Auto repair shop parts markup

Did he buy from Autozone? There's a huge variation in price and quality depending on who you buy parts from, and I'm under the impression that Autozone isn't the best place to go for high quality.

(Back in the 1980's I maintained my own car. If I wanted a part to last forever, I got it from the Toyota dealer. If I didn't mind a part breaking after a year or two, I paid half as much at NAPA. If I wanted to waste my time installing a piece of s**t, I bought it for 2/3 the NAPA price at a discount auto parts store.)

Just checked the NAPA prices: The drums are $42.49 each vs $35 at Autozone, and the better of two choices of shoes are $29.99 vs $26 (for both wheels). So there's $19 accounted for out of about $95. Still seems excessive.

That does seem excessive. Unless they got genny-u-wine OEM parts.

I doubt they're OEM parts. Nearest dealer is over 10 miles away. Autozone is across the street, Napa is about a mile down the road (actually, there are two of them, each about a mile (in opposite directions).

What would yo expect the typical markup to be?

Less than 100%!!!

Didn't the various parts stores deliver when you were in the mechanics business? I know that around here the repair guys call in their orders, and if they don't get it that day they get it the next -- the local NAPA store has a kid who does nothing but drive around all day in a delivery truck taking orders to shops.

Not sure about the OEM guys, but for sure the other parts places have drive rs. One of them has a fleet of the oldest beatest cars you ever wanted to s ee. It's comical when they have them all jammed into their parking lot - th ey put them so close together that the drivers literally have to crawl thro ugh the windows to get out. Then they just throw a tarp over the whole mess to keep the rain out.

What is new, is that 30 years ago you didn't have half a dozen discount chains buying at such volume as to be able to drive retail pricing down. Instead you had varying levels of distribution each adding their markup to the price so the corner autoparts store own by Bill or George who lived on the next block over from you was selling at a higher relative price than Autozone, Pep Boys, or O'Reilly of today.

Back in the 70's I worked for an auto parts warehouse. We'd buy parts from the various manufacturers, both OEM & others, for $X. We sold them to the retailers for $2X. They used a list of price of $4X, but often gave a discount of 15% so the end customer felt they were getting a good deal even though they were paying 340% of the manufacturers price. Art

Bet you were charged list price. Not uncommon these days.

I usually charge @ cost + 50% of cost vs. list pricing.

So if my cost on a part is $20.00 and it shows a $45.00 list the part cost will be $32.50

I went through the oem thing with my old Jeep CJ-5 with the 304 V8. I bought it new in 1974, youngest sister was driving when we endo'd down the embankment on 90A in Sanderson, Texas. Endo'd about three times, then ended up sideways and rolled to the bottom, about 100 yds or so. They didn't total it, got it back a couple months later. Six months later, the water pump went out. Changed it, went out again six months later. Then I went to the Jeep dealer up in Houston and got an oem water pump. Shaft was bigger, bearings were way bigger, cast housing had all sorts of buttresses, etc. Same bolt pattern. Jeep had beefed that thing up to deal with the ox-cart ride and abuse. Never changed it again.

Pete Keillor

40-60% is what my mechanic friend who used to have his own business marked parts up, and I've seen higher. Remember, part of that goes to pay his time to source the part and get it to the shop, but some of it goes into the "bank" to cover unpaid labor time if he has to replace the part under warranty. Yes, the auto parts store will give him a new part if it fails under warranty, but they won't pay for his time to R&R it.

I doubt they're OEM parts. Nearest dealer is over 10 miles away. Autozone is across the street, Napa is about a mile down the road (actually, there are two of them, each about a mile (in opposite directions).

What would yo expect the typical markup to be?

Mabee he didn't buy from Autozone? Mabee it was better quality? 30% is pretty standard in many areas, but on the high side in others.

When I was at the dealership we delivered a lot of parts to other garages. Not on as regular basis as the jobbers - but we did have a "parts truck"

across the street, Napa is about a mile down the road (actually, there are two of them,

each about a mile (in opposite directions).

Aimed at OP rather than Tim...

Are you NOT in a state that has estimate laws? That if an estimated repair is going to go over x % of a quoted estimate, that the owner has to sign off? Or something to keep them from taking you hostage by fixing the car, and then making you pay the bill? Or don't you talk about how much the repairs will be in advance? And whether the parts will be high quality, or cheap Chinese crap?

Steve

I have a friend who has had his own auto repair business for 34 years now. He will not install anything but factory parts on his repairs, other than iol filters, batteries and the like. Brake parts, engine parts, suspension parts, dealer only. Markup for him is 15 percent above his cost. Maybe that's why he is still in business after so long.

Small shops get a greater mark-up, their overhead is higher and they usually justify it by doing extremely good work for their loyal clients. You might try saying: "Oh, the new parts are in the back seat." But you'll pay a bit more somewhere else on the bill.

If you like their work, pay the piper.