Hey there not looking to bash just looking to see if anyone else is having issues with parts from Rock Auto? i have had several items that were either packaged wrong or returned and then shipped to me with the wrong part or something of the sort. today i was installing some cam bearings into a daily driver small block and one of the bearings is way smaller than the others to the point you cant even slide it over a used cam out of the block with no compression on it. i have also had the wrong brake parts sent and new alternators that have dead shorts right out of the box. when i started getting stuff there i was very happy with the price and service i just find it is getting to the point over the last couple of years that i may not be worth it to buy there as every time i have an issue the return policy is a pain when shipping from up here. i hope they can sort things out as they have a great listing of vintage stuff but it would be nice if it was easier to talk to a human to work things out with them. i am sure there are many who have 0 issues with them just checking in to see if there are others with the same issue as me and how much of an issue it may be.

I've given up on them. They used to be a pretty good resource.

I had some issues with RA and now I only buy from them on certain occasions.

Their customer service strategy is not worth the savings to me. I get their business model, and can accept parts that have clearly been sitting on a shelf for 25 yrs collecting dust, but when I have an issue or need a return I don't want to deal with an online interface.

I guess I've been lucky, but it looks like their good days are over, or maybe fewer...

Maybe they are feeling the heat from competitors like Parts Geek.

Exactly There are some things like brake kits, basic suspension parts, etc... you can get without issues but I would never order engine or transmission parts from a discount warehouse supply chain. I did order an oil pan for my DD Toyota and it came fast and fit perfect

Gus

We had our first issue with them last week. They forgot to put our magnet in the package. It was for my Fiancé's car so; when the package arrived, she opened it right away because she wanted the magnet. She was bummed.

I've been using them for years and never had one issue. I've never had to contact them at all.

We use RA less and less, too. Someone on Ebay usually has the same thing for less money by time you add in the shipping. And Ebay is easier to order from.

I tried using them before ... confusing shipping ...

I’ll stick to ebay and FREE SHIPPING!

This but last week I need some gaskets and thermostats Rockauto had it to my door for 1/3rd less than anyone else in 3 days and the Motorrad fail-safe was sent from them at 13 bucks for 3 that is less than one locally and it was an off-brand.
Ordered both CV shafts Newin Name Brand for less than 1/2 of what off-brand was to my door. But I also bought half of what I needed at eBay as you said. So I check both

Today AutoZone and O'Reily will usually price match to RockAuto...
This may be a better alternative for certain electrical items...


Just my $0.02...

RA is shipping to LOUSYanna now ?

BEE SAFE there KaveMan .... Laura is headin fur yer azz !

Had a bad instance with them almost 7 yrs ago when I had my Caravan. The van's right front strut was completely blown out, bought a set of raybestos brand strut (correct term 'loaded'? Fully assembled). This was the result:



I was getting the van ready for a trip and had no time left to wait for another set before I left, so I ended up driving almost 3K miles with these. By the time I got back, it was difficult to steer.

If I remember correctly, rock auto didn't fuss about the exchange, and I sent them back on their dime. Ended up buying Moog which I should've done in the first place. The struts outlasted the van....

Been ordering from them for a long time, many different vehicles. had one problem and they took care of it pronto.

Not seeing any issues there, even with parts for my 51 Plymouth.

I buy something from RA occasionally with no problems, but their shipping shell-game is infuriating.

so far I've never had an issue with RA. 20 years ago I worked inthe parts department for an IH truck dealer. We would get parts packaged wrong once in a while.

I have 30 days of fuel fur tha old gen. 6 months of dry goods as well as the canned stuff dry beans and rice.
FL rated roll down shutters and picked out a new roof comes and gets me, please. Or at least take the 28-year-old roof and 30 year old shed I needs a new He Shed

My Cool RA Brakes at 68 bucks OTD
New hardware, Raybestos Best Pads, and New Epoxy Coated Rotors that stop very good

The RA Dart Sport 11" Rears all new hardware, calipers, springs, shoes, and drums. Could not even touch the price. But mostly and some did not have all the parts it was one-stop shopping but were 2 locations to ship. Yes I broke a stud on the Moser Axle

I gave up on them. Just about every part I ever recieved had issues... either it was really old stock like 15+ year old dried out fan belts or water logged packaging that even had discard written on it. Some body parts were junk quality and they refused go give me a refund unless I sent them back and they determined they were bad... not worth it money wise to do that. Then with their screwed up shipping from multiple locations I can usually get parts online from other sources where the parts might cost more but the shipping is free so it ends up being the same price or I can find the stuff locally for not much more.

i use rock very frequently to look up part information and interchangeability.
i will say their catalog is easy to navigate.

I often do this do dial myself in to items I may need then shop elsewhere. I actually cannot get RA parts any more. Tax laws have lead them to stop shipping to my city of 450k.

When I did use them, never had any issues with incorrect or mis-packaged parts. My early experiences with them were very positive. As they grew and shipping became more spread out and costs went up, I found that I could often get equivalent pricing at local chains. Not always, but often. If they could resolve the sales tax issue for my area, I might still buy from them on occasion.

Friends and I gave up on Rock Auto years ago. Biggest complaint was sending cores back. We never ever got our core money back. Even after numerous calls, still no core money.

Perhaps just dumb luck here, but I've had very good results with them over the past 3-4 years. In one case I ordered the wrong parts and returning them was no problem. I've also returned cores without any problems.

I too had one package arrive without the magnet, but that's a nit in the grand scheme of things. Generally I see parts in 3 days.

I've found you do need to watch shipping costs when multiple locations become involved. In some cases I can order a substitute part and avoid the bump on shipping costs from the second location. Just recently I was ordering thermostat gaskets and found by ordering one that cost 26 cents more I avoided an additional $6.00 shipping charge. Only once or twice have I been able to find an equivalent on eBay for less money.

Kudos to their website; pretty darn easy to use, even for me.

if you have problems with rock auto. try Summit Racing.
you can buy almost anything from summit that you can buy from rock auto. both are basically drop shippers so wherever you buy it from it ships from the same place.
the downside is navigating the catalog is MUCH MUCH harder thru summit. also shipping is sometimes slower thru summit also and no discount coupon codes.
the upside if you go over $100 shipping is free.

i order from summit whenever i can.

Just had a missing part in my last order, big order.
They seem to be slipping in their time to ship. Used to be if you ordered before noon, it would go out the same day. This last order, I placed on Sunday night and it didn't arrive to my house until Friday. The kicker is it left from the warehouse in the Bronx, NY to my house in NJ. That is a short trip.
I am not sure if it is them or Fedex as packages will sit with "label created", so you cant tell if it is really picked up or not.

I have been buying from Rock for >10 years, website is excellent and pricing is the lowest around.
The downside can be ether freight costs especially if bulky/heavy and if the shipment is from (2) sources, previously the freight costs were partially covered by no sales tax but now the shipment includes it....
For core charge credits they have been fine.


Just my $0.02....

Pretty much with you on this one. The only issue I had recently was just crazy shipping TIMES. Couple of parts that I ordered, showed 'in stock', took almost 2 weeks to get them. Luckily they were not show stoppers. Lately I have been really watching where I order from. Have found that sites like Amazon, which has a pathetic search engine, but often if I find the part numbers on Rock Auto, I can plug them into Amazon and get the parts in a reasonable time frame, often for the same, sometimes slightly more, but my Prime shipping gets the parts quicker. I wrote Rock Auto a nice note letting them know that while I like their site, their prices, etc. that the shipping TIME is what is killing me anymore. No response, but I guess I really did not expect any

Their website is very easy to use and handy how you can cross reference stuff on it. Sometimes that also helps make sure you get the right part.
Biggest complaint I have about summit and amazon is unless you know the exact part you want their sites are a pain to use. It's more understandable with amazon since they aren't in the car part business.
The problem I've had with some other online parts stores is that they show everything in stock then once you've made your order they tell the part isn't available. OK that's understandable since they might be drop shipping or bringing a part in from another source. But then even when it's known they don't bother updating their website.

I only use RA for pn lookups, then I call Napa and get it there. If they don't have it I hit up e-bay.

My last order was for four items. At checkout, parts 1 and 2 ship from warehouse A, and parts 3 and 4 ship from warehouse B. I then added part 5, shipping from warehouse B, but now part 2 ships from warehouse C. Three shipping points for five items. I deleted part 5, and part 2 reverted to warehouse A. What BS. I think they can have such low prices partly because they make significant profit on their shipping.

I use rock auto quite a bit. It's really hard to beat their pricing most of the time. I have placed orders where I have saved literally hundreds of dollars on something as simple as a pad/caliper/rotor job. I don't use them if I'm in a rush, because it usually takes about a week for the stuff to show up. So for big jobs I plan ahead‪. And the 30 day return policy needs to be planned for.

Problems:

I received a blinker switch that was totally wrong. I neglected the situation, so it is still laying around here.

I bought some parts for a head gasket job on my daughters ranger. But by the time I decided to stick in a whole different motor rather than fix the old one, the time to return the parts had expired. So they are still laying around here.

I had a condenser that was dead on arrival. When I notified them, they credited my account and told me to throw the bad part in the garbage. No need to send it back.

I got a rear seal that was the wrong size. Their catalog was faulty. Their web system for returns did not include a provision for them to pay shipping both ways. I had to use email, but I was able to prove that I ordered right, I received the part that was listed in their catalog, but it was still wrong. They did reimburse me for the purchase price plus shipping, and sent a call tag for me to return the part at no cost to me.


Think it is a good idea to cross reference any parts before buying because returning parts via shipping instead of in person is not so easy.

Looks like Joel and others do about the same.
I have saved way more than I figure I could loose if I want over 30 days and tgat would bed my fault.
I was cleaning up and found a few boxes of filters. Just the cabin and air filters for my brides driver saved me a ton.
She likes tyo swap them herself as tge5,air filter is easy when she checks oil and fluids. Cost was 4-5 times less than local. And she has a pile of um.
I found my boxes of oil filters short, medium and long that fit Mopar, Ford and Chevy.
It still has about 75 of them.
Wiix, Car Quest made Purulater and/C Delco made by Purulater most were 80 cents and others a lttle more. Bill was 90 bucks.
I gotta give some to my buddy. He is a Chevy guy so will give him some A/C ones.
When i did get a bad part caliper I sent It back and 5 days later I had the replacement.
I did twice also get a part that looked installed and returned that was bad. I called and they said toss it and sent a new one. Once said just toss the part and gave me the money back.

My last several orders seem to be hit or miss if I get the magnet.

I usually threw the magnets from RA in the trash anyway, so not getting them isn't a big issue. The last 2-3 parts orders have gone pretty smoothly with quick deliveries. I compare the delivered prices and make sure the items are in stock for everything, before I send an order to anyone. Gene

I’ve yet to have a problem with RA, I order from them 3-4 times a year. My 2 orders so far this year no magnet, not something I lose sleep about!

I use the magnets to cover the drain in my parts washer. They seem to keep the silt from gathering in that recess. May not need it but I like it.

I use RA with success often but I also sometimes need OEM parts. I have found dealers online who sell for SIGNIFICANTLY less than my local dealer. Many dealers sell on ebay which for some simplifies the process.

Ordered another part from RA.

Due to this thread, I decided to shop around. Still way cheaper than anyone else I looked at.

Bought a front hub for a 98 chevy 1500. Around $100 for an AC Delco on RA, $199 at the part store. Couldn't even find any options on NAPA Online.

Ended up buying a USA made Timken for $107. Used a 5% discount code to knock some more money off. Shipping was $8 and some change. Still did not get a magnet though.

Never any issues with RA for me.