Hi all, I have been a little absent lately. I have been working on a boat engine and recently bought a 97 Rav4 with 96,000. I knew the window on the rav4 was on the way out when I purchased it. I went to my usual places to get discount parts and I was in shock. 600 Plus for a regulator??? I started to look at prices of parts I bought in the past and they more then tripled. A gas tank was 401.00 now is 1,100 discounted. Ouch. I ended up getting a door in the same color from a junk yard. Is everyone experiencing these kind of prices? Linda
Check out the cost of headlights on the Prime, just for giggles. We’re definitely not talking $20 sealed-beams anymore. But hey: they’re “artistic”.
2017 plus. Appreciate its not your model, but seems symptomatic of the callous/cavalier disregard the manufacturers have towards their customers.
So that I may avoid them, where do you usually go for discounted parts? If the part doesn't come with a lifetime warranty from one of the local auto parts chain stores, and or the online price with shipping is less, then I would usually shop online. Rarely will I pay 3x for the local "lifetime" option, but it has happened. The desired quality of the part (OEM, aftermarket, etc) and the price, will dictate which website gets the money. Though I try not to feed the bezos machine whenever possible. Here we have AISIN brand (likely OEM) starting at 50 for the front, was this retailer one of your discounted options? : 1997 TOYOTA RAV4 2.0L L4 Window Regulator & Motor Assembly | RockAuto
over 500 bucks for a composit https://toyotaparts.bochtoyotasouth.com/search?search_str=Headlight&ptid=2796
A local dealership has an outlet site. They use to be the cheapest. Another dealership price matches the online sight. https://toyotaparts.bochtoyotasouth.com/search?search_str=Headlight&ptid=2796
It used to be that when a seller would jack up prices they'd lose sales... But as we shift out of the pandemic there's plenty of people who haven't spent much money on what they usually spend money on so right now there's no buyer reluctance for sending prices through the roof. Then add to that the computer chip shortage that's slowing new car production, as well as low mileage Japanese economy cars from 80's & 90's suddenly becoming a rapidly growing market in the high priced collector car arena and you have a perfect storm for old car parts selling great no matter how high the price goes up! Hopefully once we get further away from the peak pandemic prices things will settle down, but probably not ever back to what they once were.
Wow, that's a crazy-high price! Smart move by going to a junk yard and pulling one. My favorite OEM website is McGeorgeToyota.com and looked up your Rav and it's showing many window regulators, with the highest price of $518....ouch! A few years ago, my wife crunched her driver's side mirror on the garage door and it's the kind with the blind side warning light and, with matching paint cover, put me back close to $200!! (But kinda fun taking apart the door to replace it.)
Yes. Have you actually paid attention to what you are paying for toilet paper lately ? EVERYTHING is UP. Some things, WAY up.
I've been watching my wife's 2017 Prius 12-volt battery...tester still shows it at 80% and healthy. I was at the Yota dealership yesterday and priced an OEM battery, $195 but on backorder, not expected to get them until September. I was at Walmart so looked in the battery lookup book and Toyota Prius' aren't even listed. I think when they come in at the dealership I'll pick one up and go ahead and swap out her battery. (Seems like all my weak batteries died here in Colorado right when the cold weather hits in the late-fall.)
I needed a plastic Prius badge for the hatch on my 2010. I expected may $15 from the dealer. Turned out to be $49.50 plus tax.
I recently changed the 12v battery. I went to a independent mechanic that uses Toyota parts only. The Oem battery was available.
12volt Prius batteries aren't really what car batteries usually are... It never has to start the engine, it just has to start the computer that starts the hybrid battery, which is why you can have a nearly dead 12v on a Prius and not know it. And in the car biz if a common part is slightly different everyone jacks up the price... The $200 Toyota 12v at the stealership is probably barely 35 amp hours. But online you can get a 55amp hour for just over $100: https://ebay.us/vN4JsP Enclosed below are the bolts and washers you need to sandwich the terminals between the washers...