbo. Imported only from 2016-2018, the RS beast hit 60 mph in 4.6 seconds and ran all the way to a 165 mph top end.
The engine bay is pretty damned dull for such a hot car. The Ford was more expensive than the Subaru and the Honda, starting at $41,000. Car and Driver described the Focus RS as having “explosive takeoffs, all-wheel-drive grip, drift mode can unlock your inner Ken Block.” (I had to Google Ken Block. Rally driver. Now I know.) The Focus RS is also AWD. It also pulls more than 1 g in lateral grip. Unfortunately, CarMax doesn’t have any of the 2018 models available. With only 1,000 imported, and as the final year of production, would think there’s some collection value to them. Find this pretty Nitrous Blue model here in Birmingham, Alabama.
2017 Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG
My favorite I think, because it is the fastest and almost the most understated. The fins on the front fascia I could do without, and maybe the rear spoilers could go, and then it would just be an unassuming small sedan, right? A baby Benz that costs anywhere from $50-70,000 depending on options. But only $38,998 as the lease and factory warranty nears the end. Why is it so alluring?
The motor. This hand-built and autographed AMG 2.0 liter puts out a whopping 375 hp. With AWD and a seven speed dual clutch automatic it’ll do 0-60 in less than four seconds. Preposterous. It’ll also pull 1 g per Car and Driver, who loved everything about this Mercedes here except for its price tag – more than a C63 AMG with a beefy V-8. But it’s depreciated to match the price of the other four bangers. The CLA45 will run to a governed 155 mph, unless it has the AMG Dynamic Plus package, then it’ll top out at 167 mph. Enjoy this ruby red racer here in Norcross, Georgia.
2015 Ford Mustang Ecoboost
I really, really don’t want to like this Mustang but I do. And yet it confuses me. A real Mustang has a snarling V-8 and the 2015’s and up have the independent rear suspension that makes them handle nicely and this one is yellow, which I really dig, and it’s a six-speed manual. But it’s an itty bitty turbo four cylinder, the first in a Mustang since the SVO’s of the 80’s. A 2.3 liter turbo four pumping 310 hp, 10 more than the Mustang V-6. Sigh. (Okay full disclosure, I had a Merkur XR4ti once – also with a 2.3 liter 175 hp turbo Pinto motor like the SVO. Loved it.) Here’s the Car and Driver review of the automatic version of this Mustang.
But the Mustang only weighs 3,600 lbs (looks so much bigger and heavier!) and will still rip off a low five second 0-60 mph run. Maybe a half second off it’s V-8 kin, and yet it will sip 30 mpg on the highway. I have never heard one of these on the road and think I would be confused by a Mustang with a turbo whirr and hum. If you can get over that, it’s got a fine cockpit and a lotta style, and it’s the cheapest of the seven 300 hp four cylinder cars! This five year old Mustang is available here in East Haven, Connecticut.
2018 Volvo S90 Plug-In Hybrid T8 Inscription
This may be cheating. Technically a 2.0 liter four cylinder like the rest, but this big sedan is augmented by a 10.4-kWh Lithium-Ion electric motor. Together they make a massive 400 hp, the most in this group. That hybrid puts it in a sub-5 second 0-60 mph category, very fast for a frugal but luxurious car. Here’s the review from Motor1, where they described the Volvo as “efficiency done with style.”
This Volvo has the most handsome interior and by far the richest list of features. Apple CarPlay, auto cruise control, seat massagers, Bowers & Wilkins audio, it has it all. Surprisingly it sold for $82,000 new and just two years later it’s less than half that. A real bargain. I suspect this is the one car I could own and enjoy almost like my S600 for long distance cruising. But there is one deal breaker for me – it’s made in China. I’m not ready for that. If you are, it’s available here in Las Vegas, Nevada.
2018 Porsche 718 Cayman GTS
Last but not least, a real 365 hp four cylinder mid-engined sports car. A fourth generation Porsche Cayman flat four, going 2.5 liters. Oddly, it’s not as fast as the Mercedes CLA45 AMG at 4.1 seconds to 60 mph, but it will out handle and out class the Benz.
The interior is identical to the Boxster and the 911, as they have been since inception, and smartly appointed. The driving position is even better than my 997 911. I got a kick out of the engine bay photo – nothing to see here! Move along! Here’s the Car and Driver review from 2018. They were a little underwhelmed by the GTS compared to the S models but not unhappy with the car at all. Just unclear on the value. It was an $80,000 car when new just two years ago, and honestly has not depreciated hardly at all. At this price it really doesn’t make my unicorn cut, but it is a 300+ hp CarMax offering. Find it here in Houston, Texas.
So that wraps up all the 300+ hp four cylinder cars you can get at CarMax at this time. There are some oh so close bridesmaids that would be fun, such as the 292 hp Audi S3/VW Golf R, the 291 hp Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution GSR, and even the 263 hp Mazda3 Mazdaspeed. I do enjoy big motors, and yet some of the most fun cars I’ve had, including my 1971 Fiat 124 Spider and my old Ford Fiestas, have been four cylinders. None of them matched the 300 hp of these cars and yet still a pleasure to rev. Having 300 hp in these would be quite the hootenanny!
