Every Old Yankee Speed part is manufactured in the US (except master cylinders) I ordered 80 of my AV8 spring last November from my manufacturer…. I still don’t have them. It’s beyond frustrating. The other thing I should add.... if we don't have it in stock...... we don't sell it.
So let me get this straight... You pay for an item which a company lists it has for sale in their catalog, when in fact, they don't have the item (bad business #1). Rather than return your money, they keep it as a "place holder", for the item they don't even have in their possession to sell. (bad business #2). Then they admit they kept your money, but can only give you a less than vague idea when you MIGHT receive your item. (bad business #3). Finally, after they have taken your money for an item that they didn't have, they tell you, in order to fulfill the contract with you, you have to pay more money (punishing you) because they accepted and kept your payment for something they didn't have in their possession to sell at the time of the order. (bad business#4). FUCK THEM
I bought a new 9” rear end from John’s Industries last year.When they weren’t sure about shipping date I was assured my credit card would not be charged until the day it shipped. Class act, a pleasure doing business with them.
I am cleaning and reusing a lot more parts lately + shopping for used intakes etc. Been spending time cleaning up cast iron heads and doing pocket porting - gasket matching. Kinda like hot rodders used ta do....
I'm getting ready to do some stuff and haven't considered this. Good to be forewarned. It might affect some of my decisions as far as my way forward. Thanks.
If they've charged your credit card (or you' paid w cash or they accepted a check), you've paid for the product and they have to deliver at that sale price. They cannot legally increase the price after it's been paid for. Your purchase/payment is legally a completed contract, regardless of whether or not you've taken delivery of the product. In other words, if the Wife and I go to Home Depot Saturday and I pay in full for a new washing machine, with an agreement that they'll deliver it to my home Monday. They can't tell me on Monday when they arrive, "the price went up $100 since Saturday and I need to cough up another $100 if I still want the washer" (otherwise we'll cancel the order/give you a refund). When Coker calls you, they'll probably give you an ultimatum; "if you still want the set of tires, it'll cost you $200 more, otherwise you can cancel the order". Have them send you this offer in writing (email) "while you think it over". If you've fully paid up front, you can then reply that they have to honor the contract or you'll be speaking with your State's attorney general...Then see what they say. Don't cancel the order yourself. Let them cancel the order. This will be a "breach of contract" by them (not you) and if you choose to get nasty, you can sue them in small claims for the difference in the price you actually paid and their newly quoted price. Known as "benefit of the bargain" in legal terms. For example; if you paid $800 for the tires and they now want $1300, your claim will be for $500. The logic of the court will be that had you actually taken possession of the tires for $800, you would then be holding $1300 of value and therefore the store will owe you your 'profit' in the form of a $500 judgment. I learned this truth in advertising bit from my Dad when I was a kid.
When I called Coker about the delay in shipping ( I had ordered a replacement tire) their salesman told me they hadn't charged my account and wouldn't until the tire was shipped.
Piece in the WSJ last week that said aluminum was up 40%. It will interesting to see what the price of intakes and wheels will be this summer.
We have tossed the rest of it around all too often and Workers not going to work in one part of the world for whatever reason (pick a number off the list) this week. I get regular posts from Offy on FB and sometimes it is a vidio like this one showing that they still use the same machines to machine our Offy parts that they used 60 years ago. I didn't see any stack of bellhousings in their posts yet though. (20+) offenhauser sales corp - Search Results | Facebook A couple of days they did show a box of Finned Chevy Valve covers just back from the foundry if someone is backordered on a pair They might be in that box. I don't see any fast moving young guys in photos of work going on in the Offy shop though. That cold be a reason in itself.
I'd say that in most cases we just need to find workable alternatives and refuse to pay the higher prices. Just like the trickle down theory where each hand that touches the product causes an increase in price, when they aren't selling anything...........it trickles back up. We want a nice product for a hobby...........they need to sell it for their livelyhood. I realize someone like the OP who does professional work can't do without certain new parts, but us guys doing it as a hobby sure can. Then in a year or so hopefully the new stuff will be available at reasonable prices.
At work supply chain issues are a huge problem for us, and it has very little to nothing to do at all with backed up ports. Almost 100% of raw materials are produced and sourced right here in the states, and still we can't get materials. It's killing our sales guys, every day is a new adventure trying to track down shipments; looking for availability of products, where can they beg, borrow or steal something to fill an order; customer's shops being completely out of oil and they can't service their trucks & equipment; and on and on. And even when product is available that doesn't mean we can get it shipped due to a shortage of truck drivers. It's a huge problem and it is not getting better. And yes, prices are way up, we've had several price increases, so if our sales guys aren't tracking down products for customers, they're contacting them to tell them we're raising prices. The only good thing about it is our competitors are in the same position. We have major new national accounts waiting to bring them on board; and we're putting it off, cause we can't get product for them if we did bring them on board. Think about it, the sales process in this business is often >18 months long, sometimes it takes years of working a prospect. And finally the stars align and you make some traction and you get an agreement, and you can't fulfill it because of supply chain problems. And salesmen depend on bonuses for income, their salaries are intentionally low to incentivize them to move product, so a huge part of their annual income depends on sales volumes and margins; and now they have customers and the company can't supply product. How do you think that makes them feel? That's reality right now. You guys are complaining that you can't get something, the truth is the companies would love to sell and ship you what you want, they can't get it themselves, and when they can they can't get it shipped to you. It's a bad, bad situation, and it's not getting better.
I just spent a week at my house in San Pedro looking out at LA Harbor. There didn’t appear to be an unusually large number of ships waiting like there was before. It looks like business as usual. They may have made them wait further out at sea for air quality reasons but we were surprised not to see the huge log jam of freighters we saw before. So take that excuse with a grain of salt. So far the only thing I haven’t been able to get was chrome wheels from Wheel Vintiques. But no one seems to hesitate to raise the prices on everything.
I guess the thing that I wonder about is why something isn't available at the current price, why will it be available if I pay more money for it? If I have to wait 3 months because the supplier had to wait 3 months then I have to wait 3 months..........why does that mean the price increased? Another thing is that the extended dates for a product being available are often lies. I ordered a Comp Roller Cam (Cad 500 catalog item) and they told me 2 months. After 2 months they told me another 2 months. Then after 4 months they told me another 2 months. I contacted them directly and was told they did not have any cam cores for the engine and didn't really know when they would get them..........but the current price of the item from Summitt had risen from about $550 to $1070........Basically a 100% price increase. They told me they were concentrating on their best selling (Chevy) stuff and would not be doing anything to get blanks for other engines. If they had not lied to me in the beginning, I could have simply gotten a cam from one of their competitors. Now I have some high dollar roller lifters (Jackson $appx $900) and no camshaft to use them. I wrote them a letter and explained that they should have been honest with me up front so that I could have found an alternative. I had also planned to purchase a total of about $10K in products from them and their sister companies to build two of these engines.........now I plan to buy none of their products and that money will be spent on their competitors products. I can understand that they may have somewhat of a supply problem, but its been over a year (1 1/2) since this started and they still don't have them available..........yet they have the audacity to double the price and still lie to people about availability. (Note: I have not checked current availability but doubt that its changed....but price is still up) https://www.summitracing.com/parts/cca-94-801-10/make/cadillac Here is the letter I sent them last year. Notice that they still list it as a catalog item with availability in a few months. I have my doubts that they will deliver if anyone needs one, but I sure ain't paying double in any case. PS: Some can call this "bitcXen"...........I call it sharing information. The internet is great for sharing info. If you are considering ordering from any company, buyer beware!
There's an element of greed that goes along with all of this: nearly all sellers use a standard % mark up in their business, so... A year ago I, as a business owner used my standard mark up of 30% when I sold you a part. So on something I bought from a manufacturer for $100, my mark up was $30. Today, since that same part went up 50% to $150, my mark up is now $45. You'd think I would be happy if I still made $30 per part. Well, I'm not! I want my percentage (and the extra $15), and if you don't like, move along and let the next guy belly up to the cashier's counter, because I'm a greedy opportunist and I can get away with it. There's an old adage: "Figures don't lie, but liars figure." YOMV
I just saw this posted on FB, relating to the current supply chain situation. Figured it was relevant to add to this thread. A little perspective from me. I work for CP-Carrillo, Pistons n rods, and For the past 15 years, we typically run parts 24/7 (two 12 hour shifts) from early may to late June, except holidays. In 2015 our maximum average of Pistons in the shop during those busy months was 15,000 daily. By 2017 the number was 20,000. Since 2019 the lowest average I’ve seen is 38,000+, and as I type this we are at 43,250.., yesterday was the record 44,114!.., the rod shop is just as overloaded, and we’ve been running 24/7 for the past 2 1/2 years except a few days for holidays. So we are near triple of what we had in 2015, and because of the Covid deal we are typically down 25% or more of our personnel, not to mention that those CNC Mills and lathes used to make your pistons n rods wear out, and break sometimes, and it’s harder to get parts for them too. I can personally guarantee that everyone at CP-Carrillo wants to get your parts made and shipped quickly as humanly possible, and no one is trying harder than our group. Like everyone else, our delivery times have tripled plus during this covid time, and really, it’s near impossible to even quote delivery times. Everyone needs to give each other a lot more grace these days, and it is hugely appreciated..,because when someone chews your ass, while your doing all you can for them, you may just lite a bridge on fire.
I call BS on a lot of his statements. If their production is so great why the delays? I am involved with manufacturing (US based right here) and transportation. Right now we are running about 40 trucks in the region. Our owner operators are not having any issues finding drivers. Our fleet has run business as usual this whole time. Very little attrition due to the virus. Our plant with about 200 employees hasn't really been affected either. Hitting huge production numbers all the time. All without changing lifestyles in our day to day. And the local bike company I helped start has weathered the storm just fine even though most all bikes, including theirs, are made overseas. In the end, I think we are seeing a lot of excuses placed on outside factors when the reality is these companies had bad business practices or lacked a Plan B when the SHTF.
This is true, but before the internet there were a lot of shops selling over the counter just about any new part you needed.
I agree with a lot of what you say... We see news all the time about 'increased productivity', so how can someone say we're manufacturing more but there's a shortage? It doesn't add up. The worst business plan is JIT (Just In Time) inventory. Everyone wants the manufacturer to take the inventory hit, and just clip coupons as the money passes through their hands. Bean counters and Hahvahd (in my best Boston accent) Business School- types like that, but the reality is you can't sell it if you haven't got it, AND it takes a hell of a lot more work to win a customer back than it does to keep him happy. The sad fact is, a lot of businesses that are struggling today shouldn't be in business to begin with! Today everybody wants to be an 'ontreepunnuer' and retire by age 40!
I do find it odd, my company takes care of many Amazon warehouses, we support all the conveyance in the building. During “peak” and “prime “ we will hit over 100k packages on a 10 hour shift. We have been averaging about 85k packages off peak/prime and rarely does it slow down. Seems like Amazon doesn’t have a supply problem (Note that most stuff comes from overseas)
Malcolm, I appreciate and liked the post you presented above. The thing I would point out is that the Carrillo Company apparently has stepped up efforts and has also been able to get raw materials in stock to basically double their production output thru these last couple of years. Kudos to them, and people ordering from them have a reasonable expectation of getting what they need....not just lip service. I also just got off the phone with a representative of Specialty Power Windows. Needed some information about a kit I bought at the Nationals a couple years ago. Guy could not have been more helpful. I mentioned that I had called because I could not get to their website on line. I told him it made me wonder if they had gone out of business because of Covid and supply issues. He said there was no concern about that. They had plenty of stock on hand and were doing quite well. I mention this in the same vein of "providing information" when a supplier does well as when they don't.
Gotta love the comments that because something isn't an issue in one area it can't possibly be an issue anywhere else.
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