I now know why the local speed shops are all going away.

Sunday afternoon i took a drive over to Detroit speed shop. Closed? on a sunday there closed. I was on a mission to score a set of headers for my current project. I figured hell sunday would be rocking around there with guys getting cars ready for spring and all. But no. So i went home and after dinner i orderd a set of headers from summit for 89.00 bucks (40 dollars cheaper then any place around town) and they were here tuesday early afternoon. with free shipping. Now thats good service. It just doesnt make sense to me why a speed shop would be closed on a sunday. I would think that would be a busy day of the week for them. This was only the second time i mail orderd any kind of speed equip. and if its that easy ill keep doing it.

 

THAT is the reason Mom 'N Pop Speed Shops and Independant Scooter shops are going out of business.

 

I dont know much about Detroit speed shop, but I know the hours can be tough to work around for some, but they work just like the rest. Also, I have ordered alot from summit, and very cheap, very fast. Its tough to compete with the volume and service they and others have, but I am sure if you call or contact a local shop, they will work with you, and meet you at the store or match the price or do what they can. IT is tough though, for both sides.

 

I don't think most speed shops are counting on the parts. Install is where it's at. That's my understanding anyway.

 

Yes mail order is cheap and relatively fast now. I needed a step down pipe for a motorcycle exhaust. I wanted to finish it then. One place in town had it. One of the older part stores in town.

Searching for that part would have been a bit of a pain on the internet. I'll try and keep the small parts store in business when I can.

Sometimes it's easier, sometimes it's not. It's certainly not easier when you get the wrong part or ordered the wrong part and need to exchange it.

Around here most places are willing to at least meet you part way on price differences.

 

The other thing is the middle man.. IE: rodparts warehouse etc.. They dont stock shit. They drop ship and dont need a big fucking warehouse even though the name implies they have one. They even do business via cell phones . They dont stock dont pay rent sell cheaper. Dont blame the mom and pop speed shops that close on sunday. Shit everyone needs a rest. You werent working sunday ... I see in the future more good business going down the drain from the people that can make a living selling and drop shipping. They can really cut prices this way. I just got a new Jegs catalog yesterday and guess what it said on the cover ??? New lower prices. Now some of these assholes sell jap junk but the ones with brains know how to sell at a good price and sell a lot.. I wonder how many of them are setting on an island every winter with a cell phone and a lap top... While we are shivering and working.. Maybe we should boycott the fuckers...
Dave

 

Over 30 years ago when I worked at Gratiot Auto Supply, we were never open on Sunday,.. On the hours sign for Sunday all it said was "Gone Racing",... Years and years before that when I was a kid you had better have gas and groceries on Saturday, cause NOTHING was open on Sunday.,...... personally I am glad to see Detroit Speed Shops closed on Sunday, How much more "Traditional" can you get ?

 

are you talking about Summit and Jegs here?? - cause they certian stock stuff - I've been to the Ohio Summit

 

I figured it out years ago, I can dropp 150 on a fuel pump at the local rod/speed shop or 95 from Summit.

it gets better I've been doing business with them since before they had more than one warehouse, I usually get an extra 15-30% from the catalog price.

 

Don't be afraid to ask if they will come down on the price to keep the sale local. If they say "no" then by all means, order away. If they can't actually meet the price but are willing to sell for a bit cheaper, work with them. IMO.

 

sad...

6:30 A.M., Tuesday Morning,Austin,Texas.
I walked through the BACK door of our local Speed Shop (Austin Performance) rummaged around for 2 hours,in the storefront,warehouse,and "cool old shit" closet (known to them as "that pile of junk" left with around 3500 dollars worth or parts, and didn't even hand over a check. AFTER I make sure everything fits, I will go give Bill the cash.


try that with Scummit or Junks. yeah, I occasionally have to mail order stuff, but I have found that the more business I do with "my guys" the cheaper the parts get (which I pass on to the customer-I ain't lookin to get rich. I just want to build some cars.) and the more options I have avalible.

I couldn't begin to tell you My wife's cell phone number...But I will probably never forget Bill Von Quintus's!

 

I miss SuperShops....they had a good selection of parts, with good pricing.
I'd buy parts from them ALOT, gauges, gaskets, NOS refills, etc.....and were in town here.
There's still a speedshop in Tacoma (Pro-Max), they USED to have a good selection of parts, but not much anymore.....

As far as closed on Sundays...that has ALWAYS bugged me. Especially with motorcycle shops. The only time I go riding is on the weekend and sometimes I need premix or a part......just doesn't make sense.

 

DT,
I don't recall the local speed shops ever being open on Sunday (no Murrays isn't a speed shop ) Gratiot Auto Supply, Custom Speed Ent., Motor City were all closed up by 1:00 on Sat. Ramchargers might have stayed open for the 5.0 'boyz' but if you needed a part you got there when they were open not when you got around to it...

CC

 

So what you're saying is that you had no problem waiting untill Tuesday to get the headers....but you couldn't have waited untill just Monday to go get them at the speedshop?

They weren't open on Sunday because they have to have a day off. A place like that can't have employees there all day every day, they simply can't afford it. It's not worth it to lose money having a couple guys at the shop all day sunday for the 4 or 5 guys that walk in the door and -might- buy something. Would you rather have them open on Sunday and closed on Monday? Can't have you cake and eat it to.

Summit was a lot cheaper because they buy a much bigger quantity than the speed shop, and therefore gots a much bigger break on the price and can sell them cheaper.

So if you want to keep the mom n pop speed shops around, spend your money there even if it is more expensive and takes a day or two longer....otherwise, don't complain about them being gone.

 

No im talking about the ones that dont have a warehouse
Dave

 

Hey cool im gonna start buying from you

 

YES....most guys are working on their cars on the weekend....

Yep.....I'm willing to pay a few bucks more for the conveinence and the expertese/advice/service of a local shop.

 

I've done the mail order/internet thing, but I buy probably 70% of my hard parts at my local speed shop. (J&M - Riverside, CA) Why? Service - they have a fairly substantial inventory for these days; Their staff is knowledgeable and capable of giving good opinions, even to the point of talking me out of stuff I wanted to buy; repeat, "good" customers occasionally get better deals than the book says, and most of all, I want them to stay in business. They never went into rice-rocket parts that probably could have made them some quick bucks; it still feels like 1975 in there. V-8 muscle is still king. I know the catalogs are hurting them, but I still want a place to go and play touchy-feely with the hard parts, cleck the bulletin board for locally available stuff, and see what's new. The owner also can build you a killer Muncie for reasonable dollars.

 

Try living in the small town south. Lots close at noon on Wed, noon on Sat and never open on Sun.

 

I guess you never set foot in the Fresno location did you? I went there one time for a part and after waiting for about ten minutes to be helped the guy told me "I can order it." Guess what doofus............I am perfectly capable of doing that myself. If I wanted it a week from Tuesday thats what I would have done. We arent talking about some exotic speed part or a custom one off piece either.....................it was a K&N filter for a SBC. Summit rules......gets here fast and it's way cheaper than anywhere else.

 

mayfair is open again on van born road in taylor. dont know if that helps you or not but they have good prices and great service.

 

True.

Its the trickle down effect. Summit and Jegs are the first ones always named... but there are others.

Ebay is our biggest worry right now. Similar to the 'middle man' shops that were talked about earlier. People realized they could sell ebay and not have to actually stock anything. They could start an ebay store... and work a day job. Stuff sold itself and money came in with little effort and no cash put out. Most of the popular stuff out there is being sold for $10 over what the people pay for it.

Quantity over quality.

There is little profit in 98% of the performance aftermarket unless you have some sort of underhanded backdoor deal... or are direct with the manufacturers.

The speed shops have to pay their counter guys less so they can turn a profit and keep the doors open... the good counter guys want to race, so they have to find a better job to make the money they need. Speed shop has to hire some minimum wage punk kid who likes cars, but hasn't built one or raced ever.

...and the cycle continues.

 

i think you are just posting this to get attenion and to cry. Kyle and Stacy at Detroit speed are great people that would bend over backward for anyone, but like my boss at Napa always said good parts guys will always bend over backwards for anyone but we will never bend over foward for anyone. If you want your mom and pop stores to stay in business wait your candy ass till monday to get your part instead of ordering from Mister big dick who doesn't know you from adam and don't give a shit who you are if you walked in the door of his shop or saw him at a carshow the sunday after. and who says we aren't open for busness any sunday some weeks out of the year we are out there bustin our ass to help you out and trying to make a buck seven days a week at car shows. but i see how it is go and cry when you can get your way, and put money in mr. big dicks pocket and then cry when small speed shops like us go out of business, when you are the reason that we do.
Brant

 

Well said Brant! How are things anyway? Been a while since we chatted.
You can always tell who the Summit and Jegs shoppers are..they always seem to have the most miss-matched, non running garbage on the street. They are the guys who would benefit most from the local speed shop guru.

 

hey Charley
thanks and i agree i didn't mean to go off on that post but oh well. yea you can tell who buys jap crap from the big boys when there $95 headers are leaking at a show because they didn' want to spend the extra doe to get the quality.
Brant

 

I started working the local speedshop back home at 16 and I worked there till I was 28, I never got a Saturday off unless I booked it weeks in advance, I had several Hotrods and Kustoms while I worked there and still have them, I never got to go to shows with my friends on Saturdays or out of town shows till I got enough time in to finally get a weekend off. I loved my job I got payed to talk about cars all day and I know my stuff, I know how to read a SpeedPro those that know what that is will know what I am talking about, Most people that work in a speedshop are useless today, But I was always there to help on Saturdays, then it happened we were told we are opening Sundays, that was my last day, So you want someone who knows cars to help you WELL ONLY SOMEONE who has a Hotrod or Custom will know what your talking about, So if you go to that speedshop that I worked at on sunday you get some kid driving Moms car working for minium wage helping you, Then you would be on here crying about the kid who could not help you because he was not a CAR PERSON. So I hope you think about that next time you get to wake up on the weekend and go cruising or work on your own car, because that guy behind the counter would love to be doing the same thing, by the way I worked at HEDMAN Hedders and Summit was the worst for selling the worng hedders so good luck.

 

well if i had wanted to work on it on sunday,i would have went earlier in the week,bought what i needed,just in case they didn't have every thing, then got up EARLY sun morn. started to work. my.02

 

My shop will open 01 May. I will be open hours other than 9-5 so the working guys and gals can spend $$, I will be open Sat & Sun, Sat. p.m. I will be at races with support trailer (air, welder, oil, plugs, filters, etc.) just like I wished others had done for me. www.oldcarfart.com

 

Easy fellas, I thought all the "speed shops" disappeared 20-30 yrs.
ago.I seem to remember Jegs being a hole in the wall on 11th st.
or some such in Columbus.Summit was selling out of a private
residence.I'd drive to Coultraps(sp?) and that was almost an hr.
away. Spent some time later (early 80's) working at Whitlock in
Tulsa,at that time the biggest speed shop I'd ever seen.
I just gotta figure anybody that manages to keep the doors open
on a"local" speed shop must be doing something right or they'd
be long gone way before now. I'd much rather trade with someone
local but its really slim pickins in this neck of the woods.

 

Last summer i spent well over 2k at Detroit speed shop. i would rather go there.Why do you think i said this is only the second time i mail orderd. But fuck this isnt 1955 and Shit needs to be open on sunday. That was my only gripe. they used to be open on sunday in the summer why not keep it year round. My buddy used to work there and they enough of a staff to give every one two days a week off. And sorry i had to buy cheap jap headers i have to build my cars on a tight a budget. Ill deal with a header leak so i can drive my car. non of my cars are fucking show cars belive it or not they get driven.