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HybridZ

Not the same Motorsport Auto


AydinZ71

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Disappointed... I used to love these guys.


1) Browsing their website is Underwhelming. You have to know precisely what you are looking for. Not the same as being shown whats new, what’s popular, and what is exciting. 

 

2) went there in person. Due to COVID, you can not go into the building anymore. They sent a sales guy out, again you need to ask for a specific part. They have no literature to show you.

 

3) Catalogue has not been in print for 10 years. That was my favorite part of them. It was illustrated very well, and would “sell you” on exclusive parts they have, and popular items.   


4) They don’t stock very much... 

called them twice over two months to see if they had 240z floor pans available. Both times, they were either waiting for a shipment or didn’t have one planned for 2 months. They tell you to buy it on their website and just wait... well I bought it direct from the manufacturer and had it shipped for less.

 

I wonder how much longer they will be around...

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This is pretty standard in my experience for all suppliers during Covid. None of the Z car parts places are fully stocked. I have the same issues with non car related suppliers as well.

 

Except of course Mc Master Carr. They are a national treasure:)

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Yep! I’m lucky to be 30 min from McMaster will-call. 
 

The last time I went to MSA was 15 years ago. I guess I was disappointed that it seemed they had not upped their game in that time. elimination of the catalogue, even just an in-house copy, was a bummer. They could have kept publishing them for online browsing, if print cost was excessive.  meanwhile I see a plethora of other options available online to direct purchase from their suppliers. Given the difficulty in identifying what performance parts they have available online, I would have thought their marketing would be easier to navigate than  their suppliers (many of whom disclose what is in stock on their websites). 
 

Obviously inconvenience thanks To covid is understandable. 

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5 hours ago, Ironhead said:

I just wanted to weigh in....I too consider McMaster-Carr to be the best retailer on the planet.


believe it or not, they have an enormous margin. One of my employers banned us from using them for R&D because they were considered to be 30% more expensive then their suppliers. However, they have so much in stock and have such a phenomenal website, I will gladly pay the markup for small volume parts. 

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  • 6 months later...

They are worth the 30% just for the CAD models of all the hardware they sell.  Another company I've been very happy with is MSC.  While I haven't bought anything in the last couple of years they always seemed to have it in stock and shipped it very quickly

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8 hours ago, tube80z said:

They are worth the 30% just for the CAD models of all the hardware they sell.  Another company I've been very happy with is MSC.  While I haven't bought anything in the last couple of years they always seemed to have it in stock and shipped it very quickly


Very true. One of the few suppliers I would struggle to ever find a replacement for. It is as if their website was designed by a librarian. Everything is so well catalogued and  comprehensive. I have used their website to reverse-engineer components simply because they log the major dimensions of their materials so well. 

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