Parts Stores

[joesregalproject]

Don't forget the turbo guys. Yknow, all the guys with 10 second GNs buying them house brand piston rings.

Actually you can exclude me from that list because I've got those fancy roller rockers from TA that were advertised as "bolt on" and had to be completely reshimmed to align with the valve stems and the shaft pedestals had to be milled for clearance. But whatever...

Regardless I dont need no stinkin' plastic buttons.

 

[Gwarren79]

So how many 1969 VW Beatle Thermostats are on back order

Just as many 1983 Corvette water pumps.

 

[69hurstolds]

I might have started this conversation with the wrong crowd

This was a mistake

It's not a mistake. The crowd here is a more "educated-in-car-parts" crowd than the generic guy walking into your store and complaining his wipers are scratching his windshield and not knowing what to do.

Most of us have all sorts of stories about the consumer side of the parts store experience and while we may not have experience on the back side of the counter, we have miles and miles and years of the customer side of things. Some experiences are not pretty. Good parts people are getting hard to find. And I am talking about that guy/gal who may not have memorized the part numbers, but knows what resource to check or who to ask without having to ask all the mundane questions the computer says to ask. And to know the difference between say, vacuum lines and fuel hoses, etc. I couldn't do that job because I don't care about looking up parts for Fords, Toyotas, or Hondas, etc. I might be able to stomach doing it at a GM dealer.

I remember an old codger that worked at the NAPA store when I got my first Olds V8 (this was around the time when Tom Brady was still shiiting yellow). Needed a water pump for my 69 400. Brought my old one in and he looked at it, said "non-A/C" (not a question, a statement) went in the back, came back with a box and pulled out a newly rebuilt unit (an actual GM rebuilt pump carcass in a NAPA box). Set it down next to the old pump and it was an exact match. That was the day I learned that A/C and non-A/C pumps for Olds V8s were different snout lengths. I was totally blown away. And less than 25 bucks later, I was on my way. Came with the gaskets and everything. Ah, those were the days.

 

[Dayzedandkonfuzed]

I remember an old codger that worked at the NAPA store when I got my first Olds V8 (this was around the time when Tom Brady was still shiiting yellow). Needed a water pump for my 69 400. Brought my old one in and he looked at it, said "non-A/C" (not a question, a statement) went in the back, came back with a box and pulled out a newly rebuilt unit (an actual GM rebuilt pump carcass in a NAPA box). Set it down next to the old pump and it was an exact match. That was the day I learned that A/C and non-A/C pumps for Olds V8s were different snout lengths. I was totally blown away. And less than 25 bucks later, I was on my way. Came with the gaskets and everything. Ah, those were the days.

My first parts store boss once had a customer walk in the door with a master cylinder. Before the door even closed behind him, Terry called out "1975 jeep CJ"

He was right.

 

[Bonnewagon]

All this bitching is good and well, but think for a moment. Most of us are a bunch of old farts playing with really old cars. No one is going to keep our oddball crap in stock. It just doesn't pay. Would you expect to find a Model "A" spark plug on the shelves? Because that is who we are now. But if you need an air filter for a 2010 Subaru they got you covered. Because that is where the market is right now. I don't begrudge the parts stores for not having obscure pieces for my 37 year old Pontiac. But I do get pissed that they don't stock even one oil filter for a Pontiac V-8 that was in production for 30 years. So we improvise by driving 25 miles to that one really good parts store that WILL have it. Or order online. I am always blown away by how much obsolete stuff RockAuto can get me. I always said when we can't get simple maintenance parts like filters and plugs we are done for.

 

[mr evil]

Are you with Lordco or Napa Dayzed? I use Lordco when I can but I find it a bit like the lottery as far as counter guys go....I never want to seem rude and say "uh, can I talk to that guy instead" lol. I'm a nice guy, no account, but I just ask for best they can do price wise.
Last time I went in was not good...price and availability on some Moog parts (I had the number already). Counter guy, half my age, virtually rolls his eyes and tells me 4 weeks out and price is over twice as much as online....I politely thanked him and carried on.
I don't know what to do with these damn gift cards lol. I mean free money aside, I still hate feeling *ss raped when I buy stuff...

 

[Texas82GP]

This started as a reply to the Amazon thread, but I quickly got carried away and long winded, so here goes.
Well I am in the auto parts business, and I have some things to say about this.

I know you have sort of bowed out of this thread but since my quote was the inspiration for its creation, I'll respond.

I'm old enough, like many on here, that I grew up going to the auto parts store with my dad. When you needed something for your automotive project, that's where you went, and they had what you needed. The notable exceptions were things you had to get at the junk yard or swap meet, and stuff from the dealer. We didn't have a whole bunch of money so dad rarely bought parts at the dealer. I

Auto parts stores were a lot different back then, and in my view, a lot better. They had knowledgeable people, sold higher quality merchandise and had better inventory (Remember the Dorman drawers of every conceivable piece of hardware you might need). There were less of them then, the way I remember it, too. I have five years of experience working in the auto parts industry. I had a job with Auto Zone for about a year and a half in high school. The rest with Hi/Lo Auto Supply (bought by O'Reilly in the early 2000's). I have some insight into the modern "just-in-time" inventory practice and how these stores are run.

'm not a young guy who is pre-disposed to buy online. For me, buying most of my stuff online is a big departure from how I grew up. Why do I buy most of my stuff online? The overall experience. For me, the experience is better ordering what I need online and waiting for it than going to the auto parts store (pick which one) and dealing with them for numerous reasons, which I'll touch on below.

Inventory
Now days there have to be at least three times as many auto parts stores as there were when I was a kid. There are six O'Reilly, seven AutoZone, five Advance and one Napa within a five mile radius of my home. My argument is there are too many stores with not enough inventory. It is impossible to sell something if you don't have it. I don't expect stores to stock a lot of stuff for the LT1 in my Roadmaster but I do expect to be able to buy AC Delco spark plugs for a Vortec V8 (4.8, 5.3, 6.0 and others) when there are at least tens of thousands of them running around on the roads in this town (Houston). Also, don't just stock 1 of anything. That goes for hard parts and parts out on the sales floor. When you stock 1 and your stock quantity is off for any number of reasons (theft, shortages, etc.) then you have none. When I walk out the door empty handed, that wasn't a good experience.

We can get it today
That's great but that means I have to go to the store and order the part that I think you should already have, and then I have to come back and hope it is there and pick it up. Or I can call and ask you to order it and hope it is there and pick it up. Or I can get online and order it and then hope it is there and go pick it up. I don't want to go twice and wait in line twice. I don't want to call because then my phone call is placed in front of people that are actually already in the store. If I have to order the part anyway, why not just order online and pay a better price in the first place, unless if I have to have it today?

Not enough help in the store
The two chains I worked for were stingy with the hours. It was seldom that there was enough help in the store. You have to clean the store, you have to re-merchandise the store (plan-o-grams), you have to inventory the store, you have to wax the floor, you have to fix the lights, oh and you have to help the customers on the counter. When I come in and there are six people ahead of me, two people working the counter, and maybe a third outside working on someone's car, this is not a good experience. Especially if I just want to check out. I also have to wait behind every Tom, Dick and Harry that wants to call instead of come down to the store. I have cash in hand. Get me out of here or it isn't a good experience. I can handle the staff not being knowledgeable. I can do my own homework. I can't handle waiting 15 minutes to buy a can of spray paint.

Price
Price is not my biggest concern but I don't want to go out of my way to overpay. If the experience was great, I would gladly pay the price to buy from the auto parts store. Here's an example. I had a 2002 F-250, V-10, 2wd, extended cab, long bed. It needed a muffler. I went to a muffler shop and was blown away by what they quoted me. When I worked for Hi-Lo, we had lots of exhaust in stock (tail pipes, extension pipes, mufflers, hangers, etc.). I go to O'Reilly, all at the warehouse. Still, I looked up the cost of an extension pipe, muffler and tailpipe on O'Reilly's. Then I looked it up on Rock Auto. I was able to buy it from Rock Auto and pay the shipping for a lot less than I could buy it from O'Reilly, who had everything at their warehouse in town. When this is the case, you are not competitive, at all.

I could go on and on. The net-net is somewhere in the past five years or so I've found myself going to the auto parts store less and less. For me, it's easier to shop around online, find/decide exactly what I want and who I want it from, buy it and wait. Anything I buy from Amazon, Summit or RockAuto, I don't wait long. The experience is just better.

 

[Dayzedandkonfuzed]

I know you have sort of bowed out of this thread but since my quote was the inspiration for its creation, I'll respond.

I'm old enough, like many on here, that I grew up going to the auto parts store with my dad. When you needed something for your automotive project, that's where you went, and they had what you needed. The notable exceptions were things you had to get at the junk yard or swap meet, and stuff from the dealer. We didn't have a whole bunch of money so dad rarely bought parts at the dealer. I

Auto parts stores were a lot different back then, and in my view, a lot better. They had knowledgeable people, sold higher quality merchandise and had better inventory (Remember the Dorman drawers of every conceivable piece of hardware you might need). There were less of them then, the way I remember it, too. I have five years of experience working in the auto parts industry. I had a job with Auto Zone for about a year and a half in high school. The rest with Hi/Lo Auto Supply (bought by O'Reilly in the early 2000's). I have some insight into the modern "just-in-time" inventory practice and how these stores are run.

'm not a young guy who is pre-disposed to buy online. For me, buying most of my stuff online is a big departure from how I grew up. Why do I buy most of my stuff online? The overall experience. For me, the experience is better ordering what I need online and waiting for it than going to the auto parts store (pick which one) and dealing with them for numerous reasons, which I'll touch on below.

Inventory
Now days there have to be at least three times as many auto parts stores as there were when I was a kid. There are six O'Reilly, seven AutoZone, five Advance and one Napa within a five mile radius of my home. My argument is there are too many stores with not enough inventory. It is impossible to sell something if you don't have it. I don't expect stores to stock a lot of stuff for the LT1 in my Roadmaster but I do expect to be able to buy AC Delco spark plugs for a Vortec V8 (4.8, 5.3, 6.0 and others) when there are at least tens of thousands of them running around on the roads in this town (Houston). Also, don't just stock 1 of anything. That goes for hard parts and parts out on the sales floor. When you stock 1 and your stock quantity is off for any number of reasons (theft, shortages, etc.) then you have none. When I walk out the door empty handed, that wasn't a good experience.

We can get it today
That's great but that means I have to go to the store and order the part that I think you should already have, and then I have to come back and hope it is there and pick it up. Or I can call and ask you to order it and hope it is there and pick it up. Or I can get online and order it and then hope it is there and go pick it up. I don't want to go twice and wait in line twice. I don't want to call because then my phone call is placed in front of people that are actually already in the store. If I have to order the part anyway, why not just order online and pay a better price in the first place, unless if I have to have it today?

Not enough help in the store
The two chains I worked for were stingy with the hours. It was seldom that there was enough help in the store. You have to clean the store, you have to re-merchandise the store (plan-o-grams), you have to inventory the store, you have to wax the floor, you have to fix the lights, oh and you have to help the customers on the counter. When I come in and there are six people ahead of me, two people working the counter, and maybe a third outside working on someone's car, this is not a good experience. Especially if I just want to check out. I also have to wait behind every Tom, Dick and Harry that wants to call instead of come down to the store. I have cash in hand. Get me out of here or it isn't a good experience. I can handle the staff not being knowledgeable. I can do my own homework. I can't handle waiting 15 minutes to buy a can of spray paint.

Price
Price is not my biggest concern but I don't want to go out of my way to overpay. If the experience was great, I would gladly pay the price to buy from the auto parts store. Here's an example. I had a 2002 F-250, V-10, 2wd, extended cab, long bed. It needed a muffler. I went to a muffler shop and was blown away by what they quoted me. When I worked for Hi-Lo, we had lots of exhaust in stock (tail pipes, extension pipes, mufflers, hangers, etc.). I go to O'Reilly, all at the warehouse. Still, I looked up the cost of an extension pipe, muffler and tailpipe on O'Reilly's. Then I looked it up on Rock Auto. I was able to buy it from Rock Auto and pay the shipping for a lot less than I could buy it from O'Reilly, who had everything at their warehouse in town. When this is the case, you are not competitive, at all.

I could go on and on. The net-net is somewhere in the past five years or so I've found myself going to the auto parts store less and less. For me, it's easier to shop around online, find/decide exactly what I want and who I want it from, buy it and wait. Anything I buy from Amazon, Summit or RockAuto, I don't wait long. The experience is just better.

That's all fair. I realized after starting this thread that it gets a lot worse than I thought. I was lucky enough to be trained by the old boys, and number one was don't say no til you can prove to yourself the answer is in fact no. I feel like I am one of the youngest "old boys" around. And like I said earlier, I have never worked in a store that didn't stock something obviously in demand. In my current store, we stock over 100 tr5gp's and the same amount of tr55gp's, even in delco I know we keep 2 parts boxes full of LS plugs, which is about 60 or so.

By no means did I mean to offend anyone, just feel belittled sometimes when I see generalized comments that paint all parts stores with the same brush. But the funny thing is, even in my store I have at least 4 counter people that I would never deal with, so I really am able to understand people's frustration.

What's really going on here is that the consumer based (thanks joesregalproject ) companies are forcing brick and mortar chains to focus on wholesale more now than ever, because enthusiast sales just aren't there anymore. And why would they be when you can jump online and get the same price as the auto shop down the road? No fault of the consumer or the chains as far as I'm concerned, just the way the industry is changing. That shop isn't gonna call up rock auto and threaten to take their business elsewhere, but they certainly will call me if I sell their customer parts for the same price the shop would pay.

Only real advice I can give as far as keeping your parts store shopping experience good - find one you like, with a proficient partsperson, and stick with it. Only way you're gonna get a comparable deal to online is if the salesman can trust that you're not going to run down to one of their wholesale customers and blab about what you just paid.

Basically what I'm saying Texas82GP , is your parts stores obviously blow, and maybe more and more every day, but not all of them do.

 

[Texas82GP]

That's all fair. I realized after starting this thread that it gets a lot worse than I thought. I was lucky enough to be trained by the old boys, and number one was don't say no til you can prove to yourself the answer is in fact no. I feel like I am one of the youngest "old boys" around. And like I said earlier, I have never worked in a store that didn't stock something obviously in demand. In my current store, we stock over 100 tr5gp's and the same amount of tr55gp's, even in delco I know we keep 2 parts boxes full of LS plugs, which is about 60 or so.

By no means did I mean to offend anyone, just feel belittled sometimes when I see generalized comments that paint all parts stores with the same brush. But the funny thing is, even in my store I have at least 4 counter people that I would never deal with, so I really am able to understand people's frustration.

What's really going on here is that the consumer based (thanks joesregalproject ) companies are forcing brick and mortar chains to focus on wholesale more now than ever, because enthusiast sales just aren't there anymore. And why would they be when you can jump online and get the same price as the auto shop down the road? No fault of the consumer or the chains as far as I'm concerned, just the way the industry is changing. That shop isn't gonna call up rock auto and threaten to take their business elsewhere, but they certainly will call me if I sell their customer parts for the same price the shop would pay.

Only real advice I can give as far as keeping your parts store shopping experience good - find one you like, with a proficient partsperson, and stick with it. Only way you're gonna get a comparable deal to online is if the salesman can trust that you're not going to run down to one of their wholesale customers and blab about what you just paid.

Basically what I'm saying Texas82GP , is your parts stores obviously blow, and maybe more and more every day, but not all of them do.

It's obvious to me you are a way above average parts guy, especially compared to the ones I deal with here in the metro Houston area. I can't believe how bad it's gotten since I left the business in around 1998.

 

[Texas82GP]

Oh, and no offense intended by my post in the Amazon thread, and none taken by me from your post at the start of this one.