Complaint Review: AutoZone - Tulsa Oklahoma

for brake pads to fail that often there has to be a mechanical problem with the braking system, I'm not saying that the one who installed them did it incorrectly but there are a few problems that are hard to notice and are missed by even the most seasoned mechanics. if the caliper slides are functioning correctly and are properly lubed then and the brakes function perfectly under test conditions then I would check the brake fluid, since fluid over time can absorb moisture and turn bad causing pressure to build when driving for a while and causing the brakes to be applied a slight amount, most people wouldnt even notice this happening but it would cause premature brake wear to occur. as for the alternator; yes, it occasionaly happens that the part is bad right out of the box. but this is usualy fairly rare, and extreamly rare in brand new parts, duralast alternators are made by such reputable manufactures like Bosh and AC-Delco. contaminated wires and terminals can kill an alternator as well as a battery. just keep in mind that every part on a car affects another. for example I replace the front main seal in my truck because it was leaking. two months later I replaced it again, and again in another two months, the problem was not with the seal. the seal was a quality seal but that didn't matter, the seal can only do what it was created to do. the problem was that the PCV valve had failed, leading to high pressures in the crank case causing the seal to fail. in the Autozone districts where I live we are encouraged to be upfront and brutaly honest with the customers. any customer that comes in to my store and asks for the cheapest brake pads is told straight out that they are not recomended and are complete junk. as I like to say when people ask the diffrence between valuecraft and duralast "duralast is made be a reputable manufacture where as the valuecraft is made by the lowest bidder."

"Now there is some truth to the get what you pay for argument. The problem with this argument is that Auto Zone doesn't tell you that if you do not buy theur more expensive line of parts that you will get junk. Instead the sale is pitched as a warranty. X amount of dollars buys this part, but for a little more you could have the lifetime warranty. Never during the sales pitch is the quality of the part ever mentioned." The problem with your theory is AZ places a "Lifetime" warranty on everything. The $8 pads? Same "Lifetime" warranty as the $50 pads. Same car, same "Lifetime" warranty.

I have noticed that at least one of the previous comments has a what you get is what you pay for excuse. I did work for Auto Zone. I also pulled alternators off of the shelf that were locked up so tight they couldn't be turned by hand. This was not limited to the one year warranty alternators, the lifetime warranty and the new alternator also had this problem just to lesser degrees. Now there is some truth to the get what you pay for argument. The problem with this argument is that Auto Zone doesn't tell you that if you do not buy theur more expensive line of parts that you will get junk. Instead the sale is pitched as a warranty. X amount of dollars buys this part, but for a little more you could have the lifetime warranty. Never during the sales pitch is the quality of the part ever mentioned. This is hard to blame on the guy selling the parts because he is trying to make a living. Also, not every Auto Zone employee has much mechanical or automotive knowledge. Unless you just happen to be a trusted friend or family member of a counter person at Auto Zone, you will never hear them say how junky Auto Zones parts are. Auto Zone does sell good parts they are just more expensive. Customers expect quality from a part whether it be a cheap version or the top of the line. I think some of the other auto parts stores have done the right thing by only selling quality merchandise. They may not sell as much as Auto Zone initially, but they do have more loyal repeat customers. These other companies also tend to have more knowledgable employees than Auto Zone. To all of you people who work for AZ, I'm not saying your not qualified for the job. The people who work for Auto Zone usually don't stay there if they have any real automotive knowledge. As for me, I got sick of selling bad parts. This is not a first when it comes to hearing about how bad Auto Zones parts are. Maybe Auto Zone should take into consideration that people had rather have a quality part than do the job twice.

Those raggedy Albany pads come right off their plates. It happened on my wife's car, and on 3 of my customer's cars. After my own incident, I stopped buying anything from the Zone. After my 3rd customer complaint, I stopped installing anything from them also. You want good? Buy good. You want CHEAP? Buy CHEAP.

As the other employee clearly stated, brakes do not simply "fall apart" unless they are improperly installed or the vehicle they are installed in is being driven in an excessive manner. Brake rotors will warp no matter how high quality of brake pads are purchased if the driver abuses them (I.e. waiting to the last minute to brake, riding the brake pedal, etc). As far as the alternator is concerned, did you buy the Valuecraft, the Duralast or the Durlast Gold? Many of the customers in our stores do not understand the concept of you get what you pay for.

Comments show that they had to buy a higher priced alternator before it worked, means they weree going lowball the first time w/a rebuilt unit instead of a remanufactured or new unit. Rebuilt units are taken apart, cleaned and parts tested. Parts that test good are re-used. Unfortunately this means they may fail quickly, because the parts are old. They are used because the person doesn't want to spend the extra money for new parts. The brakes falling apart means they weren't put back together right, or that the springs and holddown parts were old and not replaced. properly installed brakes with new hardware cannot just fall apart, an outside agency of some type has to be involved