Caution regarding Parts Werk of Chicago

[Guest]

Unfortunate I have to do this. Part Werks of Chicago placed an item on evilbay. The winning bid was $X amount. On their listing is an additional $0.60 delivery confirmation fee and a link to calculate your shipping. Total of $Y. Paid by paypal. Checked the paypal charge later to find the charge was greater than $Y. Contacted Partwerks an spoke with "John who is incharge of shipping." Discussed the varience and agreed to credit me the difference. 10 days later, no action. Contacted "Mike who is in charge" and and agian confirmed the difference. Gave me the feeling that due to the small amount of difference it was rude of me to bring this up. Still no resolution.
Bottom line: Watch your charges and invoice from Part Werks of Chicago.

[wolfgang]

I sometimes think these places make as much on shipping and "handling" as they do on the parts! If I went into my local FLAPS and they charged me handling - I walk out. Many mail order places have no store front with walkin customers to contend with -- handling is what they do and they shouldn't charge extra for it. Don't know how many times I've paid $4 on ebay for shipping and it actually costs 90 cents!

[john9141]

I to had problems with part werks. I received an item from them damaged and used (it was to be a new item). They would not make good on the item at all and kept giving me the run around. Besides all that it took 3 months for them to mail it to me after the end of the ebay auction.

STAY AWAY FROM THEM!!!!!!!!

[MNAirHead]

Howdy.

We own a distribution company... unfortunately it does cost a ton to get an item off the shelf and in the hands of freight. We charge $5/order for handling -- I can prove it costs at least $10

-Boxes aren't cheap
-Tape isn't free
-Packing Padding isn't donated
-Utility bill still comes
-Taxman still knocks
-And the goofy guy packing it wants to get paid

Comparing retail to distribution isn't a comparison -- too many factors.

Most people price shop instead of overall cost shop -- this is John C's argument for Aircooled.net

-====Thanks for the tip====-
We get tons of email at the website on this joint -- unfortunately they don't know how quick word travels.

T.

[Jadewombat]

Unfortunate I have to do this. Part Werks of Chicago placed an item on evilbay. The winning bid was $X amount. On their listing is an additional $0.60 delivery confirmation fee and a link to calculate your shipping. Total of $Y. Paid by paypal. Checked the paypal charge later to find the charge was greater than $Y. Contacted Partwerks an spoke with "John who is incharge of shipping." Discussed the varience and agreed to credit me the difference. 10 days later, no action. Contacted "Mike who is in charge" and and agian confirmed the difference. Gave me the feeling that due to the small amount of difference it was rude of me to bring this up. Still no resolution.
Bottom line: Watch your charges and invoice from Part Werks of Chicago.

Don't buy anything from these guys. I went there about six years ago, it's a chop shop out near Peoria, Ill. It was a real shady business, in an old warehouse cutting up cars, boxing up the 'products' at his freakin' house, outside in the rain. All of the parts he wanted ridiculous amounts of money for. He told me $1000 for a set of used, rusty 944T brakes...yeah right, the only thing usable would be the calipers and the hubs. Everything else would need to be new. I hate the idea of someone cutting up a Porsche just to make a few bucks.

[Boneloader]

I bought a couple of things from them and was a little worried that I wouldn't get my parts--it took about a month for them to come in. But once they arrived I was happy with the quality, etc.

~Troy

[Jadewombat]

I'm reviving this old topic for some people who may not have heard the bad stories about this place. I finally got around to getting some space for a couple of photos when I went to this chopshop a few years ago.

[Pat Gratton]

Don't buy anything from these guys. I went there about six years ago, it's a chop shop out near Peoria, Ill. It was a real shady business, in an old warehouse cutting up cars, boxing up the 'products' at his freakin' house, outside in the rain. All of the parts he wanted ridiculous amounts of money for. He told me $1000 for a set of used, rusty 944T brakes...yeah right, the only thing usable would be the calipers and the hubs. Everything else would need to be new. I hate the idea of someone cutting up a Porsche just to make a few bucks.

Just out of curiosity, where exactly near Peoria are you talking about?
I live slightly north of Peoria and have never heard of this place outside of this site and the 914club board.

[Jadewombat]

I don't remember exactly where it was, I heard about it in the back of Excellence magazine. This was a few years ago, but I doubt the guy picked up and moved shop though. At the time, I called and asked him directions(I thought it was a junkyard or shop), he gave me directions to Peoria then asked to call him again when I got to such and such exit. 'That's weird' I thought. I got down there and I called and he gave me directions to his house. It was in a residential neighborhood and he had crap everywhere, cars being cut up in his driveway, a garage piled high with boxes and stuff strategically placed so they could just get the door shut. 'I'll take you over to the warehouse' he told me. I followed him and one of his cronies in an old Chevy van to this place. I was laughing out loud to myself as I followed these guys, mind you he has a business in dealing with some of the finest, most expensive engineered cars in the world and this dude was driving an old Chevy van missing some of the windows, in the rain! If this dude had his act together I'm sure he could of been driving a Benz. Everything I saw of what they did was half-assed and just out to make a quick buck(or fifty cents if they thought they could get it). The old warehouse, as you can see by the pics, was equally shoddy. This place was huge on the inside, absolutely huge, and they had a 912 just barely inside the door just enough so they could get it closed(he had trouble getting the door open and you had to squeeze past it). I wasn't impressed with anything he had and all of it was way, way overpriced. I didn't buy anything.

Just out of curiosity, where exactly near Peoria are you talking about?
I live slightly north of Peoria and have never heard of this place outside of this site and the 914club board.[/quote]

[botoo]

-Boxes aren't cheap
-Tape isn't free
-Packing Padding isn't donated
-Utility bill still comes
-Taxman still knocks
-And the goofy guy packing it wants to get paid

Comparing retail to distribution isn't a comparison -- too many factors.

I am a businessman and I must take issue with some of your shipping costs.
- Utility Bills and Taxes are NOT shipping costs.
- Retailers have checkout personal, cash registers, showroom costs, displays and packaging, among other things which more than offset mailorder costs.

Don't get me wrong, all businesses must make money, but I think it should be on the merchandise, not shipping. I look at that item carefully when I buy.

[schosh]

I've seen this issue from several different angles
I once worked at a mail order call center for a well known outdoor clothing company.We were required to "pitch" an additional fee for insurance on packages which the carrier always insured for "free"! Pure profit!
As a small business man I could never pass on the actual cost of shipping to my customers and stay competitve ,largely cause big business can negotiate much better deals with carriers based on volume. I ended up raising my product prices and then offering walk-ins a discount.
The internet has created a scenario were s&h costs are very negotiable even for small business. If you can ship for less you can sell for less , giving yourself a competitve andvantage.
Of course Partwerks appear so unprofessional I doubt that they could understand the value in this.
An aside.. FedEx, for whom I work, has partnered with at least one FLAPS to ship direct from a warehouse located within a mile of the FedEx Hub here in Memphis. An order placed via the web before 11pm cst time can be on an outbound flight in minutes and delivered (for a premium cost) to most of the US within 12 hours. Too bad they don't carry many ACVW parts!