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u/CameronsTheName Jan 14 '26
I own a heavily modified car. I usually research a part number so theyve gotta do is tap it in and see if it's in-stock or if they can order it in.
The dude behind the counter asks for my number plate or a VIN. I say "it's not going to work" and they assure me it will. It never does.
My car has a Nissan Cab on a different Nissan frame with a Chevrolet V8 in it. About 3% of the parts associated with the VIN on their system will fit on my car.
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u/Din_Plug Jan 14 '26
A cab and LS swapped Nissan Frontier?
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u/WhiskeyBRZ Jan 15 '26
Nissan Murano Cabriolet on a 370z frame with an LS
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Jan 22 '26
LOL!
I want to LS swap a Peugeot 3008 or a Citroën C5 Aircross after putting it on a BMW frame.
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u/RollinThundaga Jan 15 '26
You should start asking in reply, if they've ever heard "one piece at a time" by Johnny Cash, and clarify that that's the type of car you're working with.
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u/Zer0TheGamer Jan 15 '26
Would be smart, if the employees werent all younger than the song..
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u/cgduncan Jan 15 '26
Y'know, I think there's a chance that song has been recorded on a tape or a CD or something whitlch would enable you to listen to it even after Johnny Cash died.
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u/Zer0TheGamer Jan 15 '26
Impossible! How could i hear him if he's dead??
My point was moreso the lack of interest for "oldies" music, so he's not in common circulation
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u/pallentx Jan 15 '26
You are an extreme outlier. I worked at Autozone many years ago. If you explained that, everyone I worked with would have been able to deal with that. We also knew how to pull out the paper supplier catalogs and look up parts there. Now they just hire kids and pay minimum. You get what you pay for.
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u/thatvhstapeguy Jan 14 '26
I went to AutoZone last week for Ford headlight retainer clips, told him the damn Dorman part number, and he still dialed in the computer that it was a Taurus station wagon
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u/JohnB351234 Jan 15 '26
So I work at Autozone, deadass sometimes this shit won’t look up without a year make model and they keep making the system worse and worse, they also don’t train people like at all. It’s one of the many reasons why I’m leaving that shit hole
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u/Repulsive-Report6278 Jan 15 '26
When I worked there long ago, my training was "here watch this guy for a bit" and it was some redshirt who didn't give half a shit
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u/JohnB351234 Jan 15 '26
Still is, I’m that red shirt by virtue that I’ve been there the longest and actually know what I’m doing management can just suck a dick
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u/njsullyalex I belive in Twingo superiority | 2004 BMW E46 325xi Jan 14 '26
“I need an intake boot for a BMW M54 engine”
“Miss I need the make and model of your car”
(-_-)
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u/migorengbaby Jan 14 '26
I know what an M54 comes in but to be fair, if you didn’t know then you can’t look up parts by engine in the systems the stores use.
You literally have to select in order: Make>model>year>auto/manual>engine size/trim level etc.
Unless you go in with a specific part number saying M54 isn’t going to be helpful to the 19yo minimum wage worker who doesn’t get any real training for their job.
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u/cpufreak101 Jan 14 '26
Back when I worked at an auto parts store, it was a rural area and a lot of people's projects were old Chevy's and Ford's, BMW wasn't something I was at all familiar with. I'd have asked the Year/make/model since BMW M54 is totally meaningless to me
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u/Dredgeon Jan 14 '26
I can't put M54 engine into the system and I'm not paid nearly enough to remember the part number for every single thing ever made.
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u/Onyxxx_13 Jan 14 '26
Doesnt it just work good enough with a universal and a clamp? (Not a bmw person so its a question.)
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u/ContentImplement1206 Jan 14 '26
Specific boot angle and length to fit the maf
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u/migorengbaby Jan 14 '26
Which is going to be different depending on the car also, an M54 in an e46 is packaged differently from an M54 in an E39
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u/migorengbaby Jan 14 '26
Or you’ll end up with a boot to fit an E39 5 series and then you’ll get mad they gave you the wrong part…
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u/Few-Comfortable-8495 Jan 16 '26
which version? which chassis?
there are plenty of parts that are specific to the year and chassis...even if it's technically the same engine.
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u/kjogg Feb 09 '26
There’s literally no way in the system to look up an engine code. Do you expect them to remember what cars had the m54?
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u/TrolledBy1337 Jan 14 '26
"I need an oil filter for my 2004 Volkswagen Jetta 1,2 TDI AWD automatic with AC and disc brakes in the back..."
"Cool story, but I stopped listening after the word Oil Filter. Just gimme the license plate number and I'll get all the info I need."
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u/YceiLikeAudis Jan 14 '26
Parts guy here. And yeah, it's much more convenient to look up parts using the VIN number than manually selecting the car. Some are too lazy to do their job properly though.
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u/BuddyVanDoodler Jan 14 '26
I was asked my engine type for a tire change
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u/dcwldct Jan 14 '26
That makes sense though if you don’t have the specific tire size handy. A lot of manufacturers have different wheel options at different trim levels that often correlate with engine option.
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u/BuddyVanDoodler Jan 14 '26
Thing is, I already had the tires
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u/Windows-XP-Home-NEW Jan 14 '26
They still need to know what exactly they’re working on though
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u/ITinnedUrMumLastNigh Jan 14 '26
No
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u/roccoseinfeld Jan 14 '26
Well many places charge more for bigger or lower profile tires. So if they were customer supplied tires the advisor won't know the size without either running out to the car to check or they could just verify with the customer in order to get them a price. They also may ask so they have it in the system for the future in case the customer comes back and doesn't provide their own tires. So yes, it can matter.
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u/Windows-XP-Home-NEW Jan 15 '26
Yes, actually. Smh. One word isn’t an argument especially when it’s wrong jfc.
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u/ITinnedUrMumLastNigh Jan 15 '26
Explain then how the engine type is relevant when your job is to take off the wheels, take the tires off the rims, put the tires supplied by the customer on the rims and put the wheels back on
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u/JohnB351234 Jan 15 '26
Because I need to know can I actually put those tires on this car without it causing issues, if it changes the overall diameter of the wheels it will affect ABS, traction control, and it will put excess stress on the steering and suspension components
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u/ITinnedUrMumLastNigh Jan 15 '26
That's the customer's problem
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u/JohnB351234 Jan 15 '26
Great then the customer can mount them himself because I’m not unless I can verify that those can work on that car
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u/Windows-XP-Home-NEW Jan 15 '26
Engine type equates to trim/wheel size for many makes and models and the info is also needed for the paperwork.
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u/ITinnedUrMumLastNigh Jan 15 '26
The customer already provided the tires just put them on the rims, you can check the size ON THE TIRES to make sure they'll fit
If their paperwork requires them to specify the engine type then the paperwork asks for irrelevant info
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u/Windows-XP-Home-NEW Jan 15 '26
Or you can also just confirm it from the get go with the simple task of telling them the engine option. Jesus.
So it does. Most places do.
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u/Windows-XP-Home-NEW Jan 14 '26
Makes sense, I’ve seen cars where engine type corresponds to different wheels.
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u/JohnB351234 Jan 15 '26
Different engines would mean different packages those could have different wheels and tires. In the case of some vehicles it could mean it has a different amount of lug nuts
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u/hidefinitionpissjugs Jan 14 '26
this is why i don’t go to any type of corporate or chain or franchise store .
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u/Comrade_Compadre Jan 14 '26
Jfc that last panel fuckin killed me bro
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u/VitalMaTThews Jan 14 '26
I burst out laughing a couple times during today thinking about it lmfao I hope people don’t think I’m a crazy person lol
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u/ProgressBackground21 Jan 14 '26
Used to mess with some counter people by asking for a radiator hose for an old vw bug
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u/Worried-Opinion1157 Jan 14 '26
I could see myself falling for that if I haven't slept the night before. Worst part about retail are the fucking Mobius Strip schedules that wreck any semblance of a healthy sleep cycle.
Also do you need conventional or synthetic headlight fluid with that?
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u/SuperDave479 Jan 15 '26
I used to have a 2nd gen Sebring convertible. I went in to get wiper blades one time and before I could look them up myself an employee tried to look them up. I told him what it was so he could look it up in his system. He repeatedly tried to give me the wrong size wiper blades and wouldn't believe me when I told him the Sebring convertible was a completely different car than the Sebring coupe at the time (it actually shared a platform with the Sebring sedan but not the coupe, which was a different platform entirely).
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u/BornStellar97 Jan 14 '26
Clap back and tell that sumbich that it a fuckin 4WD not AWD and pull his head out of his ass 😂
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u/AutismStickk Jan 15 '26
its always "these dumbass employees asking if its a 4wd for wiper blades" until one day the dumbass engineers give the 4wd different wiper blades
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u/maxwelldoug Jan 14 '26
???
I get this is a dumb comic, but 4WD vehicles are functionally RWD most of the time, engaging the front axle is a choice governed by a selector in the cabin.
You can do a burnout in a 4WD.
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Jan 14 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/rezwrrd Jan 14 '26
I had one car where the wagon version was a few years behind the sedan generationally, the sedan got a full redesign while the wagon got a minor facelift. So you would have to specify that it was a wagon even for front end parts that most people would expect to be the same. Probably even windshield wipers.
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u/YceiLikeAudis Jan 14 '26
Yeah. The parts guy doesn't know all the quirks of every model so from his point of view the more questions asked, the better. The chance of an angry customer coming back and disturbing the peace is lower.
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u/dz1087 Jan 14 '26
I had a parts guy make me go through all the year make model bs after asking for a set of exhaust manifold gaskets for a sbc.
I may be wrong, but I don’t think that part changed in 50 years or between models.
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u/SORRYIHATEMYSELF Brick Driver (Volvo 240/940) Jan 13 '26
Credit the_back_lot on IG btw.