Car Max Laurel Toyota & Scion

I needed a new timing belt / water pump on my Camry and shopped around for a reasonable price. Carmax Toyota was able to do the job at around $250 lower than another Toyota dealership, and even less than an aftermarket mechanic! They took me the same day, offered a personalized shuttle service, got the job done in record time, and even did some extra work for me at no charge. Everyone was super-courteous and helpful! They've won me over.

I bought my Toyota Camry 2002 BRAND NEW from Carmax in Jan 2002. It has been a constant headache, from electrical problems to parts just needing replacement. Carmax says my 5 yr old Camry with 100,000 miles needs a new transmission ($5k). Two additional opinions later (certified Toyota dealers), no new transmission is needed, & I'm told the mechanics who put transmission fuel in my car were using the WRONG TYPE! That's just ONE of the many service problems I have had w/Carmax. Don't say I didn't warn you!

So I went to carmax expecting quality. I unfortunately tried to forget past dealings with them, test driving vechiles with problems with lights, and inlaws who constantly had their cars in the shop, and gave them the benifit of the doubt. So we went and bought a used camry, on the high end of the price scale. The fuel gauge was broken and their were electrical probelms in the car (110 point inspection ????) so we returned it. After a month, many hours on the phone and a letter congradulating us on our "puchase" we finally got our refund. My words of advise: YOU ARE NO BETTER AT CARMAX THEN ANY OTHER DEALER, SO SAVE YOUR MONEY AND BUY A CHEAPER CAR SOMEWHERE ELSE!

When I was looking to buy my 2004 Toyota Corolla I tried the local dealerships and wasn't impressed buy the badgering and haggling. I went to CarMax and loved the "No Haggle" pricing. I went to their website, found the car I liked, and walked into their show room with a print-out. The sales rep made sure the car was on the lot and let me look at it. I walked out with a brand new car within an hour. I also drove off the lot with hard tags. Simple and painless.

We bought our Scion tC at Carmax Laurel and had no problems. They had us in and out in no time at all, and the no-haggle pricing was convenient because we knew exactly how much we and everyone else would be paying for the car. They also offered a $400 college grad rebate, and all you had to do was bring in your diploma.

PROS: Helpful customer service
CONS:

Carmax Toyota makes it very easy to purchase a car. Their no haggle pricing takes away the hassle of trying to negotiate a low price for your vehicle and in my experience Carmax had the lowest price. The salesman was very knowledge about the vehicle and at no time during the purchase process did he push me to purchase any extras or the extended warranty.

My girlfriend's car was totalled a few months ago and in her research she visited this CarMax to look at a few cars. The salesman was very nice and was never pushy. He took all her information, pre-authorized her, and wasn't bothered when we told him we'd have to think about it.

I ended up getting my minivan here. It was a relax and hassle free experience and I was willing to pay over $500 above the invoice price. I have two children and there is huge play area for them to be enterian. When I went in and the car did not have the color I wanted. We were able to put a hold on the color of vehicle and as promised in the next shippment in two weeks. The sales person called us and we just did the necessary paperwork in less than two hours and we were off.

PROS: No hassle, sales people are really nice
CONS: Limited selection on the color of the minivan

I've been to Carmax Toyota a couple of times and I always get the feeling they'll rip me off, if I shop there.

Their answers are never clear and definite. They say they are the biggest, but they seem never to have anything in stock.
They could ramp up there customer service by ensuring the customer is completely satisfied even after they have left the place.

I have received better customer service from other dealerships that I haven't visited but called onthe phone.
They don't bargain, yet their prices are high enough to allow for some haggling.

PROS: supposedly a really big dealership
CONS: no haggling, okay customer service