Tesla would not match my CarMax appraisal on M3

[ProphetM]

The only car I ever traded in to CarMax was very old. When we bought our Toyota Matrix there in 2012, we traded in a 1997 Subaru Legacy wagon. They offered us $700. Given that this car was 15 years old with 177,000 miles on it, and it had a worn out U-joint/driveshaft and transmission mount, I'd say it wasn't a bad deal. The engine ran solid but another timing belt replacement was due in 3,000 miles, and even without that, the worn out U-joint and driveshaft were one unit and replacement was more than the value of the car.

Thank you all for posting up your suggestions of where to sell. I have not had to do it since that purchase in 2012 and I see there are more options now than there used to be. I am making a list for when my turn comes up, as we will be getting rid of the Matrix when we get the Tesla.

 

[Darren Donovan]

Since Carmax low balls everything - of course Tesla would match a Carmax offer for any car other than Tesla. . . .

Why would anyone sell a car to Carmax?

I got a higher price selling my car to CarMax than to any other dealers, my friend had the same experience. We did not try private sale, though.

 

[GadgetGeek407]

So as someone who owns a used car dealership and has attended many Carmax auctions among others, Carmax does not retail Tesla vehicles, in fact here in Orlando, they take all their Tesla trades and drop them off to Tesla, its an agreement they have where they are an official Tesla trade in center. Also because the location here is super small.

On to the values, the reality as most have pointed is that each one of these dealers including myself is in it to make a profit, some more then others. The traditional franchise dealers give crazy low numbers because most of them and their buyers are not as savvy as us fanboys to know the details and features of these vehicles. So often when they are looking at book out prices, the extra options mean nothing to them.

It is always preferred to sell your car on your own to maximize value, however some people just do not have the time or patience and woudl rather get less and be done in one shot, this is where the dealers come in.

 

[brkaus]

Off topic - but the title reminds me of the pop-up ads I regularly see.

“Texas drivers save money with NEW Rule”

The fine print says ...

THIS IS AN ADVERTISEMENT AND NOT AN ACTUAL NEWS ARTICLE, BLOG, OR CONSUMER PROTECTION UPDATE

*Clarification of the advertising headline "New Rule in Texas". - Merriam-Webster's Dictionary defines the word "rule" as "a piece of advice about the best way to do something" (Definition of RULE). This article aims to advise the public that comparing rates is one of the best ways that you can save money on car insurance.

 

[Mulligan Jake]

Carvana is another option. They gave me the best price on my S out of any other of those types of places.

Thank you so much. Until your post I was not familiar with Carvana. Turns out Carvana is located just a few miles from Tesla in Jacksonville. Carvana gave me $2970 more than CarMax offer which was $2600 more than Tesla. Thanks again,

 

[MMHouston]

Thank you so much. Until your post I was not familiar with Carvana. Turns out Carvana is located just a few miles from Tesla in Jacksonville. Carvana gave me $2970 more than CarMax offer which was $2600 more than Tesla. Thanks again,

I’m trying the online route with Carvana. It’s been 2 days and I haven’t heard back. I’m still waiting on Tesla too.

Vroom offered me $4k more than CarMax.

 

[turtlesz]

Look at shift and vroom. They were giving me $4000 more then CarMax offer

 

[ohmman]

mod note: title amended for accuracy.

 

[OmahaG8]

I have a slightly different problem.

I have a 2015 Sonata Limited that CarMax gave me an offer of 14k. Delivery specialist kept telling me to skip the Tesla offer and get him the CarMax offer asap.

So I send him the offer on 9/1 - I’m set to take delivery tomorrow or Thursday. Sends me an email today with an offer from Tesla of 8k.

Called him back immediately explaining I was confused, and that he had told me CarMax offers are honored, and that descrency is a bit high. He said he’d look into it and call me back and that was 2 hours ago.

Soooo. Awesome. Would have been nice if he’d done anything with my offer during the CarMax one week grace period, since he sent me multiple emails asking for it. Not super pleased at the moment. Hoping it shakes out as promised.

 

[MXWing]

mod note: title amended for accuracy.

M3 in title should actually be MS60 @ohmman

OP was trying to trade in a Model S 60 for a Model 3.

I am not a BMW loyalist but it also bothers me that Tesla owners abbreviate Model 3 as M3 but I digress.

 

[Dana1]

Selling a 4 year old car for a Model 3, the Tesla offer came in at $2k lower (~7%) than the CarMax offer. Tesla agreed to match it with CarMax, and the final paperwork from Tesla showed CarMax price after sending in the appraisal. Tesla ended up missing my delivery date (called me 6 hours before delivery, after arrangements were made to be there), but I'm told that while they figure out the issues with the car they'll honor the trade.

Had the car listed on eBay, got an offer for $2k over CarMax offer, but with the tax savings with Tesla matching, it's a wash. KBB instant cash offer was equal to Tesla offer (get ready for plenty of phone calls & emails from dealers after submitting with KBB). Took a look based on some items here and Carvana came out on top (about $1500 higher than highest eBay offer) because of some local pricing adjustments to the KBB number. Not fully decided what to do now, somewhat concerned that despite what was said on the phone, there'll be some issues at trade-in as the CarMax offer will be out of date and there'll be some more miles put on the car.

Sell it and rent an inexpensive car. Your company or bank might have discount codes for an upgraded car class.