Back in June I had the POS Raner in to check out some electrical gremilins, and was told the DPFE sensor was shot. Quoted about $300. Got used to amber light at night on occaission (truck ran like a top, why chane it). Need to sell truck to buy new one, so go to get a preinspection done to see if it would pass Mass inspection. Guy at gas station tells me same thing, quotes me $175 for part, and $85 for labor, must be done for it to pass inspection.I looked at my Haynes MAnual to see if it was something I could do myself easily, then I checked for the part at autozone.com for a price check ($53.99). I found my local store and called them to see if it was in stock, it was. I went to pick it up, and the guy showed me where it was on the engine, then offered to put it in for free. Said it would take 5 minutes. It looked easy enough, so I said I would try it myself. He offered to do it tomorrow if I was unsuccessful. It cost me $56 to fix it myself, and 20 minutes of time in the dark with pouring rain. I hate dealerships and shops, but I now LOOOVE Autozone!

 

Glad to hear it worked out for you, but autozone can screw up too. I had to make three trips to get the right u-joint one time. But there's nothing like saving money!

 

Good to hear you got it right the first time. Usually if you just clear the codes, it will go away and you can get your vehicle inspected... Most of the time its not the sensor, its a wire or connector that causes the light to come on.

 

Everybody hates dealerships untill they spend a weekend changing parts that autozone sold them and they still have the same problem. Then they bring it to us to get it fixed. Autozone can be great and they can suck. They seem to hire mostly young kids who think they know everything. Dealerships are high priced, but your paying that to have an ase master tech fix your truck. Someone who sees these problems everyday and knows how to fix it right. I buy stuff from autozone all the time, but ask a qualified tech for information.

 

No way... Dealerships will screw you hard... over and over until they get it right...

I have nothing but complaints for dealerships... I always thought they were decent, right up until I needed something...

 

Wow I'm surprised Autozone didnt try to sell you an EGR valve first. We get 2 or 3 a month where people put in an Egr valve and didnt fix the problem. You gotta be careful at the zone. They tend to hire a couple of people who have auto repair experience. And the rest just have "retail" experience. Trust me I used to work at autozone. The best place they hired from was the burger king right next to the store. Then they expected me to teach them about cars and parts.

 

Congrats on finding help at Auto Zone that actually has a clue.

There are people that work there that are knowledgable, but it seems they don't last long.

 

Autozone is ok when they give you the right part. That happens occasionally. I have had to return parts several times because they didn't fit what I had. The sad thing is that the Napa store in my town is just about as bad. Recently I have been traveling out of town to an O'reillys store. They seem to be a better store than autozone. I think BrotherD, must be talking about the autozone in my town, it is right next to a burger king and the people who work there know about as much as the burger king people.

 

There are a few people that work at the stores that know what they are doing. I would say 98% of the autozone personal nationwide dont know jack, its just a job. I know for a fact at the 3 Azone stores here in my city only 7 people know a little bit more then the general customers. I personally dont deal with them when it comes to electrical/emmsion parts, your better off finding a CSK and shelling out 15% more for Warner.

 

Borg Warner and Niehoff are import junk... I worked at CSK for about 2 months before the BS was too much... I work at another parts store now, and I love it. I learn a lot everyday, but most people are just looking for some advice and "I don't know" just doesn't cut it.

 

Tis a rare event indeed, that someone would get real help from AZ
They are are nationwide supplier of our own branded parts, and I can tell you that from my franchise's experience, they are blatently incompetent.
So bad, that our corp heads are negotiating with napa to be our new nationwide supplier ( I work for a nationwide auto repair company).
We hope it works out, cause better parts means better service to our customers, and alot less comeback headaches from stuff only lasting a few months.

 

I goto autozone to buy parts because Advance and Napa are more $$$... O'reilley's and Autozone are cheaper .

 

You know I see alot of people complaining that autozone gave them the wrong part...hmmmmm think about this....if you are working on your own vehical , and need a part you should know what it is that you need ..and what it looks like.
if you don't know or not sure ...bring the OLD PART with you and make sure it matches up....how difficult is that?

nooo... i guess that takes the fun out of bashing autozone for you bringing home the wrong part....

Now as far as getting advice on doing your own repairs from autozone.

are you paying them $50-70 dollars an hour? do they have service schools? ASE certification requirements? huh? do the young kids have 10 to 20yrs experance? I think not....

remember this next time you get a wrong part who's fault was it really.?

they are a low-cost parts house...thats all... Ive been going to autozone for 15yrs...I know what to expect...low cost parts and decent service...well except when the guy behind the counter is having a bad day at work , just like we all do ...

sorry about the rant
but I'm just sick of of all the bashing about autozone.

 

Autozone must be doing something right sinces they are the nation's largeest automotive parts house. I used to work there part time a few years back. My suggestion is that if you are competent and know exactly what parts you need, then Autozone is a good bet.
If you get very lucky, there may be one guy in the store that is ASE certified, but don't hold your breath.
A few things I learned when I worked there were:
1. If you think you aren't being treated right or the guy at the counter can't find your warranty info in the computer, thow a big ole' hissy fit right there at the counter. 9 times out of 10 the manager will give you whatever you want. Oh and the more customers in the store at the time the better.
2. If you need a part for a rare car, don't bother going to Autozone. Many of the older more rare cars, they can't even order the parts, where as Napa or Checkers can.
3. The quality of some of their parts are iffy, so if you plan on keeping your vehicle more than a few months, get the lifetime warranty parts, and if you ever even suspect that part is going bad, take it back and get a new one.
4. Their customer service is good (when it comes to installing batteries and wiperblades and such) but don't expect them to drop whatever their doing to change out your wiper blades for you (unless you are a really hot young thing). Guys that were perfectly capable of doing it themselves would come in the store and expect me to leave another customer to change their wiper blades for them. I really hated that.
5. The people in the store that actually know about cars/trucks seem to leave and go to work for another better paying parts house after gaining a little retail knowledge while working at Autozone. Autozone only pays just above minimum wage, but it varies on how much experiance/knowledge one has.
6. The most improtant thing I learned, was to never go in there and ask for a part that didn't come stock on your car, cause it won't be in the computer and all you'll get is a deer in the headlights look in return. Customer: Hi, I need a themostat for a 350 SBC in my 32 Ford Coupe. Guy at counter: I'm sorry, the computer doesn't list a theromostat for a 32 Ford. Customer: Thanks I'll go to Napa.

 

I can personally attest that some of their parts are "iffy". I've bought two tranny filter kits(filter and pan gasket) from Autozone, one about 6 months after the other, for a different car. Both times, the gasket didn't seal right, and I had to do it again, but this time I went to Advance. Paid about a dollar more, and got a solid rubber gasket, instead of the cork and rubber one I got from Azone, and it worked! I've since stayed away from autozone and I've never had a gasket problem since.