I got PartsGeeked again!

I ordered a wheel bearing and hub assembly for the smart fortwo. I did not look in the box before starting the job.  Stupid on my part,  I know.  

Anyway,  wrong part.  While checking my emails I found another email with a return request for another part that was incorrectly boxed. I had to request a shipping label cause they wanted me to send it back and pay shipping.  For their mistake. 

This is the second time. Done with them.  Went to Rock Auto. 

At least I was able to confirm I had identified the correct bad wheel bearing while I had the axle out. Yay, winning? 

In reply to vwcorvette :

FWIW I had a very similar experience with Rockauto too.

At this point with the frequent 20%-off coupons and Speed Perks discount its usually just as cheap to order it online from Advance & either pick it up in store or have it shipped if it’s not stocked locally. They actually have a customer service department who has been quick to pick up the phone and promptly solved any issues with my shipper orders. Plus it’s nice being able to return cores to the store & not wait a week+ for the refund. 

Pick any two...

Not "stupid on your part," I don't always verify part numbers on received parts before starting a job. You'd hope that the people whose sole job is to ship out a part would ship out the right ones. Ahh, naive optimism, I know.

Better than Amazon. I ordered 4 endlinks (2 front, 2 rear) for the 5. The rear two came in 2 different boxes with 2 different part numbers, and lo and behold, held 2 different parts. It wasn't an "off by a digit" or "transposed 2 numbers", it was a completely different part number. The front 2 were at least the same boxes with correct part numbers, but then when I opened them up one had clearly been misboxed as it was over an inch shorter than the other one. Back they all went, though at least Amazon covered the shipping. Still aggravating!

On rockauto I ordered and paid for head bolts....  and got header bolts.  They aren’t any different.  I checked their website again and my order.  I ordered correct....

And you've learned why I either buy from a specialty house (Flyin' Miata/949/Good Win) when I had my Miata, or just went to the dealership.

One parts like that, if you call in the morning the dealer usually has them the next day, and instead of paying shipping you put a few tax dollars back into the community...........although you do then have to go pick them up.

In reply to z31maniac :

Nobody is perfect. I have had a mazda dealer give me a wrong part, and even goodwin shipped me 3 4x100's and 1 5x114 of 6ul's once (which they quickly corrected). 

Even the best make mistakes. The difference lies in how you are treated when it happens. Some companies bend over backwards for you, others don't get my repeat business. Integrity goes a long way, and then some. 

Nugi said:

In reply to z31maniac :

Nobody is perfect. I have had a mazda dealer give me a wrong part, and even goodwin shipped me 3 4x100's and 1 5x114 of 6ul's once (which they quickly corrected). 

Even the best make mistakes. The difference lies in how you are treated when it happens. Some companies bend over backwards for you, others don't get my repeat business. Integrity goes a long way, and then some. 

Agree 100%. 

I guess what I didn't come across in my statement, is that in my experience the specialty places (BluntTech or GutenParts for BMW), seem to make far fewer mistakes than the big outfits. 

....To counter some experiences here, I've ordered stupid amounts of parts from Rock Auto....thousands of dollars worth over the years. They consistently have the best prices I can find, and have had a amazingly accurate history with me.  The one part that arrived wrong, I spoke to a helpful rep over the phone, who arranged return shipping and sent out the correct part at the same time. Shipping is always fast as well.   I can't imagine i've had some type of crazy level of luck that others cant duplicate with RA. 

Agreed, the niche retailers seem to either be amazingly reliable (miata ftw) or occasionally 'when I get to it' (some brit cars, transmission guys), with less of the impersonal 'parts grabber was a bin off' type errors. Even the slow guys seem to know more, and guide you to the right part. Places like Flyin and Goodwin are treasures for being as open and helpful as they are, not to mention timely, and I always choose to support that first. 

Even so, for some (Non-time sensitive) parts, I will cruise the big online retailers for deals, and put up with returns. Gotten some sweet deals on mislabled parts I gambled on a few times from Bezosworld and Fleabay. So far, returns have been mostly painless. Many sellers are clearly using online translators for product descriptions to borderline halarious result, and possible deals as they wonder why it wont sell and lower prices. 

For right-now stuff, a parts counter is still usually my go-to. I've been bitten too many times getting wrong parts, even direct from manufacturer, online to trust it. My local green logo parts retailer is usually decent luckly, but not good enough I care to advertise their name. 

I generally do use Advance Auto and the coupons,  but not available from them for some reason. And smartMadness didn't have. 

dculberson said:

Not "stupid on your part," I don't always verify part numbers on received parts before starting a job. You'd hope that the people whose sole job is to ship out a part would ship out the right ones. Ahh, naive optimism, I know.

I once saw a great deal on engine air filters for my 1985 BMW while looking for some other parts for that specific year on RockAuto. They were killer cheap, so I ordered like 5 of them (since they get dirty fast in rally).

When they arrived, I went to put one in, only to then think about the fact that I had swapped a different engine into the car a year prior..... 

THAT is "stupid on my part"

I had an online vendor send me the rustiest set of shocks you had ever seen in a new box.  It was apparent that someone swapped their shocks and returned the old.  I believe it was shock warehouse.  They were great and sent out a new set ASAP, but I have gone back to local due to this and multiple wrong parts going out issues.  

My only issue with Rick auto is I get charged different prices depending on what computer in my house I am using.

Only problem I ever had was ordering a manual rack and pinion and got power...twice. Second time the guy asked if it would work and why would I complain about getting a better part!! Had to control my volume while I explained that it would not fit, would not operate properly, would require another $300 worth of parts to make it work and the manual rack was $70 MORE than the power one.

Bruce

dculberson said:

Not "stupid on your part," I don't always verify part numbers on received parts before starting a job. You'd hope that the people whose sole job is to ship out a part would ship out the right ones. Ahh, naive optimism, I know.

It is my sole job, unfortunately I'm also the sole parts shipper for everything in the building. When there's 30 minutes to ship 35 orders before pickup, things can slip past. I'd like to believe I've improved the process but I don't get that data so I can't be sure. Definitely a reason why I prefer to buy from specialty suppliers, sometimes they even have the time to add handwritten notes.

Auto parts must have some of the highest return rates in retail. From customers choosing the wrong model of car, to shady mechanics returning used parts as new, to parts that are one number off or just outright labeled incorrectly, and then packaging and shipping errors on top of all that.

I've had excellent experience with Rock Auto over the years. The one time I had an issue (brake grease packet burst and leaked on the pad), they sent me a new set of pads without any hassle. Despite shipping projections of a week or so, my last few orders have arrived in 1-2 days. Just watch how many warehouses the order is shipping from, as that can increase the price. I play the game to see if I can get an equivalent part from one of the same warehouses I'm already using, and it works out OK.

I occasionally use Amazon Prime when I need something guaranteed by a certain date, but otherwise Rock Auto is my go-to.