I purchased a Heat & Air Conditioning : Blower Motor from these clowns. The first one did not work, OK things happen, now the second one does not work...Obviously they have the wrong part number, I thought it was funny that it says it is also compatible with a Ram Truck. They have No customer service and making a return (for the second time) is a nightmare.
Don't ever use Rock Auto
- Thread starter shmelvin
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Are you positive you have a bad blower motor? Did you hotwire the new unit? Are you just venting or looking for help to your problem? Rockauto is just a distributor they can't tell which part is good or bad and they can make mistakes too I never had any issues returning as long you follow their protocol.
- Thread starter
- #3
I do not have a bad motor just a little noisy, so I want to replace it. I just ordered an OEM from Toyota. I do not think anything is wrong with the Rock auto motors other than the fact they are aftermarket and even though they look identical (except for the fan) they are obviously not designed for Toyota/Lexus.
Ouch. I bought one from there and it worked. Well, it was for the GX470 that I had.
As for the Ram truck, these are very generic. I replaced one in my Scion FRS and it looked identical. As I recall the one you want should have some little balancers on some of the tines (?). I could see it in the example picture so I bought that one. And sorry, I don't have the specific one I bought. Wait, it was for the 470.
<rant>
As a side note, I was a bit disappointed with the fan when I installed it. I thought Lexus would have put some time and money into a quieter fan but it was, as I said, identical to a Scion fan. Fans are always loud and I am not sure why. I'm not a fool and do understand air movement, but in a luxury car, I don't expect to have to talk over a fan. The goal is to warm up the vehicle. Isn't there a better way than blowing air around? Bigger, hidden vents? Some houses don't have fans (indirect heating). I have to wait for the engine to get warm, but, WHY? We have had electric heat for decades! Why can't it start getting warm immediately? Cooling starts up quick. Maybe Elon can save me?
</rant>
As for the Ram truck, these are very generic. I replaced one in my Scion FRS and it looked identical. As I recall the one you want should have some little balancers on some of the tines (?). I could see it in the example picture so I bought that one. And sorry, I don't have the specific one I bought. Wait, it was for the 470.
<rant>
As a side note, I was a bit disappointed with the fan when I installed it. I thought Lexus would have put some time and money into a quieter fan but it was, as I said, identical to a Scion fan. Fans are always loud and I am not sure why. I'm not a fool and do understand air movement, but in a luxury car, I don't expect to have to talk over a fan. The goal is to warm up the vehicle. Isn't there a better way than blowing air around? Bigger, hidden vents? Some houses don't have fans (indirect heating). I have to wait for the engine to get warm, but, WHY? We have had electric heat for decades! Why can't it start getting warm immediately? Cooling starts up quick. Maybe Elon can save me?
</rant>
WTITW
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Did you check and make sure there wasn’t any debris in the fan before replacing? Mine was a little noisy, ticking at certain speeds. I thought it was the bearing going out but last time I changed the cabin air filter I decided to stick my hand in there. Found a couple leaves. Noise gone.
FJ40 MNTCRZR
SILVER Star
Rock auto is just a drop shipper and is a total PITA if you order multiple parts, they may be fine for one or two items however if you order multiple things then expect a nightmare.
My experience; I ordered all new hoses, belts, plugs, wires, etc… everything for my C10 that had been sitting for over 35 years. I hadn’t ordered from them before so had no idea about their shipping etc..
Anywho,
Day one of delivery. I get one delivery of one radiator hose in a huge box
Day two. I get another huge box with spark plugs and points.
Day 4 or so. I get another huge box with belts.
So u get the picture, also some parts were wrong. I decided to say f it and just ate the cost as I was just done with them… anyway that’s my RA rant…
My experience; I ordered all new hoses, belts, plugs, wires, etc… everything for my C10 that had been sitting for over 35 years. I hadn’t ordered from them before so had no idea about their shipping etc..
Anywho,
Day one of delivery. I get one delivery of one radiator hose in a huge box
Day two. I get another huge box with spark plugs and points.
Day 4 or so. I get another huge box with belts.
So u get the picture, also some parts were wrong. I decided to say f it and just ate the cost as I was just done with them… anyway that’s my RA rant…
r2m
Richard
When I do a thorough interior clean, I'll use my compressor to blow out all my vents and grills in the dash and doors.
That should get any debris in the vents.
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I've used RockAuto for a decade and saved a ton of money using them.
I did have an issue with them where a manufacturer refused to warranty a part I got through them. Guess what, Rock Auto just pointed me back at the manufacturer. You get what you pay for with them. If you have a huge order to make you can save some $$$ - and the parts are 100% legit unlike Amazon/eBay - but don't expect any support if there is an issue with the parts. They don't even have a customer service phone number. Price you pay for getting stuff like Denso O2 sensors at half the cost of anywhere else.
I've taken to getting more parts through my local NAPA and O'Reilly's, and either Partsouq or my local dealer (which has really good prices) for OEM parts. Summit Racing is another good source and has many of the parts that Rock Auto has with prices that aren't that much higher, but actually has really good customer service with an actual phone number if you have an issue. Summit has been around forever in the domestic/muscle car market but now sells a lot of basic OE replacement parts for most kinds of cars. I still use the Rock Auto part lookup feature and just google the part number to shop for it.
I did have an issue with them where a manufacturer refused to warranty a part I got through them. Guess what, Rock Auto just pointed me back at the manufacturer. You get what you pay for with them. If you have a huge order to make you can save some $$$ - and the parts are 100% legit unlike Amazon/eBay - but don't expect any support if there is an issue with the parts. They don't even have a customer service phone number. Price you pay for getting stuff like Denso O2 sensors at half the cost of anywhere else.
I've taken to getting more parts through my local NAPA and O'Reilly's, and either Partsouq or my local dealer (which has really good prices) for OEM parts. Summit Racing is another good source and has many of the parts that Rock Auto has with prices that aren't that much higher, but actually has really good customer service with an actual phone number if you have an issue. Summit has been around forever in the domestic/muscle car market but now sells a lot of basic OE replacement parts for most kinds of cars. I still use the Rock Auto part lookup feature and just google the part number to shop for it.
r2m
Richard
I know you're getting bombarded with questions, but does the Rock Auto part look just like the factory, including mounting points and holes?
- Thread starter
- #10
Just got the OEM from a Toyota dealer, 5-minute install and working perfectly and quietly.
As for the 2 Rock auto motors they were identical (Almost) to OEM and bolted on and plugged in just like OEM but did not work, obviously the internal wiring was different. Anyway, lesson learned...Stop being a cheapskate.
As for the 2 Rock auto motors they were identical (Almost) to OEM and bolted on and plugged in just like OEM but did not work, obviously the internal wiring was different. Anyway, lesson learned...Stop being a cheapskate.
Old Nick
GOLD Star
Same here. I've bought a lot of Aisin (it was the real thing, not a knock-off) stuff from them over the years and have never had an issue with a wrong part, or one that was bad when it arrived. But, I've have placed big orders, and have had to wait as different boxes from various warehouses showed up. No big deal.
When not going OEM I always use Rock Auto and it's great. I'll continue to use them as well. Never had a single issue with them or returns.
The oe fan has some built in noise, yes i checked the debris during cabin filter changes. With ra, they are great up until you need customer service. Email only. On a separate vehicle, I bought coated rotors, well one was coated and one wasnt. Emailed them and they decided since it doesnt effect service, I pay return shipping for the correct replacement. I didnt agree, since the whole point of purchasing a coated rotor was to avoid shortening rust related issues that my old rotors had. I get the customer is not always right, but if I wanted to purchase an inferior item, i'd do it outright for less money.
These days, i shop around to whoever has the lowest price and resonable after sales support, and RA never comes out on top due to Amazon, Walmart, and even autozone. Consumeables parts like Oil filters are cheaper with Toyota sales where again if you bulk buy like you would with RA, Oe is the same price.
These days, i shop around to whoever has the lowest price and resonable after sales support, and RA never comes out on top due to Amazon, Walmart, and even autozone. Consumeables parts like Oil filters are cheaper with Toyota sales where again if you bulk buy like you would with RA, Oe is the same price.
Electric heaters require massive amounts of amps to operate. Your alternator couldn't keep up and you'll smoke it in just half an hour of the fan.
It's also nearly impossible to silence a fan since the blower has direct access through your vents, you can't simply put in a silencer since that will ruin airflow.
And as far as tesla go they use the ac as a heater. AC 101 is you gotta have expanding and shrinking gases to operate. The bi products of which are cold and heat. Tesla simply puts their HP line in a liquid bathed system kinda like a waterheater and then sends it though the heater core. Works super well because it heates up about as fast as an induction heater but uses 1/4 the power
I've been using rockauto for about two years now and actually used them to redo my clutch system on my truck. They Carry OEM brands but they don't always. Simple rule of thumb is to never get their bottom end unless if it's oem brand. Middle to top of the line is the way to go. Never get their injectors as they aren't set up correctly. I wouldn't do anything but oem for electronics for toyota since they are super picky and will throw a code over a Simple. 1 OHM off reading. For hard parts I don't see any issues especially since you can get the parts cheap and unless if it's the wrong part it shouldn't have to much issue. Even if the part goes out in 150000k miles when the OEM goes 250000k miles id be pretty happy. Especially when the part cost 150$ rather than 1000$.
I just generally try to avoid using non-OEM parts anymore. The quality control on value brand car parts has gone down, and my patience with parts that don't fit has too. My breaking point was during a suspension rebuild on a GMC when I went through 3 bad upper control arms before I got one the factory had pressed the bushing to the correct depth.
Never again. My time is worth something.
Never again. My time is worth something.
I've been using them for my Ford parts needs and they've been great! Great discounts on OE Motorcraft parts. Havent used them for the GX yet.
Rock Auto is fine until you have a problem. Then they simply
don't care. And, how could they, considering they don't even have a customer service number? It's just a middleman service that connects distributors to customers. Their website hasn't changed in over a decade. I doubt they have more than a few dozen employees and they must operate on razor thin margins - and those margins simply do not include and room for customer service.
Despite them making me quite angry a few months ago, I'm betting they've saved me at least $5K in parts since I started using them in 2012 or so. It's probably worth it in the end. But, getting things from my local NAPA or O'Reillys is drastically more personal, and they'll be there if there is a problem later
on.
don't care. And, how could they, considering they don't even have a customer service number? It's just a middleman service that connects distributors to customers. Their website hasn't changed in over a decade. I doubt they have more than a few dozen employees and they must operate on razor thin margins - and those margins simply do not include and room for customer service.
Despite them making me quite angry a few months ago, I'm betting they've saved me at least $5K in parts since I started using them in 2012 or so. It's probably worth it in the end. But, getting things from my local NAPA or O'Reillys is drastically more personal, and they'll be there if there is a problem later
on.
re_guderian
SILVER Star
I'm hit or miss with Rock Auto. Some disasters, some successes. For now, they're my go-to for wiper blades...
