support independents

[belkin666]

don't buy parts and accessories from dealers - and once out of warranty [which won't be long] - no service either. competition helps consumers. the faster the independent suppliers grow and there are independent garages working on smarts to compete w/ the dealers, the better off all smart owners will be. support independents!

[jwight]

All well and good, but the dealers have a lock on the parts supply right now and that won't change until there are a lot more smarts on the road.

[belkin666]

sort of chicken or egg - I'm not saying it's easy - certainly they don't have a lock on accessories and I'm not so sure on parts either - I know I can get any part for my smart and not from a dealer.

[smartcarparts]

Thank you for your kind words... for 52 years in my previous life I sold parts and accessories both locally and internationally...

the only thing i had different was service....

they had a choice save a few cents give up service.

guess what ??


retired now and enjoying my third career hobby business.

sherwin

[Evilution]

I'm not sure if there is a true lock on parts, many parts haven't been shipped as they just aren't required. It takes a while to work out what parts need to be kept in stock, what is needed regularly, what parts fail regularly etc.

There are quite a few companies that buy stocks of parts from Europe to sell on to "save" people from dealing with smart. We see it a lot in UK on Ebay.
People just assume that smart prices are going to be expensive and assume that everything on Ebay is a bargain.

You have the unfortunate position of being a long way from the origin of the part manufacture process so you will always pay a little bit more. The fact is that smart can import parts far cheaper than little companies can. All you find is that it doesn't create the competition you require. One company sets their own prices (way above the actual smart prices), other companies realize the profit to be made and join in.
Eventually, a lot more people are getting ripped off.

Competition is good and it's good to help independents and small companies, but not if they are taking the p*** with their prices.

[24-42]

Originally Posted by belkin666

sort of chicken or egg - I'm not saying it's easy - certainly they don't have a lock on accessories and I'm not so sure on parts either - I know I can get any part for my smart and not from a dealer.

Belkin is absolutly correct !
As long as the dealers have a monopoly, you can expect to continue to get a 'Hosen' (and I don't mean 'Leder').

ONLY competition will bring the prices down to earth.

[John_H]

So could I get a temperature/fan control module (with A/C) for the 451 from somewhere outside the dealership?

[24-42]

Originally Posted by John_H

So could I get a temperature/fan control module (with A/C) for the 451 from somewhere outside the dealership?

YES !! ANY part is available...... if you know the procedure.
I owned the largest Imported car repair (C.A.R.S.) in Detroit in the fifties, a time when dealers 'Bad mouthed', refused to knowingly sell to an independent and VW even tried to convince customers that they would forfeit their warranty if they didn't get ALL service at an authorized VW dealer.

I got parts, I got factory tools, I got service manuals, I got certified (over 20 service training schools).

If you are able to get illegal drugs, you certainly can get automobile parts.

Donald LaFavor

[belkin666]

Thanks Guys...

[Karl Roth]

Originally Posted by belkin666

sort of chicken or egg - I'm not saying it's easy - certainly they don't have a lock on accessories and I'm not so sure on parts either - I know I can get any part for my smart and not from a dealer.

send me a message when you get your new keys
karl