September 10th, 2018 | Updated on January 18th, 2019
Buying auto parts for your car is an essential step in renovating and keeping your travel companion in good condition.
Most of the dealers selling auto parts will sell you legitimate parts, but there are a few who want to shortchange you and get your hard-earned money.
With the increased popularity of the internet, it is common seeing people buying their parts online and having them shipped to their location.
The comparison between buying the parts online versus physically at the brick and mortar stores will be left for another piece, but are you aware of some important things to consider when buying the parts on the internet? Here are the tips:
1. Know Your Car
You might not be a motor vehicle enthusiast, but it helps to understand your car and its parts. Make a point of knowing the details about your vehicle and the specifications of some of the main components.
Do not just take your car to the auto shop and leave it there for the technicians to work on it without being inquisitive.
Shopping online is risky since you are all alone and if you do not understand your car well, you could end up buying parts that are not compatible with your car or don’t work at all.
Most of the car manufacturers introduce models after every year, and you cannot expect a 2015 car to be identical to a 2016 one. You need to take note of the model number and year of manufacturing as some makers roll out two different versions of the same car at once.
2. Research
Do not go on the internet and just buy an auto part before doing some research. It pays to look for information about the part you need and the store you want to buy it from before making the purchase.
If you wish to get a part at a fair price, you will need to compare all the prices being charged by the sellers you have in mind before selecting on the best one.
You can check out more information about the seller to ensure that they are legitimate, especially when you are dealing with the small online auto stores that are not known globally.
The internet has several scammers, and you could easily fall for one who will get your money and won’t probably send you the parts.
Try and find out anything you need to know about the part you want to buy and the seller so that you are assured that you are getting the right one.
3. Be On The Lookout For Discounts
One advantage of shopping on the internet in this age where online marketing has become prevalent is that you can get several deals that will help you get the part at a lower price.
Check all the stores you wish to buy your parts from and see whether they have any coupon or discount that you can take advantage of.
Keep in mind that some of these offers may not be in for of discounts as others come in the form of free shipping and a free part for every buyer who purchases several pieces.
Most of these dealers are competing fiercely, and this is beneficial to you as the customer you can get the parts at a lower price from car-partsdirect.com.
4. Avoid Buying Rare Parts Online
If you own a high end, antique or hybrid vehicle that is not very common, avoid buying parts online. One reason is that most of the dealers understand the rarity of these parts and will want to sell them at a high price than what it should cost.
Furthermore, these parts are very sensitive, and you need to verify that they are the exact ones before making a purchase. If possible, avoid getting them from dealers unless they are for the antique cars, and only stick to the OEM parts for reliable performance.
5. Verify
Several fake auto spare parts are being sold all over the internet, and you need to avoid falling into these scams. You can easily buy an auto spare part that is faulty and out of date.
Before finalizing the deal, make a point of calling the dealership to confirm the part number of what you wish to buy. If they are not able to confirm the part number and you proceed and buy the part, you will have yourself to blame.
You need to understand that some parts are built to work in specific engine systems, and any change in their operation can have a ripple effect and compromise the way your car works.
6. Do Not Be Afraid To Bargain
When buying car parts online, ensure that you are familiar with some of the auto terminologies as dealers can easily notice someone who is not an expert and take advantage of this.
You need to understand the terms that define how the various parts work and use this to bargain for the price. When bargaining, ensure that you do not do it too much but do not be afraid as well.
Dig for useful information before you begin bargaining as these will be your main points when trying to justify why the dealer needs to reduce the quoted price.
7. Additional Costs
It is possible to get auto parts online being sold at fair prices but what people fail to pay attention to are the additional costs. If the cost of buying and shipping the car part is high, consider your other options.
You should also be aware of the shipping methods as you could need the part and cannot wait for the amount of time the dealer says you should.
Perform all these checks before clicking on the pay button as you need to make sure that the deal is transparent and you know what your money is being used to pay for.
Some vital tips to look at when buying auto parts on the internet have been mentioned, and you can use them when hunting for the best deal.
Most of the parts you need are available on the web, and all you need to do is to take some time and search for them, compare them, and you will end up with the right one.
