A 2006 Toyota Corolla from Carmax

Published about 1 year ago

I spent the afternoon at CarMax today to buy a used Toyota Corolla and the process went very well.

It started with a phone call where I applied for and was approved for a loan to purchase a car from them, after which I traveled to their showroom for a test drive. I viewed a 2006 Corolla S with 45,000 on it for $14,000, and I test drove the car. It was in great condition, with a little interior wear and tear.

For some reason, I thought the price was $13,500, and when I asked the salesperson about it, he found that another Corolla had its price recently dropped to $13.5k, but not the red one. Surprise! I asked about the one with the price drop, and ended up liking it much better.

So in the end I traded in my 2005 Toyota Corolla with 75,000 miles on it for a 2006 Toyota Corolla with 25,000 miles on it. Sure, I will pay several thousand dollars more to procure the transaction, but overall I'm extremely pleased with how it all went down.

For financing, I chose Capital One. They had the second best rate, second only to Wells Fargo, which had a tiny bit better rate, but which required a lot more paperwork.

The sales process is very low-key. It was different than previous experiences I've had buying cars - definitely more convenient, not-necessarily more affordable. Honestly though, I'm better at working with computers than I am at buying cars, so I think I'll stick to my knitting!

Really the best part of Carmax, in my opinion, is the convenience and efficiency of their operations. Where else can one find so many vehicles to choose from, so many financing options, and easy trades - all available with such efficiency?