CarMax buys old cars, and it has published what it offered for some of them: as archived on February 19, 2026, its value page for a 1998 Cadillac DeVille listed recent offers of $600 to $1,200. Its selling FAQ and guides name no age or mileage limit, but mileage is one of the key factors in its offer.
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CarMax's guide to selling to CarMax, published August 18, 2026, says the offer starts from “your VIN, odometer reading, vehicle history, and overall condition,” and points to the roughly 14,000 miles the average American drives each year, a Federal Highway Administration figure, as the reason mileage is “one of the key factors in any appraisal.” Its offer FAQ lists the car's year, make, model, mileage and features, and says how the car has been looked after over the years outweighs how clean it is.
Nothing we read on carmax.com sets a cutoff. Its FAQ says it is interested in buying “pretty much any car,” and that one which doesn't make the cut for its lot goes to its wholesale auction; either way, CarMax says it wants to make an offer. Sellmycarhub is not affiliated with CarMax.
CarMax publishes value pages built from its own recent offers. The page for a 1998 Cadillac DeVille, as archived on February 19, 2026, said its figures were “based on a sample of real CarMax offers over the last 45 days” and listed these ten. The live page turns away automated readers, so we quote the archived copy.
| Mileage | CarMax offer |
|---|---|
| 74,000 | $800 |
| 80,000 | $800 |
| 88,000 | $800 |
| 90,000 | $600 |
| 90,000 | $700 |
| 92,000 | $600 |
| 98,000 | $1,200 |
| 99,980 | $700 |
| 99,993 | $700 |
| 118,000 | $600 |
Two things stand out. Every offer was $1,200 or less for a car then 28 model years old, and mileage didn't set the order on its own: the top offer went to a car with 98,000 miles, while six cars with fewer miles got less. The page names mileage, conditions, trim, the used-car market and “other factors” as what decides an offer, so a mileage table shows only one of the inputs.
CarMax names no mileage ceiling, and the highest-mileage DeVille in that table, at 118,000 miles, still drew an offer. What CarMax does stress is history. Its offer FAQ names “odometer rollbacks” among the major issues it looks out for, and it checks internal and third-party history records, so expect the odometer reading to be compared with the car's past.
Records help more than polish. CarMax says the car's service history and overall condition “are all part of the picture,” and that there's no need to spend a lot on professional detailing, so bring the maintenance receipts and skip the paid detail. If a big repair is looming, our guide on when to stop repairing a car helps you decide whether to fix it before you sell.
An online offer for an old car is checked in person, whether you bring the car in or an associate collects it, and CarMax says it changes an online offer only when what it finds doesn't match what you told it about the car's condition, use or history. It may also test drive the car to check mechanical condition. Bring the title or payoff details, current registration, ID for everyone on the title and every key; an old car with a lost title needs a replacement before CarMax can buy it, and our table of duplicate title fees shows what that costs.
Then set the number against the car's floor. When an offer is in the hundreds, check it against scrap value; our junk car value guide shows how to estimate that from the car's weight. If CarMax beats both scrap and a second offer, take CarMax's offer. Other CarMax limits are on our page about what CarMax won’t buy.
A private buyer may pay more for an old car that still runs well, and CarMax's own selling guide grants that a private sale “could potentially” bring in more money. A private sale takes more time, and our guide to getting rid of an old car weighs it against scrapping, donating and instant offers.
High mileage is routine for our buying partner: its sell page says “nearly 3 in 4 cars sold to Peddle in 2025 had over 100,000 miles on the odometer.” Its offer is free with no obligation, pickup costs nothing, and Peddle says the online figure is the amount it pays at pickup, provided the car matches what you described. If CarMax's number looks thin, see what a second offer says; CarMax's offer stays valid for 7 days, so there is time to compare.
Yes. CarMax names no age limit, and its value page for a 1998 Cadillac DeVille, as archived in February 2026, showed recent offers between $600 and $1,200. An older car that misses its retail standards goes to its wholesale auction.
None that CarMax publishes. Mileage is one of the main factors in its offer, and the archived DeVille offers ran from 74,000 to 118,000 miles.
CarMax says so. Its offer FAQ says long-term maintenance and care matter more than cleanliness, and its selling guide counts service history as part of the picture, so bring the receipts.