Trevor FNG

Hi y'all. Thought to share the following story to save any other folks out there from waking to the nightmare I have this week. Well, to start, I got an '86 4runner with 240,000 miles, near perfect body in black, pretty solid frame with a 22re, 4-cyl 5-speed. I blew the head gasket back in August and have been trying my best to get her back on the road. I went to the Toyota Dealer here in Middletown, Connecticut to get the parts to replace the head gasket, got the timing gear too, thermastat, tensioner assembly, pump assembly, and even new head bolts, plus a bunch of other parts. Well, my mechanic friend and I went at removing the head and found the cylinders needed to be ported and the head planed, and also found two fuel injectors completely burnt out. At this point we figured skip the head gasket job and find a replacement engine, which I was able to locate with fair ease in the local classifieds for three hundred bucks.
So I bring the parts back to Toyota Middletown and they say they can't take them back! These parts were completely unopened and totalled 700 DOLLARS! They pointed to the small type on the invoice which states "No returns on electrical or special order parts." Of course it's in smaller print than the pricing, and I didn't get the invoice until AFTER the point of sale. No one told me as I was ordering them that they couldn't be returned!!! They claimed they have a sign on the wall!!! This just feels like a total sand bag operation. The parts were moved from one warehouse shelf to another and that makes them special order...!! Sorry for the language but I'm f'n pissed, 700 is no pocket change to a guy like me and I'm sure there are plenty of guys like me reading this forum! I enjoy the hell out of this ride and read this forum almost daily, so please guys, skip the Dealer for parts. You might think it's the best move to get the highest quality parts but they will sand bag you just like they did me.

What a NIGHTMARE, man!

I'm not sure what to do at this point. It'll take me another month to save the dough to complete the rebuild, but this is the only option left to me by the Dealer. What do you think? Should I try to sell these parts off online, complete the rebuild, picket the dealer in town til he gives me my gdm money?!

Ah, man, sure hope some of you guys read this and spread the word so it doesn't happen to anyone else! Sign on the wall, what a sand bag.

Best

Trevor FNG

fastkevman

Sorry guy but, I thought it was common knowledge that the "stealership" is not your friend!

I would never buy something there unless I have no other option and/or I am convinced that I need it.

Live and learn!

mt_goat

That's garbage! Dealers like that make me want to puke

My experence was much different with an on-phone order from Bob Bridge Toyota:
https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f39/...-toyota-74228/

Next time you need Toyota oem parts check them out.

Next time you need good Toyota rebuild parts check out EB:
http://www.engnbldr.com/

waskillywabbit

iTrader: (-1)

I buy parts weekly from my Toyota dealer, Tuscaloosa Toyota, and have never had a problem returning anything. They are excellent!

In fact I go there before the local auto parts place as they can usually get me as good a price on an OEM replacement as an after market at the local place.

It is who you know and doing your homework.

Sorry for your bad experience, but to assume ALL dealerships are crooks is just ignorant.

fastkevman

I can "ignorantly" speak from experience here in PA.

I personally know the Parts Manager at Krause Toyota, I have purchased two vehicles from Bennett Toyota, another vehicle from Dick Milham Toyota, I know a mechanic that has worked for years at Muller Toyota, and I have purchased many hundreds of dollars worth of parts from all of the above and Independence Toyota and Peruzzi Toyota.

Thats six dealerships, two with personal hook-ups, and two more where I have purchased vehicles.

I get NO good deals at any of them, if I can buy a similar quality part elsewhere I do, even my hook-ups buy parts for their Toyotas elsewhere when they can.

If you get that great of service and deals at your local dealership, where ever that may be, that is awesome for you!

Obviously, we are all not that lucky, and for me to assume I would get ripped off elsewhere also is not ignorance as far as I am concerned, its learning from my past and present experiences.

I have had some limited good dealership experiences, it was dealers selling stuff on eBay, if I remember one of them was in Texas near Houston, I would have to check my records to be exact, but this has certainly not been the "norm" for me or my friends!

waskillywabbit

iTrader: (-1)

This IS an ignorant statement.

6 dealerships out of 1,300 Toyota and Lexus dealerships across the country, or much less than 1% of the total in the USA, does not even come close to supporting an assumption that all dealerships will rip you off. Relative to your geographical area, as you later clarified, your statements are validated by your experience. Left as a broad sweeping generality they are ignorant.

tampabayota

Id Take The Parts And Rebuild The Motor Anyway That Way You Have A New Reliable Motor Just My 2 Cents

CJM

Either make a BIG deal about it and see if they take them back or use the parts anyways..

BMC

Thank u, i totally agree with u. I work at a toyota dealership In the parts department and i dont have any problem giving people a good deal on parts to reinsure that they will be back to see me again the next time they need parts. Now, if people come in acting like an a hole right off the bat then they are going to get the a hole price from me. Their is a suggestive retail price on all the parts obviously, but their is a big gap between the lowest price i can sale something and retail, meaning we pretty much decide your price. As long as customers come in with a good attitude and respect I will give the same and a very good deal on your parts. Now i know im only speaking for myself here but i can say a lot of people go by this.

Now as far as not returning all that stuff, thats a bummer. We are suppose to follow the no return policy but their is some situations where u HAVE to take care of the customer. Furthermore the employee should have made it very clear to u it was non refundable before u purchased it. If somene came to me in your situation i would charge them a small restocking fee and give the refund.

Honestly if i was u i would go in there and pretty much demand a refund. I wouldnt be a totall a hole about it but they should be able to work something out. Maybe even tell them u will pay a small restocking fee. They might respect that and then be more willing to work with u. Good luck.

SEAIRESCUE

I have purchased Toyota trucks and 4runners because I like what they offer in comparison to other manufacturers. However, they are generally arrogant with a take it or leave attitude. I will say that some dealers are better at customer service than others. As their quality slips and the middle class slips down towards the lower class (Gee, thanks Clinton's and Bush's) I see more people buying the better value cars (Hundai, etc) or Honda for the long hall. That said, I would go see the parts manager and not the flunkie at the sales window. Be nice and if he will not take them back, perhaps you can exchange them for a clutch assembly or some other part you will need with the motor replacement. You can try the "well I know I'll be needing other parts in the future" which I will remember if you'll just take these back.

Just my $0.02

Shoua

I'm sorry to hear about your bad experience.

I also work at the Toyota dealership, in the service department. Because of that I deal with the parts department all the time. Like Wabbit said, not all dealerships are there to screw you over. My dealership is pretty good about taking parts back, even special ordered parts (most of the time). There are good people out there, just some places are worse than others. But that goes for any place you spend money at.

Guardian_Saint

Yeah dealership is costly, here is my order parts from them, Knock Sensor $140, KS wire $11, Thermostat and O-ring $25, 2 Intake Manifold Gasket $83, and fuel injector o-ring $3.00 each and gromets $3.00 each $30+ total, and other stuff that seem to look cheap but forgot what part that I was ordering. That total nearly $500.00. Funny thing is that I only got $200.00 which will cover the KS and the wire and tought all those ditto will come cheap but I was wrong lolz, the total is nearly $500.00... So embarassing that I have to take some parts out... I say I don't have enough money, so they take it back, ended up only the KS and the wire that I mostly needed and the Fuel injector 0-ring and gromets.

So next time go buy it from eBay.com they're the best price over the dealer price, Intake Manifold Gasket is about $10 buck on ebay.com and completely work as the dealership Intake Manifold Gasket, maybe work better too. This maybe your last and most resourse for engine parts, etc. and completely work as the dealer parts, the only thing you will need from them are bolt's and sensor stuff. Or buy it from private party. If you go for alternator or starter and water pump, go w/ kragen or autozone which give you the lifetime warranty, unlike toyota dealership. I bought my W/P at kragen and they said that if it fail at any time I can just give my phone # to them and they will be very happy to get me another new W/P.

paxil4x4

By no means is this a personal attack, but having worked a parts counter in an aftermarket shop long ago you would be surprised how many people special order parts and return them and or cancel the order then they come in. In the end the shop eats those parts by sitting on them until someone wonders in looking for the exact same stuff. It cost money to sit on canceled parts orders and why should they eat those parts when it was your mistake by not asking what the return policy was. Not every place is like Wal*Mart or Costco

DeathCougar

iTrader: (23)

Every place is the same. NO RETURNS on special orders!

Why should the dealership have to eat the cost, just because you changed your mind? From the standpoint of a business, I would tell you to go pound sand if you tried to return special order parts. They did not make the decision to purchase your parts, they did not diagnose the problems, etc.

The reason many places DO take special orders back, is beause they want to retain your business. Not all places are like that though. And on the same note, its not up to them to READ you the fine print. Its 2007 EVERYONE has fine print, and the only reason all that fine print is there is because so many people have abused the system and the privilage. The business has to protect itself, so it has to put all the legal mumbo jumbo in there.

Fastkevman: Just because YOU do not get a "good deal" at a dealership, does not make them all a bad place to go. Go ahead and go to ebay and get that aftermarket junk, and see how well it performs. There is a REASON that junk is so cheap.

Gaurdian: YOu are what we in the business call a "price impact" customer. You do not care about quality. Sure they give you a lifetime warranty with your cheap rebuilt or new low quality aftermarket stuff. But how much is your time worth? Me, i would rather change the water pump ONCE when I do the timing belt, and not have to worry about it ever again. If you really want to change your water pump every 30k miles, go right ahead. I'll pay the few extra dollars not to have to tear the front of the engine apart again.

Trevor: Just put the new parts on your new engine, take your lumps, and know that your engine is now chock full of NEW oem parts that will go another 200k miles

Sorry bout the rant all, but it really boils my blood when people badmouth the dealership, and try to compare OEM parts to Aftermarket junk. Its just not the same.

.

CJM

If its a real special order they have to order it in, if it isnt then they say so and in a day you got it.

Either way, you either make a big deal they take it back or install them into your truck if they refuse to..

TORTIS

iTrader: (1)

X2 with wabbit. my dealership will bring stuff in like needle bearings for my t-case, just in case i needed them during my t-case rebuild, not a stock item for them, or cheap for that matter. they also told me who to buy from if i need a part real quick and it is not in stock. didn't know they did this, but it helped me out.

now the honda dealership here. you pay up front before it is ordered, and it is yours. no returns on nothing special ordered.

waskillywabbit

iTrader: (-1)

jcfb

I love my local dealership as well. Really cool parts department. I buy all my oil filters there, I had the steering recall done there, and I just love going there. I will definitely recommend them! Dub Richardson Toyota in Oklahoma City... Can't miss it