JackJare9455

im 27, a veteran of the army for 5 years. I was a wheel mechanic in the service, i got out and did a few different jobs, diesel mechanic, oilfield hand, plant operator, contract mechanic for the army.. just couldnt decide what i wanted to do!

So i decided to go back to college and needed a part time job! Oreillys!! sounded perfect!! I have tons of wrenching experience! This should be a cinch!! WRONG!!!

Let me explain...

The auto parts industry has changed dramatically!! Family owned businesses and small town shops are almost a thing of the past... Auto parts have been "box'd" like mcdonalds or even walmart.... I refer to it as McParts.... or even O'Mart.

Before i joined the oreilly team, i had turned wrenches on just about every piece of equipment the army had, ive turned wrenches on my trucks, on my buddys rides, on alot of different stuff.... but i AM NOT ase certified... I have no acctual accredited eductation in the automotive industry... Everything i have learned in the years ive been doing it has been done by DOING IT! I have NO IDEA about the difference in parts, or automobiles outside my collection...

I can tell you quite a bit about a chevy trucks, because those are MY hobbies..

granted, you dont have to know much about a car to do simple repairs, as a mechanically inclined individual can figure out a tune up, filter swaps, brake jobs, seals and bearings, alternators, starters, ect.... but im not going to overhaul a bmw in my garage out of sheer knowledge and training... get my point??

I consider myself to be a damn good shade tree... but thats it...

So i started at oriellys.... this is where my nightmare began..

I dont mind the customers who just want to walk in, shop for their armor all, air freshners, and injector cleaner, and ring up and leave... no problems here, its like walmart..

Where the difficult part comes to play... is the people who need acctuall parts!

This should not be difficult at all, but the customers make it difficult!

let me explain!!!!!

I cant tell you how many people i deal with on a daily basis that needs parts but have NO CLUE what they drive, year, make, model, engine, NOTHING, but they are sure they need a tune up!

Ill get these classic responses...
"i need spark plugs for THAT truck" **points to some kind of toyota truck parked tailgate towards me about 5000 feet away, after finding out that the owner has no clue about his vehicle, i walk outside to find out myself.... they really like to do this at night when only two of us are working with 32 customers in line...**

"i need this" **lays some piece of broken twisted garbage on the counter that looks like it fell off the car and was dragged for 27 miles to my parking lot... then proceeds to get upset and tell me its my job to know, when im not quite sure what kind of broken shard of death im looking at!**


i could go on and on...

Then i hear these classic questions...

"can you come out and look at my car and tell me whats leaking" **sure, why not? as they pop their hood and it looks like someone gathered the collected excrement of every single bat in south america and dumped it all over their motor.... "uhhh, your going to need to take this to a shop...."

"if i buy this freon, will you put it in for me" **no..

"if i buy this headlight, well you install it?" ** no..

"do you install batteries?" **no..

this may sound like im an *******, but im not!! let me explain.. oreillys policies state that we test electrical equipment, turn rotors, and install wiper blades... THATS IT!! dont believe me? check the outside of your oreilly store.. it says nothing about batteries..

anything else we do is ON US... we are liable financially... im not kidding... they will not cover our screw ups.. so if we want to, we can do extra work, on our own risks...

now... when i first started i USED to help people out in the parking lot... but i was almost screwed twice, once a lady tried to blame me for her headlight going out, and the other said i tightened his terminals too tight or some **** like that...

so now.... NO, i wont TOUCH a car out there, because for 9 dollars and hour.. it just isnt worth it....

and besides, its just a parts store, not a shop, if you dont know how to install a headlight or your freon, or your battery, take it to a shop, thats what they are there for... i am not a free mechanic.. parts stores are more for people who want to save a buck by purchasing a part and doing it themselves...


This all said.... this is what i CAN DO!

I AM A CAR GUY, but i dont know everything about every single car ever made... I utilize a computer parts catalog using either a year make and model that a customer provides me or a cross reference from a part number that they have... this is the basic transaction... This is my tool that i have infront of me... I dont know the part number off the top of my head for your 92 camaro pinion seal... sorry...

I promise not to ask stupid questions about your car unless i deem them necessary... some parts are different from 2wd to 4wd, different engines call for different spark plugs ect...

there are half ton trucks with 3/4 ton suspension, i see alot of dodges with this issue, it makes a big difference!! we call them heavy halfs..

But!!!!! I will find the hard to find stuff... if you bring me in a seal for your project truck from an unknown application, i will use a micrometer and take measurements and cross those over to a seal.. the same with bearings...

if you need points for your dinosaur boat motor and bring them to me, we can use the picture catalogs from my ignition lines to match them up...

if you need a filter for your 54 farmall tractor, im gonna help you find it..

ill use my cell phone, google, forums, anything to help you find your hard to find parts.. ill jump through hoops and make calls to manufacturers, other parts stores, other employees, i will do EVERYTHING i can to help you find whatever you need... i wont always suceed, but never will i say NO to finding a part... EVER

i wont try to sell you what you didnt ask for, if your buying a water pump i might ask if your doing a thermostat or need some silicone to help seal the gasket, perhaps some antifreeze to top off, but thats it, if its not related to your project, we wont talk about it, im not a salesman..

im not going to tell you about filling out my stupid survey on the reciept, most people dont give a crap,

im not going to tell you how great our profile wiper blades are, i assume you dont care for 25 bucks a blade... i buy them, because i have a problem with having to have the most expensive item of whatever im buying.. its a disease.. im seeking help..

i will listen to the issue your having with your vehicle, and will attempt to offer suggestions that would acctually fix it... aka missfire in a 4.6 or 5.4 ford is USUALLY the ignition coils... ive even seen worn boots cause a spark to the heads... but anyways...

i wont tell you that pour in head gasket sealer acctually works, because i dont believe it does..

i take complete pride in every single lookup that i do...if its basic stuff, i will take your year model , and make sure to look up and down a year to see if there was a change in parts, and even verify the build date to make sure in some cases... if your not sure of what engine it is, i will scan through them all to see if there is a difference...

I dont know if you guys have good parts guys in your towns, but we are not all the stereotypical high school grad with no clue about cars.. but this is what your going to get most of the time, for the money that these stores offer...

im only there for my college years.. thats it..

sorry if this turned into my rant... just general advice for dealing with ANY auto parts store...

if your doing a job, have a spare car to drive... call in advance to check price and availability... if they have it in stock, bring the part with you, to verify its accuracy..

if you plan on doing a job, start searching early in the week incase a part has to be ordered, this gives you time to have delivery before the weekend... not all parts for all cars are kept in stock..

understand the person accross the counter isnt an expert on YOUR car as you are, so be patient, try to have your part, or explain to them what it is your looking for... if they dont seem to know much about parts, offer a few suggestions of what its called.. dont assume they are idiots, they could be college students who are going to medical school who just needed a part time job and this is all there was... its mc parts, remember??

if you cant remove the part, take a picture of it with your phone... do everything that you can to help the person help you...

dont assume that all parts are the same, just answer the persons questions nicely, and it will be much more pleasant for you... if its possible, take your vin number with you..

if infact you are sold the wrong part, understand mistakes happen and be prepared for this to happen, just return the parts and see if yall can find the right ones and do an exchange... you dont want this to happen, but you have to be prepared... **** happens..

and remember, if might just be boxed wrong, defective from the factory, its not the counter mans fault.. this has happened to me before..

i hope this has been interesting... ive read alot of rants and complaints about auto parts stores online, but it just seems that people are asking too much of a person, or that they have un realistic expectations... you can only truely judge something if you have been on both sides of it... this is what we have these days, have to get used to it...

jared

Slammed96

iTrader: (5)

I worked at an Autozone for a year a while back and what you said pretty much sums it all up. You get a lot of stupid people who come in, but then when the ones who really know what they're doing and know you're actually willing to help them and not just throw parts at them, thats what makes it at least a decent job. But I'll also say never again will I work for that company, way to many hoops to jump through for everything.

2000chevysilverado

iTrader: (11)

Don't feel alone I'm a electrician and when work was slow I worked a lowes in the electrical dept and I would get bombarded with the same crap, can you show me how to hook this up, ummm no I can't I'm not at ur house, I would tell people to call a electrician or buy the how to guide for simple stuff, but nnooooo 13 bucks for a book that has pictures is to much, no my problem if your house burns down I would say or get shocked till ur more stupid, but I can say I did pick up a bunch of easy side jobs, I was charging people 300 bucks to hook up there generator when we had a ice storm one winter people didn't have power for weeks, wasn't bad took about 30 min per job I ended up doing about 40 jobs in that couple weeks

Mangled03gmc

iTrader: (95)

Welcome to 2012, most people in general public today are fukn morons. Most people who work in retail, behind the counters at stores( auto places also) are fukin morons. Most people do not have a clue about anything including life itself.. It is a shame where it has come, from what it was.

mvrk10256

great rant.

Now honestly here it is from the other side.

I am a car guy. I have rebuilt BMWs, and chevy trucks, and damn near everything in between. On top of that I am an engineer and a gear head, so I am handy at just about any job.

So when I come to you and say hey, I need this and this part. Here is the PN. Dont ask me what car its for. Cause when you have an engine swapped vehicle, the year/make/model for the engine is different than the car. You dont need to know what I drive. Just get me the part I need. I never walk in asking advice, I just need to find what I asked you to find me.

If you dont have it but have a reasonable suggestion I am always happy to listen, chances are I just want the project done. But dont stand there and tell me you need to know the make model and year before you can help me. Dont question my intelligence. Its my project, and I know what I am doing.

I dont mean to sound like a dick, and I try to be patient with counter people, but sometimes I just cant help myself.

JackJare9455

Great point mvrk10256, if u walked up to my counter with a part number i wouldnt ask u anything about your vehicle, i would get that pn or show u a cross reference... i only ask year, make, model if say... U walked up and asked for an alternator, thats 95 percent of my sales, but if its a project, or you know the pn, then of course.. And like i said.. Advice is only given if asked...

I think my point was i hate being stereotyped... Its a hair over minimum wage.. But i try to fix the stereotype of the "counterman"

JackJare9455

And i usually give people the chance to be nice... Usually fixing a car = a bad day, but if they start being a dick, my inventory magically dissapears...

Like you said... It is your project! And just so u know... Out of the other 95 percent that i have to deal with, an educated car guy is a breath of fresh air! We cant all be car god engineers.. Remember that..

I do cringe everytime someone wants to run the 1.99 copper cheapos in their gm ls motors....

62nalide

iTrader: (1)

Some auto store in the Dallas area seems to hire random people, idk like some have no clue of what they are doing and others are on the money like greet people and extremly helpful and know why u buy and order certain parts vs some of the guys/gals that just mugg once u enter idk i just try to void entering the auto part stores nowa days

62nalide

iTrader: (1)

And i feel you on your first post some people just have no clue what they want and want stuff done for them

JackJare9455

I think thats gonna be anywhere... Good with the bad... Im just glad to have a job with the discount i get lol, another semester n and half of school and i can join the real world again...