Re[2]: [ihc] 1010 Travelall 2wd idler arm, front wheel bearings, musings

[Richard Welty <rwelty@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Sat, 22 Nov 2003 22:20:11 -0700 Allan Ericson <lowvolt@domain.elided> wrote:
> The definition of a counter clown is a guy selling parts that has no
> business doing so. I own a lot of vehicles. I go to parts stores a lot. The
> industry has a lot of people in it that are pretty useless to people who own
> classic vehicles such as ours. When I find a clerk who knows his stuff, I'm
> ecstatic. 

quite.

i usually factor the competence of the parts guy in when assessing dealerhips.
for years, back when i owned saabs, there was only one dealership i bought
parts from, because the "parts guy" had been dealing with saabs for 20 odd
years and could tell you where a part came from just by looking at it, and he
knew every single part on his shelves. that's the sort of thing that gives
confidence.

by comparison, i needed a radiator hose for my wife's 96 diesel benz, and the
counter clown at the dealership (this one really deserves that name) quoted
me $200 for a simple molded hose with three bends in it while wearing a
straight face. i got the hose from a prefered mail order vendor for $17 (the
exact same hose, mind you, with MB star logos and a pick slip from the MB
florida warehouse.)

there's not any ihc content here, so i'll stop now.

richard
-- 
Richard Welty                                         rwelty@domain.elided
Averill Park Networking                                         518-573-7592
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