CarMax Nissan Leaf observation

I uncovered a very interesting trend on the leaf at the carmax website that i would like a opinion on. Carmax is a real convenient way to buy a used car, but have always been more expensive than buying from a private owner. If you check the kbb private party value of a car at carmax, they are usually 2500 to 4k over that price at carmax. They have a huge mark up for the peace of mind and ease of buying from them. I checked some leafs instead of the corolla, camry and civics that were 2500 to 4k more than a private owner. The 2011 leafs that i checked on carmax.com were 12k to 14k range which seemed low for carmax. I checked the kbb private party value, expecting it to be around 9k and saw that kbb private party value good condition and carmax's price were the same, which was shocking.

You can actually buy a leaf from carmax for the same price you would from a private owner with the peace of mind knowing it hasnt been wrecked and a huge supply to choose from. the only real extra cost is the sales tax, but if you live in a place that just doesnt have leafs, its a minor cost when you count the gas savings.
anyone have any idea why the leaf is the only car they sell that doesnt have the 3k mark up that every other car they sell has.

I would guess that CarMax didn't have much luck selling the Leaf with their typical markup. You can't charge what the market won't bear, not if you expect to actually sell the thing.

It's still a niche car and even new doesn't exactly have people pounding on the door to get one. Not all Nissan dealers sell the Leaf and a few have even let their Leaf certifications lapse, so even among Nissan dealers it's hardly a must-have product.

Hmm... you're right. They have a 2013 loaded SL for 20 grand near me, and KBB lists private party good condition as 18 grand. 2 grand over BB private party is actually pretty reasonable for buying from a dealer with a pretty good reputation. Gonna remember this when my lease is up...

pkulak said:

Hmm... you're right. They have a 2013 loaded SL for 20 grand near me, and KBB lists private party good condition as 18 grand. 2 grand over BB private party is actually pretty reasonable for buying from a dealer with a pretty good reputation. Gonna remember this when my lease is up...

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i was only looking at the 2011 sl since they are the only trim that has the QC port. 2013 is too new. i like to go as old as i can on the leaf to get the most depreciation.maybe carmax is cheaper on 2011 over the 2013 because people are worried about the battery, but with the warranty for 60k miles, a used 2011 leaf is the best deal going. also, Could it be that im in vegas and the cars are coming from cali which has a 2500 tax credit. what state are you in. One thing is for sure, you can buy a new leaf in cali with 10k in deductions so a used one has to be a discount or people will buy new.

I just priced a 2015 S with qc package and its about 31k. thats 23500 after the tax credit. 18 to 20k still seems high when you can buy new for 23.
This 2011 SL leaf with qc port from carmax is 12,998. Thats a great deal would you say.
http://www.carmax.com/enus/view-car/default.html?id=11152987&AVi=13&No=0&Rp=R&D=90&zip=89146&N=4294963090+4294961839&Us=14&Q=cd6dfcdd-1dcb-4c06-a1d2-e62a1742c0a5&Ep=search:results:results%20page" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

When I was looking to buy an end of production RAV4 EV the Toyota dealer did not want my Leaf SL. They recommended going to Carmax. I was quoted 17K for a 2013 SL premium with 7500 miles. Needles to say, I will stay a Leaf owner.

The appraiser said that the Leaf resale value was so bad that they had been burned in the past!

GlennD said:

When I was looking to buy an end of production RAV4 EV the Toyota dealer did not want my Leaf SL. They recommended going to Carmax. I was quoted 17K for a 2013 SL premium with 7500 miles. Needles to say, I will stay a Leaf owner.

The appraiser said that the Leaf resale value was so bad that they had been burned in the past!

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im kind of excited that i can buy a leaf for under 13k now from a great dealer like carmax. looks like i will keep saving and pay cash for one. my Elio wont be ready for at least 18 months, so it looks like the leaf for me.

They also have a 30 day return on all their cars and this would negate the effect of a savvy buying and the BSM issue. Also, they are buying these cars from an auction, so the price they are selling it for also comes with some markup.

evboy said:

i was only looking at the 2011 sl since they are the only trim that has the QC port. 2013 is too new. i like to go as old as i can on the leaf to get the most depreciation.maybe carmax is cheaper on 2011 over the 2013 because people are worried about the battery, but with the warranty for 60k miles, a used 2011 leaf is the best deal going. also, Could it be that im in vegas and the cars are coming from cali which has a 2500 tax credit. what state are you in. One thing is for sure, you can buy a new leaf in cali with 10k in deductions so a used one has to be a discount or people will buy new.

I just priced a 2015 S with qc package and its about 31k. thats 23500 after the tax credit. 18 to 20k still seems high when you can buy new for 23.
This 2011 SL leaf with qc port from carmax is 12,998. Thats a great deal would you say.
http://www.carmax.com/enus/view-car/default.html?id=11152987&AVi=13&No=0&Rp=R&D=90&zip=89146&N=4294963090+4294961839&Us=14&Q=cd6dfcdd-1dcb-4c06-a1d2-e62a1742c0a5&Ep=search:results:results%20page" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

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If I buy another Leaf, I want leather and the premium package, and the 2013 things like heat pump and relocated charger. That's $30,000 MSRP after the $7,500 credit (nothing else in Oregon). So, $10,000 off in a year and a half seems good to me.

pkulak said:

evboy said:

i was only looking at the 2011 sl since they are the only trim that has the QC port. 2013 is too new. i like to go as old as i can on the leaf to get the most depreciation.maybe carmax is cheaper on 2011 over the 2013 because people are worried about the battery, but with the warranty for 60k miles, a used 2011 leaf is the best deal going. also, Could it be that im in vegas and the cars are coming from cali which has a 2500 tax credit. what state are you in. One thing is for sure, you can buy a new leaf in cali with 10k in deductions so a used one has to be a discount or people will buy new.

I just priced a 2015 S with qc package and its about 31k. thats 23500 after the tax credit. 18 to 20k still seems high when you can buy new for 23.
This 2011 SL leaf with qc port from carmax is 12,998. Thats a great deal would you say.
http://www.carmax.com/enus/view-car/default.html?id=11152987&AVi=13&No=0&Rp=R&D=90&zip=89146&N=4294963090+4294961839&Us=14&Q=cd6dfcdd-1dcb-4c06-a1d2-e62a1742c0a5&Ep=search:results:results%20page" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

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If I buy another Leaf, I want leather and the premium package, and the 2013 things like heat pump and relocated charger. That's $30,000 MSRP after the $7,500 credit (nothing else in Oregon). So, $10,000 off in a year and a half seems good to me.

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the 2013 you looked at on carmax has all those things you are looking for. you mind posting a link from them so i can see what it looks like with all those features. also, do you think the republicans will get rid of the 7500 incentive next year when they take over congress. i know obama can veto but they might make a deal. these prices im looking at wont last if they get rid of the 7500.

Sure thing:

http://goo.gl/uwJSrU" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have no idea what congress is going to do though! I imagine GM would throw one hell of a fit if they got rid of the incentive. And I doubt GM would be refreshing the Volt next year if they thought there was a good chance of the incentive going away and them not selling more than a dozen of them. haha

pk,it looks like you were mistaken on your kbb value.its not 18k. its 19,777 good condition private party value. you might want to recheck it. I just checked it. i put 9k miles 2013 sl with bose and back up camera. i didnt even check the premium package because i dont know if it has it. your car is also selling for no mark up over buying from private party. pretty cool.

pkulak said:

Sure thing:

http://goo.gl/uwJSrU" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have no idea what congress is going to do though! I imagine GM would throw one hell of a fit if they got rid of the incentive. And I doubt GM would be refreshing the Volt next year if they thought there was a good chance of the incentive going away and them not selling more than a dozen of them. haha

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If they are selling this for 20K then the 17K they offered for mine falls in line. It is a good thing I love my Leaf! It sure is not worth much. I think Nissan is going to eat it big in 2016 when I return this lease.

evboy said:

pk,it looks like you were mistaken on your kbb value.its not 18k. its 19,777 good condition private party value. you might want to recheck it. I just checked it. i put 9k miles 2013 sl with bose and back up camera. i didnt even check the premium package because i dont know if it has it. your car is also selling for no mark up over buying from private party. pretty cool.

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You're right! I didn't notice the miles. And this one has premium (back up camera and Bose).

I suspect that some of the Leafs you are seeing at CarMax were original leased as new cars from CarMax. Some CarMax dealers (in particular the one in MD) are also new car dealers for Nissan. The 2011's I see listed are likely lease returns.

I would love to see what my old i-MiEV went for at auction. The lease residual was $24K (!) when a new one (after tax incentives) was $12K. Ally took a bath on that car. :lol:

My current car, a 2015 LEAF S, was $20K "used" with only 245 miles. The population at large (what I call "the Walmart crowd") just isn't ready for EVs, huh?

The electric utilities (lobby) need EVs. It's about the only method they have to increase power consumption They include to coal lobby, as a common electric generation fuel. Don't lose sleep over this going away.

Jedlacks said:

They also have a 30 day return on all their cars and this would negate the effect of a savvy buying and the BSM issue. Also, they are buying these cars from an auction, so the price they are selling it for also comes with some markup.

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I think you are thinking of the warranty.

"5-Day Money-Back Guarantee†
30-Day Limited Warranty (60-Day in CT, 90-Day in MA and NY)†"

btw, i called nissan and they said if the bars go to 7 or 8 bars, and they stick it on the machin, and it says pass with over 70% capacity then you dont get it fixed.I thought if it goes below 9, its automatic. looks like the bars arent as reliable as we thought. does anyone have any experience or know how this works.

aarond12 said:

I would love to see what my old i-MiEV went for at auction. The lease residual was $24K (!) when a new one (after tax incentives) was $12K. Ally took a bath on that car. :lol:

My current car, a 2015 LEAF S, was $20K "used" with only 245 miles. The population at large (what I call "the Walmart crowd") just isn't ready for EVs, huh?

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there are 4 at carmax. you can buy a 2012 with 5k miles for 12,600. btw, why would you buy that turd on 4 wheels.
http://www.carmax.com/search?ASc=0&D=90&zip=89146&N=4294963090+285+4294963114+4294961536&Us=14&Q=cd6dfcdd-1dcb-4c06-a1d2-e62a1742c0a5&Ep=search:results:results%20page" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Well, they show 259 used LEAF's on their site in the U.S. but only 7 within 50 miles of my home zip ... selling prices ranged from $14,998 to $17,599 (2 - 2013 and 4 - 2012; none with more than 17K miles). We only saw 2011's with the Cold Package as dealer demo's out this way so it appears they didn't truck in anything.