KC10Chief

Around November of 2002, the alternator in my wife's car went out. Wasn't charging at all. So, I took it to Auto Zone and bought a rebuilt one with a 1 year warranty for $100. I figured it would last way longer than a year. Nope. It went out in November of 03 as well. I took it back to Auto Zone and the warranty had expired THE DAY BEFORE! They wouldn't even give me a discount. So, I wound up buying another one for $100, but this one has a lifetime warranty. Ever since I put it in, it's been chewing up serpentine belts. Not breaking them, but shredding about 1/4" of the sides of them. I've replaced several things thinking they might be the culprit lately. The power steering pump was whining, and the smog pump was rattling. So I replaced both of these things, but it's still chewing up belts. I replaced the idler tensioner as well. Finally, today when it chewed up it's 4th belt, I was looking at it, and noticed that the alternator pulley was sitting about 1/4" back from the rest of the pulleys. I took the alternator off and took it to AZ, and asked to see another one like it thinking they had possible given me the wrong one. Nope. Exactly the same. It's a Dura Last rebuilt with a lifetime warranty. I then asked to see the Dura Last that is brand new. It costs $40 more than the one I bought. Sure enough, the pulley on it is 1/4" longer than the one I have. The 1 year warranty alternator also has the correct pulley on it. So, when they are rebuilding these things, they're putting the wrong pulleys on them, or pulleys that are too short! They told me to put shims in which is impossible on this car due to how it mounts on. So, they said to just pay the difference and they'd give me the new one. I asked for another belt, but they won't give me another belt. I have to pay another $20 for one. The stupid alternator that THEY sold me that was SUPPOSED to fit my car, didn't. Caused all kinds of problems for me and has cost me about $80. I feel they should take my old alternator, give me the good one with the lifetime warranty, and replace my belt. My power steering pump, smog pump, and tension pulleys all needed to be replaced anyways. I just figured one of them might be the belt problem so I kept buying more belts. What do you guys think? Auto Zone isn't getting any more of my money for a belt or alternator. I'll just take the stupid thing back and go buy the right one somewhere else. I've been going to the same Auto Zone for 10 years now. The management has changed recently and it sure has gone downhill. One thing I learned to avoid is Auto Zone starters. They may have a lifetime warranty, but you just gotta keep taking it off and exchanging it every other month. What do you guys think about this? Matt

PhilM

Well, that is a rough deal. I work at Advance, and we hear a lot of horror stories about other parts places, but they may hear the same about us. But as for the alternator, it is not AZ who actually rebuilds them, BUT they should take responsibilty for what they sell and help you out. A no hassle return policy goes a long way. This problem may be the guys there, and not AZ's company policy. I would certainly get their corporate office involved.

CAMp3RO

i'm another advance worker and i hear the same stuff about autozone. thats why i have a decent fanbase (especially seeing as i'm just about the only guy in the area that knows american cars). now, not be sound like a jerk, but this is what i tell everyone. for a few bucks more, you can have a part that gets a lifetime warrenty. if a part is given that kind of warrenty, you know the craftsmanship that went into the rebuild, along with the replaced parts, are top notch. one year warrenty parts (as far as i'm considered) are good for getting something working on a car that you're trying to get rid of. on top of that, advance carries rebuilt alts from AC Delco. yes they are more expensive, but the parts going into these things are what originally came in them, not a cheap copy. and i feel much safer knowing that a part that worked in my car for 10+ yrs is gonna last me another 10+ yrs. this is the route i went when i had to replace my fuel pump. if i was crawling under the car and doing this hellish job, i didnt want to do it again any time soon. i also got a huge discount (attention AAP employees, second source as many parts as possible. you'll get them dirt cheap ), so the ac delco pump was actually cheaper than a master brand one.

in conclusion, many auto zone's (and i admit a few AAP's) arent too bright behind the counter. i always try to match up every part i'm replacing, and others should too. and secondly, buy the lifetime warrentied part. there's a reason why its got a much longer expected life.

Trickster

I have dealt with both AutoZone and Advance Auto Parts in my town and the town down the road. With a couple of minor exceptions, I have had good service from both. If I go in either one's store and they don't have the part I need, they will call around to see who might have it even if it is a competitors store. They know good service will keep the customer happy and willing to do more business later. Just my experience with the stores in my area.

The Trickster!!!!!!!!!!!

robertg

iTrader: (2)

i myself work for napa, and i've heard many horror stories about advance and autozone. however, i'm sure there's people out there who have napa horror stories as well.

at my particular store, i carry two different lines of alternators and starters.

my napa power line carries a 3 year warranty

my napa power supreme line carries a lifetime warranty along with a 24/7 roadside assistance policy good for 5 years if i remember correctly. i'll double check the roadside when i stop by work tomorrow to check some things out.

ede

auto zone pretty much sells cheap next to junk parts. they do offer a lot of parts in rebuilt as well as new ,the new parts are a lot better than rebuilt.

robertg

iTrader: (2)

speaking of autozone, i've got one shop that absolutely refuses to buy another electrical product from autozone ever again.

there was a point about 5 years ago when i went though 4 autozone alternators in a 1 month period. this was on my old 86 celebrity.

i'll never go to autozone unless i have no other options, and i know what i'm looking for.

LUVmy92

I had the same problem with Advance. I went through three alternators, one fried as soon as I started it after the change, and my buddies Vette went through 5. After the last one failed I took it back and had it tested and I watched it fail twice, the manager tested it after they told me they didnt have anymore and tried to tell me it was good! I told him to give me my money and cram the alternator. Autozone sold me one of the lifetime jobs and its been running strong for a couple years. I also went to Advance another time, asked for 8.8mm wires. Guy searched for a bit and came back with some wires. I asked "those are 8.8mm right?" he opens the box reads the wire and says yes. Turned out they were 7mm , dumbass cant even read! Back to Autozone I went!

robertg

iTrader: (2)

the nice thing about my premium wires (made by belden) is that it says "4cyl 8mm" etc right on the label below the part number. i should also note that the belden wires come with a lifetime warranty.

PhilM

there are a lot of good points here guys, and I really must second what my fellow Advance man, CAMp3RO, said. It quite often comes down to the guy behind the counter, not the store. I am sure everyone in our business will admit there are people we work with who are complete idiots. I do recommend looking up things on the internet sites before you go to the store so you know what you need.

and another thing: like everyone else here, I have been working on cars for years, and I have always had to shop around for parts. I never had a strict loyalty to one store or another. They each have their ups and downs, and these may be different for each of us. it might just be a matter of proximity. I always liked the parts at NAPA, for example, but they were never open at a time I could get to one...I am just saying we might have to go elsewhere once in a while.

robertg

iTrader: (2)

some very good points you bring up phil. there's one guy i work with whom i cannot stand. the customers don't like him, he complains about his back and legs hurting, etc. i had to fix one of his screw-ups yesterday. i don't mind doing it, it's just that the guy is so blatantly stupid.

anyways, my opinion of napa's problem (as has already been stated) we're not a retail store. i'm sure we could sell more products if we had better hours more suited to retail shopping.

87F383

I work at O'retards on saturdays for the discount (best discount in the industry). I have seen the pulley problem many times (5 or so now that I think of it, various vehichles, both retail and commercial accounts)... I tell all my customers to verify the pulleys before installing. Some times the remanufacturer installs the wrong one...other times the alternator,etc is equiped with a pulley for the vehichle it was most commonly found on. Always check to be sure. If they are different, we just take it to the back and swap the pulleys, takes 20 seconds.

1 year parts are crap...lucky if they last a week. Lifetime ones are usually pretty decent...lasting serveral years on average. ACDelco Remans are no better in my opinion than the others up there... The new parts are the way to go (some having lifetime warrantys as well)...but that isn't always an option cost wise for many people.

As far as getting a break on a part that went out the day before...I know our computer system won't let you. A manager can modify the price somewhat...but there not gonna tell you that. When a product breaks while under warranty, the seller (O'reilly, advance. az) gets reimbursed by the re-manufacturer. When its out of warranty, the store gets no credit back for a broken product... The remanufacture will just make the autoparts store eat the cost...which is why they don't do it...often.

KC10Chief

I hear this kind of thing all the time. I DO think it's the guy behind the counter. The Auto Zone I go to had a manager there for years named James. He would always hook me up and make sure I got the good stuff. He would tell me what parts were crap and which ones were good. He knew his customers by name and was extremely friendly. He made sure that the people working there were the same way. Sadly, he had a stroke and doesn't know if he will make it back to work for a while. Now, there's some new guy who's a real *****. I think he's kind of racist as well. He and I are both white, but on two different occasions, I saw black people come in and ask a question about a problem they were having and he just talks to them like they were total idiots even though they were being nice. Doesn't do that to white people. Anyways, there's some other scumbags working there now too so I think I'll have to go shopping somewhere else. Matt

KC10Chief

BTW, it doesn't matter what kind of job you have, or where you work. Chances are high that if you work with two people, at least one of them will be a moron. I have had many jobs and I haven't had one yet where I didn't work with at least one moron. I've been in the Air Force now for over 6 years. When I signed up, I figured I'd be working with some of the most intelligent people in the country. I figured they would have a better work ethic like myself and wouldn't whine and complain about everything. I was wrong. Some of the dumbest people I've ever net in my life are in the military. I'm an aircraft mechanic, and some of these people are working on aircraft that cost over $300 million a piece. And whining? Some people are on a waiver for anything they can think of to get out of work. However, I have also met some of the best people I have ever known in my life in the military. The Air Force is pretty good about keeping the idiots in check and weeding them out. So, overall, the military has a lower idiot population than the rest of the civilian working class. But, it doesn't matter where you go. Morons need jobs too. Matt

IROCZZ3

Aint that the truth, I'm a helo crew chief in the AF too and I'm not too sure about some of these guys....it's a scary thought.

Anyway, I had a similar experience with an Autozone alternator (it seized up on me in a year). Long story short, I'll never buy an Autozone alternator again. I like Napa's stuff better.

Trickster

I'm an ex-fighter crew dog and I also found that the stupidy level was about evenly matched between the 90 day wonders and the enlisted. Example of after flight write up from pilot: UHF radio inop in "OFF" position: corrective action; reset UHF radio to "ON" position, ops check good. I'm sure KC10Chief knows what I'm talking about and has a few good ones of his own. I know this was off topic but it just goes to show that there are all kinds out there. Scarey isn't it.

The Trickster!!!!!!!!!!!

robertg

iTrader: (2)

what other experiences has everyone else had concerning autozone?

xpndbl3

iTrader: (5)

well i had a manager at autozone tell me that the fitting that is on the rear brake line is not sold at all anymore and to check a junkyard.....even when i showed him the new brake line with the "T" fitting, he still told me it's not the same thing?

let's see, i've also had autozone tell me that 10W30 oil is too thick in IL in the summer and I should buy 5W30 only. I've been told that you can't put a Ford stater solenoid on a GM car mounted on the firewall since it's not the same manufacturer. This is by a DM as well. I was told that not all SBC are the same size externally and I should go "read a book" on how a 305 and 350 are different sizes and you can spot it by the shape of the heads.

PhilM

I had some real flywheel problems with AZ. I ordered a flywheel for an 85 Camaro, which was supposed to be the small unit with a 2 piece crank seal. So it came in and was a 14 inch flywheel, and when I tried to return it they gave me a hard time. It had the right part number, but their listing was wrong. In fact they listed the same flywheel for every camaro ever made! After 20 minutes of arguing, I had to go out and bring my clutch in to prove it to them, and the manager finally refunded me.

Gumby

Well your first mistake and I ask why did you buy any alternator from anyone with only a 1 year warranty???

Murphy Laws dictates that it will fail the day after the warranty expires. What else could you expect?

2nd I do know what you mean about the pulleys but thats not AutoZone, its who ever rebuilds them.

I have the 108 amp $60 life time warranty alt from AutoZone and have replaced its once. Each time the pulley got wider. My stock alt just fit the belt, the 2nd one was 1/2in wider, my 3rd and last one is almost twice as wide as the stock one.

Still worked out fine for me except that you must spin the case to line up everything right. That is also fine as the first two times I fudged it up and took it back and got a new one.

Always buy lifetime warranty parts. If its just the normal GM alt ask for the 108 amp one for an 86ish V6 Firebird. only $60 for a life time warranty.

CaptPicardsZ28

I work part time for Checker Auto. When someone asks me for a particular part I only quote them the lifetime cost. The only time I give them the less than life time price is if I can see they are leaving or they ask me for something cheaper. Anyway, the problem here was with the alternator. When someone buys one from me they usually always have the "old" one they pulled from their vehicle. I always check to make sure the pulley is the same as on the new one. If not, then I swap them out. Its that simple. We have an air ratchet to remove the old one. If they dont have the old one with them then I remind them to check on the pulley to make sure it matches. A lot of our parts are better quality than AZ. Our two year warranty brake pads are better than their lifetime pads etc... It also depends on who you talk to at these places. Find someone who knows what they are talking about and order from them. There are at least four people who I work with who are real dumazzes. I would never ask them to look up anything for me.

CAMp3RO

although i'm an AAP employee, i'm only as loyal to part store as necessary. i get a majority of my stuff at work because of discount and the fact that advance has been picking up more and more top notch brands. however, when my dad was building his hot rod (68 roadrunner), napa gave us unbelievable discounts and knew us by name. so we went there for some stuff. napa also does a better job of having some of the harder to find parts available. one of the things i hate most about advance is the fact that i have a hard time getting parts for some cars. however, second sourcing parts is awesome too for employees.

bakendoogs

Yeah, I was an autozone employee. I admit, we tried to do as little as possible to help the customers, and to tell you the truth, 1/2 the people that worked there barely knew how to run a register, let alone work on a car. 3 of us.... 3 if us knew a thing about cars. Anyways, the Advance Auto in town does just as bad a job, but are getting better, after firing just abotu everyone and hiring a new staff. I've gotten quite a bit of free stuff there, as well as most gearheads in town. Autozone must be doing something right, now being in the big 500, just a few hundred behind Wal-Mart. You'd figure the big-wigs would sacrifice a little money in the wallet to provide quality service. I only go to napa when i need parts, and Advance and/or AZ when I need a freebie... Well, maybe thigns will change, but if not, keep headed to NAPA or Car Quest.

robertg

iTrader: (2)

that's a shame....

KC10Chief

Oh yeah. Well, at the time, I had ANOTHER Cadillac exactly like the one my wife has. Same color, engine, everything. Hers is an 86, and mine was an 87. The alternator went out in my 87, and I bought the 1 year warranty one since I planned on selling it soon and buying my GTA. However, a couple months later, my wife's car was acting up and I thought it was the alternator. I swapped alternators on the cars to troubleshoot. Turns out, it was just her battery, but I never swapped alternators back over. So, she had the crap alternator in her car. In the meantime, I sold my 87 Caddy and bought my GTA. But, the one I bought recently with a lifetime waranty has been working great. No more chewed up belts! Matt

3.1EyeCandy

iTrader: (3)

Just a word of warning about Autozone lifetime alternators and 1-year alternators. You're not buying the warrantee, you're buying the quality of the product. 1-year alternators are meant to last a maxiumum of 1.5 years.

I refuse to buy anything but rebuilt AC Delco alternators now...this after Autozone took my lifetime that failed and gave me a 1-year as "standard procedure".

OSU76LT

At Western Auto (before Advance bought them and ruined them) we used to just swap the pulleys from the old onto the new one.
I am really not comprehending why that was not even offered to be done in this case.

robertg

iTrader: (2)

some alternators do not come with pulleys. in that case, we remove the old one, and install it onto the replacement alternator.

CAMp3RO

i've done pulley swaps if necessary for a customer. thats why i always try to make sure that the part someone is buying is exactly the same as the one being replaced, but unfortunately, not all my fellow employees do the same

C20T/A

I have had my share of problems with AZ and the only thing ill buy from them is mobile 1 if it is on sale otherwise I go to O'relly's and get help from people required to have an ounce of car knowlege to work there.

But no autoparts store has sufficient requirements for customer support AZ is the worst and they top it off with a more than common occurance of substandard parts.

Allways go prepaired with a part number and the old part so you can be positive you are getting what you ask for.

MNformula350

iTrader: (2)

I have had great service at autozone, but then again my brother is the store manager. so i cna pretty much look up my own stuff and go and pull it myself. or have my bro order it.
Even while i was still in management at Checker/Schuks/Kragen i would still get my parts from auto zone. checker never had anything in stock for a common car. one example i needed a belt for my (at the time) 99 cavalier 2.2 it wouldv'e taken 4-6 days to order from checker cause it was not in stock. went to auto zone and boom had 7 on the shelf. but no checker had parts on the shelf for a 74 mustang, 71 mercedes, 58 impala but if you had a common car forget about getting it that day.

trans_am_ta_84

i work at midas and they use auto zone for most parts. i don't know why either..

they always give lifetime warrenties on parts cause they suck! starters, flywheels, altinator all have lifetimw warrenty because tey won't last. we also have alot of problems with axles. they can never bring the right axles to us the first time sometimes 2nd time is good but it's usually at least 3 times. they don't know anything and all they do is hire somebody as long as they know how to use a computer.. doesn't matter if they know a thing about cars but as long as they can look up parts on a computer they don't care. i hate autzone.

MattW

iTrader: (1)

i work at autozone and i guess i would be dubbed as one of the as you guys like to call "stupid" employees....sorry im only 19....i love cars...especailly muscle cars...and i figured this place would b the best for me for a part time job....but once i got started there i noticed how LITTLE i know about cars....everyone that comes in expects you to be a master mechanic and know how everything on their car works.....the thing is is that if i have done the type of jobs they are doing i will give them advice and warnings as to what goes along with the procedures....because i have a great fear of giving them the wrong or bad advice ...so if it is something that i do not know i will DEFINATELY ask a manager or some other collogue in which i can trust for good advice....YES it is the people behind the counter that make the difference...at my store i have 2 managers that have been doing parts and mechanic work for well over 30 years so i know we have some people at my store that know whats going on......also...we do not rag on competition at our store...if we do not have the product we will b glad to try to point you in the right direction or even call up the competition and see if they carry it..... and as for the "duralast" alternators....just because it is a stock replacement for YOUR vehicle doesnt mean that it isnt stock replacement for some other vehicle too...so i believe that yes that was mainly the workers fault...but also i think that the customer should also check over things just to make sure......besides...if u are dealing with someone like me...u know a lot more about your car than i do....

as for our "new" duralast alternators...they are said to be pretty nice.... they have done modifications to them to help ensure that the alternator will last longer i.e. better bearings,better cooling, etc......

but yet again i must say that i am one of the "idiots" behind the counter so i am not a well representative for autozone...i just wanted to post because i was tired of all of the AZ bashing......

trans_am_ta_84

it's not very wasy to test an altinator and see how long it's going to last us. you put it on the car takes 10 minutes if usuually works but give it a month and it's dead. it's not hard to do it just gets annoying when you get stuck somewhere because auto zone has to sell you junk altinators. i would rather buy an altinator thats going to last me for a long time for more money with the lietime warrenty at auto zone and pay more money for one. but they gotta find junk pay nothing and thats pretty much what you get to put in your car.

anesthes

iTrader: (12)

I do a lot of business with Autozone. They have a few different product lines. As far as the electrical stuff, valuecraft, and duralast.

Valuecraft is called "valuecrap" by most of the guys/management at autozone. (and I know a LOT of them!). the duralast stuff works well (lifetime warrenty).

Now I will say this. I have blown up clutches, exploded parts, etc. and have NEVER had a problem returning them. After 3 clutches, the manager said to me "Joe maybe its time you try a aftermarket performance clutch" and gave me every penny of my money back.


When you go, they give you a choice. If you choose the cheapest electrical component on the screen, thats what your getting.

btw, they can order ac-delco electronics too - if you wanna pay.

Every part store has its duds. No offense, but, if you were a mechanic wouldn't you be working on cars and not selling parts?
But its not to say there isn't very smart guys working there - i've met a lot of very smart guys at the 'zone.

As far as the other venders. The parts are similar. But the prices are generally higher. I shop around when I have to, but I usually find what I need at autozone. If not there, summits a phonecall away if I can wait.

-- Joe

trans_am_ta_84

actually i work at midas and i get paid flat rate pay. incase you don't know what that means it means i get paid by the jobs i do. i change an altinator and i get paid an hour for doing it. but then 2 or 3 weeks down the road that car comes back because the altinator took a **** that means i have to stop what i'm doing if it's another job i'm working on trying to get paid for doing something i have to stop and go change an altinator without being paid for it. so i'd rather have the customer buy something worth buying so i get paid once for it and i only see that problem once. and it also gets kind of agravating when you are waiting for an order.. AZ Comercial to come drop a part off, on the average takes them about an hour to bring you a part and then on the average about 95% of the time it's the wrong part and then you have to wait another hour for them to come back with another part and then on the average about 80% of the time they get it wrong again and then you have to wait another hour and usually by the third time they get it right. so now i get paid for doing a job that they pay me 2 hours for meanwhile actually 4 hours went by before i even get the rigth part.

then i went there the other day to order a head gasket kit. comes with head gasket, valve seals, intake gasket, valve cover gasket, they want 85 dollars for a gasket kit. i went to jegs and they want 70 for a whole complete engine kit. i'd rather wait for the parts and get the right stuff then keep returning stuff.

anesthes

iTrader: (12)

I know what flat rate is. We used to own a dealership. It means the vetrens do 12 hour jobs in 5 hours (and get paid for 12 by the book), and interns and younger guys (no offense please!) do 12 hour jobs in 12-14 hours.

If the customer supplies his/her own parts, the shop is not liable for replacement if the part fails. If midas is doing this to you, you're getting screwed.

If you did the job wrong, you have to fix it at no charge.

If your shop sold the parts, and the part failed, the shop cannot charge the customer but the shop MUST pay you by the book for the job again.

Like I said, if the guys were great mechanics they wouldn't be working for Autozone. Now adays, I just go out back or use the computer to find my own parts there. Everyone knows me, they let me do my thing. I even get a discount.


-- Joe