Auto parts stores

[flywise]

🤬

[Burnadell]

I can’t see the picture.

[flywise]

I can’t see the picture.

There isn’t one just a mad
It seems I can’t find one that has a singe employee that knows anything about vehicles. I hate buying parts from Amazon or other internet sites but it’s just easier

[Quackerbox]

rock auto

[Twist]

Sounds like a lot are going downhill.

I worked at a Hi/Lo (now O’reilley) years ago out of high school. Can not even begin to tell you how many horror stories we got from people who went down the road to AutoQuack, then AutoShack of course, only to end up getting a refund and come to us in order to get it right.

I still use O’Reilly and they’re not horrible, but they definitely aren’t what they used to be. I’ll still go into other stores but only if I can look up what I need and pull it from the shelf on my own.

[Bayouboy]

NAPA used to be the best. They are a shell of what they were in the 70’s and 80’s.

[Big Lee]

A fellow TBHer can help us. Can't remember his name

[Strummer]

I’m lucky we still have a mom and pop auto parts store.

[EarleyBird]

I remember riding with my Dad to the HI-LO in Humble, across from Monterrey House, on Saturday mornings and he'd get the parts then fix that '77 Ford truck right there in the parking lot! He could literally fix anything. But he would also talk to and cuss out whatever he was working on!

[flywise]

There was an oreilly I would go to years ago because one of the employees has a race car. He seemed to know everything. I typically know what I need and tell them. Today they could figure out heater core hoses. So I bought them online. They sold me the wrong oil filter so that left me waiting for my wife to get home with the correct one……guess what? Different location and wrong **** filter. I actually told her DO NOT let them ask you all that irrelevant info. Just tell them you need a filter compatible with a fram and a number. So I had to search it on the net, found a long list of replacements that would work myself

[RifleBowPistol]

Yes, it is very hard to find parts people who are worth $5.00 an hour, much less what they get paid. When I find one, that is good, I try to always call them for parts. But with the way many large companies are, the good people don't stay in one location very long before either getting moved or moving on to a different job. Then I back to dealing with button pushers, that are clueless. I really hate how large companies think they can buy parts software, that will allow them to hire any clueless idiot to do the job of a good parts person. I say parts person and not parts man, because at this time, the best I know of, is a female. When nobody else can find the right part, you contact her, she will find it.

The parts catalog software that most parts companies buy, is pretty close to pure garbage. I have concluded that large parts companies, who have parts in their inventory, that has been sitting for years. They want to get rid of, so they seem to be paying the company that makes the parts catalog software, to remove all other parts that are of the same part numer as the part number that some company has a bunch of old stock of. What I keep finding, is common part numbers that have been common part numbers for 35 to 40 something years, and often still used on current model vehicles. That part number will suddenly after 40 years, show that on one company makes that part, no matter how you look it up. Then that part is special order, so you have to wait two weeks or so to get it and then pay shipping to get it. When I know that part number exists in their stores and warehouses, all over the country in other brands, but no matter how you look it up, it won't come up with the correct part number for those brands. It will only come up with that one part number, from some company, that nobody buys that part from that company. So it's special order, a lot higher priced than the common parts and then like I said you get to wait weeks for it to show up, then pay for shipping.

So I have to get on the internet and search for the part number that I know is a common part number, that I have bought thousands of times. Quite often even on the internet, it will still link you back to that one part number, that nobody buys, that is not in stock anywhere but the manufacturer. But eventually I find the correct part number, then give it to one of the parts experts, about 70% of the time, they have it in stock. The other 30% of the time, it's at the warehouse and I will have it, inside of two hours. But it took three to four hours to come up with the correct part number. All because some ***** is paying the parts catalog software company to make sure only their part number comes up.

Even when that stupid stuff is not happening, dealing with the regular parts guys, can make you really want to just flip your lid. Like when you want the same part, you have bought 453 times in the past. But now some 21 year old bad ***, parts expert, is talking to me like I am wasting his time, by not answering his questions correctly. When is questions have zero relevance to the **** part I am needing, but he has no clue.

I could right a 10,000 page book on this subject.

Did I mention, I don't like most parts guys, parts people, that they can really **** me off.

[waterdog]

last time i went to one, i ask for a plastic in line fuel filter for my lawn mower. they could not get me one with out a year and model number..............

[flywise]

last time i went to one, i ask for a plastic fuel filter for my lawn mower. they could not get me one with out a year and model number..............

Couple years ago I asked for a valve stem remover and told the girl you will not find it in your computer, it has to be somewhere here in the store and she still wanted vehicle info. As I was walking out I happened to see one on a hook and pointed it out to her and left

[WItoTX]

I've found most brick and mortar stores are also 10-20% more than online. If I am proactive, I order the stuff I need in advance. If not, I just wait another week for this fix. I am currently waiting on shocks I could have gotten from O'Reilly immediately. But I saved $50.

[SmTx]

Call O'riellys and give them your license plate then tell them what you need.

If you can, deal with first call only.