Man Gets Online Appraisal From CarMax. Then He Tries To Trade His Nissan For A Hyundai: 'I’ve Seen It Happen So Often'

CarMax is often praised for offering top dollar for vehicle trade-ins. However, a car seller who goes by LongHairCarGuy (@longhaircarguy) on TikTok says that this isn’t always the case. In a recent post he shared online, he recounted a story about a customer who learned the hard way that CarMax's online appraisals aren’t always honored once reps inspect the car in person.

Nissan Driver Brings CarMax Appraisal To Trade For New Hyundai

"I had a customer come in and they were offering me a CarMax trade-in value, and they wanted me to match that offer," the man begins. "It all worked out. They ended up purchasing the car from us. That being said, what happened was … he was trading in his Nissan Pathfinder for a new Hyundai. Now, he came in and said, 'Hey I’ve gotten this offer from CarMax and, you know, if you match it or do better, I’ll purchase it [the Hyundai] right now.'"

He says he then asked the customer whether the CarMax appraisal was sight-unseen or the car had actually been inspected. As it turns out, it was the former. He says the customer assured him the online appraisal would be honored.

"I completely understand. You know, the problem with that is they say that, and when you get there, they end up decreasing the value they’re gonna give you for your vehicle," he says he told the customer.

He says he encouraged the buyer to try for himself, but the buyer was interested in seeing what LongHairCarGuy's dealership could offer him first. The salesman says he crunched the numbers, and the customer told him the offer was $3,000 less than what CarMax quoted him. 

This prompted him to head to a CarMax dealer to sell his vehicle, thinking it’d fetch a higher price. Before leaving, the TikToker tells the buyer that he understands but wants to keep him apprised of what he might "run into" at the CarMax location when he tries to sell his car.

Did CarMax Offer A Better Deal?

"So, he drives next door. He’s not gone 20 minutes and he’s back," the salesman says. "He’s like, 'Hey, man, they did exactly what you said they were gonna do. They decreased my trade-in value. You were all actually offering more than what they were gonna offer on the vehicle.'"

The TikToker says he responded, "Yeah man, it just happens so often that I try to give people a heads-up that these sight-unseen appraisals, they just don’t honor them."

The Long Hair Car Guy says that once folks head to wholesale car buyers like CarMax, reps there will "nitpick" customers to get the price down. They’ll scrutinize the body of the car, say that they need new tires and find other alleged faults with the vehicle to bring down their offer price.

He tells car buyers looking to maximize the value of their trade-ins to head to a CarMax or similar seller in person. This way, they’ll know for sure if they’re getting the most bang for their buck when it comes to selling their cars.

Does CarMax Honor Its Online Appraisals?

Folks who’ve handed their keys over to CarMax have had varying experiences with in-person reps honoring online appraisals. Motor1 previously reported on a woman who received a $17,000 quote for her Kia Forte GT. And after bringing it to CarMax, that’s exactly what she received.

In fact, some folks stated they received more money for their cars than they were initially quoted, like this Reddit user who posted in the site’s r/AskCarSales sub. They brought a 2019 Mazda CX-5 to the dealership and were given an offer of $28,400. This figure was higher than the online offer of $26,900.

That’s not to say that there weren’t folks who had issues with CarMax’s appraisal policies. Automoblog highlighted complaints from Better Business Bureau (BBB) users who echoed the sentiments voiced by LongHairCarGuy in his video.

One seller said that their nephew received an online valuation of $17,000 for their ride. However, when they brought the whip to a CarMax location, they were offered $2,500 less. Another said their $1,900 guaranteed trade-in amounted to only $500 once it was taken to CarMax. But in the same article, other BBB posters said that they were thoroughly satisfied with their CarMax trade-in experiences.

CarMax’s Appraisal Policy

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According to the used car retailer’s website, "if you have an online offer, you don’t need an additional in-store appraisal." However, the business does specify that appraisals could change once the car rolls onto its lot. CarMax says this is due to discrepancies in the car’s online listing. "We only adjust online offers if a car’s condition, use, or history differs from the information we received," the company’s FAQ page read.

Motor1 has reached out to LongHairCarGuy via text message and CarMax via email for further comment. We will update this story if either party reponds.

 

 

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