Wow, thanks for the all the replies and advise,

Today I went to several body shops and got plenty of estimates (the cheapest being $540). I then went to CarMax and spoke to their Service manager. I showed her the front bumper and explained the situation. Told her that I wanted either CarMax to repair the bumper or to reimburse me the cost of taking it to a body shop for the work to be completed. She asked me to wait so that she could talk to her Cosmetic Repairs manager. When she returned, she set me up with an appointment to drop the vehicle off next Tuesday and gave me a Repair Authorization that states "FRONT BUMPER - FILL IN AND PAINT BUMPER." The "Costs" columns (both labor and parts) state "NO CHARGE." So far, this looks like excellent news. I will have to leave the car at CarMax until Friday as they farm the work out to local body shops, but they are providing me a loner car. For now, all I have to do is keep my fingers crossed that the CarMax contracts out quality work.

I will let you all know how next week turns out.

Thanks again for all the replies.

 

I hadn't caught that they added the front bumper after obtaining the car. That makes it a bit more frustrating

Glad to hear they are going to fix it for you!

 

It's like not getting it on with a supermodel that you like because the day she wants you she has a zit.

 

its a used car....used cars are rarely in showroom condition. you should have looked it over before you signed for it. i always look my car over anytime i get/give it to a shop. and i really look it over when buying.

HOOWEVER i do see your point. but you do have to see theres too, its a used car and the carmax there or the carmax in cali or the other owner could have done it.

 

That is AWESOME news!

I am glad you are getting what you want, AND a loaner car too!

Congrats. I know you are going to be so pleased once you get her home knowing you put so much effort into getting her to look exactly as you wanted her too.

Good job dude!

 

Why can't you just throw the plugs in? They should cover most of that.

 

Just to clarify,

I did look over the car, twice (last friday after the car arrived in Oklahoma City and when purchasing the vehicle). These holes were created by the screws holding up the front license frame (reference first photo) (they used a larger than normal sheet metal screw and its thread pattern and fit match up exactly with the holes). The holes were only reviled when I was handed over the keys to drive the car home (they removed the license frame for delivery to the customer per my request). I assumed during my inspections that the front license plate screws were using the stock mounting holes, not holes that were created by the screws themselves. How many people would honestly ask for the license frames to be removed during their inspection of a vehicle (specifically on a dealer lot where the cars supposedly go trough a thorough inspection prior to sale). I think that most people, like me, would assume that the license frames are being held using the stock holes and the bumper is in good condition.

Secondly, I would like to point out again that CarMax performed an inspection when purchasing the vehicle from the pervious owner, initially detailing and servicing that vehicle, when the vehicle arrived at the Oklahoma City store, and when the car was detailed and serviced here. I have gone through the process of selling a vehicle to CarMax and they are very thorough with their inspections. If the previous owner made these holes, it would have been documented (I did ask what items were done to the car to make it sellable, and CarMax stated only a detail and oil change were done). This is why I think CarMax made these holes when placing the car on their California lot (now more than ever since other members of the forum have stated in this tread that the exact same issue has happened to them when purchasing their vehicle from CarMax).

I am upset that this was not disclosed. If CarMax said "Since you are purchasing a car from a state that requires a front license plate, the Cali store was required to place a front license plate frame on the vehicle. However, due to the fact that the stock mounting holes are unusable, the Cali store had to drill two holes through the stock bumper." Buying the vehicle and knowing this would leave me without and argument. However, even though I asked CarMax if the vehicle had any modifications, body damage, or excessive wear, I was not told about these holes.

And, to those that say I am nitpicking...I say $540 dollars is not something that is usually associated with nitpicking. If this was a private party seller, and you went to purchase the car and found out after you handed the money over that the car had two screw holes in the bumper that were not disclosed to you in the ad or your conversations with the seller, would you still be saying the same thing?

Not trying to push anyone's buttons, just expressing my view about the situation. Again, I am keeping my fingers crossed that this all turns out well in the end.

 

Just an added note,

I went to the Honda dealership today (with my traveling around town to various body shops) and we took a plug out to the car for a size up. They do not cover any of the upper screw holes.

 

It is his money, he should be picky on what he wants. If that were on my car when I went to look at it, I would have turned the purchase down.

That's the downside to buying unseen.

 

Definitely,

The upside is I learned several lessons from this experience.