I heard about a centurion sitting at a yard today. I scrambled my crap and headed down. It was a green 4-door, someone had taken the engine and driveshaft, but left the smog pump, power steering pump, air filter box, starter, and the transmission. Seemed like they knew what they wanted. The lid for the diff was also off. No luck there. The fenders had dents, and the hood had surface rust all over and was laying on the roof, sorry actionhank99. I thought, what's a few good pieces here that I might need. I remebered when my car had been hit in the back, and thought, here's a decent bumper with the actual centurion lights. The chrome pieces that sits around the lights looked good, with minimal pitting. Above that area was the trunk release mechanism. Inside, someone had taken the front seats and started to take apart the dash area, and a bunch of trash was everywhere in the car. So the list went: 2*rear lights 4*trim pieces around rear lights + glassfiber pieces 1*centurion fender emblem 1*remote trunk opener 1*gear shifter rod 1*rear bumper 3 piece grill The centurion insert piece on the passenger side of the dash. 2*headlight bezels 1*bumper rubber filler for the extra small bumpers at the front. The green dash in perfect condition was dicovered in the trunk of the car next to it, anyone need it? I quickly five-fingered the bumper rubber filler, centurion emblem, and gear shifter rod in my toolbox, and headed back for my car to pack up the tools and return to my nicely displayed find on the hood of the car next to the "c". Now, the rest up to the cashier..... 170$ I thought crap, no way. She also said she had given me discount on this and that... I'm like sorry, no can do. I'll have to go throught the stuff. I dropped the bumper; the car had been hit, and the glassfiber parts had been slightly cracked, I dropped those too. It looked straight, but a bumper that I don't need today, I'll start looking for some other day. I dropped the headlight bezels, they were part of my "paint it black" project. I went back to the cashier and lined it up, 70$. Ok I thought, the centurion lights could become a problem to find some day, and a bumper could always come from a lesabre instead. The emblem, gear shifter, and rubber part was already in the trunk. So 70$ for the three piece grill, rear lights, centurion passenger side dash piece, trunk opener, and the metal trim pieces... What do you usually do when you end up in a situation like this? I'm strapped for cash, so it's not an "all go" here at the moment. I don't regret how I managed this purchase, but it took probably ten minutes of just thinking and staring at the pieces before I was decided. Mmoooahahhaha
:ball: :ball: :ball: no fenders or hood for me :ball: :ball: :ball: Hey, i havent called that guy in NY yet as ive been working - shipping would prob be a killer , though i will call him when i get a chance. Were the plastic pillar covers on the passenger side any good? and what colour is the interior? mine have been hit hard by the sun
Junkyard pricing is always a crap-shoot; I've never seen an employee actually have a price chart. They just pull a figure out of their behind. I've read both arguments to buying parts. The first argument is to go into the yard, get a clear idea of what you would like to purchase, and then come back to the counter and get a price before you pull them item off. That way, is someone is smoking crack regarding the value of something, you don't waste your time pulling it off just to leave it. The other argument is to pull what you need, and then bring it to the counter. You then negotiate with the clerk, as they will give you a better deal because they want the sell and do not want to put the parts back. I prefer the first argument better. If you get ballpark prices before pulling anything, you do not get suprises. It is also easier to walk away. Once you have pulled the part, you have an investment of time. I've also found yard attendants that would rather throw parts in the trash than negotiate with you. There are plenty of yards that want three quarter of dealer price for electrical parts, and give no warranty! I don't know about you, but I'd rather give an extra 25% to the dealer and have a warranty. (A dealer will usually not let you return electrical items, but will exchange it if it is defective). Generally, yards seem to be hard to deal with. You get the idea they would rather just sell the body parts off to collision shops and crush the rest. Enough of that rant. I prefer up-front pricing so there are no suprises and so I cannot get myself worked up for the part.
I think US$ 170,- is a good price for just the rear lights, so you got all that other stuff for free. Cheap parts and still complaining....... o No:
we gripe all the time about prices being too high at the yards or else we are mad about the yard owners not letting us walk around the yards looking for parts without a yard employee in our back pocket..... stealing aint right. :af: :af: it just gives yards an excuse to charge crazy prices.
I don't mind paying these peoples wages, but prices have to be within reason. If a bumper is 30$ at one yard, and then 50$ at another, I think they're overcharing. Then it's the factor of never knowing what prices really are, you get a price from one guy, while the guy sitting at the next window gives you a totally different figure, it doesn't make you feel like having to hagle over crums, when you're getting a bunch of other stuff. It's all going in the hydraulic press anyway.
If you don't have an income, everything becomes expensive. If I was working, it would be a different situation.
Here's the value of a pair of rear lights, coming up in a few days. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4577231032&fromMakeTrack=true
