Date:         Wed, 18 Oct 1995 14:26:01 -0400
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         drew@interport.net (Derek Drew)
Subject:      Best Dealer To Buy Parts From (Don't Skip This Post)

Recently I conducted a test to find out which was the VW dealer offering
factory VW parts at the lowest prices. I composed a bid form with about 25
different factory parts I intended to buy new, and I sent this form to a
half dozen dealers around the country to see which really offered the lowest
prices.

Included in my survey were 

Joel Walker's friend Jim Ellis at VW Atlanta
Sonnen Motors in California
Bob Hoy's VW in Texas
Paul Walser Volkswagen in Phoenix, Az

I mentioned in my bid to Paul Walser Volkswagen that I had heard on the
Vanagon List that they were willing to sell parts at 20% over their cost to
people like me (Internet Vanagonatics). The Walser people responded promptly
and their prices were lower than all the other dealers by a significant
margin on all parts but one obscure one. 

Accordingly, I placed my order with Walser, directing them to send the parts
UPS. I live in New York, but it is better to buy the parts from an out of
state dealer so as to avoid 8% sales tax. As for the UPS shipping charges,
in general they are not significant so it doesn't matter which state I am
ordering from.

In the future, I plan to buy all factory parts from Walser without going
through the effort to get bids from different dealers. I am submitting this
post to recomend that other list members do the same. Be sure to mention the
Internet and the 20%-over-cost program to get your proper discount.

I conducted the entire operation by fax and have never spoken to anyone at
Walser. Here is there phone numbers 

Paul Walser Volkswagen
Phoenix, Az 85016
800-876-5199
fax: 602-265-8768

List members may wish to copy the 800# and label it something like "Cheap
Factory Parts By Mail" and keep it handy.

I used to buy my VW parts from the local dealer here but I cannot get over
how silly this is. You pay sales tax. You often have to go to the dealer
twice--once to order and once to take delivery. You have to wait in line.
You pay full price or a high price. Who needs it? Go 800 and do something
more productive with your time and money.

The one caveat is that I supplied the part numbers and asked them to double
check some of them. If you lack a microfiche you might be forced to go to
your local dealer to look at the thing and make sure you have the right
parts before ordering. But now with the recent innovation appearing on this
list of how to get a cheap microfiche reader (Radio Shack 50X $7 microscope)
there is no excuse: all list members should get their own fiches.

By the way, before finalizing my order I called up the Parts Place and found
that when they could supply a part, it was about 60% of the cost of buying
that same part from the dealer. Accordinly, I gave the Parts Place my
business for these parts.


___________________________________
Derek Drew
drew@interport.net (main address for e-mail)
derekdrew@aol.com (alternate/backup address, checked infrequently)