Today I needed to pick up some rotors for one of our vehicles, and these were actually to replace some that we just put on the vehicle new last April, so they were still under the 2 year warranty, thank goodness. As I was driving through town though, I noticed there were 3 different parts stores, and this is a small town I was in. It seems to be like this for most small towns too, not just the one I went to. So it got me thinking, is there really a difference between parts stores as far as quality or prices, or do customers just stick with what they know because they are used to it? Aren't the parts all about the same anyway? The employees could definitely make one store better than another based on level of service, but when it comes to the parts themselves, does it really matter?
Probably doesn't matter a whit when it comes to the parts themselves; but I find that, out of the four parts stores where I am, most times I have better luck finding what I'm looking for at O'Reilly's. Not always, though. Sometimes it's NAPA to the rescue.
It mostly depends on what one is trying to acquire and the make of one's car. Some car parts stores are orientated towards its national car makers, few are designed to meet the needs for import or specialized cars, and most are mixed in what the retailers wish to sell. I go mostly to Napa Auto Parts and O'Reillys for my car parts, but sometimes I go to junkyards to get things too overpriced elsewhere.
I don't think the major chains in the US differ that much. Basically, their whole strategy in marketing probably relies on simply trying to outdo each other on pricing and special deals. However, if we are speaking of mom and pop stores, well, of course, some of them might be vastly inferior to the big ones. Oh, by the way, it might be possible that Wal-Mart would have less stuff than Auto Zone or O' Reilly, simply because the last two specialize in auto parts.
Parts store? Do you mean the store or hardware that sells the different parts or accessories of the car? In that case, that store doesn't have the complete supply of every car parts or whatever and also their prices are different for every store. That is why, it is recommended to canvas the various stores for a better price and for a better spare parts.
