Would LOVE to hear your parts counter stories

[95talongirl]

Used to work in parts for along time.. both in a dealer and at some retail stores. Although there were some funny interactions; most of the people were quite mean and that made the job harder. I personally loved the guys that refused to talk to me because I'm female. I'd usually put them on hold for 20 minutes; while they "wait" for a dude. One time I did that, then came back and said no one was available and asked what he wanted. He proceeded to be a smart ass..

Him: "I need a lower ball joint for a 97 dodge avenger. You know.. the little things by the tire below the thing that connects the..."
Me: cutting him off.. "which one? the "straight" one or the "curvy" one. there are two lower ball joints on that car."
Him: "Wait.. How do you now that?"

...

One of the funniest things I've been asked for is a "center head" on a "big block" 350 that was in a Ford F250. !! This was interesting; as I tried to get more information out of the guy because if his obivious confusion. (I mean, yes I've seen 350 chevys in Fords.. but 350's are not "big blocks") So later it comes out that because the exhaust is loud and the engine is heavy; THAT is what made it a big block. :facepalm: As for his "center head" He could not get the exhaust manifolds off the heads, so he figured it was all one unit.

My other favorites are the people that insist all Chevy 350's are the same. So a lot of times, those people would get parts for a newer ZR1 corvette. When they came back to return the wrong part, I'd laugh and hen they would AT LEAST give me a decade to work with.

The stories are endless, really. The best customers were the one that were able to provide the basic information about their car. Year is important as the manufacturers tend to change things.. even mid-model year!

 

[BigBeans]

Know what you're ordering, give a good description and you can avoid the majority of issues.

I love my local Napa. All the guys there are 50+ years old and have been working there forever. They're fast, knowledgeable (especially about domestics), and never screw up my order. Autozone is mixed, and Advance...who knows what's going to happen when you order from them.

I had to go all over town to get a 3" exhaust dump the other day. Ended up at a diesel shop, paying $26 for a damn 45* bend because all the locals stores stopped carrying 3".

 

[JusMX141]

I then went to Autozone and the guy there DID THE EXACT SAME THING! I literally had to point to everything on the screen for him before he finally got a part number. I would understand if it was some obscure part, but it was a F*cking GUIDE PIN set!?!?

Dorman #HW14113, sells for $11.49 at my workplace.


Twelve years at this and I can't remember a good story right now....but I'm sure I will. If anything new happens I'll be sure to log it here.

I had a guy charge an ATM blade fuse one time- 59 cents. Yes, he made me swipe his f*cking credit card for a 59-cent fuse.

 

[BigBeans]

I had a guy charge an ATM blade fuse one time- 59 cents. Yes, he made me swipe his f*cking credit card for a 59-cent fuse.

I do stuff like that with a debit card all the time. I usually don't carry cash. A card is more convenient and i can actually see what i'm spending/where i'm spending it.

 

[snowborder714]

It is.

Well....

The '90-'91 manual shows .028-.031 for turbo cars.
The '97-'99 manual shows .028-.030 for turbo cars.






My latest parts parts fiasco. I was looking for a specific Valvoline oil since I had a nice rebate for it. I called up multiple parts stores asking for the stuff, being as specific as possible (as mentioned above).

Me: "I'm looking for 10w-30 Valvoline VR1 Racing Synthetic oil. It comes in a black bottle and is about $8/qt." (I enunciated synthetic to make sure they heard it.)
Them: "What weight do you need?"
Me: "10w-30"
Them: "One second while I go check."
.....
Them: "I've got about 6 quarts here."
Me: "Is it synthetic 10w-30 VR1 in a black bottle?"
Them: "I have straight 40 or straight 50."
Me: "That's conventional oil. I'm looking for synthetic."
Them: "It says Valvoline VR1 on the bottle, though."
Me: "And I bet you the bottle is silver, correct? How much is it per quart?"
Them: "Yes, it's silver. About $4."
Me: "Goodbye."




And this happened with 2-3 shops I called.

 

[T is for TURBO]

I had a guy charge an ATM blade fuse one time- 59 cents. Yes, he made me swipe his f*cking credit card for a 59-cent fuse.

Visa, excepted everywhere

 

[sparky1987]

When I worked at autozone I had so many hillbillys come in asking for a starter solenoid asked what vehicle they'd say don't matter its all the same

 

[99gst_racer]

One of the funniest things I've been asked for is a "center head" on a "big block" 350 that was in a Ford F250. !! This was interesting; as I tried to get more information out of the guy because if his obivious confusion. (I mean, yes I've seen 350 chevys in Fords.. but 350's are not "big blocks") So later it comes out that because the exhaust is loud and the engine is heavy; THAT is what made it a big block. :facepalm: As for his "center head" He could not get the exhaust manifolds off the heads, so he figured it was all one unit.

Wow. I don't think I've ever had one that was that bad.
And they wonder why they get the wrong parts sometimes.

My other favorites are the people that insist all Chevy 350's are the same. So a lot of times, those people would get parts for a newer ZR1 corvette. When they came back to return the wrong part, I'd laugh and hen they would AT LEAST give me a decade to work with.

I get that alot from the older generation. Many of them refuse to acknowledge their LT1s and LS1s as anything other than a "350". And they wonder why that water pump or those valve covers for a '55-'86 Chevy don't fit.

I had a guy charge an ATM blade fuse one time- 59 cents. Yes, he made me swipe his f*cking credit card for a 59-cent fuse.

I shipped a .12 cent cotter pin to a CarQuest shop UPS COD. His .12 cent pin turned into almost $20 by the time he got it.


I had a lady come in to get some Mustang parts first thing on Saturday right when we opened. I had a killer hangover from the night before, and had woke up late and rushed to get in on time. I got her parts for her, and swiped her credit card. I ripped the CC ticket off the machine, layed it down on the counter, grabbed a pen, and signed MY name to it. As soon as I finished, I realized what I did. I stood there, red-faced and sweating alcohol, and had no explanation as to why I just did what I did. The customer and all of the other counter guys sure got a good laugh out of it though.

 

[Cspaintballer]

walked into advanced to pick up my CLUTCH master cylinder the other day after it took and extra 2 days to get there, about to run my card when i see the words brake master cylinder on the box. i told him how i very specifically told them a clutch master cyl. now i wait another 3 days to get the right cylinder i hope..

 

[rlacasse1]

Not really related to parts, but it did happen at a part store 3 effing times in 3 different cars. The cars were a 90 AWD TSI, a 3000GT VR4 (obviously, AWD), and an EVO VIII (once again AWD). See the central theme here? All were AWD cars.

Them: Hey, do a roastie in the parking lot before you leave!
Me: It's AWD.
Them: So.............
Then I proceeded to try and explain why it wouldn't happen.

This is how the conversation went every goddamn time. And I had to explain everytime that AWD cars don't sit there in parking lots and burn their tires off. And everytime the guys swore up and down that they will and that they've seen it happen.

 

['97boostinGST]

Bunch of idiots work at my local NAPA.
I once went looking for a water pump before I got an OEM unit.
The older guy insists that Mitsubishi Eclipse does not come factory turbo.
I didn't bother arguing and left.


Also everytime I go looking for a part at any parts store I specifically make sure and tell them that it's the GST turbo model.

When they bring me the part it doesn't look what it's supposed to look like, I then ask him if that's the part for a turbo model. They stare at te screen for a good minute and then go..."Ohhh"

 

[Droptop Spyda]

Though I must say, it goes both ways. My buddy worked at the same autozone, and I remember being there once and over heard a conversation between one of the workers and a customer. The customer brought in a VERY used set of brake pads, and wanted to exchange them for new ones.

If you buy the lifetime pads you can do that!

 

[knochgoon24]

For those of you with Talons, tell the people you have a Mitsubishi Eclipse instead. I think the computers now even have RS/GS, GST, and GSX in separate categories. At least that will help with a few of the questions.

You guys really just need to make some good friends at the parts local store. I have a few friends that work at one, and they just let me behind the counter to pick out my parts if they don't know what I'm talking about. Plus, they now know exactly what car I have.

I even convinced them to order a few common parts, just to have on hand after telling them that there are about a dozen turbo DSMs running around in the area that I know of, and that they'd be the only ones with the parts in stock.

You know how nice it is to be able to walk in and get a turbo gasket set, a water pump gasket, an exhaust manifold gasket, M10x1.25 banjo bolts, and stuff like that?

If you need parts for a domestic, ask the older guys. If you need parts for an import, or anything considered an "import", ask a younger person. It usually works out better that way.

 

[rlacasse1]

^^^^Yeah, making friends with the parts guys is a pretty good idea. I have a few back home and some here near the base. It makes getting help a little easier. Although, I really don't order much of anything for my Talon at part stores.

 

[JusMX141]

My other favorites are the people that insist all Chevy 350's are the same.

My experience goes well beyond that- anytime someone comes in and asks for an oil filter or something for a certain vehicle then tells me "they're all the same", I literally walk back to the shelf and grab a filter....ANY filter. Normally guarantees they come back with more details later.

Yeah, I'm a jackoff....but if all oil filters are created the same then I would have absolutely no reason to have three shelves loaded floor to ceiling with Wix filters now, would I?

 

[phunny]

My experience goes well beyond that- anytime someone comes in and asks for an oil filter or something for a certain vehicle then tells me "they're all the same", I literally walk back to the shelf and grab a filter....ANY filter. Normally guarantees they come back with more details later.

Yeah, I'm a jackoff....but if all oil filters are created the same then I would have absolutely no reason to have three shelves loaded floor to ceiling with Wix filters now, would I?

HAHAHAHA. I'd keep some nice big diesel filters on the shelf for that purpose

 

[JusMX141]

Something else that makes me insane- we sell auto paint at my workplace as well, so at least twice a week we get some guy buying a gallon of the cheapest shit paint possible for his 1980's truck and wants me to tell him exactly how to spray his vehicle because "he used to spray cars 35 years ago and a lot has changed since then".

Really? That's not my problem. I don't even spray cars- I'm a counter guy who mixes f*cking paint. Buy a book, take a class, watch a video....it's not my responsibility to be sure you know how to spray this garbage paint on your car.

These guys make it seem like I have all the answers- as if you could have once asked Pablo Picasso where he learned to paint such gorgeous art and he replied "well, the guy at the parts store told me how to do it".

 

[PieEyedPiper]

Well....

The '90-'91 manual shows .028-.031 for turbo cars.
The '97-'99 manual shows .028-.030 for turbo cars.

Oh big woop! .031....032 pfft!
There's a few sources that use .032 but the FACTORY service manual does say that. MrBoxx's work computer tells him .032. That doesn't make the parts guy wrong.

 

[arrowhead]

Hello guys.

Reading all of this has brought a lot of memories, since I had an auto parts store and machine shop for 18 yrs, I have heard it all, I also did work for a major retailer for 3 yrs.

I am very well aware that most of these people we had behind a counter had no idea about anything automotive but also there are a lot of customers that can ruin your day.

When I had my own store I would recruit from a vocational school nearby and had excellent results as back then, you would showed them the catalogs and they were quick learners.

Worse ranking by knowledge:

Advance
Autozone
Bumper to bumper
and so down the line

 

[PieEyedPiper]

Not really related to parts, but it did happen at a part store 3 effing times in 3 different cars. The cars were a 90 AWD TSI, a 3000GT VR4 (obviously, AWD), and an EVO VIII (once again AWD). See the central theme here? All were AWD cars.

Them: Hey, do a roastie in the parking lot before you leave!
Me: It's AWD.
Them: So.............
Then I proceeded to try and explain why it wouldn't happen.

This is how the conversation went every goddamn time. And I had to explain everytime that AWD cars don't sit there in parking lots and burn their tires off. And everytime the guys swore up and down that they will and that they've seen it happen.

I had the opposite problem. Your guys acted like they knew lots about AWD vehicles - mine, not so much.

Me: It's for a 1998 Eclipse AWD (they didn;t always have the gsx designation in their computers)
Him: What's the AWD stand for?
Me: All Wheel Drive ( I had actually just said that aloud to him already)
Him: Weird, I didn't know Mitsubishi made AWD cars etc.
Me: You've never heard of the Evo?
Him: What's that?
Me: The Lancer Evo?
Him:?????
Me: THE MITSUBISHI LANCER EVOLUTION???
Him:????
Me: OK, how about a Subarus Impreza WRX Sti? Heard of that?
Him: Yeah I think so.
Me: (even using all of Subaru's "eyecatching" labels helped none)
Him: Is that AWD, too?
Me: Yes, not too much unlike the Evo or the Eclipse.
Me: Do you even like cars?
Him: Yeah. I just don't follow Mitsubishis.

I left. The guy didn't actually know what the the Sti was, either. This guy just didn't like cars.

 

[evood69]

I go in yesterday to my local Advance, theres a few knowledgeable people and some not so much. Anways I was picking up some oil, oil filter, and antifreeze. I walk up to the counter lay the stuff down and the guy starts talking to me.

Him: Is that your red car out there?
Me: Yes it sure is.
Him: What kind of car is that.
Me: 90 Eclipse GSX AWD.
Him: Hm did that come before the GSR?
Me: Do you mean the GS-T?
Him: No there is a GSR I have seen them before.
Me: I have never heard of them sorry, theres an Integra GSR.
Him: No they're real rare probably havent seen it before.

He then comes out and looks at my car, asks if the BOV makes noise. I have the 1g BOV recirculated. Ask if I can take the hose off so he can hear it while I drive off. I just say I need to be somewhere and dont have time. But I dont escape that easily, he then proceeds to show me his 70's bug, talking about it when I had no clue what he was saying. Other than this summer he is putting a Porsche engine in it.

 

[jordan99GS]

yeah, it seems like none of the parts stores around my area carry turn signal fluid... everywhere I call looking for it just disconnects. A simple "no" would do just fine..

 

[brandonwh64]

yeah, it seems like none of the parts stores around my area carry turn signal fluid... everywhere I call looking for it just disconnects. A simple "no" would do just fine..

my office area is wondering what im laughing about!

 

[PieEyedPiper]

But I dont escape that easily, he then proceeds to show me his 70's bug, talking about it when I had no clue what he was saying. Other than this summer he is putting a Porsche engine in it.

I had a conversation just like this at the bar last week! Those bug guys are diehards. And yes I got the porsche engine story too.

 

[JusMX141]

Just had a good one.

Guy- "I'm looking for a top-post battery terminal bolt."

Me- "I have them- they come in two sizes....1/4, and 5/16."


I proceed to show him both types- both have the square head at the top so the one side doesn't spin.


Guy- "I was really looking for the ones that are square on top."

Me- "These ARE square on top"....showing him exactly what I'm talking about on both bolts.

Guy- "OK, thanks" and walks out of the store.