RE: Alfa Parts reply

["Brian Shorey" <bshorey@xxxxxxxxx>]

page down if you're getting bored..

> > i gave up relying on alfa for parts long before they left town.
> >
> I don't understand this....I have no trouble getting parts for most of
> the current needs, but I understand also that some of these are low
> production, old cars and the demand is not there. Just because a few
> folks want a part for a 35 year old car to be waiting on the shelf,
> doesn't mean it is worthwhile to sit on it for 10 years.

i've never had a complete order filled at a dealer.  for the record, it's
getting tougher to get everything i need at any one of the aftermarket
vendors as well.

if/when alfa returns i don't expect it to get any easier on the older cars.
if they wait their seven years from 1995 then they can start with a clean
slate, and are no longer legally obligated to service or sell parts for
anything they may have sold here in the past.  and if they want to sell new
cars, it certainly doesn't behoove them to waste a lot of time or energy on
the old ones.

> They let me down too, Brian. My 164 value dropped big time. I own an
> orphan, but my life is too short to lose gut lining over it. I think
> it's sad, because I think they could have marketed the car MUCH better
> and they should be up there with BMW. But it isn't charity...it's
> business.Theirs....

it is charity if i'm expected to pay more for a factory part *just* to keep
them here.  personally, i don't worry about price.  i've gotten to the point
where i just place orders and pay the bill when it comes.  quality and
availability are my primary concerns.

> My issue with this statement is that it seems you think that Alfa
> dealers don't care. I am just like AR and Int'l and the rest. We are
> just a small dealer in Tampa, We lost alot of money when ARDONA stopped
> selling cars, but we can make the most of what we have, and move on.
> Meanwhile, why condemn me because I sell the factory parts? So does AR
> and Int'l and Centerline....

i don't believe i chastised the dealers.  i targeted fiat/alfa management,
which i think shafted the dealers along with the rest of us.  i sincerely
appreciate anybody who is trying to help keep alfa's viable here in the
states, as it's obvious you could make more profits by serving some other
market segment, but i'm still hesitant to place all of my eggs in one
basket, especially when that basket has proven so unreliable in the past.

> The cold hard facts are this, If the demand was there, someone would be
> picking up the slack. It isn't. That's why Matt Jones needs almost a
> grand for a set of rubber Duetto mats....Low volume is either not
> practical or big bucks...Folks want it both ways, and economics don't
> allow it.

someone *is* picking up the slack, at a price they can make a living on.
i'm not expecting alfa to stock floor mats for 33 stradales at every
dealership.  i have come to the conclusion, over the past few years, that
the older the cars get the less they are driven.  the less they are driven
the less demand there is for parts.  the less demand there is for parts the
less cash there is for anybody selling those parts.  the end result is that
ultimately there will be very few people selling parts for older alfa's at
pep-boy prices, or at any price.  to me, this means that i've got to reduce
my reliability on these sources.  i've done that by (a) buying in bulk, and
stocking up for the future, (b) buying parts cars, and (c) finding
alternative sources.

the oil filter on my alfa is the same as the one on the wifes minivan.  ten
years from now, when all the daily drivers have been retired, and even the
hard core suppliers have gone by the wayside, i'll still be able to buy oil
and filters wherever quality fram products are sold, and i won't mind paying
matt's prices for anything else that i don't have in my attic.  meanwhile,
i'll still support the channels i currently do, but i firmly believe that it
only delays the inevitable. for all those who are relying on ten year old
milano's for daily drivers, in ten years do you really expect that twenty
year old milano to continue to serve as a daily driver?  and if you're one
of the lucky few to make it to 200k+ miles without getting t-boned or just
having the car rust away, how much effort will ari be willing to invest in
you?  none, is my guess, because they've already demonstrated that as soon
as business drops below a certain point they're gone!

>  No offense taken, as I don't think it was implied... Just don't kill
> the messenger... :o)

no offense was implied.  my anger is directed at alfa romeo, not the local
supporters.  it hurts even worse to visit the uk and see all the new ones
that we can't get here.  maybe i'll bring home a set of 16" rims next time
i'm there..

later,

bs

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