Previously, A Trip Through The Junkyard, Part 1
Before you order parts for your car there are a few things you need too have on hand before you call. Find out and write down the year, make and model along with the VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) of your car. Never trust your memory as more often than not, customers are wrong when they try to keep all this info in their heads. On most cars the information you need is on a tag located on the driver's door jam or on the part of the door that faces the jam. And even if you bought your car brand new it might not be the year the dealer told you it was as year models and dates of manufacture are not always the same.
When you search Greensboro Junkyards and find a used parts dealer near you, do not waste his or her time asking if he or she has a certain make or model of car on their lot. It could be they have a hundred of those cars or they might not have any but that still doesn't me they do or do not have the part(s) you need. For most parts there are multiple makes and models that use the same part. For example: old Jeep steering boxes also fit old Pontiacs. It could be they have your make and model but the part you need has already been sold. Or, it could be that the car you're asking for is long gone but it just so happens they saved the one part you need and have it waiting on the shelf. Instead, tell them the part you need and allow the sales person to ask the questions as the salesman must answer the questions in the order that his computer asks him. This will make things go much smoother and speed up the process for you and for the next customer who is waiting on hold for you to hang up the telephone.
Don't waste your breath asking the salesman to lay the part out for you because he's not going to do so. At the parts yard where I once worked over a hundred people a day asked us to lay out a part and never showed up to buy it. Remember: if that sales person lays that part out then he or she will have to put it back up when you don't show up to get it. Laying out parts is a rookie mistake auto parts sales people quickly learn not to make.
Remember writing down the info on your car? Take the note with you as you're going to need it again. When you arrive to pick-up and pay for your part be prepared to wait. Smart buyers take their old parts with them. This allows for easier comparisons and lets you know what tools you'll need to take with you should you be going to a pick-a-part yard.
If you're concerned about a warranty you'd better ask before you make your purchase. Warranties vary greatly between various used parts dealers. In the case of pick-a-part or pull-a-part yards the warranty often reads, "You pulled it, you own it." This is with good reason as customers often pull the wrong parts or damage the parts when they pull them.
And please don't destroy other parts while trying to get your part removed. Far too often you're tearing up a part you'll someday need.
Finally, don't show up at quitting time and expect the parts dealer to stay open late for you. These guys hear this stuff every day of their working life and get sick of it very quickly. Selling parts is a very stress filled job and when closing time comes they are ready to get the hell out of Dodges, Fords and Hondas too. Besides, more than one late arrival has found himself locked in the junk yard with an angry junk yard dog. Trust me, I've been the guy who opened the gate and let them out the next morning while the dog finished ripping their pants to shreds.
You know, it was really hard not to laugh.
Continue reading Part 3.
