"RustyShitboxIsTheNewFast" (RustyShitboxIsTheNewFast)
05/22/2015 at 12:58 • Filed to: None
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"RustyShitboxIsTheNewFast" (RustyShitboxIsTheNewFast)
05/22/2015 at 12:58 • Filed to: None | 3
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On the meandering path between the rusted hulks of that which many a teenager “loved sooooo much” and soccer moms “point A to point B”, you get to meet many technicolor characters, from the excitable packrat/ junk collector with the fantastically exciting mid 80’s Chevette story, to the affluent enthusiast that picked up the car of his youth, only to get halfway through the complete disassembly of an automobile to “fix it up”, only to be halted by a family members death/birth, selling the property its scattered across, or just the realization that he has no idea what hes doing and should get someone in here asap to “take it all away, I’m done with it”. But the one person who is intrinsically linked, that you rely on, that you must see and meet and deal with if you ever want to see your 1989 Regal splay tread pattern across pavement unassisted, is the Parts Guy.
I’m going to give a brief description of the character of The Man Behind The Desk before I aim my vitriol filled pen in his direction. The Man is a Man of simple wants, he wishes to work on cars, but to never get his hands dirty; he wishes to come into work in the same heated building every day, but will inform you to no end the injustice he has been dealt having to work til the wee hour of 8 at night 3 times a week; he wishes to be the custodian between the unwashed and uneducated hands of Those Who Wish To Purchase Parts and the hallowed shelves upon which those parts may lie. Note I said may lie. Because for something that old/rare/weird we would have to order it in from the warehouse. Well its after 2, so 9am tomorrow. No you’ll have to come down and pay. No you can’t go there yourself.
Remember the guy who became a cop right out of high school? For some reason he saw himself as someone to dictate the life actions of others without any experience actually living, somehow above the “learning” and “doing” thing, this guy went directly to knowing, and telling you, mothefucker, just how much. Well the unwashed, less fitness oriented people with the same type of personality see fit to guard the boxes of bits that make your car Do Its Thing, wielding some kind of pre-Clinton system running on a pre-Bush computer, drunk from power and overconfident due to lack of feedback. They are determined to ignore item notes and diagnose your automotive ailments with a brief description of the symptoms. Over the phone. I never even told you what type of car it was. Just stop, man. I just want my part. Well I think it is the problem. Just, just let me spend my money, OK? Hello?
To give at least some credit to the Man, some of them do work on their own cars. The old guys always seem to have a pre-80s chassis American Solid-Axle V8 MSD Ignitions Edelbrock Hooker Comp Cams, and the young guys have their random imports. But somehow, owning and doing maintenance on their personal automobiles has in no way prepared them to deal with the parts needs of your automobile. They have never heard of that type of sensor, they couldn’t possibly fathom selling you the coil without the entire distributor, its the only listing they have, voltage regulators and brushes come inside remanufactured alternators, not otherwise. Unserviceable is the name, selling massive portions of your engine bay is the game. Or giving away Dispair by the bucketload. Your tranny is delaying shifts with a rotten rad and factory filled, 200,000 km fluid? Sounds like the friction materials gone, you’re gonna need a rebuild. Or a new torque converter. Shuddering from idle? Head gasket or broken piston ring. Happens all the time to these cars. $1600 job. Yea, your welcome.
Service is different in a parts store. Every step up to a counter is another roll of the dice, a gamble on the name and availability of what you’re looking for. A simple deviation from a Haynes manual or FSM implied name may spell disaster, leading to an incalculable amount of time watching someone gently move their lips while staring at a glowing slab, only to turn to you and ask if your catalytic converter has triangular or oval shaped flanges. At this point, he has “got you”, never mind triangle is on the shelf and oval hasn’t been produced since Independence Day was in theaters, the slight chance that you may order the wrong part is enough to make you go park straddling the curb and crawl under the car in your only decent pants to determine that yes, they are triangular. So your get up, brush the dog shit off, and go back inside. The 20 minute wait in line. The careful description of year make and model. The awkward pause. The volley of questions. Automatic or manual? Auto. 1.5 or 1.6? 1.5. Single or double cam? Single. 4-door? 2. Interior color? Blue. Last five digits of the VIN? 53687. The asking for the part. He turns, the moment you have waited for, “does it have triangular or……… oh wait is see now the oval is a Euro part.”
Disclaimer: I go to a place where they know not to dick around and just let me see the screen. It works out quite well.
For Sweden
> RustyShitboxIsTheNewFast
05/22/2015 at 13:03 |
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Rock Auto?
Noah - Now with more boost.
> RustyShitboxIsTheNewFast
05/22/2015 at 13:25 |
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“wielding some kind of pre-Clinton system running on a pre-Bush computer, drunk from power and overconfident due to lack of feedback” - actually LOL’d. Nice. There were many great sentences in this post but that was my favorite. Thanks
Captain of the Enterprise
> RustyShitboxIsTheNewFast
05/22/2015 at 13:26 |
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I’ve been trying everyone I have in my area to find Type F Transmission Fluid, most say they don’t have it, some say no that’s really old(as if that means I can just put something else in) and one actually did a multi-store check to find some 45 minutes away for me which was nice. I also got asked a question by a group of high school kids who thought I worked there and then they bragged about how they steal stuff from the local junk yard.
This is why I try to do everything online.
CaptDale - is secretly British
> RustyShitboxIsTheNewFast
05/22/2015 at 20:27 |
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You know, I kind of feel offended by this. Because I work in parts at a dealership. I may only be 23 and I may have only been at the counter for a year and a half, but damn it I know whats going on. I fucking try to learn more and yes, I do work on my own cars and I will gladly give my personal opinion to anyone asking for assistance with an issue as best as I can before telling them they should really take it to a shop because I am not a “mechanic”. While yes I may not know the name of every wire or know exactly where in the catalog the part is, but I will find it for you or ask one of my seniors for a hand. I have no shame in that because I am still learning. While I feel I have learned a lot, not only on the parts side, but also the service side and how the different vehicles from the 3 major line (GM:GMC, Buick, and Cadillac, Subaru, and Hyundai) work internally. Also, if people would call with their VIN numbers (dealer based catalogs are and VIN based) it would be so easy to find you the right part because, as you may not know, between Hyundai’s love affair with multiple mid year production breaks, GM using 4 different motors with 3 different transmissions and 6 different rear ends for the same vehicle, and Subaru’s catalog being so dependent on the VIN that looking up a 2012 Impreza will show me parts for every Impreza (CVT, 5-speed, base, WRX, STI, wagon, sedan, etc.) And you know what, even with all that, I try and succeed in ordering the correct parts for customers most of the time. Yes, I have made mistakes, but I am a human, you’re a human, and the people making the catalog are human. So variances in automotive terms may apply, and make things more difficult. Not to mention the that catalogs have mistakes in them and that will completely hinder the processe, because you may not believe me, but I don’t know the part number for the pinion bearing in your specific 98 GMC Sierra. While yes parts can be expensive, I personally try to make it as painless as possible by getting you what I can, but between discontinued parts, non serviceable parts, and mark-up, I can’t just give it to you. The thing is, at least with our lines, I cant get certain parts. The manufacturer doesn’t supply rebuild kits or internals to most parts because the manufacture wants to sell you the whole item or most of the whole, not because we want to gouge you on price. Speaking of prices, yeah a dealer may be more, but a lot of the time you are getting what you pay for cause 99% of the time, I can guarantee you the part I just sold you will fit, work, and last just as long if not longer than your original part because it is the same fucking part! So don’t you dare lump me or my coworkers in with the fucking aftermarket parts slingers at Whatever Whatever Parts House just because they sold you a crappy part and have terrible service. That’s not what we do or how we work.
Good Day Sir,
CaptDale