Are there any car guys working in parts stores anymore???

[huskilvr]

I've come to the conclusion that the parts stores in my city really stink. I get it that people don't work on cars that much anymore and they don't need to stock all this older stuff, but these guys don't even know general car parts and their functions. I know very little but learn as I go, and have realized these guys are no help at all. Get much better information from this site, and other Ford sites. I also made the mistake of taking the truck to Jiffy Lube since I was feeling lazy and not in the mood to do the oil change with all the other work I've been doing on the truck. You would think I drove a Model T into the shop. I had one kid asking me how much oil it takes, and another saying he didn't know if they could change the oil. If their computer doesn't tell them what to do they are helpless. Good grief!
Anyway, I'm jealous of the stories I see on this site of guys finding what they need in the local parts stores!

[charliemccraney]

The trick is to find the part number online and then go to the store with the part number.

[huskilvr]

That's a good tip. I need to get the parts list cd.

[Gritsngumbo]

Or try to find a place with a "silver-haired" guy or gal behind the counter. If you walk into a parts store and the only have the computer to work with (no books under the counter that they haul out, your probably out of luck.
Although my local NAPA store does a surprising job of having what I need for my trucks on hand due to their age, if they don't, they can usually have the part here by the next day or two days at most.

[cooter]

the part numbers are often different online versus their computer from my experience, online part number can be 1974-17 but at the store it could be 61-1974-17 and the counter guy cannot get the numbers to work. I get pissed almost every time i need parts from a box store.

[bmcgc]

I was in an autoparts store tonight. A girl had a nametag that said manager on it and she did not know what an alternator was.

Im not kidding.

[andgott]

It's the same story here... I asked them to look up a part for my 352, and the guy behind the counter looked at me very smugly, and said quite authoritatively that "Ford never made a 352. You must mean a 351".

I assured him it was a 352- And he proceeded to argue the point with me. I said, It's right outside if you dont believe me- But, I ASSURE you it is a 352... PLEASE just look up the part. Eventually I found it, but I try to avoid that store now if at all possible.

I try to look up all the part numbers online first, THEN go in to get them. At least one of our stores is set up so I can place an order online, and have it ready to go when I get to the store, which can be a real time saver!

There is one parts store that has an old guy working there as a stock clerk. Evidently, they dont trust him to work with the computers, but he really knows his stuff, especially with older vehicles. It's funny to watch him go off on the 'kids' working at the store when someone comes in with a simple question that they can't answer without plugging a code reader into something

[gumshoe]

napa is a good source , you can get parts for just about any old car or truck and they still have the big parts books. I'v been buying parts for collector cars and trucks from napa for over 20 years. good people.

[sully5]

Yeah, I look up ALL my own parts online, print the page for the part and carry it into the store. I slap it down on the counter and say I want one of these as I point to the part number. I also know when they have it in stock (when the computer is right).

When they ask me for an application anyway, I refuse. I poke my finger down on the page and say, "I want THAT part number." Our NAPA guys are BY FAR the most competent, but I have just decided that I am the best parts guy in town for MY vehicles, so I even look up my parts online when I'm going to NAPA.

Advance Auto Parts has become so accustomed to me, that they just take my paper and look up the part number without the blank stare.

Let's face it,though: they're getting what they pay for. Can you really expect a minimum wage teenager with pimples and sagging jeans to be a competent parts clerk? If you're REAL lucky, he knows what neon lights will fit a 2000 Honda Civic.

[huskilvr]

Sounds like I'll have to try NAPA. I don't have one super close but might be worth the drive.

[charliemccraney]

Can you really expect a minimum wage teenager with pimples and sagging jeans to be a competent parts clerk?

This is most likely a problem with management rather than the kid. On one hand, the kid accepted the job, so yes, I expect him to be able to do the job reasonably well. On the other, he may be incompetent and needs to be fired, maybe never should have been hired or needs to be trained properly. These can be traced to management. Remember, none of us were born knowing this stuff. Without training, it doesn't matter if you're 16 or 60. Management is responsible for ensuring that the clerks can do there job.

I have a Napa distribution center with a store in it near me. That's the one I go to when I need something from Napa. If they don't have it in stock, the other Napa stores probably don't either.

[bobenhotep]

napa has been pretty good to me. I have a lot of oddball parts on my truck that I have to tell them that I need an ignition module out of a 78 chevy g20 van or something like that.

[RED]

NAPA is good. KEEP YOUR RECEIPTS!!! I was out 140 for a water pump after 3 months. The same guy was behind the counter that sold it to me, remembered me, but still said he couldn't do anything for me. Turned me off of NAPA for the time being.

[Alan 66]

The first thing I do if I walk in a parts store and don't know the person behind the counter is ask for a water pump for a 68 Volkswagen if they start to look it up I will turn around and walk out. It pays to know who you are dealing with.

[DukeRoche]

I have had this problem in the past as well. When I was in Texas it seemed like only O'Reilly's knew what they were doing. I mostly buy from the site when it comes to my Slick, but when in doubt and if you can't find the part number I try to bring the old part with me. That way if theres an issue I at least have my part to go off of as a reference.

[Leeroy]

Its not just over your side of the pond!!
I have a 351 cleveland in my slick and as most people know who've worked on them, the thermostats are cleveland specific if you have the stock type water pump. Most of the parts stores here have cleveland thermostats aplenty, but they are just windsor parts with the cleveland part number on them!!!!!! Their supplier even told them they have been doing that for years!!! Windsor thermostat in a cleveland = problems. I wonder how many overheated beacuse of this stupid practice.....

[Voodoo66]

Don't knock all of us young guys that work at the auto parts stores. I'm 33 and have been working retail auto parts for the last 12 years. I drive a '64 F100 daily and would park it behind the store. A lot of my customers would walk to the back of the store to see if mtruck was there before coming in the store. Every time I go back to working retail I usually have to settle for minimum wage because I "have enough experience." A lot of these places can't get knowledgeable people simply because they don't want to get off the money these people deserve. Even at my present place of employment I wire diesel engines and generators, then there was a opening for a parts position. Even though I have numerous years of parts sales experience they told me I don't have enough experience to be considered for the job, but yet they hired a guy that use to work in a warehouse for napa. I believe the lack of respect is to blame for the lack of knowledgeable people in these types of establishments. I do still have a few old acquaintances that still work in these establishments so if you need help finding something and can give me aday or two I'll try to help you out.

[Gritsngumbo]

The first thing I do if I walk in a parts store and don't know the person behind the counter is ask for a water pump for a 68 Volkswagen if they start to look it up I will turn around and walk out. It pays to know who you are dealing with.

I like that. I'll have to remember it.

[sully5]

Can you really expect a minimum wage teenager with pimples and sagging jeans to be a competent parts clerk?

This is most likely a problem with management rather than the kid. On one hand, the kid accepted the job, so yes, I expect him to be able to do the job reasonably well. On the other, he may be incompetent and needs to be fired, maybe never should have been hired or needs to be trained properly. These can be traced to management. Remember, none of us were born knowing this stuff. Without training, it doesn't matter if you're 16 or 60. Management is responsible for ensuring that the clerks can do there job.

I have a Napa distribution center with a store in it near me. That's the one I go to when I need something from Napa. If they don't have it in stock, the other Napa stores probably don't either.

It wasn't a philosophical question. It was an practical reality question. Yes, the management is *part* of the problem. Yes, the clerk is *part* of the problem, but also, the clientele is *part* of the problem.

We (Joe Customer) will go to Advance Auto Parts to save $5-$10 as compared to NAPA or a mom and pop parts store. The primary reason for the cost savings is because they are cutting cost in a major area: human resources. The big parts chains dictate part-time cheap (read inexperienced) labor, so we can save $10 on that rebuilt alternator, or $3 off that belt or hose.

I blame the incompetent clerk the least. He's just somebody's kid who needed a job and a manager hired him, allowing the kid to think he's qualified. They tell him that all he has to do is navigate a simple computer program. So it's really not his fault that no one has told him, he is NOT qualified as a parts clerk.

Napa stays in business because there are enough of us who are willing to pay more for the right part, at the right quality, from a knowledgable clerk and we know that the extra cost is in all of these areas. Money is tight, so I accept that I have to look up my own parts to save the $10 on the alternator. I don't piss and moan about it. The kid behind the desk won't be any more competent because I'm aggravated. To me, he's a breathing vending machine. I pick what I want, pay the money, and out pops the right part. If I'm not sure what I want, I go to NAPA and pay for the help.

The long and short of it is this: we want the cheapest price but we want ASE Certified Parts Specialists to assist us. Those two goals are not compatible. We can go cheap and deal with "Skippy the parts boy," or we can pay for quality and get Mr. Jones the owner and manager of Jone's Quality NAPA PARTS.

Third option: Go to the dealership and get the worst of both.

FYI. I mean no offense to the competent parts clerks out there of ANY age. You guys are heroes and I wish there were more of you. I also wish for you to make the money you deserve to make.

[Voodoo66]

First off, let's not put NAPA on any kind of pedestal. At least down south here Napa simply hires the rejects that the rest have fired. Oh for those, Mom and Pop NAPA stores, they tend to know less than the others. Two days ago I walk into a local Mom and Pop Napa store and ask for a 20 foot roll of 3/16 brake tubing. The man behind the counter which has to be in his mid to late 50's with a name tag that says '30 years of service' has no idea what I'm talking about. The best part is, no fewer than 5 feet away from him is a hydraulic brake line display that has the roll hanging on the shelf. I'm neither knocking or promoting any particular retailer. I'm simply stating that before everyone boasts about a particular store just remember they are not all created equal, no matter how old or so called experience they may claim to have.