What's the deal with repair parts these days???

[smritte]

What we need to do is get our kids into Vocational Technical Schools and stop blaming the uneducated

Yes
We also need to teach our kids critical thinking and work on imagination. Leggo's use to give you a box of bricks with a picture. The child had to figure it out. Now you get detailed instructions. People say its fine like that. No more imagination or critical thinking. It was too hard. Its suppose to be difficult, this is how you learn.

I've been a general automotive trainer as well as a factory trainer for a couple of decades now. As time goes on, I see fewer of these skills in my students (age 18-25). Nothing more embarrassing then a 25 year old who cant tell the difference between a wrench and a socket. Oh and no one knows how to change a tire.

Ever seen someone take a 1/2" impact to an oil pan drain plug then push an air chisel through the oil pan trying to get it out? Or have them drain the transmission instead of the engine and not notice the oils red? Then they didn't notice that the engine oil was the same level when they filled it. Good thing it burned up the transmission in the parking lot.
Both of these happened to my brother.
A shop rotated the tires on my wife's 19 Camaro. They put the wide tires in the front. Didn't notice the size difference or the fact that the tires now rub.

Dealers need to vet their employees better but have no real skilled workers to choose from. I have friends who are welding and robotics instructors. Talking to their perspective employers, they have the same issues.
I have nothing against liberal arts classes but we need skilled trade people.
I guess we can always bring them in from another country. How bad can that be?

 

[Vanhalo]

Yes
Ever seen someone take a 1/2" impact to an oil pan drain plug then push an air chisel through the oil pan trying to get it out? Or have them drain the transmission instead of the engine and not notice the oils red? Then they didn't notice that the engine oil was the same level when they filled it. Good thing it burned up the transmission in the parking lot.
Both of these happened to my brother.
A shop rotated the tires on my wife's 19 Camaro. They put the wide tires in the front. Didn't notice the size difference or the fact that the tires now rub.

I have taken my Jeep to get the it worked on one time.
Discount Tire tech broke a lug bolt.
Next time i will take the wheels and tires off and take them to them to another tire store.
This is also why i wont take it to dealer to get the air bags updated.

 

[North American Sojourner]

Yes
We also need to teach our kids critical thinking and work on imagination. Leggo's use to give you a box of bricks with a picture. The child had to figure it out. Now you get detailed instructions. People say its fine like that. No more imagination or critical thinking. It was too hard. Its suppose to be difficult, this is how you learn.

I've been a general automotive trainer as well as a factory trainer for a couple of decades now. As time goes on, I see fewer of these skills in my students (age 18-25). Nothing more embarrassing then a 25 year old who cant tell the difference between a wrench and a socket. Oh and no one knows how to change a tire.

Ever seen someone take a 1/2" impact to an oil pan drain plug then push an air chisel through the oil pan trying to get it out? Or have them drain the transmission instead of the engine and not notice the oils red? Then they didn't notice that the engine oil was the same level when they filled it. Good thing it burned up the transmission in the parking lot.
Both of these happened to my brother.
A shop rotated the tires on my wife's 19 Camaro. They put the wide tires in the front. Didn't notice the size difference or the fact that the tires now rub.

Dealers need to vet their employees better but have no real skilled workers to choose from. I have friends who are welding and robotics instructors. Talking to their perspective employers, they have the same issues.
I have nothing against liberal arts classes but we need skilled trade people.
I guess we can always bring them in from another country. How bad can that be?

I have taken my Jeep to get the it worked on one time.
Discount Tire tech broke a lug bolt.
Next time i will take the wheels and tires off and take them to them to another tire store.
This is also why i wont take it to dealer to get the air bags updated.

The war stories are long and many. LOL. Oil outs, tire offs, new engines and for GOD's sake don't let the junior guy drive a handicap equipped van into the shop. If you've driven hand operated cars you know. My junior guy did the oil drain plug and the vein in his head was popped out. Holy crap. I sent him home for the day and the next day we did some training. That's what we need is a lot of training and it starts in the home.
Zim

 

[smritte]

GOD's sake don't let the junior guy drive a handicap equipped van into the shop.

OMG did that spark some memories. Still laughing ( I know its not funny but......)

 

[North American Sojourner]

OMG did that spark some memories. Still laughing ( I know its not funny but......)

This incident took out the middle 3 drawers on a triple bank Matco tool box.
Another Firestone had a van come through the lobby with injuries. Handicap vans and cars are dangerous to everyone that has legs and arms. LOL
Zim

 

[smritte]

The two we had never made it off the driveway. Both were cars.

 

[Anak]

Yes
We also need to teach our kids critical thinking and work on imagination. Leggo's use to give you a box of bricks with a picture. The child had to figure it out. Now you get detailed instructions. People say its fine like that. No more imagination or critical thinking. It was too hard. Its suppose to be difficult, this is how you learn.

I've been a general automotive trainer as well as a factory trainer for a couple of decades now. As time goes on, I see fewer of these skills in my students (age 18-25). Nothing more embarrassing then a 25 year old who cant tell the difference between a wrench and a socket. Oh and no one knows how to change a tire.

Ever seen someone take a 1/2" impact to an oil pan drain plug then push an air chisel through the oil pan trying to get it out? Or have them drain the transmission instead of the engine and not notice the oils red? Then they didn't notice that the engine oil was the same level when they filled it. Good thing it burned up the transmission in the parking lot.
Both of these happened to my brother.
A shop rotated the tires on my wife's 19 Camaro. They put the wide tires in the front. Didn't notice the size difference or the fact that the tires now rub.

Dealers need to vet their employees better but have no real skilled workers to choose from. I have friends who are welding and robotics instructors. Talking to their perspective employers, they have the same issues.
I have nothing against liberal arts classes but we need skilled trade people.
I guess we can always bring them in from another country. How bad can that be?

I could not agree more.

Funny thing, a few years back I posted a pic of The Varmints changing a tire on a trailer on the trail. The response? "HOW UNSAFE!!" I suspect that is why so few kids know how to do anything useful. Everyone has their hands tied trying to be safe. It is always "Safety first!" At least that is what they preach. In practice I have yet to find anyone who is willing to die for safety. But they will eagerly hamper anyone else who is trying to do something productive.

Tire rotation on F-bodies seems to be beyond the skill level of tire shops. On my GTA the tires are the same size front and rear, but the rims have different offsets. That won't stop a determined-to-be-clueless tech. Not even when it won't budge to get off the lift. Rev it and dump the clutch. Great way to wipe out a pair of wheels. Tire shops no longer get to touch my vehicles. I just take them the wheels. Drop them off and pick them up later. Saves me several therapists worth of anger and frustration.

 

[North American Sojourner]

Everyone needs a mechanic and tire guy. I have one too even after all these years.
My guy has been at it for a few years now. If I remember 1958.
Zim

 

[Layla]

For those in the US, getting parts is usually easy, but shipping to Canada can be slow and costly. It’s odd that UPS and FedEx charge more for ground shipping. I’ve had great success with DHL from the UK it takes just 5 to 7 days to Vancouver

 

[Jackwillow]

Repair parts are getting harder to find and pricier these days! I’ve seen delays firsthand while working on home repairs projects, so planning ahead is key!

 

[jeepers29]

If the port strike lasts it is going to get really bad.

 

[North American Sojourner]

For those in the US, getting parts is usually easy, but shipping to Canada can be slow and costly. It’s odd that UPS and FedEx charge more for ground shipping. I’ve had great success with DHL from the UK it takes just 5 to 7 days to Vancouver

Here's the deal. No company will ever again fill a warehouse with parts. After the housing crisis and then COVID companies were stuck with millions of dollars of inventory they could no sell and had to pay taxes on.
I'm a career parts guy. Small shops will build to order just fine but don't expect great things with larger companies.
I tell folks that don't agree with that to go buy 200 bags of dog food and put it in your garage. Then sell it. LOL
Zim

 

[genocache]

So, I'm a Land Rover guy. I bought my first one, a 64, in Aug 73, in Jan of 74 I traded it in on a new 73 at the dealership some 40 miles away. I was 22 and new nothing about cars having just got out of the USN. The next morning there was a huge oil slick under it. I called the dealer, who said "Drive it back and we'll fix it." I knew enough to know that wasn't a great idea. I looked under neath and the oil filter canister was loose. I walked downtown, about 1/2 mile, and bought a socket set at Grand Auto. Came home and tightened up the cannister. Never went back to the dealer. I bought a Workshop Manual and have been doing my repairs ever since.

Now I own a 1960 Land Rover 109 and have done a frame off resto mod.

Most Factory parts are NLA. There are spares available for almost every part. These are made somewhere, not the UK for the most part. Lots of the electrical parts are so cheaply made they don't work or give up soon after installation. I had a replacement switch fail because the "plastic" inside melted due to the heat from current flow. Many of the metal bits are dimensionally smaller on the outside thereby using less material and making them cheaper to make. So It's many times better to rebuild original parts than to buy new.

How accessible are parts for Flat Fenders?

I had a Range Rover, comfortable and very capable! I never lost an ECU, the switches that adjusted the seats were NLA, there was something bad in the fuel gauge system, it would read 1/4 tank and run out of gas. I replaced the pump/sender and it still ran out......

Now I have a 1991 Land Rover 200TDI engine, fully mechanical, manual transmission, disc brakes and tools and knowledge to work on it at home or on the trail. That and a shed full of parts and online forum friends should get me out of any trouble!

 

[Correus]

I purchased an item off of Amazon two weeks ago, and paid for priority shipping. The item has been sitting in an USPS sorting facility (about 3 hours away) for 8 days. It was to be delivered today. Today I got a notification that it won't be delivered till the 8th. A friend is an USPS inspector. She looked into it for me. The package was shipped media mail instead and even though the pallet has been there for 8 days it hasn't even been processed!!

 

[Downs]

I purchased an item off of Amazon two weeks ago, and paid for priority shipping. The item has been sitting in an USPS sorting facility (about 3 hours away) for 8 days. It was to be delivered today. Today I got a notification that it won't be delivered till the 8th. A friend is an USPS inspector. She looked into it for me. The package was shipped media mail instead and even though the pallet has been there for 8 days it hasn't even been processed!!

Oh boy, let me tell you a little story of my recent view of how useless the USPS is. I moved from one location to another. The new location is 15 minutes away from the old one and in the same zip code, and both addresses use the same local facility to distribute mail. I had a 600 dollar piece of equipment shipped to me via USPS about 2 days before I submitted my change of address form. USPS had it for 20 days before it finally arrived when it was originally supposed to be delivered a few days after ordering. I called multiple times about it, and another less expensive piece of equipment that was shipped along with it but in a separate package. Each time, it was like the USPS drone on the other end was reading from a script. They couldn't give me any more information than the website tracking had and were totally useless.

The package was in our local facility and ON THE TRUCK to be delivered. It never made it and instead went back to the local facility then into the Coppell regional facility where it sat for almost a week before moving to Dallas for all of 4 hours then being returned to Coppell then back to Dallas then back to Coppell in the same day for some reason. No explanation was able to be given for this. After it got back to Coppell it sat there for 8 days then finally was moved to "in transit to next facility". It sat in that "transit" status for almost 5 days. The driving distance from Coppell to the local facility is about 1.5 hours. No one at USPS could explain why it takes 5 days to make a 1.5 hour drive, again it sounded like they were reading from a script when trying to explain anything.

The other less expensive item was apparently sent back? I got a random refund into my account with no explanation for it, no emails, no texts. It moved less, but after being returned to the Dallas facility, it went into a "transit" status for almost 13 days and never made it wherever it was going. Supposedly was returned because it was damaged. I think it was stolen.

The seller wound up sending me a replacement item free of charge, and surprise, the original showed up the day before the new one got here. Now I get to go through the hassle of sending one back, all because USPS is incredibly inefficient and inept. I wound up having to reorder the lower cost item.

 

[Downs]

How accessible are parts for Flat Fenders?

Fairly accessible. I can still get a lot of parts off Rock Auto in a few days. Lots of parts are still made in India and the Philippines. Both those countries had huge stocks of JEEPs post-war and pretty strong communities sprung up around that, which lead to industry in those areas catering to keeping those old Jeeps on the road. Mahindra has held a license to build JEEPs since 1947 so their industry has evolved over time to keep them on the road. I can buy T90/Dana18 assemblies off of EBay from India. My current "summer top" is a unit from India, actually pretty well-made. I can buy axle shafts, shifters, ect, ect, ect from India as well.