Where did the brains go in the parts counter guys?

The problem is not so much the lack of knowldge behind the counter as the attitude. If you are in an Autozone or other similar discount retailer you should not expect too much. Sadly good autoparts stores and the help that used to man them are on the way out. Just like good mechanics and bodymen.

I once asked if bearings could be looked up by size rather than by application. After going around in circles with parts guy insisting I give the year make and model I finally gave the kid the correct info... 1929 6.5lrt Bently... I got a blank stare for a few moments and he said the computer does not go back that far. Yea! No Crap! that is why I asked if the bearing could be looked up by size.

Another occasion I got into a discussion with the counter help at an Autozone when looking for a master Cyl for a 68 El Camino. Needless to say they did not have a listing. When I said look it up for a Chevelle or Wagon he did not want to, saying "they were not the same". He had the listing for a Chevelle but then was reluctant to sell the master to me insisting that the Chevelle and ElCamino were two completely different vehicles.

 

Sinister Sleds, I can't add much to THAT. If your car is your daily, MAYBE, that is in their computer.

If you want to talk with a car guy, sadly, there are fewer and fewer of them in so-called auto-parts stores. I rest my case on Paragraph #1 of Post #141.

And Post #150 pretty much tells me why my wife can't get any help at auto-parts store. They treat women like crap, even though they now employ women themselves. My wife drives a 350 Chevy VORTEC and knows the specs, but she can't get even respect.

 

By the way, mister, in Post #141, my rant definitely will NOT take more time than if I'd looked up my needed part "online," as you suggest. I am referencing the final line of your post. You shot any credibility in Pargraph #1 when you basically said it was a low-paid job, about which you didn't care.

Now, I'll give you a specific example of when ineptitude in an auto-parts store (which didn't emply this amateur for long, BTW) cost me several unnecessary hours and gas running back and forth!

OT '90 Chevy 305 needed a water pump. What the hell is more BASIC than an SBC? I brought the reman water pump home nad proceded to Permatex on the gasket. THE DAMN THING DIDN'T FIT. I take it back, and went to the SAME guy, purposely. I handed it to him. He laughs and says, "Hey' they even installed the gasket!" he was too damn dstupid to realize that I was installing the G-D water pump he'd sold me 90 minutes earlier.

He was obviously not a HAMBer, nor did he he have HAMB pride, knowledge nor even the intelligence to realize that I was a customer he'd served that morning.

But, maybe, he was just a youngster excusing all his attitude and lack of sincere interest in good customer service by laughing it off.

I believe the HAMB stands for osmething, and I hope that Ryan and the moderator on duty will understand where I am coming from. I hate losing my temper, and I apologize only for that. I don't lose my temper often, And when I do, I stand behind what I say.

 

where's the bottle of loctite red when you need it.....

 

I do wish to add ONE thing, folks. As Squirrel (Jim Forbes) said, there really ARE good and DECICATED pros out there. I feel they are in the older, name stores. Look for the older guys and have in mind what kind of performance you want.

 

Rebel, THANKS for lightening my mood! LOL. Sorry for venting so much!

Oh! And the LokTite? Maybe they have it over at the OLD store!

 

Agreed, you either get lazy sob's that don't want to do anything more than they have to, or the people who think they are king's of auto parts sales, trying to compensate for their stupidity with their ego. Examples I went into O'reilly's (my gf works there) to look up a paper element for my gm truck standard filter. Needed to find one that would fit, one guy that worked there I hate, was stupid but he had the inflated ego to compensate, she had the manager helping with the search and he had to try and be the hero, so he kept trying to ask me what we were looking for so he could look it up in the computer. Finally I told him, "I need a water pump for a 63 Chevy Corvair" I was walking out with my filters and he was still trying to look it up.

Example of laziness, I needed a gas cap for my 54. Went to the only non chain store in town that between their store and the store they bought out, has the oldest inventory in town. Went in there, went up to a guy and told him what I wanted, went through the computer and the book, said, "I know it won't be in there, just wanted to go to a place that would have old inventory on their shelves that I could look through." he says, "well we go the oldest inventory in town." as he keeps thumbing through the book. I just walked away.

Just because they are working there, doesn't mean they get respect. My gf knows a lot more about cars than a lot of the guys working at O'reilly's here, a lot of guys who go in there, and work there (like the asshat above) don't give her respect. Tell your wife to rip into some of the parts store guys manhood and she'll get respect from the other guys there.

 

Nice one. Is he still looking?

 

Na he was too big of an asshole, he was getting complaints from customers and co-workers, was about to get fired but he quit first.

 

how many of these threads can we put up every year. I have the same answer to the last 5. I worked in retail auto parts for 10 years every one is right the other guy is wrong. Retail auto parts want guys to come in buy there 10 year old parts nothing older. Older parts take to much time to look up this is not cost productive. If the parts are not on the computer they really DO NOT WANT YOUR BUSINESS! I was told this by our corporate dept heads. Old car parts are not profitable and are not why basic retail parts stores are there.

 

i do this 7thirty to six five days a week and 8-five odd Saturdays. there's not a day goes by..... and i work for a single line dealership (thank GOD) for an OT brand (who pays better than any domestic, sorry about that Ford). it still doesn't pay well enough for SOME of my less-than-aware customers..... it scares me to see some of OUR older lines of parts going obsolete... those were new cars when i was a teenager!

but, uh, NO... i DON'T know any of those older part numbers by heart. many of our new ones, yes, yes i do....

 

Do we dare dream?

 

If that's the attitude, then why don't I just order all my DD crap online and save myself some money? I don't have to put up with some jagoff with an attitude who "doesn't want my business"

In this economy, any business that says they don't want someone's business is doomed.

 

thats why i go to dixie auto parts here in walterboro, jeff aint a car guy, but he's a damn good parts guy. if i asked for a gm hei. he would go get one. same with a chevy small blk v8 water pump. all he'll ask is short or long. now thats a parts guy!

 

Besides the guys that think this horse has been beaten to death then tell the same old race car story for the 14th time, this is how it is. ..I have been a partsman for 41 years next month. The business sucks, it pays poor, and I only do it because I am a car guy. I still try to take care of my customers that I have known for all these years. Some of these are people that may not know what they want but they know I will do my best to help them. But the Chain stores ruined this business; Ford, Fiat, and Government Motors don't care about old cars. Unless you find a good counterman, buy all your stuff online and just accept that another little part of America is gone. Just like Service Stations, typewriter repairmen, and customer service. No it ain't good, but its what we have.

 

All you experts should give up your good jobs (which are Obama is making
REAL easy to get) and go work for nine bucks an hour. Then deal with the 90% customer base with gold teeth and baggy pants. Or those that don't speak the native language of this country. I really get pissed some times at the clueless clerk, but then I'm glad I'm not him. I just hope he's doing that thankless job while going through school and bettering himself. Maybe someday he'll be on the other side of the counter, and have a bit more patience.

 

It may not mean shit, and I have never met you, but thanks anyway!

 

I had corn as part of my supper.

 

You can enjoy corn twice.

 

yeah just not sure of the recounting process.

 

now a days it not what u know but how much you sell, any thing that not on there computer the dont have,i tell you this because i am a counter guy i came from those chain store.they alwasy try to up sell and sell shit u dont need. i work at a momma and pa parts store now. we book we use them as well as are computers.

 

Not to sound like an asshole, but you could probably use a little practice on the keyboard. People will take you more seriously. I mean that with the utmost respect.

 

skrew uyo,, I spellered eveyting corectly un me laspost,, I'm fimished with dis tread......

 

Allrite Tinman me and you are steppen outside! I'll take you on! My keyboard can kick your kwyboard's ass any day! So what if I'm typin' drunk!

 

Umm...when did I say I didn't care about the job? I didn't care for the paycheck, I liked the job. If I had stayed working there instead of going to college, I would be broke. I enjoyed the job, I would bend over backwards for customers, I was the only one who would reference catalogues when the part wasn't listed in the computer or try cross referencing numbers. When car guys would come in, they would wait to talk to the older guys (because they assumed the old guys knew more) but the older guys behind the counter would eventually be asking me questions. Don't judge a book by its cover.

And yes, you going back and forth to the parts store multiple times to finally get the right part and posting about it WILL take longer than finding the part numbers yourself.

 

Dude, I took the OLD water pump in for exchange. When the young man went in the back, maybe I gave him too much credit for the sense to take the reman pumpout of the box long enough to compare it visually and check any cast-in numbers.

 

I worked the parts counter at a large dealership back 2002. I was there for 2 1/2 years. The guy replaced was great. He also made a good living at it. When I came in I got minimum wage, and the guy next to me that had been there for about 13 years made about 45 cents more than me. All I am saying is you will never find a good parts guy again, because they are turning it into a job for kids in high school to turn over to a new one each year so they can continue to pay minimum wage.

 

Go work for a part's store and make it better! Put up with low wages, dip-stick customers and know-it-all's. CALL AHEAD.

 

It would seem to me that we are the car guys, so we should know what were after and be able to have part numbers and descriptions or even the part to show them., or know what year make and model it came off of

I dont seem to have a problem getting what i want when i go to my parts place

as it is, they deal with way more different year , makes, and models than you would have time to own, throw the guy a bone

 

This shit is getting old...