Drew,

This is very interesting and I'm sure will help a lot of us.

Questions:  Can I get parts fiches from the dealer? 
            How much do they cost?
            Is there multiple fiches per model and year?

BTW there is one dealer here that will give a 15% discount if I say I'm 
buying for an auto repair shop.  I haven't tried this myself, but my 
father has used them for his '86 GL. 

How does that compare to 20% over cost?

Thanks for the info,

Trace Choulat
tchoul@unf6.cis.unf.edu
--- '93 MV

On Wed, 18 Oct 1995, Derek Drew wrote:

> 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) 
> 
>