Jamil Rd off Piney Grove Rd from I 26 Visited recently for purposes of car appraisal, first time in at least 10 years since I purchased car from lot. I like that they have all the different brands on lot, that can have vehicles shipped in nationwide for minimum fees. I do not necessarily like that the prices are firm with no negotiation or haggling. This goes for the appraisal too, they come back with one price and that's it. It's probably personal preference but I prefer a little wiggle room vs none. The inside of the building is unchanged from last visit except there are no cubicles only lots of desks. The entire floor showroom is just desks many more than employees it is not a great look. The use to have actual cars in the showroom, this is what looks better IMO. I don't think I will use Car Max in the future, there are better deals at dealers or any other named online Car seller site. read more

I'm rating the car buying experience at Car Max. I've worked in the car business and I don't mind negotiating, but the CarMax experience is easily the most pleasant and least stressful experience I've come across. There isn't negotiation. Everything is in front of you and it's spelled out clearly. One of the benefits of buying from here is the ease of finding the vehicle you are looking for before you even step foot on the lot. You can walk the lot if you prefer, but CM makes it so easy to find your car before you even come down. You can complete the entire process online and have the vehicle delivered, or you can reserve a vehicle and test drive it on the lot. You can walk in and meet a salesperson who will help you find your car. They have a ton of vehicles available and you can select from any location to your local store for a fee. Some ship for free. Matthew B was very thorough and showed us a bunch of vehicles. He then helped us find our choice of vehicle and we paid to ship to our store. We drove the vehicle and bought it when it arrived. The sales person gets paid a flat commission so it doesn't matter what vehicle you choose. They won't try to upsell you. Whether you buy a Chevy or a Mercedes, they are paid the same. They are genuinely interested in finding the right car for you. From the test drive to leaving the dealership in our new vehicle was a little over two hours. There was no stress, no going back and forth. What you get is an appropriately priced vehicle of your choosing. I do recommend the pre-qualification, which you can do online. It's pretty accurate and prepares you for what you can expect. You can purchase MaxCare with every vehicle. That's really the only add-on. I recommend if you're buying a higher mileage vehicle. They do a comprehensive inspection and they fix any issues before you even test drive. They also post pictures of any discrepancies online. Every vehicle comes with a three-month 4,000 mile warranty. I would absolutely recommend them and will likely purchase my next vehicle from them. read more

Really great place to buy a car! I had a great experience, and will be back! I love no hassle pricing and all the cars looked like they were quality vehicles read more

If you visit this location, ask for Kate. She's been an associate since 2016 and was incredibly helpful. When the car I initially wanted was sold, she went above and beyond to help me find the perfect alternative. The test drive was easy, she expedited all the paperwork, and her communication via text was excellent, keeping me informed every step of the way. She even personally cleaned my vehicle! Overall, she provided amazing service, and I would definitely seek her out again for future car purchases. read more

- Great purchase experience - TERRIBLE customer service post purchase I wish I had read and taken to heart other reviews of the Columbia Carmax. It's everything that I've read. Very easy, hassle-free-ish buying experience. Truly the salespeople I interacted with were great. Unfortunately, the car I purchased had a transmission that failed during the 90-day limited warranty period. And I couldn't get ahold of ANYONE. For a week. Despite a national answering service assuring me they sent "escalated emails." I finally took my car to the Toyota dealership and spent $200 of my own money to get the issue documented before the warranty was up. Once I finally got my car back to Carmax they said they would buy it back and I'd hear from a sales manager in 1-2 days. 1.5 weeks later and multiple calls and emails, I finally just drove to the Carmax and asked for them to help me return the car. They took the car back, but told me that the limited warranty language on the contract they initially gave me didn't count for "buybacks" that are not "returns." But they wouldn't show me the "buyback" language so I could make sure I wasn't being taken advantage of. It was only $300-400 of difference that was in dispute, but that's a lot of money to me. The sales manager was nice enough, but I was very disappointed that there were not clear guidelines communicated for the buyback and it leaves me feeling cheated. Perhaps the sales manager was right in his process, but without communication in writing to the consumer of course I'm not going to be certain I was treated properly. Bought my replacement car from Carvana. I won't be purchasing another vehicle from Carmax. read more

A friend told us about their good experience with CarMax so we also decided to go there for a used car. Cordel was easy to work with and we're extremely happy with the 2020 Kia we bought. He made buying our car so easy we gladly recommend asking for him. Thank you Cordel! read more

-Poor customer service -Bait and switch tactics on trade in value. -Over pricing vehicle to drive toward their financing Found a SUV online we wanted to testdrive at the Columbia location. Got an appointment to test drive. Showed up on time. They weren't ready for us. Car still somewhere on the lot... they didnt seem to know why we were there. Didn't know which vehicle we were interested in. immediately sat us down and started trying to talk to us about our trade in?! We hadn't even test driven the car yet! Found another vehicle in Texas we were really interested in. Paid $1500 to have it shipped. Had an appointment to test drive this one. Showed up on time. Vehicle no where in sight. They sent us wandering through the lot looking for it in 95degree heat. Couldn't find it. "Oh... it must be in the garage". Finally Test drove. Interested in the purchase. But needed to think about it for a couple of days. Before we left, associate took the keys to our potential trade out of my wife's hand! took our vehicles key off the key ring and went inside to start processing something about the trade in! We hadn't even asked her to do that and weren't sure if we wanted to trade in. Took the keys out of my wife's hand without clear explanation! I had to go and stop her. We left. What the heck is going on? Made an appointment to purchase the new vehicle. Got a trade in estimate online through the official Carmax website. Reference number saved to confirm. Show up to purchase. They tell us our one day old online trade in paper work has to be redone. Why did we do it then? They rerun the trade in process and offer us 1200 less than the online offer with no explanation. So Bait and switch. Our bank only gave us 23k for the vehicle. Carmax asking 27k ish... and were counting on the trade in value online to make up the difference. But with the new quote it didn' fully. Would have had to pay more in cash. Have the money, but didn't want to... that's my business. They refused to let us put the difference on a credit card... I'm sure that's their policy, which is fine, but they sure as heck let me pay to ship on my Credit Card. Decided not to buy after all the different ways they were dishonest and/or greedy and for poor customer service. Wasted our time. Wasted our money. Overpriced their vehicle according to KBB. Underpriced their trade in value according to KBB and their own web site. They suck. Unless you just enjoy dealing with shady incompetent people and policies, go somewhere else. read more

When had the car sold? Did the paperwork as quick and easy as can be. Got a great deal. Have nothing bad to say.

We bought a car and within a month we had a problem with the transmission and a prior damaged door panel. Carmax 100% took care of us. From start to finish everything that was promised was executed and completed earlier than expected. Renee in service was a pleasure to work with. She was professional and was honest about everything. Thank you CarMax! read more

Dishonest, unscrupulous bandits. Avoid this Carmax location like the plague. Their inspectors are incompetent and unable to discern real damage from dents and scratches. If you're in Columbia, I strongly recommend going to Charlotte where honesty and integrity prevail. Unlike the Columbia store, they treated us with dignity and respect and didn't try to lie about the extent of vehicle damage (from vandalism, not an accident) to lower their offer. Love Carmax; hate the Columbia store. Do yourself a favor and go elsewhere. read more

So, this literally was going to start off as a amazing review, BUT! That has changed! I was referred by a few friends to deal with Carmax, they have great warranty's, the prices are great, ya ya ya. I was in the market to purchase my 2nd Range Rover. I currently had/have a sport, and wanted to try out the Velar. Better on gas, smaller, cute, you know! I found a burgundy 2018 Velar S. Was nicely loaded, sexy, rode amazing...good price(not great), around 24k miles...about $51k. Cool...so I drove in from Charleston one day, drove the car...enjoyed it. Completed the application process online, downpayment, ect ect, drove back to Columbia to take delivery! After all the paperwork was completed, I was escorted to the car where they had a huge Yellow Bow on it! Talk about make me feel good. Shortly after I found a few issues with the truck; warped leather dashboard, both headlights had cracks in them, 1 cracked taillight, missing cover for the trunk part of the truck, one key was broken, and I questioned the delay for the backup camera. A large black guy came out after I showed the young lady who did my finance paperwork the complaints I had about the car......Oh, Mr Brown, just bring it back in and we will take care of all those things! NP!! Sir, I am in the process of moving to San Francisco CA, and I want to insure that I will NOT have an issue wit this once I arrive? Can I not get the work done before I leave? No, I'm pulling out in 3 days, which is the main reason I'm purchasing a newer truck. Don't worry about it Mr. Brown! Just have them contact us and we will approve it! I contacted the Carmax in Pleasanton, CA, escalated it to one of the managers...he would have to contact the Carmax in Columbia, NO PROBLEM! Now all of a sudden no one knows anything about anything! NOTHING! After going around in a few circles....there is NOTHING THEY CAN DO! Yes, it was my responsibility to get this in writing, but I also just assumed that they would have also written it down, or at least recalled it! And would have done the repairs. This review is written a year later because, I just got an anniversary email for my truck! LOL...which now only have 12k miles more than when I purchased it, just got my first oil change...and those things that needed repaired....still need repaired! My hopes are, are that someone from Carmax will read this, hold this location accountable, and represent Carmax for what it stands for. When that happens, I'll add to this review, and tell everyone they made it right. But as for now!! GET EVERYTHING IN INK WHEN IT COMES TO CARMAX!! read more

CarMax - Used Car Dealers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina

All I can say is wow too! Wow Carmax send you out in cars with all the safety warning lights out and no power steering. It took a week and a half, a rental, a loaner and have 2 cars transfered but never told they'd arrived. The sales staff and management lied repeatedly about what was supposed to happen next and promised to compensate me for lost wages I'd incurred have to keep bringing in uninspected cars. Matthew, Steadman and TJ need some customer service training and the company as a whole (the Walmart of Car Buying!) should get a soul. Get it all in writing. Carmax just lost a million dollar suit for not inspecting their cars and when they're caught the deny it. read more

STAY AWAY! STAY FAR FAR AWAY. Bought a car on Saturday, so that I could get to work on Monday. Sunday it lit up like a Christmas tree with warning lights. So had to go back the next morning and they replaced the battery. Christmas lights back on in 1/2 hour. Now I think I work mornings at CARMAX! read more

CarMax - I thought I was buying a Tucson but got a Christmas tree instead! - Used Car Dealers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina

Wow! I am so pleased with the service I received. The business office ladies were very welcoming and made me feel like an important customer. My business took minimal time. My experience was amazing start to finish! read more

The location in Columbia have a good selection of car and I did find the car I wanted and also got a very fair price on my former car, the car I selected had a few minor things that need it fix and a good cleaning need it to be done and I feel like the details department did a horrible job considering also that I had given them a week to get the car ready. 3 weeks in my car so far is good. Purchase my vehicle second week of March 2025 read more

So disappointed. I haven't even had my car for 30 days and its been a rollercoaster of bs since the first week I bought it. I have to get a part replaced that should've been taken care of before selling this car to anyone. Getting a hold of anyone by phone is such a hassle. I should've known by the way the car looked when I test drove it. They don't bother to clean anything. They do the bare minimum. read more

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I visited this location with my friend who needed to get a car. She wanted to sell her car as a trade in. We set an appointment and arrived 15 minutes early. An hour and almost an hour and a half later, and after a couple questions on when we would be seen, they finally met with her. It is terribly disappointing and the attitudes of them doing us a favor seeing us versus being there for her was a big turn off. They offered her a very low ball offer for her car. It was all really ridiculous. Terrible experience. read more

I purchased a vehicle from this dealership in December and the took 45 days to register my truck with the state, the bank was contacting me for the certificate of title and the business office was rude and didn't want to even answer any question in reference to getting it done , they are extremely LAZY ! read more

I was looking for a new car and tried out this spot wellllll yeah I'll just post the screenshots of the conversation with them so you can see. read more

CarMax - Text from the dealership that went well - Used Car Dealers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina

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Liars and thieves. I've had my car for two years and have been paying for a carmax auto care protection plan. The one time I need to use it, I'm not even allowed to bring it to carmax because all they give a shit about is the cars they sold in the last 90 days. Need help and can't get it from the place I've dumped my money into. Bullshit. Guy on the phone at carmax said "you really need to read those contracts." read more

My experience was great with the staff but......My experience with my vehicle is HORRIBLE. I purchased a 2017 Buick Encore and had computer issues a few days after getting it. The service center "fixed" it and literally ever since I have been building a new car. Now that I am still having the same issues since the day, I purchased it, I am over the year mark and still coming out of my pocket to maintain a reliable vehicle for the same issue. I called the service center, and they say they do not have the capacity to fix my vehicle at the time. It is frustrating and I wish I would have just kept the same vehicle I traded in. I had better expectations with all of the good I heard about the CarMax in Columbia, SC. I know better next time!!!!! read more

They Discriminate if you don't have the right kind of job. Got preapproved online for my trade-in and financing through them online and made appointment to go pick up my car I though by appointment. I got there and had to wait on my appointment which was still ok at that point. Finally a sales person comes finds me and takes me inside and tells me that have to appraise my vehicle again after going through the whole thing of finding my online offer. We make a walk to business office because my title was already signed and some lady looks at sales person and says they r already aware. Already aware of what??? So they did my appraisal and honored that at least but then tell me they won't finance me because I drive for Lyft. They were aware of that before I ever left my house to drive over there. They took me through the whole process hoping I would find another finance rep wasting 2 hours of my time. They told me because I drive Lyft it is a commercial use of the vehicle. Why does it matter if I bought the car if I drive it off a cliff as long as I make the payments. The whole process was shady and I will never go to a carmax ever again! I will prob just keep my 4 runner since it's still a nice car anyway. Carmax can rot. They pulled my financing basically because I drive for Lyft. read more

AWESOME experience from beginning to end. We found the vehicle we wanted, we selected the price, the extras, and we got a call the next morning that we could come and pick up the vehicle. Our salesman Ryan, answered all of our questions, was very well prepared for our questions and even offered us various payment options. The experience was very well worth the 2 hour drive. The entire transaction must have taken all of 45 minutes. My husband selected a 2014 Ford F150 Larriat fully loaded with power windows, brakes, ecoboost turbo and free Sirius radio. The vehicle was in presitine condition, low mileage, little wear and tear. read more

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I've bought a few cars from them and had a wonderful experience every time. But today the sales person felt that the car I was wanting to buy (Volkswagen) wasn't enough for them to want to sale to me. Car was trashed out and when I asked about touching up a scratch which they have done several times before on cars that I have bought in the past. I was quickly answered with a "No" with a kinda don't care attitude. I was planning on coming home with the car even with the low ball on my trade in and was going to put good amount down on top of it all. But I can't buy from someone that thinks they have better things to do today. I understand it is a used car dealership but it's not a shed in the middle of a lot with cars around it either. Have some pride in what you are doing or find something else to do. What makes it worse is it was not even for me but for my mother. Grant you it was only a 21k car so wasn't big money but for her it would have been an upgrade. Thanks for the horrible experience CarMax of Columbia. I'd rather drive to Greenville for now on. read more

We just visited this Car Max location and all I can say is "WOW!" The staff were friendly and offered us water while waited, but our sales consultant Naomi was the star of the show. I'm just beginning to think about buying a car and Naomi was helpful, patient, respectful of my needs and very nice. It's this type of service that will make me spread the word and refer people to Carmax. Thanks! read more

I was very impressed , I will definitely buy my next car from here again there was no hassle there was no people trying to wheel and deal you. Way better than buying a car from a dealerships. They were honest up front and had the lowest price even my bank I went to said that they normally have the lowest price. The last dealer I went to lied to me three times. And when I told the dealership what I wanted they showed me 3 cars before I walked out. That's why I went to a CarMax. It was easy and no hassle. I will buy all my cars from here now read more

Recently traded in my car at CarMax. The sales consultant, Valerie Aviles, and the managers, Stedman and Clifford worked exceptionally hard to make sure that I was satisfied with my new purchase. Jessica, the finance manager, was also very competent. Highly recommend CarMax in Columbia, SC! read more

CarMax - Very happy! - Used Car Dealers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina

Bought a car here last year and i want to trade it in for a new vehicle and I've been having to "text" them and I keep getting different people and telling me different things. I did the trade in appraisal online like they asked and I picked out the car I want and literally no one has even called me to schedule anything! I wanted to do the 24 hour test drive to make sure that the vehicle was right for my family and I and literally no one can pick up a phone and call me. read more

Biggest waste of time and money never come here, nobody knows what their doing and they will sell you a car with problems right off the lot , and forget calling them they don't answer !!!! read more

The work ethic and professionalism is lacking here, which transitions into how they do business with customers. Nothing they tell you they will do do they do it or follow all the way through with. Calling customer relations is not helpful they listen open a case but does not follow up to see if the outcome was truly fulfilled satisfactory. This place caused me additional stress that I didn't need and I just simply can't do business unless it's exceptional start to finish and that this location can't provide. read more

They do not follow consumer laws or federal law, I wa approved for a jeep paid for shipping and put insurance on it and they will not give me my property. its a much deeper story and its too much too write but long story short they are not following TILA. read more

This business is not disabled friendly. I have 2 bad knees and walk with a cane. I went in to look at SUVs and asked if they provided a golf cart or something like it to take people around the huge lot, I was told no. I then asked if we could drive our car to look around, again I was told no. That was it, no suggestions or anything. I guess they only sell cars to people able to walk around the lot. I left there and went next door where they gladly brought cars to the front for me to look at. read more

This review is not only for CARMAX writ large. I'd specifically ask to recognize - Mr. Mike Vereen, Sales Mgr, Mr. Will Myers aka "KC" and Mrs. Deborah Lakin-Egleton for the OUTSTANDING SERVICE and CUSTOMER CARE. Yes, it's true over the past 10 years I've probably bought at least 10 vehicles from CARMAX. In my opinion, they allow you to buy more car for the money. Case in point, at least four Mercedes Benz, three Expeditions etc. you simply cant find a better shopping and sales experience. So, I find a 2018 Cadillac SRV with 46K miles. Absolute MINT condition! So, on que, USAA Finance "flakes-out" on me... again, a week later I might add... So, I go into CARMAX trying to make this right. The three people aforementioned LISTENED to my dilemma and took care of me. I was in and out within a couple hours. The theme for this good news story is, A lesson in leadership and helping out a brother. Mr. Vereen, a retired military member, saw and heard my situation and jumped into action to help! Thats the kinda of service that has kept me and WILL KEEP me coming back to CARMAX!!! Thank you guys. To you, a normal day's work. To me, you touch my heart and inspired me to tell this story. Thats the kind of invaluable service we still need. read more

Service is horrible at the Columba's store if you're gonna buy from CarMax I suggest that you have your car sent somewhere else

The sales manager is the literal worst. After driving 2 hours to be there when they opened and test driving a car we began the whole process. After signing the paperwork and paying the downpayment they came out and told me that the car I waited all day for has mold and we will not be walking away with the car because they will need to send it to a specialist to make sure there was no more mold which would not be completed until at least mid week. This is a car they said they had already inspected. When we asked what could be done to compensate the trouble we had went through, they couldn't give any solutions. I absolutely would not recommend going to this particular CarMax. read more

This Carmax is horrible!!! I purchased a vehicle March 29th and was there from 11am and didn't leave out until after 7pm. After leaving the lot I started having issues with the vehicle. Carmax serviced the vehicle from then until April 25th. The truck was taken back to Carmax April 26th and I didn't pick it back up until June 3rd. Vehicle we're having the same issue so the following Monday June 6th. I received it back June 24th and now there are more issues with the vehicle. The service department is HORRIBLE, All they continuously ask is well do you want out of the vehicle. Get some mechanics that actually know what their doing and not only there for a check!! This store is HORRIBLE!! They even fixed multiple issues on their own because every time they got it back their so called diagnostic machine showed more bs wrong with the vehicle.The SERVICE DEPARTMENT employees and managers are HORRIBLE. They feel just because they put you in a loaner then you should be satisfied. I remind you I purchased my vehicle MARCH 29th. 03/30/2022-04/25/2022 SERVICE DEPARTMENT 04/26/2022-06/03/2022 SERVICE DEPARTMENT/ Ford Dealership 06/06/2022-06/24/2022 SERVICE DEPARTMENT/ Ford dealership. Vehicle is scheduled for service department AGAIN 07/06/2022. read more

super easy process to sell my car i did an online offer took about 10 min to finish made an appointment for 2 days later. went in 30 min early around 5pm and around 730 with money in hand customer service was great! very friendly and due to long wait they offered and paid for dinner for me and my boyfriend (refunded us in cash) very great place for selling a car! super nice people!!! read more

I've bought two vehicles here. The first was in 2004, it was a great deal on a Ford Explorer. I still have that vehicle. I used to work nearby, so I could easily stop in and make a payment. The whole process was super easy. One I paid that car off, it seems like everything went bad on it. This has always made me a bit wary of where they get the vehicles. The second car was a 2007 Mustang, and it was pretty cool, but sadly someone hit my wife and I, and destroyed it. This happened about a month after we bought it. That car had a lot of custom work done to it, by it's previous owner. The thing I do like about this place is the low pressure process. You can test drive everything, and there's no push to buy. I don't like that the prices are set, and there's no way to haggle. They also can find cars you are looking for, and some even ship for free, depending on how close they are to Columbia. One thing I must suggest is,try to find your own financing. They set us up with a bank called Santander, and they were the worst. If you have a car you want to get rid of, they might be the place for you. I've had them look at several cars, and it's always an offer of 700 bucks. If you just wanna get rid of it, then they make that process pretty easy, but don't expect to get much money. read more

Went to the Columbia location today. They were nice enough to allow us to walk the lot without being bothered. However, after we spent well over 1 hour walking and considering all of our options we went back inside with 6 vehicle options. Upon entering the building I requested assistance and was told it would be an additional 35-40 minutes before they would have someone available. While this is an inconvenience it was understandable with their traffic. I requested to use one of the many MANY empty desks and research their inventory and was flatly refused. No reason other than "we don't do that anymore". I was told I couldn't even sit at an empty desk but we could go to the waiting room and sit there. Now it's getting insulting. Researching I found that several of the cars didn't have price tags on the windows on the sales lot. Searching in my phone I found that half of the cars we were interested In were NOT even available! This was stunning especially since there was NOTHING on these cars windows or anywhere outside that indicated they were not available for sale! How do you know what's available or not??? This company has slipped far down the hill on caring about their customers! We totally wasted the day once you include we drove 1 hour one way to get there!! NEVER CARMAX AGAIN! They make it too hard for customers to simply know WHAT THE HECK THEY HAVE FOR SALE!!! read more

I got a nice and reliable car here with the help of Tim Kelly and Jim Altman. Carmax was quick, straightforward, there were no awkward negotiations, all of the employees were accommodating and had nice things to say about the company and their coworkers. Everything was explained thoroughly and all options were laid out on the table, and it really felt like Jim had my best interest at heart. I felt respected and welcomed as opposed to bullied, belittled and swindled as I have in every other car-shopping experience. I do feel that when negotiations on price are taken out of the picture, you lose some money to the company, but I also feel like that money was well worth the ease of buying a car through Carmax. I am so happy with my 2014 Toyota Corolla. read more

CarMax - Used Car Dealers Near Me - Columbia, South Carolina