Rockauto.com warranty - anybody have dealings with it?

[Tx Bohemian]

Here’s my story:
Back in April/May  I changed the distributor on my ’99 Sentra due to an oil leak. This is a common leak on these cars with high mileage (214K on mine).

Got a Cardone brand Dist. from Rockauto.com.

All was well for the past few months, car ran smoother and got back up to 30-32mpg. (it dropped to 28-30 for the last yr or so)

Until yesterday. 
The car just up and quit on me halfway to work at 6:30am (dark). It died, would crank but not start.

Called a wrecker, towed it to a garage, cause I had to get to work, which I did finally way late.
It turned out to be a failed distributor. The dist I put in 3/4 months ago!!! 
Right now in my life I'm totally crowded for time, between work and home life, so I let the garage fix it. They got a dist. from ORiellys and got it going.  Another Cardone dist.!!

So I called Rockauto.  Their warranty policy is if a part fails, such as this dist, you send it to them and they send you another one. ??!!??  So the car will sit for a week or so as I see it!!

BUT, now in my case to where the car was already repaired they will CREDIT me the amount of the dist.!!!  NOT send my money back!! 
AND… AND I have one year time limit to use this credit!!!
Right now I don’t want anything to do with these people!!  And I don't deal with them that much so I'm not sure I'll need $200 worth of parts from them within the next year!!

I also contacted Cardone and complained about their CRAPPY part and they said I need to take it up with Rockauto!!

So now I have a repaired car with the same brand part that left me lay!!  How much confidence do I have in this thing??
And I’m $350 lighter in my wallet!!!

Anybody else have dealings with this sh!tty crappy warranty?

[f6john]

   Ouch! I just bought an AC Delco water pump for my 95 Impala SS from Rock Auto. I questioned myself about buying online vs a local supplier for a part that is notorious for going bad on the LT1 engines. I did go with new versus a rebuild. At least the pumps usually give a little warning and don't leave you on the side of the road. Hope you find a better solution.

[jwinker]

Ordered a MAS for my Ranger from RockAuto a while back. Received a used part. I was able to return it immediately and get a refund without much hassle. HOWEVER - this meant that my pickup was running like crap for an extra 3 days while I waited for the part, then ended up buying from a local store anyway. I wasn't impressed.

I also ordered a pair of replacement mirrors from them. The mirrors work - and work just fine for a 15-year old pickup with 175k and quite a bit of rust - but they are notably lower quality then OEM. The plastic feels lighter, the image is slightly wavy, and the adjustment motors are god-awful not precise. They were also $60 for the pair rather than $250ea. So...I have that going for me...

[tjohnson]

I have had nothing but success with Rock Auto. However, make no mistake, I WILL NOT buy any electronic part from anyone online! I want the ability to walk right back in and throw it at them, well actually hand them the crappy piece back. Sorry about your incident, and hopefully it can be resolved. Good luck!

[Jess Tolbirt]

put yourself in their shoes,, i buy a part from you and it goes bad,,you dont know me at all,,would you send me a replacement and trust me to send the other one back to you? also as far as credit goes, ever wonder how many times someone has bought something and that was not the problem and want their money back? now you would have a used part instead of a new one to sell,, so i agree with them, if you cant send me the old one and let me warranty it for you then i will give you a store credit after i receive the bad part...but i would go one step further, if cardone was to warranty the part for me i would then change your instore credit for a refund.. but thats just me..

[Tx Bohemian]

put yourself in their shoes,, i buy a part from you and it goes bad,,you dont know me at all,,would you send me a replacement and trust me to send the other one back to you? also as far as credit goes, ever wonder how many times someone has bought something and that was not the problem and want their money back? now you would have a used part instead of a new one to sell,, so i agree with them, if you cant send me the old one and let me warranty it for you then i will give you a store credit after i receive the bad part...but i would go one step further, if cardone was to warranty the part for me i would then change your instore credit for a refund.. but thats just me..

Yeah, I know.  I'm guilty until proven innocent, that's just the way it is nowadays.

One pisser about this ordeal is I could've paid $25 bucks for the wrecker driver to take the car to my house where I still had the old dist.  It still worked but, like I said, leaked oil.
But, really, who'd think the new dist would've gone bad in 3 months??  I was thinking with 217K miles it's probably the fuel pump, since the electrical system is new!!

[musclehead]

the only things I've bought from them so far is a serpentine belt (gates) and a fuel filter (mann)

saved about 45-50 bucks over the local stores.

[bentwrench]

I like rock auto for some stuff.But after 35 yrs. in the car biz here in philly I tell with all certainty stay away from cardo.I have never seen more parts come out the box defective than I have with them.
Every time I get away from fact o/h or napa brand o/h parts I get screwed.You won't save money using cheap or noname rebuilt parts.Stick with the pros or look for low mile stuff in the u-pullit

[vanagon40]

. . . Their warranty policy is if a part fails, such as this dist, you send it to them and they send you another one. . . .

Actually, that sounds like the warranty policy at almost all the places I shop.  I certainly do not believe that if a part I purchased at AutoZone or O'Rielly or Advanced or NAPA failed I could take it back to the store and get a cash refund.  Instead, I would have to exchange the failed part for a new one.

I have purchased parts from RockAuto, but have never had a part fail under warranty.

[da prez]

  I have used them a couple times , but no warranty issues. Use the credit for timing belts ,lights etc.
 for the Valk. Find car parts that you will use. Spray cleaners ,waxes .

                             da prez

[Tx Bohemian]

  I have used them a couple times , but no warranty issues. Use the credit for timing belts ,lights etc.
 for the Valk. Find car parts that you will use. Spray cleaners ,waxes .

                             da prez

Yeah, I've got a plan. If I can't get anywhere by calling back and arguing about this crappy warranty, I'll see what kinda deals they offer throughout my one year credit time   and if they offer free shipping just order the very minimum amount. And as soon as I get a tracking # that it's on the way place another order. 
Like if they offer LEDs, order the minimum for my Nissan, then for my Valk, then for the TrailBlazer, etc... (maybe won't work but it'll make me feel better)

This will be my fetish for the year or until my credit is up!
The bastards!!!

[RainMaker]

Warranties differ with each manufacturer.  They could have had a 30 day warranty.  Did you read the warranty before you bought the part?  The exchange (you send back the bad part, they send back a good one) is pretty standard practice.  Some companies will send you the newer part immediately but charge your credit card and then credit it back once the bad part arrives.  But they are not out of line, IMHO, as to what they are doing.

Some companies go beyond their warranty to help you.  I just had a portable sound system that had been repaired under warranty 14 months ago to go bad again.  The product had a 2 year warranty and is now out of warranty.  I got on the phone and told them my tale and the company (MiPro) agreed this should not happen and sent me a new one.  This was a $700 system so it put a dent in their pocketbook, but they looked at the long term happiness of their customer (me).  So, I'd just start calling, when you get a "no" ask for a supervisor and keep moving up.  You can also ask for the president of the company - many times, they will break policy to keep customers from badmouthing their companies. 

But if warranty is important, always read them before you buy.

[cma1]

I am beginning to think that dealing "online" for anything important is a bad idea. when I deal locally and have a problem there is no problem getting it replaced. local wants my business. online could care less as there are a million other people who are standing in line to be screwed on a cheap offshore part made by people who are doing work americans should be doing.

we all complain about jobs going offshore, but because we think we are saving a buck we order our stuff from china. I would say we get what we deserve. until we get back to buying American made products this will be a problem. but then this is just my personal opinion.

[Jess Tolbirt]

rock auto is located in Madison Wisconsin

[cma1]

true, now tell us where the stuff they sell is made ? o'reillys is an American company too but most of the stuff they sell ain't. I wouldn't buy a Chinese made windshield wiper from my local chevy dealer either.

[Rams]

My only comment is a question, did read your warranty?    If not, shame on you.    Know what you're getting into up front.    Don't get me wrong, I understand your situation but, I also understand the supplier's situation.    When you order on line, you accept that it's going to take longer to get that warranty part.   Sorry but, it is what it is.

They didn't have the option to help you.  

On the other side of the coin, auto parts companies are constantly getting scammed and thieves are everywhere.   Not talking about you but, I see it everyday.    Between the thieves and the scammers, I honestly do hate my job.    I work in the auto parts industry.    Daily I see folks trying to warranty (as an example) a set of brake rotors that have grooves an 1/8th of an inch deep on both rotors and then complain the rotors are at fault because the pads are worn clear through to the caliper pistons.    Yes, I see this on a daily basis.    I have no sympathy for thieves or scammers.    That is not to suggest or imply you are a thief or a scammer.

[Tx Bohemian]

My only comment is a question, did read your warranty?    If not, shame on you.    Know what you're getting into up front.    Don't get me wrong, I understand your situation but, I also understand the supplier's situation.    When you order on line, you accept that it's going to take longer to get that warranty part.   Sorry but, it is what it is.

No, I didn't read the warranty (so yeah, shame on me) but, what good would that have done in this situation?
I purchased this part in good faith that it will last, at least MUCH longer than 3 months!! Paid for it with my money RIGHT AWAY otherwise I wouldn't have got it, rite?
In other words, I trusted them first that they were going to send the part to me.  They got my money long before the part came.  And I trusted them that I was going to get a QUALITY part!

They didn't have the option to help you.

I agree, not right away. (except they could've sent me a QUALITY part that wasn't going to fail in 3 STINKIN' months!! and leave me on the side of a busy road having to push it about 30 yards into a parking lot!!  and making me 3 hours late to work!! and disrupting the wifes schedule too!! 
In addition to the $350 cost to replace the EXACT SAME PART!!!)

But now, since it is an uncommon situation, I feel they can/should make an exception.

 

On the other side of the coin, auto parts companies are constantly getting scammed and thieves are everywhere.   Not talking about you but, I see it everyday.    Between the thieves and the scammers, I honestly do hate my job.    I work in the auto parts industry.        I have no sympathy for thieves or scammers.    That is not to suggest or imply you are a thief or a scammer.

I am not, in no way, taking your post as you suggesting I'm a thief or scammer.
I really appreciate your insight as someone in this field.

And I realize that I'm guilty until proven innocent in this situation which is, IMO, a bit discriminating because I strive to be a very honest person (that conscience is a b!tch!!) but also realizing this is the way of the world.
So us honest people have to go out of our way due to the A$$hats that aren't as honest and caused all this mistrust!

[Rams]

It may be too late, I've never ordered anything from this company but, check your warranty.   Does it allow for return for defective reasons for cash?   Does it allow for labor charges?    Does it allow for tow charges in case of failure?    Does it allow for lost work time?

Sorry, I don't know the answer to these questions.

What I will say is, anytime you order on line, you get what you pay for, that includes service and quality.    I'm not saying it's going to be bad or good but, you're always taking a chance.

I really am sorry about your situation.    I can advise you on how to get better pricing but, you need to contact me separately from this thread.

[Tropic traveler]

As a 39 year veteran of LOCAL parts stores & car dealership parts all I can say is...............

[Tx Bohemian]

As a 39 year veteran of LOCAL parts stores & car dealership parts all I can say is...............

Well, as an old auto mechanic that worked in a couple of dealerships and having to deal with parts people multiple times daily, back at ya!!!

[vanagon40]

So I’m not sure I understand.

You are upset with RockAuto because they did not send you a “QUALITY” part and the part failed in three months.  Do you believe that the part was not a “QUALITY” part because it was a Cardone brand, or because RockAuto somehow knew that the part (regardless of brand) would fail in three months?  I assume it must be the latter, because you purchased a Cardone replacement from O’Reilly Auto Parts.  If you believed that Cardone was junk, you would not have knowingly purchased the Cardone distributor from RockAuto (I assume the RockAuto part clearly showed it was a Cardone distributor) and you certainly would not have purchased a second Cardone distributor from O’Reilly.

So do you believe that RockAuto is purchasing rejects or defective parts from Cardone and then passing them on to unsuspecting consumers such as yourself?

I guess I still do not see how RockAuto has victimized you.

You had a part fail while under warranty.  Rather than return the part to the seller for a warranty replacement, you purchased a part from another retailer.  You are now upset because the original seller will not give you a cash refund.

Do you really believe that AutoZone, O’Reilly, Advance Auto, or NAPA would treat you any differently?

As an old auto mechanic that worked in a couple of dealerships, did you give cash refunds for parts that failed during the warranty period?  Actually, you probably never had the issue arise, as I assume you always replaced the parts with "QUALITY" parts so no part you installed ever failed during the warranty period.

[Robert]

On line will never give you the service that face to face will. You bought the part cheaper on line and that was the risk you took. It failed but everyone sells Cardone parts, now you want a online seller to honor it like it was a face to face retailer then get upset when they cant and wont and your car would be down. Karma its sometimes a bitch, and quite frankly I am surprised they went that far to try to make you happy. That is why you DON'T buy online. If its mission critical you go to a local outlet you trust that has proven itself with parts and customer service, get the quality part as cheaply as you can locally. I dont want to piss you off and am sorry it worked out this way but in anything if you have to have it correct, and you cant take a chance doing the job again then you plan ahead, that includes even to say what if the part failed. That is why most businesses do not order online because they have to stand behind the part and would have to sit on their profit for someone elses failed part. But now you became the shop and had to stand behind your own plan and work even when its someone elses part. I would say you dont have a leg to stand on or be upset about and in fact should be thanking RockAuto that gave you a credit instead of just exchanging the part which could have also been a option if they wanted to be hard nosed about it. It used to be that any electrical part could only be exchanged for the same part if defective, no returns, no credit. Don't whine like a girl and think its someone elses fault when everyone acted in good faith and the part failed and it was hardship for you, just because you wanted to save money from a online retailer.

[Tropic traveler]

As a 39 year veteran of LOCAL parts stores & car dealership parts all I can say is...............

Well, as an old auto mechanic that worked in a couple of dealerships and having to deal with parts people multiple times daily, back at ya!!!

My rolleyes was directed at the "on-line buyers remorse" the op was experiencing.
Awfully presumptuous of you to assume all parts people are like the ones you had to deal with. 

[RainMaker]

Yes, it is because of the thieves and scam artists that honest people have to do a lot of the things we do.  Depending on the Golden Rule will put a business into bankruptcy pretty quickly these days.

If only 1% of those particular parts fail, it's only a problem if you are the 1%, as your experience is 100% bad.  I had an alternator installed on a Chevy Van back in the 90s after one failed.  I drove the van 100 miles away and the new one failed.  It was a genuine new Delco part, but it failed.  I was fortunate to be able to get to another Chevy dealer for a replacement after a few phone calls, but the point is that any company or mechanic would not put a bad part or use a manufacturer with poor quality in their business on purpose. They lose money on the deal with an exchange with the paperwork alone.   

While the cage drivers are all out to get us, I don't think Rockauto is.

[Jess Tolbirt]

walk into any parts house today and ask for a Rochester 2 barrel carburetor,, there are no parts people left,,,i had auto zone tell me they dont make those,, so i told him i needed a 2 bbl carb for a 1960 chevy impala 283 engine, and guess what he brought out? yep, i told him i couldnt buy that carb, and he asked why,, and i said because they dont make those... 

[Rams]

walk into any parts house today and ask for a Rochester 2 barrel carburetor,, there are no parts people left,,,i had auto zone tell me they dont make those,, so i told him i needed a 2 bbl carb for a 1960 chevy impala 283 engine, and guess what he brought out? yep, i told him i couldnt buy that carb, and he asked why,, and i said because they dont make those... 

Jess.
I'm old enough to relate to how the old Auto Parts stores operated and have used the "books" long ago but, the system has changed, the number, types, technologies and brand names have changed enormously.    This is not the world we grew up in.    While I know what you're asking for, finding it in today's computers can be a challenge.   In the system I work in, you must have that part # to do anything.

Recently, I had a customer searching for a set of "spider gears" for his vehicle.   Now, I know what a set of spider gears are and where they are located in the vehicle but, for the life of me, I could not find them in our computer.    Finally found them after the customer got pissed off and left but, they were not under differentials as spider gears, found them under "Open Components".     

I still don't understand that one.

[Jess Tolbirt]

did you know that merc cruiser uses gm gears in their out drives? the gear that changes the position of the out drive up and down is a set of spider gears,, buy them from parts house and they were like 30 bucs but by them from mercury marine and they were 500 bucs...lots of stuff goes on like that..

[Rams]

did you know that merc cruiser uses gm gears in their out drives? the gear that changes the position of the out drive up and down is a set of spider gears,, buy them from parts house and they were like 30 bucs but by them from mercury marine and they were 500 bucs...lots of stuff goes on like that..

Your description of their purpose sounds reasonable for what a spider gear does but, I don't know crap about boats.   

[Tx Bohemian]

So I’m not sure I understand.

Yeah, it looks like you don't.  Read on, maybe this will help...

You are upset with RockAuto because they did not send you a “QUALITY” part and the part failed in three months.  Do you believe that the part was not a “QUALITY” part because it was a Cardone brand, or because RockAuto somehow knew that the part (regardless of brand) would fail in three months?  I assume it must be the latter,

Careful, you know what happens when people assume (_{makes an} ASS/_{out of} U/_and ME).

because you purchased a Cardone replacement from O’Reilly Auto Parts.  If you believed that Cardone was junk, you would not have knowingly purchased the Cardone distributor from RockAuto (I assume the RockAuto part clearly showed it was a Cardone distributor) and you certainly would not have purchased a second Cardone distributor from O’Reilly.

As stated in the original post, I did not choose to purchase the second dist. by cardone, the garage called ORiellys for a dist and that is what they sent.
They strongly suspected the problem to be the dist after their inspections/diagnosis but with it being only 3 months old they needed to be for sure, next step was to replace it. And I'm sure this garage, or any garage for that matter, doesn't have these dist just laying around for testing purposes.

So do you believe that RockAuto is purchasing rejects or defective parts from Cardone and then passing them on to unsuspecting consumers such as yourself?

No I don't. 
Seems like you're "assuming". (see assumption explanation above)

I guess I still do not see how RockAuto has victimized you.

You had a part fail while under warranty.  Rather than return the part to the seller for a warranty replacement, you purchased a part from another retailer. You are now upset because the original seller will not give you a cash refund.

Did you not read/understand the original post and see what predicament I was left in due to this failed part?
And I'd be even more furious if this happened to my wife or one of my  kids!!!

Do you really believe that AutoZone, O’Reilly, Advance Auto, or NAPA would treat you any differently?

Yes I do. Over the years I've had similar situations to where I've gotten refunded from three of these places you've mentioned.

As an old auto mechanic that worked in a couple of dealerships, did you give cash refunds for parts that failed during the warranty period?

Not sure about the cash refunds, although that probably did happen, however the management would go way out of their way to make sure the customer was pleased. Although, as anybody that works with the public knows, some people are never pleased.

 

Actually, you probably never had the issue arise, as I assume you always replaced the parts with "QUALITY" parts so no part you installed ever failed during the warranty period.

Again, you're assuming (covered that above).

The "replaced the parts with "QUALITY" parts so no part you installed ever failed" statement is too foolish to reply to BUT...
If there was an incident to where a failure with a part we installed happened on the road, such as what happened to me, we would go out of our way to appease the customer and make it as least intrusive to them as possible (rent car, wrecker at our cost, repaired at no cost to customer, etc...).

This is, evidently, where we differ. I'm old school and still expect some kind of "customer service/satisfaction".

Hope this helped.

Now I'll assume;
 I guess you're rolling in money to where paying gobs of money for something you've already repaired isn't that big a of a deal for you.

It is for me.

[Tx Bohemian]

As a 39 year veteran of LOCAL parts stores & car dealership parts all I can say is...............

Well, as an old auto mechanic that worked in a couple of dealerships and having to deal with parts people multiple times daily, back at ya!!!

My rolleyes was directed at the "on-line buyers remorse" the op was experiencing.

Ok, that was not clear, at least to me.

Awfully presumptuous of you to assume all parts people are like the ones you had to deal with. 

Presumtious or not, although I didn't state "all" parts people I dealt with were bad, over my 20yrs auto mechanicing  and 22yrs maintenance mechanicing (still having to deal with parts people) I can tell you some hairraising stories of parts people.

Just like I'm sure you can tell me stories of mechanics that you've had to deal with that thought they "know it all".

Perhaps sometime we can get together and tell our "war stories" over a beer or two.

[Jess Tolbirt]

ok my turn,,lets say you put in a "quality" part, lets say an AC/DELCO dist. and it failed 3 months down the road with your wife and kids in the car,, now you said and i quote "And I'd be even more furious if this happened to my wife or one of my  kids!!! " 
ok so now who you gonna be pissed at? your self or AC/DELCO? and if you did get a refund, the fact remains that it still failed,, so the way i read it is that if you get a refund in cash, it would be ok even if it was your wife and kid?
i am sorry but i just dont see your point.

[Tx Bohemian]

Wow!! 
Maybe I'm not explaining at the right level.

ok my turn,,lets say you put in a "quality" part, lets say an AC/DELCO dist. and it failed 3 months down the road with your wife and kids in the car,, now you said and i quote "And I'd be even more furious if this happened to my wife or one of my  kids!!! " 
ok so now who you gonna be pissed at? your self or AC/DELCO?

Why would I be pissed at myself??

Unless there was something I did to cause it to break. And in this case it wasn't!

and if you did get a refund, the fact remains that it still failed,, so the way i read it is that if you get a refund in cash, it would be ok even if it was your wife and kid?

Evidently you're reading more into this.  I never said it'd be ok at all.  No matter who was in the car or even if I got all my money back from rockauto or cardone!!

i am sorry but i just dont see your point.

That's obvious.

Take this scenario:
If you replaced the rear wheel bearings in your bike and it cost you $160.
Then a couple of months later you go on a trip and you're in BFE and you break down. You call a wrecker and take it to a bike repair place cause you have no tools or place to work on it where you are. 
They have to replace the rear wheel bearings again due to one that failed. They sock you with a $350 bill.

Let me ask you this:

Would you just shrug it off?

Or would you have a tendency to go back to where you got the first bearings from, or the guy who did it the first time and discuss it with him?

[The emperor has no clothes]

Looks like we are going to have to add distributors to the list of sensitive subjects along with oil, car tires, ford trucks

[Jess Tolbirt]

Wow!!  
Maybe I'm not explaining at the right level.

Take this scenario:
If you replaced the rear wheel bearings in your bike and it cost you $160.
Then a couple of months later you go on a trip and you're in BFE and you break down. You call a wrecker and take it to a bike repair place cause you have no tools or place to work on it where you are.  
They have to replace the rear wheel bearings again due to one that failed. They sock you with a $350 bill.

Let me ask you this:

Would you just shrug it off?

Or would you have a tendency to go back to where you got the first bearings from, or the guy who did it the first time and discuss it with him?

this is how i would handle it.
i buy a 400 dollar dist from rock auto and put it in my car.
3 months later it quits and i have to pay for another one plus labor because i am out in BFE..
when i got back home i would call rock auto and ask them how they want to handle the return of the one that went bad.
if they tell me to mail it to them then a decision would be made, thats what i would do, mail it to them.
if they decide to give me a store credit then thats what i would be happy with, but since they have the bad part and if they offer a refund then i would be happy with that too..
the cost of the new one bought out on the road would be all my cost..

i just noticed where you are from, Victoria, and you probably work out at dupont, so i know you can just suck it up and write it off with the money you make out there,,, just ribbin ya a little,, i am from Lake Jackson...and worked in victoria many years back

o yea, i have a set of double wheel bearings for the rear,, do you want them?

[Tropic traveler]

Been selling parts since 1976 when there was very little electronics & almost everything was carbureted. Started with Ford, Lincoln, & Mercury parts in 1988. I'm the "old parts guy" that everyone in my area hollers for when something old rolls in or calls in on the phone.
Not a whole lot of scenarios that I haven't seen.  
One thing I can tell you the internet has near completely whored out the parts market. I too am guilty of using internet sources for some replacement parts {except Ford parts, I'm all OEM there!  } mainly because it is so easy for me to do. I understand that when I buy on-line there are certain risks I take that are not there with a local point of sale purchase. I accept them as part of the lower cost deal.
One thing that will get a parts persons BP up is when people call in to a dealer & try to wrangle the correct part # from us to buy it online. Usually because of piss poor look up skills at the online parts source. Tough titty buddy, let the guy making the sale do the work.  

Yes I do have a PILE of idiot customer stories to tell!  
BTW, our look up computer {Snap-on CPD} only goes back to 1980. We have the books to go back, way, way, way back if needed but it's kind of pointless since not much is available {discontinued} anyways.
BTW again, the old wives tale that OE manufacturers "have to keep parts for XXX years by law" is bull. Emissions & safety parts have a set time but not a darn thing else. If it don't sell enough, it's GONE!
 

[Tx Bohemian]

Wow!!  
Maybe I'm not explaining at the right level.

Take this scenario:
If you replaced the rear wheel bearings in your bike and it cost you $160.
Then a couple of months later you go on a trip and you're in BFE and you break down. You call a wrecker and take it to a bike repair place cause you have no tools or place to work on it where you are.  
They have to replace the rear wheel bearings again due to one that failed. They sock you with a $350 bill.

Let me ask you this:

Would you just shrug it off?

Or would you have a tendency to go back to where you got the first bearings from, or the guy who did it the first time and discuss it with him?

this is how i would handle it.
i buy a 400 dollar dist from rock auto and put it in my car.
3 months later it quits and i have to pay for another one plus labor because i am out in BFE..
when i got back home i would call rock auto and ask them how they want to handle the return of the one that went bad.
if they tell me to mail it to them then a decision would be made, thats what i would do, mail it to them.
if they decide to give me a store credit then thats what i would be happy with, but since they have the bad part and if they offer a refund then i would be happy with that too..
the cost of the new one bought out on the road would be all my cost..

i just noticed where you are from, Victoria, and you probably work out at dupont, so i know you can just suck it up and write it off with the money you make out there,,, just ribbin ya a little,, i am from Lake Jackson...and worked in victoria many years back

o yea, i have a set of double wheel bearings for the rear,, do you want them?

Hmmm...
As I stated initially, we're on different levels here!

No, I don't work for Dupont (anymore) but still, yeah, I can probably "suck it up".
But to me, and this is where our levels differ, it's the principle.

If everybody just laid down and took what these companies told us without arguing they'd run over us, or at least that's my thoughts.
And I'll do (and am doing) my part to question things (at the least).
Will anything come out of this? Who knows. Maybe not, maybe so. But at least I'll know I gave it my best shot. And that alone makes me feel good about it.

As I've said on this board a few times "to each his own".

And this is my "own" way.

And although there has been a few responses on this thread that I didn't "agree" with I do appreciate the feedback, no matter what side it's on.
I do have a tendency to get tunnel vision and not see all sides, just mine.

Oh, and thanks Jess for the offer of the wheel bearings but I replaced mine a couple of years ago hunting a clicking noise in the rear that turned out to be a bad chromed wheel.