The simple answer is obvious—to make more money. However, there is a lot going on behind the scenes that you may not know about because neither the dealership nor your mechanic, want you to know what they know. When it comes to dealerships, the truth is that they do not make the majority of their money from selling cars. Cars are an expensive product to produce and each sale yields profit but it might not be that much. Where dealerships make their real money is parts and service.
The consumer is at a serious disadvantage when it comes to car parts because the average person does not have the expertise to do their own car maintenance. To make matters worse, an individual person cannot go to an OEM parts supplier and purchase a single part for their vehicle. Most suppliers will only sell to big companies that buy parts in bulk. Dealerships can easily exploit their customers because they know they can only go through them to get the parts that they need to get their cars back on the road. After they take your hard-earned money for the part, they continue to you gouge you by charging you an hourly rate to install the part. Before the internet, customers did not have access to information that would allow them to regain any leverage in the situation—they were completely at the mercy of the dealership.
Thanks to companies like BuyAutoParts.com, times are changing! We are putting the power back in the hands of the consumer. When the dealership gives you a quote, instead of gritting your teeth and emptying your pockets on the counter, you can go home and get on your computer and do some research. You will quickly find that you can get top quality parts for a third or a fourth of the cost that the dealership is trying to charge you.
Needless to say the dealerships are not happy that they have lost their leverage. Often times they will turn to strong arm tactics to try and scare you out of buying parts for a cheaper price—DO NOT LET THEM SCARE YOU! It is very possible to get quality parts from somewhere other than the dealership. Buy Auto Parts purchases its OEM parts from the same companies that supply your dealership. Do yourself a favor and save some money and put the power back in your hands—it is your right as a consumer!
