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Why I don't go to the chain stores and why I shop with the old guys at Napa story....
Went to one of the big chains once. Got tied up on a weekend repair and found I needed a pickle fork. Mine was loaned out, for several months I guess. Figured the store would have them, they have everything else.
Young kid behind the counter. I ask... "Yes, do you carry pickle forks?". He looked at me like I was lost from the dementia wing bus outing. "Uh, no, we wouldn't have anything like that. You might try.....like...a party store".
I used to sell parts. 99% of the people who walk in the door think that they're experts. 98% don't know their ass from a hole in the ground. So don't blame the guy at the counter, blame the 300 douchebags he's already dealt with this week.
I would think the guys buying parts to do actual work on vehicles would know more then guys just selling parts. Mechanically talented people usually don't waste that talent working for $9 an hour selling parts unless they are retired mechanics. Most auto parts store employees these days are simply cashiers.
I used to sell parts. 99% of the people who walk in the door think that they're experts. 98% don't know their ass from a hole in the ground. So don't blame the guy at the counter, blame the 300 douchebags he's already dealt with this week.
No, sorry, that won't wash! If a counterman is so uninformed that he can't look at the manufacturer's number on the back of a sealed beam and go get one off the shelf without looking up the make and model of the vehicle in the computer, he is NOT a parts man, he is just taking up space.
I guess if I had asked for a box of 1157NA bulbs I would have to identify the make and model of the vehicle I wanted them for?
What would happen if I asked him for a rebuild kit for a Wagner/Lockheed master cylinder, casting number XXX-XX off of a 1953 Clark 10,000 lb. forklift? A REAL parts person would know where to look to find it. I know, because the guys at the NAPA store where I used to live found such parts for me many times. THEY believed in customer service, and they provided it, day in and day out!
I too loathe auto parts stores. I solve this problem by always having a new car under warranty. I haven't been into an auto parts store in years.
That's your choice. I personally enjoy working on cars and don't mind infrequently doing repairs to my vehicle. Frequent car payments bother me though.
I machine miniature engines as a hobby. Most are steam powered, but I occasionally will build an internal combustion engine, from bar stock. If you want to have fun in an auto parts store, try putting together an old school ignition system when you aren't even working with a car. Luckily I knew what components I needed and what cars they fit. The poor kid at Auto Zone thought I was making fun of him when I asked for a coil to fit a 74 Vega, the condenser from a 67 mustang and points for a 66 Pontiac.
I discovered a local independent parts house where the counter help aren't clueless. I walked in with a small section of formed water hose, from a Mazda 1.8 BP engine. I laid it on the counter and the counter guy immediately identified it without a computer, confirmed he had it in stock using a computer and had it in my hand within minutes. These guys have repeatedly proven they are real car guys, with a ridiculously wide range of practical knowledge. The local Mazda Dealer's parts guy had to get help to even identify the part on his computer and then he informed me it would be on back order, with no estimated delivery date. The price was also more than double that of the other parts house.
Care to guess which place gets first shot at my hard earned dollars, these days??
Then last month i took my truck to get the front tires balanced. They started asking me "what's it doing? etc etc" I did mine own diagnosis on the problem I simply came to them to balance the tires because i do not own a tire balancing machine to do it myself. They just assume people don't know anything and it's actually rude.
I avoid parts stores at all costs and usually order online like from rockauto but i'm not going order 1 spark plug online.
Who takes tires to be balanced at a parts store? Shouldn't you take it to a shop.
As a service advisor at a shop, they are supposed to ask customer's why they're requesting a particular service because guess what, most people who bring their car in for service don't diagnose their own problems or those that do, don't diagnose it correctly.
Just answer the damn questions and politely tell them what you're requesting. End of.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Redraven
I know exactly what you mean.
A couple years ago a new parts store opened here, so when a light bulb (sealed beam) burned out I thought I would give them a try. I took the old bulb (3 inch sealed beam fog light) with me, and asked the counter man for "One just like that." He immediately said "What is it out of?" I knew I was in trouble, but I said "2002 Fleeetwood Southwind motorhome."
He said "I don't have parts for those!" He didn't even bother to look at the manufacturer's part number on the back of the old bulb. If the vehicle isn't in the computer, they don't have parts for it, period!
I have never been back to that Autozone store. Why bother, they don't have ANY parts for a Class A motorhome, the counterman said so!
Bulbs are usually kept out on the sales floor, not behind the counter, so it seems like you were too stupid to find "one just like that" yourself.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rbohm
when buying parts, i dont mind the year make model engine size stuff, i realize that parts counter people are generally not that well educated, and have to follow computer prompts so they can get the list of parts from various manufacturers.
Are you retarded? How are you supposed to know, out of 500 alternators, which one is for your year/make/model, without looking it up on the computer? Would you prefer it take 3 times longer and have them use a book?
Quote:
Originally Posted by LeagleEagleDFW
I too loathe auto parts stores. I solve this problem by always having a new car under warranty. I haven't been into an auto parts store in years.
Save 15 minutes standing in line at a store, in exchange for a higher car payment. Smart.
I would think the guys buying parts to do actual work on vehicles would know more then guys just selling parts. Mechanically talented people usually don't waste that talent working for $9 an hour selling parts unless they are retired mechanics. Most auto parts store employees these days are simply cashiers.
there are a lot of people that try to work on their cars, but fail often.
Quote:
Originally Posted by NARFALICIOUS
Quote:
Originally Posted by rbohm
when buying parts, i dont mind the year make model engine size stuff, i realize that parts counter people are generally not that well educated, and have to follow computer prompts so they can get the list of parts from various manufacturers.
Are you retarded? How are you supposed to know, out of 500 alternators, which one is for your year/make/model, without looking it up on the computer? Would you prefer it take 3 times longer and have them use a book?
since it was obvious from your post that you lack reading comprehension, i quoted the part you failed at. try reading it again, this time try a little comprehension before you go off on some kind of tirade.
"Bulbs are usually kept out on the sales floor, not behind the counter, so it seems like you were too stupid to find "one just like that" yourself."
SORRY, not true. When I went down the road to a competitor, the real honest-to-god parts person went back to the shelves in the rear and brought back the replacement bulb. It was NOT on a rack on the sales floor!
He also did not care that it came out of a motorhome!
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