What is sad, the Motorcraft platinum plugs are the same price as the Bosch platinums... I try to get the customer to tell me the preference, or just tell them their options, and I will help them if they ask me what I think is the best. I do vary by make and year on what I suggest as well.
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the workhorse:86 F250 4x4 6.9 Diesel 4-spd, 4.10 axles, holley red electric pump
the other workhorse 92 F350 2wd crew cab, 4.10 rear axle, 92 6bt Cummins, NV4500 with Gear Vendors overdrive
the project: 77 F250 Camper special 400 4 speed Iowa Chapter leader
Come on down and join us in the Iowa chapter, or your own local chapter!!
What is sad, the Motorcraft platinum plugs are the same price as the Bosch platinums... I try to get the customer to tell me the preference, or just tell them their options, and I will help them if they ask me what I think is the best. I do vary by make and year on what I suggest as well.
But you are knowledgeable. This kid is 17 and thinks his mom's Honda Civic is a performance car.
When I am not sure exactly what I need, I will ask the counter guy...but this guy has actually refused to sell something to a customer unless the customer bought what he said to buy.
I tried to get a job at the same store once, they told me I was not qualified for the job, but this jagoff 17 year old punk is I guess.
Went out of town the other day, stop at an Autozone while I'm near one to get some R-134 for my AC. I found that easy, it was just inside the door. Having no idea where anything is in this place I just ask the guy that is behind the counter where the funnels were so I could change my oil to. His reply is: Make and model?
__________________ It's an internet forum, get used to it. It's like having a drunk conversation with every single person in the bar minus the "I love you man". "I've seen far more abnormal and unexplainable things at Wal-Mart than I have out in the deep woods." "My drinking crew has a racing problem, or vice versa..."
Someone seriously drained oil from an engine into a plastic garbage bag? Someone that stupid should have taken it to an oil change place to get it done.
Sadly, that's no joke.
And it was a diesel too, so the bag was pretty full. Cn't you just imagine them down there holding the bag to the bottom of the oil pan?
When the brand new Auto Zone first opened up by me (used to be Chief's so I was very wary about going in) I went in there to get a really long breaker bar cause I was having trouble getting one of the rear wheels off my '78 F350. The very attractive young woman behind the counter informed me that the lugnuts on the passenger's side rear were left-hand thread. She left it at that, I guess trying not to embarass me. I did that myself. I've since found other uses for the breaker bar.
There are three AZ stores near me. Two of them I will not go into except perhaps to buy a quart of oil. On one particular Saturday I was there trying to buy a battery. There was a line all the way to the back of the store and no cashier. A woman walked by the cash registers and someone asked "is there a cashier around?" The woman replied "I'm a cashier" and walked to the back of the store. The guy behind the parts counter was so stoned I'm not sure he could even see me or the computer screen and looked up parts for a Honda Civic when I told him Ford Explorer. I went to the other AZ store and got my battery in a couple of minutes.
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In California, the Totalitarianism State.
And it was a diesel too, so the bag was pretty full. Cn't you just imagine them down there holding the bag to the bottom of the oil pan?
Wow, some people should just not be legally allowed to own a set of tools.
I work at a gas station, and a few years back I saw someone under their car in our parking lot, parked over a sewer drain. I walked up to see what what going on, and he told me he was changing his oil and draining it into the sewer.
I went inside and called the police. He was in a whole lot of trouble.
Some people are just so stupid...it makes you wonder how they ever got a drivers license in the first place.
Had someone call in and ask if i had V8 ignition modules in stock, i did and i told him that they were $300. I thought that was odd because those rarely go bad, but whatever. When he came in, i asked him several times if he was sure that his module was bad. He swore up and down that his buddy who was a diesel mechanic looked at it and said that it was definately the problem. (My boss said that he was in a week ago and bought a coil and claimed that was the problem also.) Anyway, he was un daunted and gave me the money, took the module and went outside. I then realized that he had his boat with him and him and his kid were attempting to repair it in out parking lot! He then attempted to start it (without running any cooling water to it) and wouldn't you know IT DIDNT START!!! He was cussin and swearing and was even angrier when I wouldn't give him his money back for the module! The story has a happy ending though, he ended up leaving the boat with us so we could fix it, and it turned out to just be a broken wire in the engines wiring harness. Fixed it in about 10 minutes. This guy spent over $500 just throwin parts at it!
I went into an Autozone, who usually have no problems with to get a light bulb for my truck or something extremely stupid like that...I went up and said I need a light bulb for a 92 F Series pickup. The guy looks me right in the eye and asks questions like my gross vehicle weight, my body style and I'm like I'll just go to NAPA. So I did. Horrible story but oh well.
That's bad. i went to O'reillys because ai need to get a bulb for the marker light. The guys just says ok hich style is it. and hold up two bulbs. Then says it's probably this one handing me the smaller of the two. He was right. He never once asked any unnecessary questions or look on the computer. He knew what it was without haveing to look it up. That's the kind of service I like.
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92 F-150 flairside all stock 5.0 auto 2WD
93 F-250 4x4 flatbed 5.8 auto KnN, throttle body spacer, underdrive pulleys, flowmaster
73 Jeep CJ5 springover axles, reversed front shackles, 304, T-18, lockers front/rear, 4:29 gears, 33s
87 Toyota Tercel Tuner some engine mods exhaust
sometimes the guys working there only know how to punch keys on a computer.
I have worked with a few of these types. I myself have done that too, BUT, I worked with guys who have 10 - 20+ years under their belt so I learned to look in the books and use the computer. They taught me how to mix paint also since they sell PPG paints. When we would get bored on slow days we would call other auto parts stores and ask for a bogus part, something I am sure many of you know about.....the 1983 Vette or radiator for those air-cooled VWs.
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Jim "Iron Giant" Fahlin ~ A high performance car is like a guitar, you have to tune it to achieve your best operation and pull ahead of the competition.
The last time I went to AZ was a day my regular parts store was closed.
I was buying stuff for an oil change. I have been recently using
Wix filters, but wanted to switch back to Motorcraft, so I couldn't remember
the MC number. As we go through the chain of questions at the counter,
('75, F100, 2 wd, 300)the clerk notices my jugs of Rotella T 15-40 on the counter.
He begins to notion as if he is going to tell me that is not the right oil for my 300.
I, in turn, give him a look that says "don't worry about it kiddo". He backed off.
When he rang me up, he tried to tack on a sale of some Lucas additive at the register.
He explained how well it cleans up gummed up injectors. I say "I'm working on my '75".
Silence......... I say "I just replaced the injectors".
Without missing a beat, he says "OK" and rings me up.
Only had annoying parts store experience that I can remember- a few years ago I bought a thermostat for my old Mustang. I got it, then started to walk out and stopped, turned around and said to the guy at the counter, "Oh yeah, almost forgot...I need a gasket for this too."
He says, "There's a gasket in the box already." I thought hm, I don't know when they started doing that. Checked it when I was in the car...yeah, no gasket, just that little rubber thing that helps seal the thermostat against the housing I had to go back and get a gasket.
__________________ 1994 F250 XLT-Reg cab, 4x4, 5 speed, 7.3 IDI Turbo, manual hubs. 4" intake tube, ATS upgrade, 4" exhaust w/ Walker 21172, boost & pyro on pillar, Autodim mirror, 16x8 MB Razor wheels w/285/75R16 "MT-R's" 1987 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe-Lots of fun stuff to make it go fast & take corners 2008 V-Star 1100 Midnight Custom-Just Cobra slip-on drag pipes for now
Had one guy try and tell me my 91 f150 doesnt have a 5.0 and that it had a 4.6, when he typed it in to his little computer, i saw the confused look on his face.
Other than that, i havent had many stupid people encounters, theres a local advance auto parts i will never buy parts from again after one of their starter's failed and they said it was all my fault but i eventually got my money back after a half hour of arguement, nevermind the fact that everyone working their always has some stupid remark when i would ask for ford parts, "oh why you bothering to fix that? just buy a chevy or dodge etc." Crap like that, is not what i want to deal with, i want to go there, get my parts, and go home.
A few years back, I was working on a guys car, the hot cable (red) got onto the header and shorted out, so we go to AZ with the old cable so all I had to do is say I need one of these cables, the guy (not a kid) looks at it and takes us over to the display, says he can`t find one like it, I said how about this one? he responds, no that`s not right its black yours is red. the power flow is backwards, I thought for a moment and asked what if I cut the ends off and flip the wire and put the ends back on? he said that will work, but if you sell the car you should make sure you tell the new owner what you done. It was great, on that dark rainy night under the hood we had something funny to keep us going.
Isn't related to auto parts stores- but I used to go to school with a guy who told me whenever he changed his oil he just dumped it on the ground.
He said, and I quote, "Oil came from the ground, so I put it back into the ground."
I don't think he was the sharpest knife in the drawer either.
__________________ 1994 F250 XLT-Reg cab, 4x4, 5 speed, 7.3 IDI Turbo, manual hubs. 4" intake tube, ATS upgrade, 4" exhaust w/ Walker 21172, boost & pyro on pillar, Autodim mirror, 16x8 MB Razor wheels w/285/75R16 "MT-R's" 1987 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe-Lots of fun stuff to make it go fast & take corners 2008 V-Star 1100 Midnight Custom-Just Cobra slip-on drag pipes for now
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Horrible story but oh well. 
or radiator for those air-cooled VWs.
I had to go back and get a gasket.
