Young guys at the auto parts store

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Kmrumedy

Kmrumedy

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Went into Canadian Tire auto parts department to buy a gasket for a Holley carburetor. 20ish kid at the the counter.

Me: I need a gasket for a Holley carburetor.
Kid: (Silence...deer in head lights stare....)
Me: ok...maybe a gasket kit?
Kid: Let me get my Manager

Manager comes over....looks even younger than the kid that is trying to help me

Me: Hi....I need a gasket for a Holley carburetor.
Manager Kid: Sir....this is the auto parts department! We only sell parts that go on cars here.

Me: ( Jaw drops ) Okey Dokey....can I talk to someone old enough to grow pubic hair please....
 
I went to Auto zone and asked for 2 strips of green plastigauge and a brass 3/8 compression union.
First the deer in the headlights look, and then the answer "we don't carry stuff like that, you need to go to a plumbing store".
The compression union I found out on the shelves in about 1 min, and I asked an older guy and he came up with the plastigauge from the back somewhere.

15 dollars an hour my ***. :D (I know, but they would be next probably.)
I told my youngest Son who is a Manager for Sonic, that if it was my store and I got forced to pay 15 an hour I'd fire 3/4 of the staff starting with the girl texting at work as well as the one that has to be told what to do every damn day and let the people who actually do work for their pay get all the hours they wanted.

These days it seems a lot of the younger people think getting hired is all they really have to do to get a paycheck.
 
...and then after they get hired, just try and fire them without getting sued or having some human rights group show up.
 
Your mistake was going to Canadian Tire. I wouldn't trust those monkeys to rotate the tires on my car let alone source a part! Canadian Tire is good for buying coolant, oil and car wash soap when it's on sale and dropping off used oil/coolant. Go to NAPA or the equivalent in Quebec.
 
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Officially enforced idiocracy.
I needed one strut rod bushing for a car, and none in stock for my vehicle.
I convinced the mgr to let me look on the shelves. Fer Pete's sake, it's a little black rubber donut about so big...., I don't care what it's supposed to be FOR!
Found one in about 5 min.
 
Kmrumedy said:
Went into Canadian Tire auto parts department to buy a gasket for a Holley carburetor. 20ish kid at the the counter.

Me: I need a gasket for a Holley carburetor.
Kid: (Silence...deer in head lights stare....)
Me: ok...maybe a gasket kit?
Kid: Let me get my Manager

Manager comes over....looks even younger than the kid that is trying to help me

Me: Hi....I need a gasket for a Holley carburetor.
Manager Kid: Sir....this is the auto parts department! We only sell parts that go on cars here.

Me: ( Jaw drops ) Okey Dokey....can I talk to someone old enough to grow pubic hair please....
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Sorry for the inconvenience, but I find that ^^ very hilarious!

I know what you mean, we have a Carquest in the next town over that I cannot call or go in anymore. They have filled the store with young folks that haven't a clue about finding a part.

And I mean the simplest of parts!
 
Maybe it would be of some use if new employees received some form of training by the store owner. Perhaps next time that we encounter a less knowledgeable person behind the counter we could extend some our expertise and help educate them and pass on some of our experience. Just a suggestion.
 
Opm68 said:
Maybe it would be of some use if new employees received some form of training by the store owner. Perhaps next time that we encounter a less knowledgeable person behind the counter we could extend some our expertise and help educate them and pass on some of our experience. Just a suggestion.
Click to expand...

Well, that sounds all hunky dory, but the manager at the Carquest I speak of can't find the parts either.

I have even coaxed them along to no avail.
 
Well, I guess I'm blessed. The parts stores I mainly use do pretty good. They don't hit it all the time, but they try to understand what your doing and try to help.... Or at least get ya the right parts. Once in a while, a new employee will give me a good chuckle.... :D
 
318willrun said:
Well, I guess I'm blessed. The parts stores I mainly use do pretty good. They don't hit it all the time, but they try to understand what your doing and try to help.... Or at least get ya the right parts. Once in a while, a new employee will give me a good chuckle.... :D
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Yeah, my local NAPA is staffed with pretty good parts guys and gals. Some of them were around when the cars we work on were new. It really helps.

They also aren't afraid to get a book off the shelf and look, instead of relying on what the computer says.
 
H22A4 said:
Your mistake was going to Canadian Tire. I wouldn't trust those monkeys to rotate the tires on my car let alone source a part! Canadian Tire is good for buying coolant, oil and car wash soap when it's on sale and dropping off used oil/coolant. Go to NAPA or the equivalent in Quebec.
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Agreed. Wasn't planning on going to Crappy Tire but my buddy told me he bought gaskets there for his Holley. All the real auto parts stores close on Saturday at 12pm so I was stuck.
 
Bad Sport said:
Yeah, my local NAPA is staffed with pretty good parts guys and gals. Some of them were around when the cars we work on were new. It really helps.

They also aren't afraid to get a book off the shelf and look, instead of relying on what the computer says.
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Same with the Napa here.
 
Opm68 said:
Maybe it would be of some use if new employees received some form of training by the store owner. Perhaps next time that we encounter a less knowledgeable person behind the counter we could extend some our expertise and help educate them and pass on some of our experience. Just a suggestion.
Click to expand...

yeah, there ya go
ill pay for my parts AND educate him

that is about as great an idea as when my nephew asked me if I wanted to pay him to cut my lawn
I asked him how he was fixing to do that?
well, his idea was to borrow MY lawnmower, use MY gas, and have ME pay him for the privilege

needless to say, I cut my own lawn
 
I'm pretty Lucky with the O'reilley store here in Surprise as long as I get one of the 2 Ladies who work there.They are both sharp as a tack unlike the young men who "work" there.
 
Going into any modern auto parts store and asking about carburetors is like going to the computer store and asking for parts for your TRS 80....
When I worked the parts counter at my friends motorcycle shop the odd time to help him out we would have a good laugh at the end of the day talking about some of the customers.
Example:

Customer " I need a carb kit for a CB 750"

Me " what year is your CB 750? "

Customer " it's blue"
 
why would you go into a Canadian Tire without a part# or calling first?

That was a bad gamble!
 
this is why I order almost everything online anymore.

This way I see what I am getting and I don't have to deal with people. No parts counter bozos talking to me like I don't know anything when its THEM who don't know their way around a car.
 
I went into the local Napa
I was asks who made a Barracuda, they weren't familiar with that name and couldn't find it in the book. I told him to look for Valiant and the Barracuda is listed as a sub model. He wasn't sure what a Valiant was either
 
Bein' ignorant works both ways, ya know.

Years ago, guy asks for a 3/8" foot valve. In my brain, these are that thing on the bottom of a well pump suction pipe. I told him "I doubt we have one that small."

All we had was a Grainger 3/4" I brought that out.

"That's not what I want, I want an AIR BRAKE foot valve." Well, guess what? They aren't "foot valves" they are a "treadle valve."

=============================

Guy comes in lays down an electric drill, says he needs a new chuck. I told him "I'll probably have to remove that one to see what thread it is."

"OK"

I go to the back, pull the chuck off, stop by the "chuck" shelve on the way back and picked up a couple of choices. "I didn't want the WHOLE THING I just wanted the CHUCK" (points and the KEY)

I said, "That's a KEY, the CHUCK is the thing on the drill."

"Well I call it a CHUCK"

I told him as long as he calls it a chuck, then the CHUCK is what he will get!!
 
Tadams said:
I went into the local Napa
I was asks who made a Barracuda, they weren't familiar with that name and couldn't find it in the book. I told him to look for Valiant and the Barracuda is listed as a sub model. He wasn't sure what a Valiant was either
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I don't know how you can condemn a younger person for this. There are PLENTY of car models made in the last 20 years that I'm not aware of, especially when someone just says the model and not the brand
 
Back in Time said:
I'm pretty Lucky with the O'reilley store here in Surprise as long as I get one of the 2 Ladies who work there.They are both sharp as a tack unlike the young men who "work" there.
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That's interesting because it's the same deal here. The manager here is a young woman, and I'd just as soon deal with her or one of the other two young ladies there. They don't always know, but they LISTEN and try
 
TrailBeast said:
Same with the Napa here.
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My big BIG issue with NAPA (and not all their fault) is the chineseoaization of parts. But also, there are I think 3 small stores in the local area. They'd be better off if there was just one big one, and actually STOCK some parts. Spokamentro has the big distribution center, but I sure can't drive in there all the time.
 
I have for the last 20 years tried to get a job in an auto parts store and no one will call back [you must be [ASE certified] to be hired ha ha ha i wouln't let these kids work on a hand truck much less a vehicle it's just amazing !!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
I had a young man at an auto parts store ask me what a "Plymouth" was? In all fairness, if Plymouth stopped making cars when he (and many his age) was 7 years old, he might not be aware.
 
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