I've been at three Otozone's so far where they let me find my own parts. brake line? sure, come over here in the back, find what you need. A/N connectors? well, there's a cabinet here, come have a look. and the one here in town has an old-time rodder working, so they're cool. anyone ever notice that nappa doesn't have carb types in the computer? wanted a kit for a Rochester H (Corvair carb) but the guy said for Corvairs he only had Rochester R1 carbs listed. so I went back home to look up the actual tag number so I could make sure it'd be right, looked at their website, then figured out it is like this: R1= all rochester 1bbl, R2 is all Rochester 2bbl, C1 is well you get it.
We have a great parts guy at a NAPA here. Any of you guy's who come to the Nats South drive right by the store going in the gate. He knows what it is, where it is and how to put it on. If he doesnt have it he can tell you where to find it. I only go to "parts stores" if it's really convenient, (or to mess with the pea brain parts droids behind the counter .) My latest weird experience in one of those places didn't have anything to do with the help really. I stopped at an Advance, an Auto Zone and a Pep Boys and none carried plain turbo mufflers or long sections of exhaust pipe. However, if I had needed a fart can, plastic covers to go over my gas and brake pedal, skull stickers or a Chinese dirt bike I'd have been set. I ended up just going to Pull a Part and cutting off what I needed, and for way cheaper to boot.
All this just means support your local "Real Auto Parts" store. No Manny, Moe and I don't know, Autozoners, Kragens or whatever. I live within walking distance...(even though I have eight cars, walking distance still has bearing..unfortunately)...to one of those old time stores, Ernie's in Monrovia. Part of a bunch of stores serviced by a local warehouse, if they don't have it on the shelf, they usually can have it on the counter in a hour or so. If the store you go to has a bunch of trucks going in and out, chances are the local mechanics are the ones that go there, and the right part and time is money to them. I managed four Chief Auto Parts for years and know how hard it is to get good help and still keep a corporate budget.
KNOWLEDEGABLE SALES HELP! I will gladly pay more for someone who knows what they are doing, and good quality service.
I worked in an Autozone for about 3 Years, Had some genius that thought it would be funny to call in and ask me for a waterpump for a beetle, he asked for a waterpump for a 2003 beetle and I told him the part number, he laughs at me and says that ALL beetles are air cooled and I'm stupid cause it doesn't have a water pump. _________ Had a guy asking for some random part for an 83 corvette once, I told him without looking at the computer that we stock nothing for an 83 corvette and he would be hard pressed to find parts for an 83 corvette anywere. I then asked him if he was 100% sure on the year, not an 82 or and 84, guaranteed me that it was an 83. I then informed him that there is was and never will be an 83 corvette, never made. After alot of one sided arguing from him, cursing, swearing that I know nothing he went out to the car and looked at his registration and came back in and quietly said that he thinks parts for an 82 will work on it. ________ Many times I had people come in wanting parts for the Chevy Bronco???? and Ford Blazer?????, I never could find out from these people what they had for sure, never would bring in a vin or registration or anything. ______ What is a 94 Ford Mercury? And why did so many people have them? ______ No pay, horribly stupid rules, and Most managers I had were ignorant greedy and childish about everything. I actually heard the regional manager on a conference call say that we "need to focus on customer service, we need to make sure that if they come into the store they need to purchase something before they leave." ________ I took a commercial call from a local transmission shop and the owner was asking for parts for a mitsubishi eclipse, I asked what year, 92, I ask engine size, 3.0, huh?, 3.0 6 cylinder,I repeat to him 92 mitsubishi eclipse with a 3.0 6cylinder?, he says yeah, I tell him that its a swap or the wrong info, he tells me that its a 3.0 and he's looking at the tag on the door for the year, I ask him what the engine is out of and he tells me that it has a 3.0 ford engine in it, then proceedes to tell me that it doesn't look like a swap at all, turns out it was a ford probe, Huge ford racing decal in the back window, ford emblems on the car...... ___________ Don't be mad at the people they hire, be mad at the corporate offices of these bigger stores for not actually focusing on the customer service, for not actually trying to get and keep people who know what they are doing. Be mad at every single level of management down to the store level for pushing aside customer service blindly thinking that somehow they will make a bigger profit by paying a body to fill a spot instead of actually staffing the stores.
i'm surprised nobody has caught this! the kid was right, your vette DOES have IFS. your wife is working on the wrong end of the car.... the back end is called IRS (on 63-up vettes) don't quit yer day job
Ahh the good old days. Going to the parts store was an enjoyable experience. Seemed like everybody knew everybody. The counter guys were lifers and knew their stuff. I never got tired of going to one particular store, although any of the three or four stores in town offered the same parts and services. This place was the one with the wood floors over a basement. The floors were stained with years of oil, grease and dirt from workboots. they creaked as you walked through the place. Each guy had his spot at the counter, between the old cardbaord display boards that had yellowed nicely in the last 25 years and still had a few of the original gadgets on them. Huge racks of catalogs in several places along the counter. One spot on the counter right where you came in the side door ( they had a front door but I never once saw it used) where you put your brake drums/rotors, axles, heads, etc. on the rubber mat...don't want to mess up the counter ya know. You could hear the brake lathe running as you waited for you drums to get turned, and wander over to the dusty display of the aftermarket parts; intakes, carbs, headers, cams, etc.In about twenty minutes they'd bring your drums back up front and you'd give 'em $12...no tax i guess, never asked. So many parts you could just take off the shelf and pay for, like spark plugs, brake lines and fittings, belts, hoses, etc. I guess they figured if you were there you probably knew what you wanted. The parking lot was dirt, the shop doors open in warm weather with that great smell drifting out. And the sign over the counter that said: "Wrong information will get you the wrong part...EVERY TIME" Now I just look the part up at home on MY computer, call the store to comfirm it's there, have them pull it and go pick it up...where's the fun in that????
After sooooooooooo many bad episodes with "Pep Boys' Auto Zone etc I only go to NAPA for every day parts and to a local Crank Grinder for go fast parts. My rule of thumb used to be if I asked for a Part say a upper radiator hose for a 65 Mustang and he askes me if it is an automatic or stick I just shake my head and walk out the door. You can still find parts guys but they are few and far between. The story about the guy taking the tests and not getting the job could have been me a few years ago. How really sad it has come to this. Fuzzy
ya I did forget to ad. that even though I did nto get that job a while back due to being over qualified.. I am extremely lucky as I am in Raleigh NC, and that si where the Carquest Headquarters are.. which means when I need parts I go to the warehouse and get my parts. 99% of the time it is back there.. just takes sometime for them to get it from warehouse the other thing that is nice is there is a local nut and bolt store.. where you walk in tell them what ya want or show them the item.. they walk away and come back with exactly what ya want in a few mins.. one time I brought in an old rust bolt and handed it to the old guy who can hardly see, he felt the bolt walked away and came back with exact bolt. Then to write up ticket for purchase he put on reading glasses and then used a magnifiyng glass to see the paper :0
My local NAPA lets me go pick up parts from Will Call at the local warehouse if I need them in a hurry. A question here - if there were so many good parts guys ten years ago still - and some of them were younger guys, way too young to retire even today - where are they all now?
I went to the local parts store and asked for a coil for a 65 ford f100. The teenage girl brings me a fese box and tells me here you go my boss helped me find your coil and it the right one.... Sence then i stay away from autozone...
See...now you know why she does the parts sourcing! She would never write IFS when IRS was intended! Guaranteed, she didn't say IFS to the kid...that is my typo. Yup...better keep the day job. Obviously has to pay well enough to pay for my mechanically suspect capabilities...those mistakes cost $$$!
i know the manager at the parts store in town and hes a hot rod guy and been a freind of my family for quite some time and he knows what i built and what i need when i call him so theres none of that what year of car did you say?? bs i just call him up and tell him what i need and hes like ill trop it off on the way home its nice to know people like this and to have him live just down the road a ways
The local NAPA store is great. They have set me up with a full set of paper catalogs so I can just call them with the part number. They even stock obscure parts that I use frequently such as 47 to 54 Chevy truck brake light switches. recently I went in to get a master cylinder repair kit for a 34 Desoto. The part number for that kit is 1. That's it, just 1. Had it the next morning. A while back I was doing an EFI conversion, and needed some parts from Painless to complete the job. Painless told me that Auto Zone stocked the parts, gave me the numbers, and away I went. Neither the counter man or the manager could find any listings with the numbers I gave them. So I called Painless again, he told me to tell them to look in the vendor section of the computer listings, so they did, and there it was. Along with listings for Edelbrock, Eagle headers, and a bunch of others they never knew they could get.
just yanking yer chain. most people know better than to take me seriosly... hey, i see you're local, stop by sometime,prolly a beer out in the shop someplace
we need to shop at our local mom and pop`s auto parts stores, help them out before they all go out of business.
Ya gotta be either independently wealthy, or really REALLY love the job, and not have a life. For me back in the early 70s & into the 80s being a small town parts manager sucked pay-wise. I liked the work (liquid therapy helped ) but with a young family and other obligations like making a life for 'em, the paycheck ran out long before the weekend. It can be good work but I don't know of too many that have made it a career, knowing higher paying jobs are out there. I'm still in a related field but don't deal with the public anymore. Lately I told a kid in a parts store that I used to be a counterman back in the day, he said "it sure must've been fun back then...." It was. Don't think I could do it nowadays.
If you are ever in Pasco, WA, go to 9 to 9 Autoparts. Ask for Phil or Richard. you'll get what you need at a good price and funny thing, they even know which end of a wrench to hold! And, such as last Sunday at 7 PM,Richard called me to see if I had a part in my shop for some outta towner who was broken down. Richard was trying to get him back on the road- no profit intended.
Man...you aren't kidding about being local! Hard to believe that there are more than one Hambers in Berthoud. Probably know the punk I am talking about at NAPA. He is long gone. I think the wife's experience forced him to resign. New guys are a lot better, but often run when they see me coming since I don't have an application for their computer. Hear that Bob is leaving soon...he at least knew how to read the books. PM me and we can share shop locations.
After ten years behind different parts counters and thirty years of John Deere's parts division, I'll gladly pay more for experience. That's why there are stores in my town that I drive by to get to others.
I remember a parts in south Kc 1 Ph call if he did not have it he would find it He worked at the local NAPA Funny thing was there was a Green Light parts store across the street from my shop Who did not have the part Guess where Chris found it
Here, lets regress... I was managing a local chain parts store here in the Dallas area in the early '70's. Harry Hines and Royal Lane for you guys that know. I had five guys on the counter with varying levels of knowledge from building race cars to one pencil pusher from the FBI !!??! The thing is tho, they were all willing to learn, and tried hard not to make assumptions. So one Saturday, we are all on the counter, up to our gazots in customers. Got 'em lined up clear back to the coke box. When we were that busy, I would put one of the guys on the phone, nothing else, and everyone else worked the counter, nothing else. We didn't even look up, we were so busy. Most of the time it was oil, or gadgets, or something simple and you just took their money and made change. So this guy gets up to the counter after 20 or so minutes in line and he has an ignition switch out of a Ford. He had been in earlier to buy the tumbler, and it went kinda like this: "I can't get this damn tumbler out of this switch! I tried with the paper clip like you showed me, and the damn thing won't come out!" So I take his switch, and his paper clip and ching! out it comes. "Damn!! I've been trying for a hour and I couldn't get it to work!" I haden't even looked up yet and I says "you just wern't holdin' your mouth right". That's when I looked up and saw that his wife had had a stroke sometime in her life and is looking at me with one side of her face melting down her head. Four of us looked at each other, turned around and went far enough back in the store to collapse on the floor in histerics! Took us awhile to regain our composure, and when we went back up front they were gone, thank goodness! It took some time for me to live that one down, and by the end of the weekend, most of the other twelve stores knew about it too. I loved the parts business. The pay sucked, and you had NO time off, but you met the coolest people, and got invited to some cool stuff. I had to quit, it was either quit the biz or loose my wife and kid.
actually ran into another hamb'r last night. can't remember his screen name but it was something to do with snakes.... i'll pm ya
I usually drive past the Advance, Auto Zone, O'Reilly's and the NAPA warehouse store to go to a Car Quest. The NAPA warehouse has the worse help with a serious nasty attitude. WE DON"T HAVE IT .. is their usual response ... even if they do. They are too D@*^ lazy to look it up or go get it. Car Quest has a 60 year old parts manager who gives me the long discount and enjoys trying to find weird, off the wall stuff. ____________________ Today I had a GREAT parts experience ... I went to a different parts store on the other side of town because they are a A/C Delco parts dealer. I wanted a few extra GF 157 fuel filters. It is a small MOM & POP type of parts store. They had three old guys ... sitting there with their parts catalogs and not a computer in sight. All three were pleasant and very helpful. My parts request was very simple and no problem but another guy came in and he had a older Pontiac with power brakes and was having a problem and two of the guys went to work in the catalogs trying to help. I think I have found a alternate parts store ... if my guy @ Car Quest cannot get it for me.
My dad and I both work in an auto parts store. My dad has been doing it for over 50 years, and I have about 35 years in it. We are hard core car guys and this has always provided us a living...that is until the corporate chains took over..They want minimum wage help, get pissed at the store personel, bitch and moan when business is bad, and the corp does nothing to improve the business. They want to get RICH TODAY, not build a business over time. They do not care about the customer, only the bottom line. The corp wheels have ruined a profession, and then don't have a clue why it happened.
Working at a parts store can be as bad as standing on the CUSTOMER side of the counter...it goes both ways. Belligerent customers don't win any points by being dickheads, put it in perspective: A customer comes into your shop with an attitude, do you really want to help this jerk? No, you want to put them out of YOUR misery ASAP. Example No.1, "Red" comes in and wants his alternator tested. When asked what it fits, "It doesn't matter, they're all the same." No, they definitely AREN'T all the same. Finally he confesses to owning a 2004 Ford F150. One has to look up the application in order to find a comparable company part number with which to test the alternator on the machine. Tests bad. Customer wants money back...no problem, customer satisfaction is imporant. After refunding money for the fourth NEW alternator "Red" has bought, he goes off on a tirade about the "God Damned parts aren't worth shitting on." I should have just let it go...but my scots-irish ancestry was triggered. "How have you been testing the alternator at home?" I asked... "My mechanic told me to take the hot cable loose at the battery, if it stayed running, the alternator is good!" "That doesn't work on late models......" "BY GOD, IT FUCKING WELL DOES TOO!" "Who is your mechanic?" He tells me, so I ask him to have his mechanic call me. Of course he lies to his mechanic, tells him things I supposedly said about his mother...Mechanic comes in next day, finds out what went on, goes to the guy's house and beats the shit out of him. I like this mechanic Example No.2, Caller:"I need a caliber for a twothousandford" Worried that this might be one of those "seed call" type things, I avoid hanging up and letting someone else get the phone when they call back... "A two thousand four what?" "NO DAMMIT, A TWO THOUSAND FORD MERCURY!" "Mercury what?" "MOTHERFUCKER...A TWO THOUSAND FORD MERCURY, DON'T YOU SPEAK 'MERICAN?" "Nein sprichen ze dumkopf" and I hung up. he came in later...driving a '94 Ford Escort...I asked him if he figured out what caliber would put it out of it's misery...lucky me, the guy had a different attitude now that he figured out what he was driving, he laughed about it and I found his brake caliper, the ford/mercury thing was something he remembered when buying parts for it once before...parts for a mercury tracer and ford escort were the same thing. NOT EVERYONE IS A CAR GUY, it's like me or you trying to call up Hancock Fabric and ask for boning for use in corset making. Totally foreign to us... (The stainless steel stiffeners in wiper blades are an acceptable substitute btw, learned this from one of my female customers...who would have known???) I wonder if one of those signs spoke of earlier would get me fired? "Wrong information gets you the wrong parts EVERY TIME!" That should be placed above the counter in every parts house in civilization. --------------------------------------------------------- The majority of our customers know what they're looking for, and there are only a couple of people in our store who weren't around to work on Carburetors, our manager works on his own stuff and out of his garage at home evenings and weekends...he's a second generation parts guy though, his dad ran the Green Light here for years. As for competition...the local NAPA is one of our customers, as we are one of theirs...if people come in looking for something, and either one doesn't have it, they call the other place. I have been shopping at our NAPA store for more than 20 years, the owner loaned me the bucks to buy a 59 chevy once because he knew I'd pay him back come payday. I guess small-town living can have it's ups and downs, I'm just glad this is a place where the all-seeing eyes of the corporations that OWN the stores don't know everything that goes on, people can actually get what they need, if they don't cop an attitude on the way in the store.
i had one like that years ago, but he started it first. towed it in, he drained the trans (manual) thinking it was the engine and filled it until he could see it in the cap. not believing him i pulled the dipstick out and oil came pouring out. i drained it, filled the engine and trans and started it. it smoked like a train, the people in the red lobster across the street called the fire dept thinking the gas station was on fire......i heard the sirens, shut off the truck and went to the store for a soda and watched.
hmmm, also everyone needs to stop calling the useless chain parts stores "local". to me local means mom and pop type pep boys, kragen and the like are "chain" stores. the only grey area is the privately owned chains (like napa, car quest...). my "local" part store lets me order at will, no pre pay, over the phone. he'll also hunt down info/part even if it's outta state, he has old parts catalogs and illustrated guides to let me look at and he'll order me 5 parts so i can choose one that will work (or none and then order more). that is unheard of around here and that is why i get everything there (the extra cost is worth it).
The Jalopy Journal
