commando1
Old Man with a Hat
Yes it is and you have a person to deal with.
How does Rockauto work???
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live4theking
Old Man with a Hat
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Here's another thing to bear in mind about RA if your changing belts and hose and you know next month you plan on doing a brake job. Don't order ahead because if something is wrong you only have 30 days to return it. Regardless of the reason for the return.
Our problem out here in the hinterlands is availability. If the Autoparts stores don’t stock it they go to a local parts distrubution depot if that doesn’t work then they go national which usually requires paid in advance no return special order. If I am gonna wait 10 days for Napa to get it then can’t return it I may as well go RA. Then again my basement looks like a parts department from the 70’s lol
70bigblockdodge
Old Man with a Hat
Change the shipping method. Their default is to cheap your shipping which is not the case. I think some of the warehouse's don't want to deal with RA cheap *** assigned shipping method. If you boost it up to all Fed-ex 2 day, I sometimes find that the alphabet is not needed.
65sporty
Old Man with a Hat
I have had good results with them, but when I have ordered parts that where coming from 2 different warehouses I have never tried moving parts around to save on shipping. The parts were cheap enough and with shipping we were still saving compared to local, even with my shop discount. When I need it now I get it local, if I can wait I may order from Rock Auto.
If RA could be considered a "drop ship vendor", then THEY are at the mercy of what their contracted suppliers have in their respective warehouses when the order cart is finalized. AND, by observation of a former work associate, they'll most probably source your item from a warehouse near to where you are, rather than one far away. Which should decrease shipping costs and time. But as the default mode of shipping is "no priority", the shippers can fit it in as they can. Certainly, the drop ship warehouse will get it filled within 24 hours, but what the shipping vendor does with it past that, it just happens as THEY desire. Very possibly worrying more about a faster shipping item than the slower shipping parts.
I don't know that there is any real conspiracy of sorts, but just how the various quantities ordered/locations where they are stocked happen at the time the order is submitted/finalized.
Amazon does the same thing, from what I've seen. Except they are more open about where the items are and when they might arrive, for each item in the cart. So, it appears that both are using the same drop-ship business model, just that Amazon seems to be better at it?
My issue with Amazon is that when I wanted to get a $8.00 phone wallet, I could not get out of their website (consummating the purchase) without signing up for Amazon Prime. So that cost me an additional $100.00. One good thing is that I could use accumulated points from a credit card to partially pay for my purchases. Which is good. But the multiple redundant messages from Amazon (??) about my order being "out for delivery" became an issue. More recently, the credit card company texted me about purchases on my credit card made in Washington state, when I'm in TX. Made me wonder how secure the Amazon files are?
I'll use the RA site for research on price and availability of parts, as I've done for the past years. The check the local auto supply websites to see what they have in stock. We get NAPA overnight from their OKC area warehouse and OReilly's from their S. Dallas County regional warehouse. Provided the orders are placed before the cut-off time. Mostly the same with the local auto supply, which pulls from a regional multi-line jobber in the area. Lots of choices!
When I was doing counter sales at the dealership, I always knew where the parts would come from so I could advise the customer of projected arrival time. No reason that your local auto parts people can't do the same, IF they care to. Some might not know, but with a bit of effort, they can find out, either before the order is submitted or AFTER the order "answer back" is received (IF they know what that is). Some just advise "Whenever it gets here, I'll let you know."
On the "free shipping" issue, it was mentioned that when Amazon started all of that, that it really put more stress on the fulfillment workers to work faster/harder to increase productivity to compensate the company for their covering the shipping costs.
Shipping costs? What RA and others actually pay is not what they might charge the customer. At the dealership, we were a "wholesale account" so our actual costs were about 75% of what the shipping website claimed they were, when we printed the shipping label. So, just like buying a new vehicle, several different price levels!
Hope y'all figure out how to game their system!
CBODY67
I don't know that there is any real conspiracy of sorts, but just how the various quantities ordered/locations where they are stocked happen at the time the order is submitted/finalized.
Amazon does the same thing, from what I've seen. Except they are more open about where the items are and when they might arrive, for each item in the cart. So, it appears that both are using the same drop-ship business model, just that Amazon seems to be better at it?
My issue with Amazon is that when I wanted to get a $8.00 phone wallet, I could not get out of their website (consummating the purchase) without signing up for Amazon Prime. So that cost me an additional $100.00. One good thing is that I could use accumulated points from a credit card to partially pay for my purchases. Which is good. But the multiple redundant messages from Amazon (??) about my order being "out for delivery" became an issue. More recently, the credit card company texted me about purchases on my credit card made in Washington state, when I'm in TX. Made me wonder how secure the Amazon files are?
I'll use the RA site for research on price and availability of parts, as I've done for the past years. The check the local auto supply websites to see what they have in stock. We get NAPA overnight from their OKC area warehouse and OReilly's from their S. Dallas County regional warehouse. Provided the orders are placed before the cut-off time. Mostly the same with the local auto supply, which pulls from a regional multi-line jobber in the area. Lots of choices!
When I was doing counter sales at the dealership, I always knew where the parts would come from so I could advise the customer of projected arrival time. No reason that your local auto parts people can't do the same, IF they care to. Some might not know, but with a bit of effort, they can find out, either before the order is submitted or AFTER the order "answer back" is received (IF they know what that is). Some just advise "Whenever it gets here, I'll let you know."
On the "free shipping" issue, it was mentioned that when Amazon started all of that, that it really put more stress on the fulfillment workers to work faster/harder to increase productivity to compensate the company for their covering the shipping costs.
Shipping costs? What RA and others actually pay is not what they might charge the customer. At the dealership, we were a "wholesale account" so our actual costs were about 75% of what the shipping website claimed they were, when we printed the shipping label. So, just like buying a new vehicle, several different price levels!
Hope y'all figure out how to game their system!
CBODY67
tbm3fan
Old Man with a Hat
I don't know how much I have spent with RA. They are almost all times way cheaper than local. I would buy local but when RA has it for $6 and local is $18 there is no way I'll buy from local and I have seen many such wide variations. Have I run into shipping from multiple locations? Yes. I have always avoided shipping from three locations. I'd have to say I'm 70% one location and 30% two locations. If two the money spent on the second location, between $5-$9, is still way cheaper than buying local. So I still win out.
Their operation is drop ship on a large scale. I have know two people who did quite well doing a drop ship business on bibles and cigars if you can believe it.
Their operation is drop ship on a large scale. I have know two people who did quite well doing a drop ship business on bibles and cigars if you can believe it.
Mine went away a while ago...Honestly, I never had good luck with RA. We have a local Bumper to Bumper store here that's pretty much old school. They give me a nice break on items, no extra shipping and hold onto your hat, use paper catalogs once in a while for parts when the computer doesn't tell them what they want to know!! Just Like a real parts house!!! I support them every chance I get and buying the guys donuts every so often doesn't hurt, but it's really because I like and appreciate them
They also stocked good brand names the chains are squeezing out of existence.
My radiator and hoses for the old burb are cheap enough to swallow the shipping... but my mini bulbs and spark plugs order has continued to make progress... I have what I want... and in good quantities... today I got it down to 3 warehouses and under $40 shipping... very weird though, I took a bulb quantity from 10 to 20 and the shipping went down.
GBsPanhead
Active Member
Couple months ago I ordered 2 drive belts, and some other items. Got my package, all was good. But a few days later, I had a 'sorry we missed' door tag from Fedex ground. Didn't recognize sender, box weighed 40 some pounds I think. So drove to Fedex, picked up box.....it was stuffed with maybe 100 drive belts. Tried numerous times to contact RA, also tried getting ahold of the supply vendor. No one ever responded, so F'em. Kept a few, gave the rest to Goodwill.
That is not always a benefit here...
The shipping cost of my current under $200 cart ranges from $40 to $625... my next increment is $108... Sorry, I'll pass on that idea, but did try it... no reduction in warehouses.
I didn't move the parts around trying to get them from. The same warehouse, nor did parts switch warehouses when I moved them around, but I was able to get them at diffendif shipping rates if I tried moved them to a different warehouse. It saved me money and I still got my parts before I needed them to be there.
Should have given them away here!
Even with the cheap shipping added on, that doesn't always seem cheap, I'm still ahead at least 20% or more, so I can buy fuzzy dive!The shipping cost of my current under $200 cart ranges from $40 to $625... my next increment is $108... Sorry, I'll pass on that idea, but did try it... no reduction in warehouses.
Man I know what you mean. If you look at the pile of parts I just recieved, I only bought 1 rotor. Even though it had the "shipping from the same location" icon next to it, if I changed quantities from 1 to 2, it added another shipping location and jumbled everything up. Frustrating.
That is not always a benefit here...
Jeff, trying dealing with the commercial manager at Advance Auto. That is the professional parts guy in the store you should be talking to. If you are talking to a 19 year part timer on the front counter you are asking for frustration and the wrong part.
70bigblockdodge
Old Man with a Hat
That's because nobody wants to go to FloridaThe shipping cost of my current under $200 cart ranges from $40 to $625... my next increment is $108... Sorry, I'll pass on that idea, but did try it... no reduction in warehouses.
That's because nobody wants to go to Florida
FEW nearby states in which to bundle/consolidate shipments to. Have to cover the fuel/time costs to get the truck out of there empty. UNLESS somebody from FL ships from there? Like National Parts Depot?
CBODY67
commando1
Old Man with a Hat
That's because nobody wants to go to Florida
90% of Canada, Missouri, Iowa, Michigan, and Ohio are here as we speak.
Walmart is parking pallets of Miller Lite by
the front door.
90% of Canada, Missouri, Iowa, Michigan, and Ohio are here as we speak.
Walmart is parking pallets of Miller Lite by
the front door.
But is the gasoline cheaper on the northbound side of the highway than on the southbound side?
When those "northern beverage" pallets are empty, will they be recycled or donated to an "environmental defense/relief fund" charity? End result, those that left them there don't have to carry them home.
CBODY67
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