Places To Find Truck Parts
 

I have bought a 1985 FLC 120 Freightliner and would like to know where are some good places to find parts (Not for the engine, but more on the inside, and items like the freightliner emblem on the hood, and the grill for a 1985). Thanks, I really appreciate the advice and info.

Any Freightliner dealer will be able to order your parts for you. If you want after market goods and chrome, do an online search for Truck chrome, truck toys, etc....... :D

Where do you live? Are you wanting to find a salvage yard near you? Have you tried doing a Google search? You should be able to find quite a few companies.

I had a 1987 FL Classic and the dealer was able to get me headlight bezels, or any little piece that I needed for that truck. If you want an exterior part or interior part you can order from the dealer like I said. One advantage to this is if you have the correct Vin# on your truck and give it to them, they will get you the right part. If you do decide to order from on line, be careful because you will get the wrong part alot of the time. They sell things and say it will fit, let's say 1984-1989 and it does not. Good luck. :D

You are right about the right parts, sideman. I felt that he was looking for used parts or a salvage yard. I usually order parts from the dealer. My nephew bought parts over the phone and had a problem a time or two getting the right parts. The seller made it good, but it was a hassle for him. In his case it was a computer for his truck. Manufacturer's can make several changes during a year which can make it somewhat difficult to find parts. There don't seem to be a lot of salvage yards for big trucks.

Yeah, I was wondering about parts myself. Sounds like there is no one to compete with the dealerships. Freightliner want $xx for a part, $xx is what you pay.

Just paid $700 for a fan clutch through Cummins, looks like it ought to be a $100 part. Total repair bill with diagnostic (overheating in the mountains under a load) was $995, and that was reduced from $1295 after I pitched a little fit.

I got a question here about these shops, particularly the ones that want to make you all comfy-cozy in their waiting room while you are far out of sight from your truck and everything going on with it. Some of them, many of them, most of them...they want to run up your repair bill as high as they can justify, is that right? I'm contrasting them to sometimes smaller places where the labor rate is still $60-$80 per hour but they try to give quality and cost efficiency all the same. Is it normal for the big dealerships and shops to try to run up repair bills? Is the guy who merely wants to be paid for doing a good job and doing it right, is he the rare bird!?

Cam, if you can find a Truckpro or Fleet Pride parts store, they can sometimes beat the dealers on some prices. I get a part number off the old part or from the dealer using the vin or serial number and check around for the best price. I get a discount at Kenworth on parts, so sometimes it is cheaper to go there than Truckpro. They are only about a mile apart at home. There are Truckpro and Fleet Pride parts stores in many parts of the country. If you are on the road, it is often easier to find a dealer. One thing to remember is that you can often get the same part from a different dealer than your make or brand of truck. I have bought parts from Freightliner for a Peterbilt. You may need to do some cross referencing, but I have saved money a few times. Some parts are brand specific. They all have parts which must be purchased directly from a dealer.

The large dealers do run bills up. The way they do it is very simple. About 2 or 3 years ago, I had to have injector sleeves put in in Amarillo. The nearest place that could do the work was Peterbilt. They are CAT certified. They gave me an estimate. I was initially pleased that they came in under the time they had allowed. They still charged me "book" price on the work. I was charged about $1,300 (I don't recall exactly) when I would have expected to pay about $1,000 (I don't recall exactly here, either). The mechanic finished more quickly than expected. We discussed it and I was livid about them charging me for time they didn't spend working on my truck. He told me that they worked on a flat rate. The rate was published on a board. I expected to pay for the labor according to the actual time spent on the job, plus parts. Basically, they scammed me out of about 3 hours labor that they didn't spend.

I had another instance where I went to my local International dealer to have brakes put on my truck and trailer. The estimate was around $2,200. The final bill was $3,500. They replaced all brakes, hubs and S-cams. Adding insult to injury, they also charged a shop fee of about $300. They did take the shop fee off. The way they do it is they take the hours from a book. Replacing brakes is one job. Then you have the S-cams which is another job. The hubs were $67 each. I don't recall the cost of the other parts. It wasn't the parts cost that was out of line. It was the labor and hours. I know that they didn't spend the hours that they billed me. They couldn't. You have little choice but to leave the truck or pay them. I bought that truck from this dealer. I expected to be treated fairly. They will never sell me another truck or work on any of my equipment. I have since found a couple of mechanics that charge according to the time spent and don't charge a shop fee. By the way, the shop fee is for things such as WD40, soap, rags, lunch, etc., Just kidding about the lunch. I would do more on my trucks if I had a place to work on them.

If you can do some of your own work, you are much better off and will save a lot of money. I think the way most of these large shops price their work is dishonest. Unless it is major engine work, where I would want to have a warranty, I would attempt to find a reliable local mechanic. I have found a few good mechanics on the road and have kept cards in case something happens while near their shop. We should frequent those shops and mechanics who do a good job for us and treat us fairly.

Believe it, or not, parts prices at some dealers, is very competitive, and a lot of times, could beat the others.
It's all depends on a particular location. In a coarse of my O/O career, i was able to find a few! :)

Not all truck dealers are crooks, some of them are very professional, and honest.
Notice, i didn't say "cheap", but you'll still get a good value, for their services.
For anything, a little more serious, than the tire, or oil change, i go to OEM dealer, which use to be Volvo, and now it's KW.
Since my engine always been "yellow", it's a CAT dealer for that.

When i find that place i like, i try to establish a good relationship with it. we are on a first name basis, which helps a lot.
Shop around, but when you find a good one, within your lines, stick with it!
Don't assume, that if they got the same name(KW, CAT...ETC) they are all the same, people, who works there, makes all the difference! 8)

Food for thought...and I don't mean to take over Papa Rick's thread talking about truck repairs. There still may be a lot of advice drivers can give about where to buy parts. I for one need a little exterior body piece.

Gman wrote:
Is this standard, or what? Besides all the overhead packed into a $90 per hour shop rate, it seems the shops consider it their due if they can finish in half the book time thereby doubling the actual rate per hour. I mean, to them it isn't cheating, they just think it's a bonus in their favor. Correct me if I'm wrong, please, but I don't seem to remember getting too many surprises because the mechanic finished the job quickly and the bill was to be lower than the estimate. If this really is how these shiny dealerships with the sofas and overstuffed chairs and cable TV work, I'm going to have to try harder to get with a local guy.

Solo wrote:Well, that is interesting. A millionaire, established owner operator goes to the same kind of place I could go to get service work done :shock: Seriously, I know you know how to make money at this thing, Solo, so I pay attention to what you say. I know there are some vets who know how to do a lot of the work themselves. Some guys are really good friends with the mechanic Joe who lives right by. It's just interesting to hear you say you use the dealerships. I can understand how the time of many O/O's is better spent pulling freight and paying the kid across the street to cut the grass, Frank the accountant to do the books and, yes, even Freightshaker or whoever to keep the engine working.

Cam, the day, i'll become "millionaire", i'll quit driving! :lol:
Unfortunately, i still do! :sad: :D

Pay attention Cam, i didn't say, i go to any OEM dealer, but very few good ones, that i've discovered, during those "establishment" years! :P
And i've been going that way, ever since i've started.

For me, "cheaper", doesn't necessarily means better!
I've always shoot for the quality and value, and that's in return, gives me piece of mind, and not necessarily cost arm and the leg! :wink:

Solo, I do have a CAT dealer locally who has been fair with me. They have done work and while not cheap, have done what they say and have helped me out in a pinch.

CAM, unfortunately, when some of these dealerships finish in less time that is shown in the book, they don't discount the price. Some of these mechanics work on percentage or commission. The more revenue they bring in the more they stick in their pocket. I don't necessarily think that is a bad thing, but I do have a problem with a dealership who milks customers for every penny. It is dishonest to charge for hours not worked. If their book says that it will take 10 hours to do a job and it only takes 8, then I think we should be charged 8 hours. To charge for more time than is spend is criminal. It is FRAUD. Unfortunately, it is widespread among many dealerships. Not only trucks, but auto dealerships. I used to do most all of my own work. I do very little any more. It takes time to find a good mechanic or garage who won't take advantage of customers. I think there is a reason why they don't want customers to watch them work. They don't want you to see how little they time they spend compared to what you are charged. I had an injector replaced at the CAT dealer in Denver a few years ago. I was surprised that my bill was a little less than the estimate. :shock: It was still high, but I would go back to them because I believe they were fair with me. I don't necessarily expect a garage to be cheap. After all, they are in business, too. I do expect them to be honest......or at least I used to. Now, I wait and see how they do business.

I will share a good experience I had with an International dealer in upstate New York. I had a pinion that was loose. I went in on a Saturday and they tightened it up for me without charge. They probably spend 30 minutes to an hour checking it out. When it came time to pay, they didn't charge me a penny. NOTHING!! I never expected them to work on my truck for FREE. I later found out that the pinion was bad and wound up putting in a new power divider. They got me going and I was able to have the work done at home for much less than I could on the road. Of all places to get a break, I would not have expected to get one in New York. It seems that my experience in that state has been right the opposite.

There are still some good people and dealers out there. We should share our experiences with them and give them our business and shun those who defraud us. 8)

I really appreciate the information and advice. Thanks so very much.

book time is not fraud, the time estimates are usually pretty close to the time it actually takes, in some cases your gaining a few hours and in some your losing some hours, why should a mechanic who can do the job just as well or better then another tech but quicker make less money then him.

Brian wrote:Gman and many others are much more qualified to give you a reply but I'm just glad you are on this thread providing an opposing opinion. Getting at the truth of a matter is what's most important.

When I had my fan clutch replaced the service writers seemed pretty quick to prescribe a $350 dyno test in order to diagnose the problem. They aren't even mechanics but they had me spending all that money before the repair even began. What if, like so many shops, they didn't have a dyno!? I suspect the mechanic would have spent maybe an hour on labor to make the diagnostic and then swapped out the part.

I came in and talked to a service writer. A while later another guy who looked like a service writer came in with the repair estimate. I asked him if a dyno had been done and he said 'dunno'. I pressed him on it for concern about the $350 and he agreed to go back and ask the mechanic. Then he came back and said that they hadn't had to do the dyno. I waited in the lounge with the cable TV until they were about closed and I had booked a load. I went to the first service writer and said, 'gotta go, where are we at?'. He then informed me the part hadn't even arrived yet. I began to express, shall we say..., 'unhappiness'.... :oops: A little later a third guy in a collared shirt who wasn't the mechanic came to TV land to tell me the part had arrived and that the truck would be done soon, just six bolts on the fan clutch, and that I could go ahead and cash out. I took one more look at the bill and asked him what all the labor was for (he had just told me installing the part would take maybe a half hour). That's when he told me about the book hour rates and about the cost of the...dyno.... 'Dyno!?' I was told that there had been no dyno, that it hadn't been necessary. You know, they've got coffee in TV land but you can't follow anything going on with your truck! He said 'no', there had in fact been a dyno done. I asked why it wasn't listed on the bill and where the results were. He said they don't do a printout on the $350 diagnostic dyno, they are just looking for the cause of the problem (which never was loss of power). He said the dyno with the printout costs $500!!! I expressed further, yes, let's say.., 'unhappiness'.... :)

In the end he dropped the price $300. But, then I started thinking about that $700 fan clutch. Man, it just doesn't look like much. Cummins never let on what they were paying the courier to bring it over and how much they were marking it up over Freightliner's price. I had initially signed off on it because the cost of paying off Cummins and then going over to Freighliner to have them do the repair didn't sound too good, either. I still don't know what Freightliner charges for them.

Three people in clean white shirts between myself and the mechanic!!! I've got a nice comfy sofa but can't see a thing that they are doing with my truck. Service writers prescribing a $350 dyno before even talking to a mechanic. Conflicting stories about whether a dyno had been done and no printout, no hp or blowby. $700 for a part that doesn't look like it costs $200. I can appreciate shops providing the driver with a little comfort but it does seem like they are just trying to anesthetize you while they raid your bank account.

Well Cam, you've been conned! :sad: There is plenty of that kind of crooks. The friend of mine, had a thermostat replaced in his "kitty" for over a grand!
When i've asked the CAT dealer, i'm frequent, if it's normal, they said, with the big eyes :shock: it would be around $200!
Unfortunately, he paid with the cash! Always pay it with the C/C, so you could dispute the charges later.

Also, if you came in to change a fan clutch, what "diagnoses" you are talking about? :roll:
Just stick to your guns! They can advise you, but they can't force you to do anything, w/o your autorithation! :x

My fan clutch, complet kit + labor, cost me just under $500, done at the dealer, but that was in a late 90th!

cam you got ripped off by a shady shop, thats entirely different then a reputable shop charging you book hours instead of straight hours.

Solo: I didn't know what was wrong with the truck only that it overheated in the mountains under a load. I had gone into Atlanta Freightliner on their second shift and their mechanic couldn't figure it out. He thought it might have been the ECM, that's why I went to Cummins. All that brings up another point, ever get the feeling you are paying for the practical education of newbie mechanics?

Anyways, when I balked at $90 in labor just for Freightliner to tell me, 'beats me, ' they dropped the hour of labor and just charged me for the DOT inspection I had done. It was Freightliner after all, I might expect to pay for the same repair twice if I started at a truckstop or something. Was a dyno necessary to figure out that the overheating was caused by a bad fan clutch....wellll....' dunno. I have my doubts, as you know, lots of shops don't even have one.

Brian: Tampa Cummins, definitely no shade tree mechanics. But that's the thing, is the whole hospital atmosphere with the waiting room and all the non-mechanic attendants just designed to make you pay like a hospital!?

so lemme get this straight, just because it was a cummins shop its automatically run by a bunch of fine upstanding gentleman?

what your describing, being overcharged for a part and charged for a dyno test that was never done is totally different then being charged book hours which in most cases it clearly written on the estimate.



now it all makes sense, they saw you coming when you needed that fan clutch :lol:

I'm just trying to understand it all myself, Brian. If I had it all figured out I wouldn't be here talking about it, I'd be on to other things. A friend of mine has owned a truck for 15 years and he doesn't speak kindly of these major franchise repair shops. He's found a guy with a little shop in Jasper Indiana that he respects so much I'll bet he sends him flowers for his birthday :lol: