Teddy

Napa is one of the auto parts stores that has their own branded brake pads. I have no idea who makes them, is it a reputable manufacturer? From what I see here, they have Napa Proformer, Napa Premium, Napa Ultra Premium, and Adaptive one. Good, Better, Best scenario. I guess the Napa proformer is the entry level brake pad and the Napa Ultra Premium is the best. If you have used Napa's brake pads before, please comment with your feedback. I found this info on their brakes page: http://www.napabrakes.com/magnoliaPublic/home/products/brake-pads.html Adaptive One®(Specialty) Revolutionary braking system with two unique (inner and outer) ceramic formulations. Adapts to all driving styles and vehicles for consistent pedal feel and safe, smooth stopping under all conditions. No Noise Cleaner Wheels Long Life Limited Lifetime warranty NAPA Ultra Premium ™(Best) OE performance without dealership prices Exact OE noise dampening characteristics Noise-free guarantee Industry-leading safety and quality testing Specialty materials for towing, fleet and other demanding applications Limited Lifetime warranty NAPA Premium™(Better) Chosen by more professional installers Friction formulas designed for better stopping performance Exclusive Silent Guard™ shims for quiet braking stop after stop Full vehicle application coverage Two (2) year warranty NAPA Proformer™(Good) Quality tested formulas for safe and reliable operation One (1) year warranty

New article out today: https://www.memphisdailynews.com/news/2017/jul/20/analysis-autozones-engine-begins-to-stall/ AutoZone’s stock price is pointed in the opposite direction it’s been accustomed to for years now. Shares of the Memphis-based auto parts retailer are down more than 30 percent since the end of January. Needless to say, that’s an unusual place for the company, which continues to open new stores at a steady clip. What’s more, negative headlines have begun to circle the once high-flying auto parts giant, which until the first quarter had enjoyed double-digit earnings per share growth every quarter, uninterrupted, for a little more than 10 years. It’s not just AutoZone, though. Its closest competitors are reporting similar challenges at the moment, which may make it even harder for AutoZone to shake its current slump. The Memphis company is currently listed at Rank #5 by Zacks Equity Research, which is the firm’s “strong sell” recommendation for stocks. Dan Wewer, an analyst who covers AutoZone and other auto parts retailers for Raymond James, wrote in a research note a few days ago that he’s lowering his revenue and earnings per share outlook for the entire auto parts sector. As The Street put it in a headline just a few days ago, “AutoZone is Running Out of Gas as Auto Parts Retailers Misfire.” During the company’s most recent earnings presentation to analysts, AutoZone chairman, president and CEO Bill Rhodes seemed to make the case that the heady days of strong growth are behind the company – for now. “Until our second quarter, we had consistently delivered exceptional performance marked by 41 consecutive quarters of double-digit earnings per share growth,” he said. “However, there are certain factors present today that have made it more difficult to achieve similar earnings per share growth.” Among them is that AutoZone isn’t exactly hunkering down to ride things out. The company has chosen to accelerate its investment back into the business, which Rhodes said includes investing at an increased rate in store inventory and capital expenditures, the latter reflected in two new domestic distribution centers under construction. The company also opened a second distribution center in Mexico in the fall, and it is increasing the frequency of deliveries to its stores from once to several times a week. In truth, a perfect storm of outside factors are also revving up to make this year a nettlesome one for a company long used to steady, predictable growth. First is the expansion of competition, over everything from price to parts availability, with auto stores presumably working to assemble similar assortments of products. AutoZone, Advanced Auto Parts and O’Reilly Auto Parts all boast more than 5,000 stores each in the U.S. Pep Boys has 942 across the U.S. and Puerto Rico. With more than 15,000 stores between them across the U.S., that might make it hard to grow same-store sales, a key retail industry metric, to say the least. In May, AutoZone reported earnings of $11.44 per share, 51 cents below Wall Street estimates. Domestic same-store sales were down almost 1 percent. “The ongoing weakness in same-store sales means AutoZone and O’Reilly will have less operating leverage, because all those stores are carrying a lot of fixed costs,” The Street noted. All this said, one thing that hasn’t changed is AutoZone’s philosophy, that its leadership repeats often during presentations: It is not focused on the day-to-day but setting a course for the long term. “Our management team has been in this business for a long time, and over time we’ve been through many different cycles,” Rhodes said. “Sometimes we had tailwinds and we benefited from those, and other times we had headwinds and we have fought against them. Ultimately, we will continue to manage this business for the long term to provide great service for our customers and great opportunities for AutoZone’s owners, ultimately delivering strong shareholder value.”

Interesting article posted in Forbes today about Amazon and eBay getting more into the automotive space. https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarwantsingh/2017/07/18/amazon-ebay-step-up-their-game-plan-for-automotive/ From the article: "For Amazon, its parts and accessories business has been one of its fastest growing business units as it continues to attract more direct business from suppliers and car companies." "Lately, the pace of disruption from Amazon and eBay has expanded beyond car parts sales to new fields within the auto industry’s ecosystem. Amazon recently piloted online car sales with European units of Fiat, Opel and Hyundai, and there are clear signs according to recent news reports that the company will expand its digital car business – most likely in the UK market for starters." "eBay, an early pioneer but clearly now seems threatened, is also upping its game. The San Jose, California-based company is boosting its vehicle marketplace through collaborations with vehicle comparison website TrueCar."

For those that aren't aware, Dorman makes auto parts that are prone to failure. That means that if it is a common OE replaced part, they may pick it up, manufacturer it, and sell it. Most auto parts stores carry or can get Dorman products. So besides automotive hardware, nuts, bolts, and drain plugs, check them power steering coolers, window motors, air suspension parts, air conditioning parts, transmission control modules, etc. http://www.dormanproducts.com Here is their July new product release flyer http://static.dormanproducts.com/Document/DOR76629ST.pdf Dorman Service Dealer Guide 2017 http://www.dormanproducts.com/flipbook/sdg/Dorman_SDG/versions/2017v1-dorman.pdf Dorman Service Dealer Guides Below are current and previous versions of the Service Dealer Guides for download 2017 Volume 1 2016 Volume 2 2016 Volume 1 2015 Volume 2 2015 Volume 1

Wagner is holding a contest through August 25th... #ThingsWorthBrakingFor When you’re on the road, some things are just too good to pass by. Maybe it’s your favorite barbecue joint, a parade, or some live music—we all have our own #ThingsWorthBrakingFor. Now is your chance to submit your photo to the #ThingsWorthBrakingFor contest by Wagner®. Ten Honorable Mention winners will receive a one-year paid subscription to an online music streaming service, and one Grand Prize Winner and guest will receive a weekend getaway package for winner and guest to any of the following cities: Austin • Boston • Charleston • Chicago • Denver . Nashville • New Orleans • San Diego • Seattle Check out the entries below for inspiration. Enter now through August 25, 2017. Contest entry form: http://www.wagnerbrake.com/games/things-worth-braking-for-contest.html ENTER NOW

I went with #5...lol.

I just placed my first order online at rockauto, was able to get cheap accuvision beam blades for under $2 each, so I ordered 4 sets for my car. Even with the shipping the blades net were under around $2.16 each since I bought 8 of each for two cars I have that take the same size. Not too shabby.

Interesting article, text below: http://www.thedrive.com/the-hammer/12258/why-the-auto-parts-retailers-will-slowly-go-extinct For those of you who have followed Tesla's struggle to sell cars over the last several years, this big cartel version of gaming the system hasn't changed all that much. Thankfully, Southwest developed one hell of an edge. The 1970s fun, cheeky, and unapologetic advertising helped Southwest weather the storms of the marketplace, but there was far more to Southwest's success than just smiles, scantily clad stewardesses, and sassiness. Southwest introduced a long list of efficiencies that forever changed the competitive landscape of the airline industry. Southwest became so efficient, that the once protected competitors were forced to change and innovate, or die. Who won? Pretty much everyone except the Braniffs, Pan Ams and TWAs of that time. AIRLINES FOR AMERICA Editor's Note: Today's average fare remains below the $350 level. AIRLINES FOR AMERICA It doesn't take decades for the small to become big anymore. Let me offer a personal example that led to a recent $20,000 boost to my own bottom line. Seven years ago Autozone, Advance Auto Parts and O'Reillys were my top three suppliers of auto parts for my auto dealership along with an auto auction that I operated near downtown Atlanta. I was on the commercial side. So I received some relief over the inflated markups of a walk-in retail customer like you, But my checkbook still got beat up an awful lot due to the lack of competition in the industry. STEVEN LANG All the brick and mortar companies went to great lengths to keep parts prices artificially high. Back then these three companies would furnish different warranties, different parts numbers, and even different name brands from the same suppliers to wiggle their way out of any price matching request. You wanted an a/c compressor or an alternator for less? Good luck! Google shopping wasn't ready for prime time, and Amazon Prime didn't provide two-day delivery. Even with a commercial discount, I couldn't come close to matching today's online retail prices. So I paid through the nose until around 2014. Right around then, Amazon Prime became a serious competitor to those who were willing to wait a couple of days for their parts. All of a sudden a $200 auto part became a $100 auto part. Shortly after that Rockauto went into high gear and the price dropped even further. Within a few years buying auto parts on the internet became capitalism incarnate with junkyards (car-part.com) and parts specialists (1-800-Radiator.com, LKQ Online) offering easy interfaces that let every consumer have same day service for a long list of parts. My waits became shorter, my parts bills became far cheaper, and my business with the auto parts retailers went down by nearly 80%. What did they do? Nickelshit tactics. A non-stop assembly of hoops and gotchas that made business with them a complete pain in your 'rear end assembly'. They would price match everyone... but Amazon or Rockauto. They offered discount codes off their inflated prices with cryptic alphanumerics (PART40, TRT30) that would change almost weekly for no reason. If those codes expired, tough luck. There were certain vehicles that I still needed parts for that day, which involved too much labor time to risk buying used. So I would bite the bullet and pay a premium on a few of those parts. But then I had what can only be called my ultimate "Fuck it!" moments. Wrong parts. Hours on end wasted trying to wait for parts that weren't available. Supposed deliveries that never took place. This non-stop clusterscrew of ordering parts happened... every... single... week. The online world gradually became easier to deal with while the once reliable employees at these stores were replaced with 18 hour a week part-timers who received minimal training and zero benefits. The auto parts stores often competed against their own online operations. This level of crazy is why, today, I go well out of my way to avoid ordering parts from them. STEVEN LANG Why did all this happen? Simple. The big three auto parts retailers now have over 15,000 stores. The overwhelming majority of which are within a few miles from each other. Cannibalization of a shrinking audience is never a good thing. That level of overhead is dwarfed by the nearly 200,000 individual parts that have to be constantly shipped, stored and delivered to wherever the most immediate need exists. Three companies performing the same function with the same level of overhead is a recipe for disaster once all three lose their pricing power in the marketplace. What will it take for that to happen? Not that much. It all comes down to one unique service that Amazon is slowly pursuing right now: same day delivery. Amazon will likely achieve that service within the next three years. It may take a not so small army of well positioned distribution centers that already sell everything from books, to produce, to auto parts, to millions of products that just require boxing and shipment . Or Amazon may produce a buyout of a commercially strong competitor with a premium reputation (NAPA Auto Parts). This would further their logistical capabilities. Amazon can also partner or acquire third-party parts suppliers that already provide same day service (1-800 Radiator, LKQ, maybe even your local junkyard). Amazon may also be able to launch a 'Prime' membership program that offers same day service for commercial customers such as auto repair shops and fleet operators. Or, they can provide tools and diagnostics that allow mechanics to use scanners and online repair guides that are coupled with their Amazon auto parts listings. Think of an Amazon Fire tablet with an OBDII scanner and a reasonably sophisticated diagnostic program. Instead of calling a store and sometimes having to drive out to pick up that part, your mechanic can just do a few clicks and that's it. Unless the auto parts retailers can merge, consolidate and innovate on an Amazon level, they're dead. All three are already on a death spiral and unlike the Braniffs of yesteryear, there are no local bureaucrats that will save them from a free market.

You can use code RED20 to get 20% off orders over $100 at Autozone. Question, who uses this and shops at Autozone and can you use it multiple times?

Here's a question, so on my Chevy Equinox, do I go with WeatherTech floor mats that are higher priced @ $170 on Amazon or go Maxliner on Amazon for @ $144?

I think this relates to many GM newer engines, but I ran into this recently on a late model Chevy Equinox that seemed to have an oil consumption issue. The car was burning 2 quarts every 2-3k miles. now the dealer states that it's normal to burn 1/2 a quart every 1k miles, so this was excessive. I had the oil changed and they used Dexos spec oil and the consumption got significantly less. They say to use a blend or full synthetic. Prior to this I had Valvoline perform the routine maintenance with standard oil not really thinking about it until I noticed an engine rattle after being 2 quarts low, especially on turns. Once I topped it off, it went away. Nevertheless, I felt it was consuming and took it to the dealer. So now, Dexos only approved oil and i never thought about it but it says Dexos right on the oil cap. Anyone else run into this?

These retailers all follow each other and it seems that in every town/city you look there are at least 2 of these big guys...