Rock Auto

[Hobo,NC]

Your experience, I ordered chassis parts they were to be shipped from two different locations. One part a bushing to be shipped from a different warehouse. I have received both shipments the bushing was from a the second location. The other shipment I was shorted a ball joint my order shows I ordered two ball joints the package slip reads only one shipped.

I go to tracking the tracking number show's that package has not been shipped (remember I have it). I report this online they say we are sorry you have not received your package yet. This is the third time I have ordered from them two times there has been an issue. Is this how those clowns operate, when you are shorted on a order do you wait till magic happens. Clearly I ordered it clearly it shows only one was shipped there are no indicators when I will receive the part.

I ordered a ball joint from O'Reilly yesterday about 5:30 it was stocked at one of their hubs. I have it in hand now picked it up at 9 AM. The Rock $7 O'Reilly $15. As stated price was not the issue. Lesson learned its not worth the aggravation I already knew that but fell off the wagon.

Why I fell off the wagon, I an replacing all the hydraulic brake hoses front and rear. The rock showed they had them and they did. My other options were to order and pray. If I order from the rock again it will be for single items no one else has. When I get it off the lift I will post a pix one the Rock would like to have but they are not gonna get it. : ) This is his go golf'N car its in immaculate condition other than it live the first haft of its life in Minnesota.

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[Hobo,NC]

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[Gambles]

I've been a RockAuto customer for almost 15 years. I've probably ordered from them a couple of hundred times and I have the refrigerator magnets to prove it. I've had some hiccups with them over the years, but everything that I've had a problem with has been resolved on their side. Yes, you CAN save money with them, but not always.
A couple of things to remember with them:
1. Unlike your local auto parts store, they no longer have a telephone number that they answer. They used to have a customer service line, but now all grievances with them are done online. A phone number in a previous post was listed, but I don't think that number will get you very far when you have an issue with an order. About six months ago, I had an issue with an order where the order was sitting at a warehouse for over a week. There were no weather issues, no carrier strikes, nothing out of the ordinary. The tracking number was issued and the warehouse just didn't give my package to the carrier. Despite trying everything I could with them, the only issue to resolve this was to cancel the order. I didn't want to do that. The parts were important to me, so I just let them get it straightened out and they finally gave my package to the carrier.
2. They don't own their own warehouses. Their parts just come out of other warehouses not owned by RockAuto. In reality, it's somewhat like the third party sellers on Amazon. (A poor example, but there are no warehouses owned by RockAuto) It's just the RockAuto corporation getting a cut of the profits by every part they sell.
3. Multiple shipping warehouses increases shipping charges. You order from Amazon and you have free shipping if you are a prime member. You order online from Walmart and you get free shipping (if your order exceeds a certain amount) even if it comes in 2, 3, or 5 different boxes.
Not with RockAuto. You put some parts in your cart at RockAuto and you have always look at your shipping charges before you place the order. Sometimes, it can be quite a challenge to get all of your parts shipped from one destination to lower your shipping charges.
4. Rockauto closeouts. RockAuto has lots of parts that they consider "closeouts". RockAuto closeouts are sometimes cheaper in price than their competitors, BUT NOT ALWAYS. RA closeouts can also be quite old. An old brake rotor? No problem. A 60 year old engine bearing? GREAT! A 15 year old oil filter that was stored in their 120° Sugarland TX warehouse? I might think awhile on that....
I'll still use them. As an example, over the past couple of years, I've done a part number search on their site and picked up connecting rod and main bearings for an Oliver 70 really cheap. You just have to know what you are looking for and how to search for oddball items that seem to show up and quickly disappear on their site.
My motto when using RockAuto: Caveat emptor.

 

[jimg.allentown]

Some local people use them because of price. I did not do well or like there website, so I don't use them. To me they are a modern version of JC Whitney.

I'm sorry to have to disagree, but comparing them to JC Whitney? NO way!!!
I have purchased many, many parts from Rock Auto. I mostly buy consumables that would have cost me much, much more elsewhere.
Example:
I bought sets of wiper blades for the three cars in the driveway here. I ordered them from RA. They were all top name branded parts and top quality. They cost me less for all of them that 1 single blade would have cost me at the local Auto Zone - shipping included!!!
I just bought an oxygen sensor for one of the cars. It cost less than HALF of what Auto Zone wanted for the same sensor - even the same brand. And, that includes shipping.

Granted, there are some things that are still better to buy locally, but if it is a consumable and time is not an issue, Rock Auto is my first choice.

 

[1948CaseVAI]

Your experience, I ordered chassis parts they were to be shipped from two different locations. One part a bushing to be shipped from a different warehouse. I have received both shipments the bushing was from a the second location. The other shipment I was shorted a ball joint my order shows I ordered two ball joints the package slip reads only one shipped.

I go to tracking the tracking number show's that package has not been shipped (remember I have it). I report this online they say we are sorry you have not received your package yet. This is the third time I have ordered from them two times there has been an issue. Is this how those clowns operate, when you are shorted on a order do you wait till magic happens. Clearly I ordered it clearly it shows only one was shipped there are no indicators when I will receive the part.

I have never had trouble but I always save a copy of my order. I presume you are ordering online which is most reliable. If phone ordering I would thinnk that is risky.

 

[caterpillar guy]

I can't beat the local guys for parts and price. I've priced rock auto a few times and by the time I paid more for the item and then shipping on top it just was not worth it to me. And now with what I'm hearing here I will probably not even bother with pricing there. I've talked to Summit a couple times and again freight cost kills the deal every time. Keeps me local for most all parts. I do on a few occasions have to go to online parts for a few things like the intake hose for my portable welder a new one 7 inches long with 2 bends was 160 cor so $ I looked in to
silicone hose in CO at either colo springs of aurora Got 2 hoses for a 1/3 the cost with freight and had to cut some off but works better than one with cracks in it. The silicone hose will be around in use when I'm gone.

 

[moresmoke]

I can't beat the local guys for parts and price. I've priced rock auto a few times and by the time I paid more for the item and then shipping on top it just was not worth it to me. And now with what I'm hearing here I will probably not even bother with pricing there. I've talked to Summit a couple times and again freight cost kills the deal every time. Keeps me local for most all parts. I do on a few occasions have to go to online parts for a few things like the intake hose for my portable welder a new one 7 inches long with 2 bends was 160 cor so $ I looked in to
silicone hose in CO at either colo springs of aurora Got 2 hoses for a 1/3 the cost with freight and had to cut some off but works better than one with cracks in it. The silicone hose will be around in use when I'm gone.

Summit does offer free shipping over a certain dollar amount. Was looking for a differential cover earlier today. Same price on Amazon and Summit, free shipping on both. Figured I’d support Summit today.

 

[NDIHC]

I've ordered from them several times and always thought their shipping was below par. And too expensive. One time I ordered some plug wires. They were in Minneapolis MN. I'm near Bismarck ND. They shipped them by DHL truck to Chicago, then sent them from Chicago through the USPS. Why didn't they just mail them from Minneapolis instead of trucking them to Chicago? Minneapolis is 400 miles closer to me than Chucago. I buy more from Ebay motors or Amazon because shipping is free. And I usually get my parts faster than RA. RA has good prices, just watch shipping charges and compare to other sources. Sometimes they're the best price and sometimes not. I usually check RA, Summit, Jegs, Ebay and Amazon. Whoever has the best price for the same product with shipping included is who I buy from. And I also check locally and if they are competitive on price I get it locally.

 

[jhwis]

I ordered 3 or 4 times. No problems.

Ordered parts many times. Always fast shipping and never a problem.

 

[mechanicfred]

I've ordered hundreds of times from them, no issues. Same part numbers as local parts stores for less money with shipping.

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

Your experience, I ordered chassis parts they were to be shipped from two different locations. One part a bushing to be shipped from a different warehouse. I have received both shipments the bushing was from a the second location. The other shipment I was shorted a ball joint my order shows I ordered two ball joints the package slip reads only one shipped.

I go to tracking the tracking number show's that package has not been shipped (remember I have it). I report this online they say we are sorry you have not received your package yet. This is the third time I have ordered from them two times there has been an issue. Is this how those clowns operate, when you are shorted on a order do you wait till magic happens. Clearly I ordered it clearly it shows only one was shipped there are no indicators when I will receive the part.

You say that tracking indicates the package has NOT shipped.

That means it turned out that they only had the one ball joint in stock. They shipped you what they had, and when the second ball joint comes in stock, they will ship it to you.

It's called a partial shipment. I believe you can choose to get a partial shipment or wait until everything is in stock when you place the order. Since your order was coming from two places, "partial shipment" may have been the default.

Check the tracking number on the first ball joint's package. If the number on the package is different from the one on the website, for sure it's a partial shipment.

 

[steve in ok]

I use them often and have not had any problems. So far.