CarMax

1. Headlight - When we were going over the final checklist for the purchase of car, we noticed one of the headlights was not working. We found this to be pretty amusing as the salesman told us that no one does the check list before purchasing. My wife said I want to test everything out and sure enough the first thing we checked, did not function. SALESGUY told us that they might have one in stock but they would definitely take care of it. There was actually another gold Subarau Tribeca at the lot on the time and he tried to grab the bulb out of that one. He informed me that it was too difficult and they would have to order one. It took 2 days for them to get the bulb and they replaced so it was functioning. After a few weeks, we noticed that one of the headlights started getting water/condensation inside of the lens. I called yesterday (10/17) to ask them which headlight was touched when they replaced the bulb. The lady in service informed me that they did not know which one (after being on hold for 10 minutes). She asked me which light was having the issue and I refused to tell her which one. I felt like that was a question so you guys could say you replaced the other one. I know which light was replaced and I know it is the same light leaking. She told me that they would only change the bulb and would not touch the actual lens of the light. I am skeptical of this due to the salesman telling me it was too tough for him to switch out. I asked that the service department fax me a copy of the work order for this fix.

UPDATE: Taken back into the service department and they fixed the leak. Apparently the bulb was installed incorrectly and this caused a leak in the headlight.

2. Rubber Door Siding - When we test-drove the car and decided to make the purchase, we noticed that there were only 3 rubber siding pieces on the doors. There was one missing on the driver-side rear door. We spoke with the salesman, SALESGUY, and he informed us that they would get a 4th piece to make the car look uniform. So we thought this would be a non-issue for the vehicle. After the car was purchased, the tune seemed to change. The service department told me that they didn't have a 4th rubber siding so there was nothing they could do. They told us we could take off the 3 other pieces so the car would look uniform. I told them it wasn't acceptable. They told me that they were going to have to order a whole roll of the rubber piping so that the 4th piece could be replaced. I believe this took 3 days for the service department to complete. I have attached pictures of the 4th piece that was slapped on the car. Does it look uniform? They had told me that sometimes it is hard to match the piping exactly. I assumed that this meant they would replace all 4 of them. When I look at the other 3, it is clear that this is different.

UPDATE: I told Carmax not to worry about this since I am better off dealing with it myself. Does this really warrant 2 attempts?

3. Paint Scratch - After test-driving the vehicle and deciding to make the purchase, we noticed the scratch on rear door. We showed SALESGUY, this scratch and he informed us that it would be no problem and it will be taken care of. Again, after dealing with sales department, we thought this would be another non-issue. The scratch is about 1-1.5 inches long and is not very deep. At the time of purchase, it was clearly a scratch where some silver could be seen through the car (metal?). We go to pick up the car after a voicemail telling us the vehicle is ready. When we get there, we notice the scratch hasn't been dealt with. We were told that they were unaware this needed to be fixed. So we leave the dealership and wait until the next night. We speak with NIGHTPEON that evening and he shows us the car. We see that the scratch has not been fixed. He agrees with us and informs us of a 5 (or 6) foot rule for cosmetic issues. He said if it can be seen past that distance, it has not been fixed up to their standards. He informs us that he will talk to the service department and make sure it is fixed. The next morning I receive a voicemail from Matt in service, telling me to pick up the vehicle. I called him back and told him that we saw the vehicle last night and it was not up to par. I guess he was unaware that we had spoke with NIGHTPEON the night before and that it was going to be fixed better. I made a phone call to our salesman, SALESGUY, on this day as well. I informed him about the issues regarding the scratch. He went and looked at the car and agreed with us that it did not look up to standard. He also informed me that he had scratched the fix off himself so that they would have to fix it another time. Matt in service was telling me that the vehicle was complete up to standards and nothing was going to get fixed. I think this is why SALESGUY went to mess up the fix. We go pick up the car the next night and again the scratch can be seen from outside the 5-6 foot distance. At this time, NIGHTPEON informs us that we can go back to the lot and pick a different car because the scratch is fixed as good as they are doing it. I have attached a picture of what the scratch looks like now. The sticker is ripped due to them trying to fix the scratch and it looks 10x worse than it did at time of test-drive.

UPDATE: The car was brought back for a touch-up and it looks like they didn’t have someone from the local elementary school do the touch-up. It has held up through the car washes and looks somewhat decent. I plan to have it done professionally when it starts to deteriorate.

4. Air Conditioning - About 2 weeks into having the car, we start to notice a mildew smell in the car every morning. On a weekend trip with my wife, she noticed the front passenger seat floor was filling up with water. We found this out by picking up her expensive purse and finding it soaking wet. I had heard a sound everytime I made a turn in the vehicle. I thought it sounded like a motor but after talking with SERVICEGUY1, we thought it was the sound of water in overflow tank. I brought the vehicle in for this to be fixed. SERVICEGUY1 told me that the A/C drain was clogged with mildew and it needed to be flushed. Since this was clogged, the condensation from the A/C was filling up in tank and overflowing into my car. This explains the filthiness of this water. They flushed the system out and I picked up the car. About 2 weeks after this fix, the auto-button on the A/C has started working intermittently. Sometimes you hit AUTO and it shows max speed on the digital reader but no air comes out. I would say it is about a 50/50 chance that A/C will turn on when you would like if you use the AUTO button. I called SERVICEGUY1 about this issue about 2 weeks back and he told me to take the vehicle to their service department. He told me that it shouldn't have anything to do with their fix. He said he was going on vacation that next week but to still bring it in for them to determine if there was a correlation. I also told him why they didn't replace the mat or at least clean it since my car has smelt like mildew every day since. He told me that sometimes they send stuff down to Ft Lauderdale to get the smell out. He agreed with my that when those mats get wet, they are ruined but I said I would be happy if the smell just left the car. I don't want to spend $10/monthly on air fresheners for the life of the car. Why was it not sent down there in the first place? I deserved the vacuum and leave mats in the sun for a few hours service?

UPDATE: I brought the car in for them to fix this. They told me it was the motor that was broken but they don’t want to go ahead and fix it. After seeing all of the scratches and panel damage they did when looking at motor, I have decided the $275 repair isn’t worth having them touch the car. After spending countless nights at the store/service department, it isn’t worth the breath. I dealt with the Corporate Customer Service Department and they told me the same thing the store told me (after 2 weeks of having to call for updates because they couldn’t get a hold of the Boynton Beach store…are you surprised?).

For you guys to fix the scratch, headlight, and rubber piping - we waited almost a week to pick the car up. It looked like work orders were not even opened on a timely basis. We purchased car at 7PM on Sunday night and the car didn't have a WO opened up until 2PM the next day. My salesman told me that I would have the car by lunch the next day. If the piping did not come in, we understood we may have to bring the car back for it to be put on (or us to just pick up and install ourselves). We were asked if we wanted a loaner on Sunday night and we politely declined. We thought no reason for paperwork and waste your guys time if we would have the car by lunchtime. On Tuesday night when we went to pick up the car, it was not ready. We requested a loaner at this time and NIGHTPEON told us we couldn't have one. It seems like you guys are cutting corners (probably due to the economy) but we shopped at your location because it's supposed to be no haggle. We are getting a car that has gone through a 125-point inspection and we don't have to argue on price. We liked your business model and that's why we shopped at Carmax. I would think this inspection would find some of these issues? At least the headlight? Matt told me A/C drain isn't part of inspection but it is very common with cars in Florida that sit for a bit.

We understand that we purchased a used car. This is not a brand new car and we understand that. However, we feel like everything you guys touch causes more problems for us. Each of these 4 issues still have an issue with them. We have clashed with the service department and some of the employees in your location. We are at the point where we don't trust the work done at the establishment. I am hoping we can find a different service center for these issues to be handled. I think the only saving grace here is that the car is only a 2008 with 24k miles on it. I can be reached via cell phone at XXX-XXX-XXX.

UPDATE: DO NOT BELIEVE THE CARMAX IDEAS! You are much better off buying a car from a used car dealer that is reputable. They will stand by their car better than this. Carmax could care less about one customer, as they want VOLUME. A dealer wants you to come back and buy their next car from them. Carmax hopes you become desperate and have to buy from them since they hold such a huge inventory. I will never give them another CENT of business and I recommend everyone else do the same. Don’t believe what the sales guy tells you at this store because it will not be backed up. BOYCOTT CARMAX!