Another auto parts store rant

So I dropped by the Advance Auto to get some carb cleaner, other odds & ends. There are 3 people working and 3 customers in the store. Of course 1 guy is in the back tapping on the computer who refuses to help anyone in front.

Customer 1 after 101 questions decides to get a battery...and of course makes the parts guy put it in for him. So that's 2 workers out of commission.

Customer 2 decides to also get a battery...and of course makes the last person, who appears to be a 17 yr old girl, put his in too.

So every employee in the store is changing batteries or refusing to help people. I really, really hate that they all have this "free installation" b.s. It takes someone out of the game for 30 mins at least, especially how slow they move.

It's a parts store - if you can't change a battery, you shouldnt be there!!

BigIrish said:

So I dropped by the Advance Auto to get some carb cleaner, other odds & ends. There are 3 people working and 3 customers in the store. Of course 1 guy is in the back tapping on the computer who refuses to help anyone in front.

Customer 1 after 101 questions decides to get a battery...and of course makes the parts guy put it in for him. So that's 2 workers out of commission.

Customer 2 decides to also get a battery...and of course makes the last person, who appears to be a 17 yr old girl, put his in too.

So every employee in the store is changing batteries or refusing to help people. I really, really hate that they all have this "free installation" b.s. It takes someone out of the game for 30 mins at least, especially how slow they move.

It's a parts store - if you can't change a battery, you shouldnt be there!!

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Better yet if you can't change a battery and need a 17 year old girl to do it for you when shes done just hand her the keys and title because you are probley to dumb to drive I can see where this installation thing would be good but some people just take it to far

I just left Adavnce Auto, when i got there 3 employees were outside working on cars and a 70 year old man inside waiting on a line of customers. what irks me is i needed 1 grease zirt and had to buy a 10 pack for 8 bucks

I feel your pain. You also have got to love how that hand held scanner makes them the king mechanic of the world. My customers believe that Autozone and Advanced can repair any car on the road. I try to explain but it just does not matter. Please stick to selling parts and let the mechinics do the repairs.

Not sure which one is the worst...pep boys Autozone or advance....the "tech" at pep boys the other day kept trying to get me to take the part they insisted was the correct on for my truck. Even though it looked nothing like the original part that I brought in! I left.

I find it strange...

that these stores can hire people with little to NO car repair experince and have them tell us what we need???? Besides, they change help like I change my underwear.......so you hardly see the same face for more than a month...and isn't it odd that they tell you that they've been "transfered" to another store when you already know that they took a job at the "other" parts store down the road...LOL..
Does Advance, Autozone, O'Reiley's and the others have some sort of auto repair and parts service 101 classes they send them too for a day??? Now that being said, I've dealt with a number of the "real" counter men that know their stuff..... they can rattle off a part number and such off the top of their heads.....they know the parts and know the vehicles....most have turned wrenchs or retired from wrenching for longer than some of these kids have been alive.....before I stop this rant, I am going to say that most of these "kids" try hard...but they are given a huge task that they are not really up too nor have the experience to do..... in my local Autozone I know most of the long term guys and most of the managers and they are ok with me going around the counter and looking stuff up myself....but when they are not there or you're dealing with a newbe........it can be a challenge to get the right stuff.....OK....I'm done...

Auto parts

I help my family run our family garage, I started working on cars at my dads shop in 1979 so I have 33 years in this, I turned wrenches until my back went out about 10 years ago, I have always worked on cars, talked to customers, and ordered parts. We will not buy parts from these places, there parts are substandard (IMO) and they sell to the customer at the same price they sell me, and if the part is bad they only warranty the part, no labor claim. I have customers call me all the time and ask if I will install there parts, sure but they pay 10 bucks more per hour and I tell them I will put on as many as it takes to fix the problem but they have to pay me every time I replace there bad part. I ask them if they want our shop to diagnose the problem and get to the bottom of it, or just install the part they sold them, it's not my problem if the part they sold you did not fix the problem. Most of my parts come from a supplier in cali. I get overnight shipments everyday and they are oem parts, not junk, anything I need from in town comes from napa or federated. Ken

sgtpontiac said:

they change help like I change my underwear.......so you hardly see the same face for more than a month...

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I change underwear at least once a week.

Unfortunately, parts stores have become the automotive version of McDonald's. Same greasy kids, same hit and miss service. "Training" concludes when the kid successfully selects an icon on a screen. (I can train a chimp to do that).

I avoid the chain stores if I can help it. We still have a few independent suppliers with knowledgeable people and generally speaking, better parts at a fair price. Thank God for them and I prefer to support a local business anyhow.

While we're on the subject, good service is hard to find in any retail industry. Corporations seem to think a computer holds all the answers. Why have personnel with actual field knowledge when the "system" can take care of that? I'll tell you why... because the "system" is only as good as the input. Garbage in = garbage out.


By the way, if you ever see a 17 yr old replacing a battery in my car, shoot me dead... my useful existence has officially ended.

to many

to much turnover...just get the monkey's trained to get what l need/want, then they ship them out and l have to start over.


Later

You have to remember that these positions only pay like $6.00/hr, so the pool of qualified candidates drops off considerably. I don't think anyone here would take $6.00/hr for the knowledge we have - I know I wouldn't.
But aside from that, Pep Boys is the worst in my opinion. Their computer system must be really screwed up because it seems I'm always getting a part for another car than the one I'm working on. Like CR55 said, they try to sell you something completely different from what you have in your hand

LOWANDRATY said:

I get overnight shipments everyday and they are oem parts, not junk, anything I need from in town comes from napa or federated. Ken

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I worked as an outside commercial salesman for Federated for 8 years before I retired. They have a real training program and will not hire "off the street" for a counterman. They carry quality parts and do it right. They know relationships are important. I don't still work for them....I just know what they can do.

Lynn

Was wondering if somebody would blast me about that one???

Dr Crankenstein said:

I change underwear at least once a week.

Unfortunately, parts stores have become the automotive version of McDonald's. Same greasy kids, same hit and miss service. "Training" concludes when the kid successfully selects an icon on a screen. (I can train a chimp to do that).

I avoid the chain stores if I can help it. We still have a few independent suppliers with knowledgeable people and generally speaking, better parts at a fair price. Thank God for them and I prefer to support a local business anyhow.

While we're on the subject, good service is hard to find in any retail industry. Corporations seem to think a computer holds all the answers. Why have personnel with actual field knowledge when the "system" can take care of that? I'll tell you why... because the "system" is only as good as the input. Garbage in = garbage out.


By the way, if you ever see a 17 yr old replacing a battery in my car, shoot me dead... my useful existence has officially ended.

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Figured it be you or mav calling me to task on that.....LOL.. Nope, change mine daily....like most....[cl

Went to new parts store here last weekend.Was looking for break in lube With zinc ZDDP.As soon as I get in door,some guy that can barely speak english starts following me around asking what I need.
I tell him break in lube.He starts showing me motor honey and every kind of voodoo crap they have that no one needs.
I quickly look over shelf while he rattles on and see it was wasted trip.
I will never go in that store again!
We have been getting our parts from Rock Auto or summit.Guess I will go back to it.[S

It goes one of two ways at places like Autozone and Advance. You either get no one to wait on you, or you get the 17 year old who had been to Autozone University and is full of helpful suggestions and won't leave you alone.

My Son just had to run one off at Advance. He was buying oil to change it in his daily driver and had Valvoline in his hands. 17 year old Master Tech comes over and tells him he is making a mistake buying that, should be buying Mobil 1. Starts giving him the sales pitch and finally my Son had to tell him to leave him alone, he knows what he wants.

Or, I have been in Autozone when 2 people are working and one is outside diagnosing a car. Same as you said, there is no one to ring you out at the register because the one guy left inside is working with some customer who needs every aspect of how to install the part explained in detail.

I only go to those places for cleaners, oil, and light bulbs anymore, and even that is very trying.

Don

My favorite thing to do is play along with their questions game to look up a part[cl

Most recent went a little like this.

AP what year vehicle?
ME 1945
AP make?
ME GMC
AP what engine?
(This is where it gets fun)
ME 350
AP that truck doesn't offer that motor. Are you sure that is the engine?
ME yes, but the engine is from a 69 camero
AP Oh so you changed the motor?
ME nope bought it with that engine.
AP. Ok so what part are you looking for?
ME rear axle seal for a ford 350 dually axle.
AP I thought you said it was a GMC?
ME yep it is
AP. well then why does it have a ford axle.
ME because that's what I put in it.
AP why would you do that? you have to run a gmc axle.
ME lol. I'm not here to figure out what I'm building. I'm hear for the axle seal. It is a 10 bolt dana 70 out of a ford 350
AP ok what year.
ME. I don't know. Mid 90's
AP so an f-350?
ME I don't know here is the tag info and it is a 10 bolt dana 70
AP I can't look it up by this stuff.
ME why not?
AP I need to know specifics.
So he pulls up pictures. F350 is a 12 bolt by the pics and e350 is a 10 bolt. So I now have 3 guys trying to figure this out.
Again I have all the tag info and everything I know about the axle. And an old seal with me

So they tell me I have to drive to the other store the seal is35 dollars for the f350. I go it obvious by the pictures you have the axle is from an e350 which that seal is 10 bucks but the guy says it doesn't look the same (I never see the seal they have).

The older guy tells me it has to be an f350 cuz it's a dually and vans only came in dually special ordered I laugh a little more and say what about u hauls. He sticks to it they are all ordered with the special f350 rear.

So after an hour and 3 guys I gave up. Drove an hour to car quest they pulled it up and had the seals in 5 mins. I told the guy what all had happened so he gave me 25% off everything.

Done with advanced now. And they are a mile away.

Sorry for the long post but it was a fun time. [cl

Hilarious story YBeNormal..gotta love it..

I went into O'Reillys recently and told the counter jockey I needed 8 ACDelco R45TS plugs..He asks me what do they go in.. So we had to go thru the whole process while I'm making it up as I go because i have no idea what the motor came out of, I just know what plugs I need..make, year model, 4 wheel drive etc..

I will buy oil at Autozone, thats about it..

BigIrish said:

Customer 2 decides to also get a battery...and of course makes the last person, who appears to be a 17 yr old girl, put his in too.

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Makes me think of this quote: 'If it was easy, the girl scouts would be doing it.'

Tim...Ok said:

I will buy oil at Autozone, thats about it..

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"Uh...What vehicle is that oil going into sir? Four door or two door?"

I have gotten to the point I get most of my parts on line at Rock Auto. If I buy locally I try to go to NAPA, most of those guys are sharp, at least around here.

I dont think the pay or hours has much to do with it. Its the intitlement nation we live in. People dont care about anything like they used to. My first job was minimum wage and 4 hours a night but I worked! I stayed after and did what was asked and then some. Not too much of that anymore, even older people like myself.

What has caused most of this problem is the mentality of the upper management of companies like Autozone and Advance. The one controlable expense is labor and they have found ways to bring that cost down to an absolute minimum by staffing the stores with as few people as possible and using either part timers or people who don't ask for big salaries. I have always said that if they could figure out a way to run the stores with NO people they would be thrilled !

When I worked in the retail end of the marine business one store I worked at employed 27 people at one time. We had every department staffed with knowledgable employees who actually were able to help customers. Then the term "downsizing" became the new buzzword and they started making cuts. After a few years 9 people were doing the work of those 27 because they were being asked to "do more with less." There were times when we would have a Manager and one employee running a 10,000 sq ft store, so how much good service can you give being understaffed that way ?

The company had this thing they called "zone offense" where each employee was supposed to cover a section of the store as his "zone". You were supposed to help customers in that area and also watch that area for shoplifting. One time in a meeting I told our District Managers that the zone offense was a joke because my "zone" was the entire store..........the Manager was working the register area and I was the only person lots of times on the floor...........how well do you think I could cover my territory being spread so thin ? They didn't like hearing that, but it was the truth.

It is things like that which have caused customer service in this country to go down the tubes.

Don