What the heck is wrong with parts stores?

[adsm08]

The 98+ rangers have the same length wiper blade on both sides, and use the same connector on both sides... But there's still a left and a right blade. I've had several people give me dirty looks and call me an idiot when I handed them two blades and said this is drivers side and this is passengers side.

I had a guy, maybe early 50s, come in, get two identical wiper blades (what his vehicle called for) and asked me to label them L and R on the package because the car wasn't there.

I had another guy ask me to label the boxes for his brake pads as front and rear. The front ones were about 8 inches long, the rear ones were only 4 or so. I just told him that if he couldn't figure it out once he got the wheels off he needed to not be doing his own brakes.

 

[G8orFord]

I order most of my parts online now so I don't have to deal with the counter folks. When I do have to tell them what the vehicle is, I usually tell them something like 2001 Ranger, 4.0 SOHC bored 0.030 over, 4x4, extended cab, black with gray interior, 260k miles, hole worn in the driver's seat and it's got a little bit of a vibration at about 40 mph.



Most of the time I have to repeat the important parts.

 

[Dirtman]

I order most of my parts online now so I don't have to deal with the counter folks. When I do have to tell them what the vehicle is, I usually tell them something like 2001 Ranger, 4.0 SOHC bored 0.030 over, 4x4, extended cab, black with gray interior, 260k miles, hole worn in the driver's seat and it's got a little bit of a vibration at about 40 mph.



Most of the time I have to repeat the important parts.

I'd make you repeat all too... then start asking even more questions. "Sir I assure you I cannot get you the proper spark plugs without your social security number and mother's maiden name!"

 

[PetroleumJunkie412]

My Ranger has Chevy, Volvo, Mercedes, Dodge, Explorer, Bronco II, and every year of Ranger from 1983-1994 parts on it. And not just "in common." I mean I grafted that sh*t in.

This is how I know how to use an advance auto computer.

 

[racsan]

ive been at autozone before, rattling off my vehicle info, and in the middle of it all say “with 2 speed power ashtray”. it gets a good laugh if their paying attention.
most if the time I will print off what I need, circle the part # and just say here- go & get. I have done the rock auto thing a few times now, aside from having to wait a few days its been ok. but when I went to pick a fuel pump, there was choices of reg cab or super cab. wtf? Used to be the local napa store was very competent, had their own machine shop too. then the store must have changed hands franchise wise, the location changed to across town and they got rid of the machine shop. still the best place to go if I need tune up parts for the allis, yes - it has a delco-remy distributor.

 

[Josh B]

ive been at autozone before, rattling off my vehicle info, and in the middle of it all say “with 2 speed power ashtray”. it gets a good laugh if their paying attention.
most if the time I will print off what I need, circle the part # and just say here- go & get. I have done the rock auto thing a few times now, aside from having to wait a few days its been ok. but when I went to pick a fuel pump, there was choices of reg cab or super cab. wtf? Used to be the local napa store was very competent, had their own machine shop too. then the store must have changed hands franchise wise, the location changed to across town and they got rid of the machine shop. still the best place to go if I need tune up parts for the allis, yes - it has a delco-remy distributor.

The wires to a fuel pump are longer on the super cab
Also NAPA restructured a couple years back and went to using more lucrative (for them) parts

 

[lvwill]

What's really funny is when you go an with an actual part #. Then they start asking all the vehicle info and it doesn't match up.

 

[Dirtman]

Realistically if you're a car guy, you should walk in to a parts store knowing the part numbers you need. I loved those customers, they'd hand me a peice of paper with numbers on it. I'd get parts, they give me money. No words exchanged. If they were the wrong part, not my problem.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

My Ranger has Chevy, Volvo, Mercedes, Dodge, Explorer, Bronco II, and every year of Ranger from 1983-1994 parts on it. And not just "in common." I mean I grafted that sh*t in.

This is how I know how to use an advance auto computer.

Similar story.

I blow minds when I go in ask for parts for 2-3 very different vehicles at a time. "You sure have a bunch of vehicles..."

 

[Snoranger]

I used to work the parts counter at Pepboys back in the 90’s... I asked every customer what color interior they had and would pretend to select.

 

[Shran]

I almost always walk in with part numbers. One of our semi-local places (Sturdevants) is pretty good, a few of the NAPA guys are good, but the others... forget it. O'Reilly is the worst by far, Carquest/Advance a close second to that and AutoZone is hit or miss.

The concept of order online, pick up in store has been my best friend. I no longer have to play 20 questions and waste my time explaining things to someone who will never get it.

 

[Bgunner]

When I lived down in southern Georgia I rebuilt am Oldsmobile Bravada for my girl friends mother. I needed a new EGR valve so I found one out at AutoZone. Well because there were different 4.3L put into this vehicle they needed the 8th digit in the Vin number to know which one I needed. OK no problem, so I thought to myself, I'll give them the "W" code and at least I know I'll have the correct part. I drive out and back, close to a 30 mile round trip, to get it and the bloody thing was the wrong part. ( insert emoji with volcano exploding out the top of head here ) I remember this so vividly because giving them the exact vin code for the engine, which I still remember was a "W", they still couldn't produce the proper part the first time. I haven't purchased a part other than a over the counter style part from an AutoZone since.

Chain auto part stores, Advanced/CarQuest, O'Reilly's, Napa ect., are becoming the McDonalds of car part stores. I miss the old Mom and Pop style shops where they actually had pulled wrenches and still did at the time. To bad the local machine shop is shutting down because that, while being a Napa, was actually a good source of proper parts in my area, not to mention I'll have to head to the central county just to get bearing pressed on or off if I can't get into my buddy's shed to his press.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

I almost always walk in with part numbers. One of our semi-local places (Sturdevants) is pretty good, a few of the NAPA guys are good, but the others... forget it. O'Reilly is the worst by far, Carquest/Advance a close second to that and AutoZone is hit or miss.

The concept of order online, pick up in store has been my best friend. I no longer have to play 20 questions and waste my time explaining things to someone who will never get it.

Anymore I do a lot of order online and wait for it to come in the mail...

Blower motor started making noise in the wife’s car. Pay $120 across town of $50 shipped form rock auto?

2yo moog ball joint went out of my ‘150. $50 for a another Moog or $55 for a motorcraft?

 

[4.0blue98]

Autozone does the online thing now too. I needed some rockers for a Chrysler Pentastank (because the factory rockers suck) and I had some mellings the next day.

 

[Dirtman]

2yo moog ball joint went out of my ‘150. $50 for a another Moog or $55 for a motorcraft?

Man.... remeber when moog parts were actually better than oem stuff? Dem were the days.