prediction: auto parts stores will disappear

[Trueno 4]

I look at how the younger generation isn't learning anything useful. They can't change a tire much less their own oil or forbid a timing chain. The extent of their knowledge is keep gas in it and where the key goes.

 

What does this say for the parts houses that rely on commercial accounts, shadetrees and DIY's, and the random wannabes? If half the customer base disappears in the next 10 years, will the partshouses be prepared? Will their customer base shift exclusively to commercial accts?

 

t

[thebuns1 4,323]

Blame the auto makers for making shit you need a 10k machine to diagnose problems, then have to remove half the motor to replace parts. Vehicles now days are not meant for the end user to tinker with.

 

Old cars are great for kids to learn on, but sadly they are going the way of the dinosaur.

Edited January 15, 2015 by Captain Hero

[Spacehog 2,218]

And "Cash for Clunkers" was the asteroid impact that doomed them to extinction.

[patriot 7,197]

I don't see that happening any more than Global Warming.

[magsite20 1,664]

some things are lost

 

http://it.musicplayon.com/play?v=453687

[csspecs 1,987]

Hard to say. I'm 27 and have zero problems working on cars or trucks (diesels give me hesitation) .. Most of the people I know my age and younger are doing their own auto work, using youtube to learn from.

 

I will say that physical locations like napa and autozone are getting beaten by partsgeek.com and almost any other online parts shop.

 

On newer cars if the part is larger than 12" cube its cheaper for a shop to do the repair vs owning the larger tools. And if its within that size range shipping is cheap.

Another thing about newer cars is that most of the parts wear out together. I have a 96' car and while it still rolls down the road, every single system is worn out roughly equally, at this point its more financially viable to buy a new one than to buy the parts to make my old one right again.

[james lambert 3,059]

some things are lost

 

http://it.musicplayon.com/play?v=453687

hey.....some of us still have fuzzy dice, in our hotrods

[305tillimove 10]

Auto Parts stores will likely be phased out not because of a loss of customers but due to the proliferation of e-commerce. There hasn't been a single auto part that Ive price checked against one of the bigbox stores that I havent been able to order elsewhere for 10-25% less. Most of my stuff comes from amazon. Delivered within 2 days, right to my door step. Dont have to even leave the house to deal with some snot-nosed, mouth breather working behind the counter trying to pay off his 97 Mustang with $10k of retarded "performance" upgrades on a $2k car. Yea, Im bitter. One too many wasted trips in my life.

[storm6490 2,768]

should be good to go here in montana for many years to come.

 

napa is where you meet your neighbors on the other side of the fence!

[Spartacus 1,619]

Blame the auto makers for making shit you need a 10k machine to diagnose problems, then have to remove half the motor to replace parts. Vehicles now days are not meant for the end user to tinker with.

 

Old cars are great for kids to learn on, but sadly they are going the way of the dinosaur.

 

Was pissed when I found that our old 2000 Isuzu Rodeo (same truck as Honda Passport) didn't even have a trans dipstick to check the ATF level. Talked to my gearhead neighbor (retired Ford guy) and he laughed and said a lot of that type of thing is going on. The manufacturers don't want customers doing their own service, they want you to bring it back to the dealer for service.  lol.... fat chance at the dealer rates for service.

 

Still plenty of people in the store when I visit Autozone, they will be around for a while. I love how they let you return parts if you need to, even electrical parts. Most auto parts stores will not do that.

 

Rock Auto online seems to be pretty good too when I can't get a part locally.

[storm6490 2,768]

try to shop local as much as possible but you can get factory OEM parts and nice aftermarket oem supplier parts from online parts shops and they ship for free if you are buying more than bosch wipers for your german car!

 

forums online are also very awesome for diy guys that want to service and maintain their own vehicles. the euro cars have many people around the world who do thier own work and share information the dealers try to keep secret for return customers.

 

autohaus AZ is a gift from heaven for me. stealerships are good for one thing, selling, warranty work and swindling. i wouldn't even get my oil changed at a dealer with a new car! any master mechanic worth his salt will either run the dealership shop or go independent or work for an indy shop as a specialist. dealers take in new guys fresh out of the tech schools and put them on 50K cars. they do learn and if smart, move on.

[HB of CJ 1,263]

Interesting topic and thank you. This may be an excellent example of how far out in right field our geographic economically depressed area of SW OR USA has become. About 43N, 123W kinda. The "Cash For Clunkers" program wiped out a lot of our excellent condition newer cars! Yep, not the old clunkers, but newer good stuff! This is our reality out here in our bucolic mountain valley.

 

My personal, honest, inexpensive, ($60 bucks hour) auto mechanic is swamped with repair work. All of it is very old, still good running cars and light trucks that people are keeping because it is their least expensive alternative for reliable transportation. He may have to hire a mechanic helper. Problem is nobody wants to work on the older stuff, or still have the older job skills required to do such.

 

Basic repairs and maintenance. Young folks do not want to work doing this. Nobody knows how to rebuild a carb, set points and dwell, do drum brake jobs including wheel cylinders, clutches, U-joints, top end jobs, etc.. Young people can not even drive a stick shift car. They do not know how. Also never took auto shop in high school ... the local schools do not even offer that class anymore.

 

Back in my high school in 1963-65 auto shop 1 and home economics 1 were coed and required. . Not anymore. The new generations are not being taught the right stuff. They can't even make change or do basic math. Their penmanship skills are horrible. But they learn all sorts of wrong political liberal garbage. They do not know any better. Curious and Curiouser. Just me. HB of CJ (old coot)

[mancat 2,368]

If you say so. Many of the older gearheads have no idea what to do with any fuel injected engine, and assume that if the word "computer" is even mentioned, that the thing is beyond repair.

 

There are certain things you just need to go to the auto store for, i.e. comparing parts in person, p

putting together custom fittings/hardware, etc.

 

I don't see auto stores really going away, and I don't share your assessment of the mechanical helplessness of the newer generations.

[6500rpm 670]

Probably just the mom and pop shops, there's always going to be guys that can do basic maintenance work. I've worked on nothing but new cars for the last 30 years (these days most every make and model you can name). If you're young and want to be a good car Tech, learn about electronics....things are moving fast, really fast. As a side note, the more electronics a vehicle has the more items there are for the modules to logic lock. I can't tell you the number of times a vehicle's been fixed by simply draining the B+ cable to ground (hard reset that put's all the modules back to square one). kind of like rebooting your home pc. Module reprogramming is another big fix item.  That's half the attraction of firearms to me-purely mechanical in nature, they all go Bang but have different ways of achieving it. (looks like that's moving toward electronics also but not at my price point).

[Voltia 375]

I don't think the Ford guy had the right reason on the dipsticks. Car company I work for stopped the dipstick on the transaxles and transmissions because people were putting the wrong stuff in there, dirty stuff in there, or over or under filling it when they did, and destroying the transmissions. They figure if the person is smart enough to want to service the trans, then they can pull the pan, service it, and fill it through the factory fill port, which is fairly easy to find, but not for the average idiot. They think that a closed system is better, and to service it at X schedule miles down the road.

 

I also think it's a costs savings, but, they do have a point. If you're good enough to service a trans, you should be able to find the fill port, check the level, figure out the right level, service the trans, and put it back together, even without a dipstick. Now, the dipstick is nice for my two old cars, as they both leak some ATF to some degree. Transmissions don't get dirt in them, the only crap is clutch dust; it's not like a engine with combustion byproducts that MUST be removed on a regular basis.

 

However, I do not like this century's thinking of assuming your customer is an idiot and dumbing it down. My 72 Chevy's owner's manual makes a big point of the transmission drain plug in case you'd like to change the fluid without messing with the pan and filter, and it assumes that since you're a man and own this fine machine, that you know your shit.

[Spartacus 1,619]

>>Now, the dipstick is nice for my two old cars, as they both leak some ATF to some degree.

 

Exactly, that's all I need it for.

 

I need to be able to check the level and top it off for small leaks.

And I do go to the trouble to put the right stuff in and not overfill it.

 

For any trans trouble I take it in for service.

[mancat 2,368]

My wife's car is a 08 Suzuki SX4 AWD wagon.. Surprisingly it's one of the easiest cars I've ever worked on.

 

Auto trans has a drain & fill plug, no dropping of pan needed. Doesn't even have a filter, just a large magnetic drain plug. Makes it easy to just do a partial sump drain & refill every 30K miles. Eventually the TC gets fresh fluid.

AWD transfer case - drain & fill plug

Rear diff - drain & fill plug

Everything under the hood is no problem

 

Despite being Japanese car, everything is very easy to get to and work on, even for giant hands of stupid roundeye white man

 

Now here's a scary thing.. I have a friend who is just about to finish his mechanical engineering degree. Just a couple years back, he came to me with these car questions:

- Showed him how to change the oil on his S10. He asked "When changing the oil, do I keep adding oil until it's full at the fill cap?" I explained what the proper sump level was and why. I've heard of people doing this, but this was the only time I've come close to experiencing it myself.

- (This one a bit later) "How come even when the dipstick says I have enough oil, the oil gauge in the dash shows it's half full?"  Had to explain that not only was this a PRESSURE gauge, but that it really wasn't a gauge at all, but more like an on/off switch that registered "ON" anything above around 5psi. "Why would they do that?" he asked.. Much grumbling ensued.

Edited January 16, 2015 by mancat

[joebanda1213 59]

Well in my town we have a pepboy next to an advance auto parts and an autozone. Literally the entrances to these estalishments are all lined next to each other. These chains also have other locations no more than 15 min away. Trying to share a shrinking market will be the most significant factor to their deline.

 

Dont lose all faith in this generation. Everyone is trying to save a buck now a days which has incouraged diy repairs and youtube makes this an ever increasing option. I have a old lexus and have done several thousand of repairs. Im not handy just good at googling.

[PFerris 76]

When it comes to fixing cars and just about anything.  GOGGLE IS YOUR FRIEND. 

[Spartacus 1,619]

>>Now, the dipstick is nice for my two old cars, as they both leak some ATF to some degree.

 

Exactly, that's all I need it for.

 

I need to be able to check the level and top it off for small leaks.

And I do go to the trouble to put the right stuff in and not overfill it.

 

For any trans trouble I take it in for service.

 

I should have also said that I know there's a fill plug on the trans.....  that's out of the question when it's 7 degrees outside though.

I'm not going to lay under the truck in that weather. Hense the reason I'm pissed at no ATF dip tube.  

[magsite20 1,664]

now days you're more likely to replace a chip than a carb

and under the hood see a 4 banger than a small block

a new 2.0 has 240 hp where an old stock 1980 350 Z28 had 190 hp

my oldest car is a 1990 and even it has injectors not a carb

the newest a 2014 has a sealed transmission that I guess when it goes bad is just a pull it and replace it thing with no rebuild

http://articles.sae.org/8707/

[G O B 3,516]

As long as cars need parts there will be parts stores. When cars become sealed systems like refrigerators and televisions,  then the parts stores will die off until there is only one or two for each medium to large city.

[gunfun 3,931]

I just have to categorically disagree with the first post. Young people are not less likely than prior generaitons. We are if anything, personalizing, moding and DIYing more. 

 

Moreover, as our economic opportunities shrink relative to prior waves of people, we don't have as many other options.

 

Bluntly, people who wouldn't DIY don't, people who would  do.

 

There are more ways than ever to do so, and it is easier to source obscure parts or even get them made than it ever has been.

[gunfun 3,931]

More info is available too.

 

Better yet, tuning can be done exactly and scientifically without a lot of guess, check, and redo crap. I have an old machine with 4 carbs, and a 14 year old car which self tunes. I work on both as much as is possible. Guess which one I prefer to work on?

 

yep, closed loop fuel/air control >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> having to do lean tests at each stage of throttle advance and feel your way through the ratios. 

 

As for the bike and those points? Gone FOREVER! I switched that crap out for the immensely superior solid state ignition system from dynatech. It gets stronger spark perfectly timed at every stage of throttle advance. You can definitely feel the difference in low RPM, and cold weather starting. No more maintenance either and it's waterproof. http://www.z1enterprises.com/ItemDetails.aspx?item=DYDS2-2

 

I would absolutely do this to any machine with points on it. 

[Trueno 4]

If you say so. Many of the older gearheads have no idea what to do with any fuel injected engine, and assume that if the word "computer" is even mentioned, that the thing is beyond repair.

 

There are certain things you just need to go to the auto store for, i.e. comparing parts in person, p

putting together custom fittings/hardware, etc.

 

I don't see auto stores really going away, and I don't share your assessment of the mechanical helplessness of the newer generations.

 

 

I'm one of those that's lost when it comes to OBD etc. Sure, I can weld/port/pull 21-22lbs of boost but dang if I know the electronics to support it much less manage it.

 

Edited January 17, 2015 by Trueno