Warning: Do not buy from Carsteering.com aka BuyAutoparts.com
07-25-2013, 04:27 PM
#1
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Warning: Do not buy from Carsteering.com aka BuyAutoparts.com
I want to give fellow Rennlisters a little bit of a warning, especially those considering buying a replacement steering rack. My view on things is very simple - I try to let every business clear their own error. We are all humans and mistakes will occur. What differentiates good apples from bad is how the mistakes are dealt with.
So... My 993 steering rack gave up the host in November of 2012. Well, it just leaked out all the liquid out on the street which was a pretty spectacular event in itself. Based on some research and reviews I've purchased a rebuilt rack from carsteering.com They have their own web page and sell on ebay as well. The cot was a very reasonable $500. Perhaps too reasonable. When I called them I've got a long and very beleavable story on the phone how they have a single guy rebuilding P-car racks, specifically, testing them, etc etc, etc. They had "exactly one in stock right now". Paid for the rack, paid $400 core charge, scheduled install at Exotech in NH, a very reputable shop 40 miles away with owner, Mark, wrenching on P-cars exclusively for 30 years.
The first signs of trouble were lack of any further communications. Several calls back yielded fake UPS tracking number. Oddly, the email came from BuyAutoparts.com Some more calls and I was "upgraded" to 2-day shipping a week after the initial rack was supposed to be here. Mind you, 993 is my daily car, so... Finally, the rack installed, core sent back on their included return label... more silence. Another 3-4 calls to get my core deposit back. $900 later including labor I have a new rack, not bad.
Except... the rack dies less than 6 months and 1,500 miles later. The inner bushings have play and there's leakage on one side. Arrrgh. I call back, have 3 or 4 conversations with BuyAutoparts. One of the conversations includes them calling Mark and bugging him for 20 minutes for a description. No, they do not understand what he's talking about but agree to ship the replacement rack under their 36 months warranty. Except they want $200 core deposit this time. I'm not happy but pay the deposit, pay Mark another $400 (very reasonable, IMHO) to install, send the old core back. In the meantime, I try to get to a supervisor to discuss the situation. Every single time I call and ask for a "live supervisor" I get dumped into voice mail. Leave several, not a single call back.
Now we jump to the end. They received the rack on 15th of July according to UPS. No acknowledgement, no email, nothing. I send email 3 days ago asking them what's going on - no reply. Call int today - they claim that broken rack is "OK" and is not really broken. Right. Ask to speak to a supervisor - get dumped into voice mail again. Being fed up I call credit card, dispute the $200 charge, get my money back. Call BuyAutoparts again, ask for a supervisor... get dumped into voice mail. So it's absolutely consistent.
The conclusion is very simple. It's up to you if you buy parts from them. Take above as a clear warning of their business practices and their ability to rebuild steering racks for 993s. Hope this saves someone aggravation and headaches.
So... My 993 steering rack gave up the host in November of 2012. Well, it just leaked out all the liquid out on the street which was a pretty spectacular event in itself. Based on some research and reviews I've purchased a rebuilt rack from carsteering.com They have their own web page and sell on ebay as well. The cot was a very reasonable $500. Perhaps too reasonable. When I called them I've got a long and very beleavable story on the phone how they have a single guy rebuilding P-car racks, specifically, testing them, etc etc, etc. They had "exactly one in stock right now". Paid for the rack, paid $400 core charge, scheduled install at Exotech in NH, a very reputable shop 40 miles away with owner, Mark, wrenching on P-cars exclusively for 30 years.
The first signs of trouble were lack of any further communications. Several calls back yielded fake UPS tracking number. Oddly, the email came from BuyAutoparts.com Some more calls and I was "upgraded" to 2-day shipping a week after the initial rack was supposed to be here. Mind you, 993 is my daily car, so... Finally, the rack installed, core sent back on their included return label... more silence. Another 3-4 calls to get my core deposit back. $900 later including labor I have a new rack, not bad.
Except... the rack dies less than 6 months and 1,500 miles later. The inner bushings have play and there's leakage on one side. Arrrgh. I call back, have 3 or 4 conversations with BuyAutoparts. One of the conversations includes them calling Mark and bugging him for 20 minutes for a description. No, they do not understand what he's talking about but agree to ship the replacement rack under their 36 months warranty. Except they want $200 core deposit this time. I'm not happy but pay the deposit, pay Mark another $400 (very reasonable, IMHO) to install, send the old core back. In the meantime, I try to get to a supervisor to discuss the situation. Every single time I call and ask for a "live supervisor" I get dumped into voice mail. Leave several, not a single call back.
Now we jump to the end. They received the rack on 15th of July according to UPS. No acknowledgement, no email, nothing. I send email 3 days ago asking them what's going on - no reply. Call int today - they claim that broken rack is "OK" and is not really broken. Right. Ask to speak to a supervisor - get dumped into voice mail again. Being fed up I call credit card, dispute the $200 charge, get my money back. Call BuyAutoparts again, ask for a supervisor... get dumped into voice mail. So it's absolutely consistent.
The conclusion is very simple. It's up to you if you buy parts from them. Take above as a clear warning of their business practices and their ability to rebuild steering racks for 993s. Hope this saves someone aggravation and headaches.
07-25-2013, 06:40 PM
#3
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I think, like most poor businesses, this one is set up to be OK as long as no customer service is needed. If, however, things go wrong, things go really, really wrong in a hurry. Which is what I've experienced.
07-25-2013, 06:41 PM
#4
Race Director
I just bought a remanufactured alternator two days ago from BuyAuto Parts (for my daughter's VW Beetle). They were extremely helpful, and the sales rep even called the day the part was due to my house, to make sure it arrived. They overnighted it to me, free shipping.
Their will-call warehouse for core returns is a short drive from me, so I brought the core back yesterday for the deposit return. Again, they were very pleasant.
So, unless I run into problems with the remanufactured alternator failing, I'm very happy with Buy Auto Parts (and no, I'm not a shill for them... never even heard of 'em until a few days ago when I went looking for an alternator for my daughter's car).
Their will-call warehouse for core returns is a short drive from me, so I brought the core back yesterday for the deposit return. Again, they were very pleasant.
So, unless I run into problems with the remanufactured alternator failing, I'm very happy with Buy Auto Parts (and no, I'm not a shill for them... never even heard of 'em until a few days ago when I went looking for an alternator for my daughter's car).
07-26-2013, 08:22 PM
#6
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Glad you guys had good experience with them. My saga continues. Still no calls back or emails from them. However, there are now one core refund from credit card and one from them. Which means I get to spend more time calling Chase to let them know and get one core charge refund refunded (eh?).
