Recycled, Reliable, Ready: Why Smart Shops Are Turning to Recycled OEM Parts

Welcome to Ratchet and Wrench Radio, produced by Endeavour Business Media, a division of Endeavour B2B, bringing you strategies and inspiration for auto care success.

Welcome back to Ratchet and Wrench Radio. I'm your host editor, Christine Schaffrin. When auto repair shops hear recycled parts, questions about quality, reliability,

and cycle time often come to mind. But today's professional automotive recyclers are far cry from the junkyards of the past. Using advanced inventory systems, rigorous inspection processes, and nationwide logistics networks, recycled original equipment is helping shops control costs, source parts faster, and give customers more affordable repair options.

In this episode of Ratchet and Wrench Radio, I sit down with Vince Adevon and Shannon Nordstrom of the Automotive Recyclers Association to break down how recycled OEM parts are sourced, certified, and delivered, and why more repair shops are embracing them as a smart, sustainable solution for today's repair challenges. Let's listen in.

Welcome to Ratchet and Wrench Radio. I am joined this afternoon by Shannon Nordstrom, President of the Automotive Recyclers Association and Executive Director, Vince Adevon.

Thank you.

We're here today. Thanks for joining me, guys.

Glad to be here.

Thanks for having me, Christine. It's good to be here.

Yeah, we're here today to talk about the possibilities when it comes to embracing recycled original equipment. Now, for listeners who may not be as familiar, can you guys just give us a quick overview of what the Automotive Recyclers Association does and your role within the organization?

Who wants to start?

Shannon, do you mind if I start?

I was just going to say you can start, Vince, because you know I'll talk plenty once I get going.

I got to get my piece in first, right? So yeah, thanks, Christine. We're thrilled to be here. And it took us a while to get this coordinated, but it's well worth the effort.

We got to chat for a few minutes before we started recording, and I'm looking forward to the conversation we're going to have.

The Automotive Recyclers Association has been around since 1943, and we are the only trade association for automotive recycling.

Like most trade associations, we hold the responsibility of advocating. We do that on a state and federal level to protect the rights of automotive recyclers.

We provide training. We have certification programs for our members. We have an annual conference, which is one of the biggest conferences in this industry each year.

And so yeah, that's our role. My role as executive director. I've been with ARA for almost eight years.

I've been the executive director for about a year and a half, and Shannon is part of our volunteer executive committee, and he's currently president.

So go ahead, Shannon.

Yeah, I took on the mantle of president in Birmingham, Alabama at our convention and became the ninth president of the Automotive Recyclers Association.

I am leading the executive committee. There's a team of five that are actively engaged with the support and policy decision making for the association.

And this is my fourth year in a five-year commitment to the association.

And so my role this year is to lead and to make sure we are staying on track with what's current in the industry, watching out for our members' best interests and reporting those things through our committee structure.

We've got a really great volunteer committee structure that brings all the different aspects of what we do as professional automotive recyclers to the forefront to, as Vince said, to advocate for the reuse

and proper utilization as best possible of used automotive parts, recycled original equipment, as we like to say, because the manufacturer made it.

The manufacturer said it was good enough for them, and we harvest and recycle that and bring it back so customers can use it in the same way as the manufacturer intended.

So let's talk about that a little bit. When we say recycled OEM parts, what exactly do we mean? How are these parts sourced and prepared for resale?

Tell me a little bit about the process.

Yeah, no, I'm a salvage facility, for some might say. You can use the junkyard word. We don't like it. We have very sophisticated businesses.

I'm in South Dakota, and we have just short of 80 employees, and we are constantly purchasing insurance salvage.

We are constantly professionally grading it, picturing it, categorizing it, dismantling it, and making those pieces available to our customers,

whether that be via electronic trading, by telephone, email, pat on teams, whatever it might happen to be, making that available to our customers.

There's many different business models in our industry, and we support all of them that are our members because they all do different things.

When it comes to the professional automotive dismantler and reselling to collision shops, mechanic shops, the people that are the professional repairers,

we have a goal to build relationships with them to use the product that has been harvested, inspected, and then made available at a cost savings.

And also, we don't want to lose in the conversation at the carbon savings of reusing something that doesn't have to be manufactured again and making it available for the repairs.

And I guess Vince, from your perspective, what's driving the growing interest in this market? What's the allure? Is it the cost, the sustainability, supply issues, auto shops are having,

is there any one that you would pinpoint, or is it a mixture of all the above?

Yeah. No, Christine, you named it. I mean, it is a, for us, it's a beautiful combination of all of those things, right?

And sadly, I mean, nobody was thrilled about COVID, but one of the things it did was highlight the availability of recycled original equipment.

So when there became supply chain issues, and people couldn't get parts, and even to today, you know, sometimes people are still struggling to get parts.

Those parts are readily available through the recycled market.

And so we, you know, we see that all of those factors play a significant role in creating value.

There's, I think, the one that continues to be more, it's not more important, but I think it's growing.

Like, if you were to look at all those things that you just pointed out and consider each one of them as kind of a market reason for using recycled parts.

Sustainability is the one it's, people, how much do Americans consider sustainability when they make purchasing choices?

I don't know what the value is, but what I do know is the value is greater today than it was yesterday.

And it's going to be even greater tomorrow than it is today.

So that is an area that's becoming increasingly more focused on.

And it's an area that we've studied.

We've contracted with the Worcester Polytech Institute, Massachusetts.

They've done in-depth studies on specific parts to give us a carbon footprint savings.

We've done two studies with them. The first one we did several years ago, and they determined that the automotive recycling industry is a carbon negative industry.

And then we did another one a few years ago where they studied specific parts and they assigned a carbon savings to those parts.

You know, if you put a recycled engine in your Toyota Camry, that's the equivalent to the amount of carbon energy it would take to charge 140,000, something similar to that.

That's an area that's getting increasingly more focus.

And, you know, we're sitting here. We've got all these parts. You don't have to go remake them.

Now, there's listeners out there who are thinking, oh boy, I don't know what kind of quality am I getting?

What kind of fitment issues am I going to have?

I know that there's a process that these parts do have to go through.

Yeah, we do this every day. And I will have to add that every facility as they become further into the food chain, I'll call it of automotive parts supply,

realize the comparisons between the other parts that are used.

And I will start off by saying, and I was going to say this earlier before I go into the quality control process,

there are parts that don't make any sense to buy as recycled.

I'm just saying this as somebody that's known that there's not enough pricing there to have savings to make it qualify for the time it would take

for some of the refinishing that would need to be taken place in certain circumstances and things like that.

So at our facility, we've got just some very well-lit areas that the vehicles are inventoried by professional inventory technicians

that look at, I have three people looking at cars all day long and they're looking at the panels on the collision side

to make sure they don't have too thick of paint mills. They're looking for previous body repair.

They're looking for good quality parts. They're making sure that, say the vehicle had an accident on the left front,

they got to make sure that that didn't carry through into any of the panels that appear good on the left side of the car yet.

You're looking for just what the options are.

If it's a case of a door assembly, somebody's trying to match options.

And all of this is categorized in our systems.

And we utilize a very extensive interchange system in the industry called the Holliner Interchange System.

And that Holliner Interchange System allows us to categorize which parts are available to know what fits what and what it can be applied to.

We've got VIN numbers attached to everything that we do.

We've got the option codes. We're getting all the time deeper into that on how we have the ability to get down right to, in some cases,

we can't say it's a direct swap but having the right paint code if a person's looking for that so that it cuts down on the jamming time.

We're never going to say hang and go because we don't want to be held to somebody else's shading and painting standards.

But when you've got a part that you can potentially get that's got even the same color jamming by paint code,

that can save an extensive amount of time for somebody.

And we look at those pieces, each one of them, and then we consider the value proposition based on supply and demand,

just like any other industry would, and make them available to our wholesale professional customers.

And we also sell to the do-it-yourselfers. There's plenty of them.

But in our business, we're 75% to the professional repairer that has a sales tax license and 25% to the do-it-yourselfer.

And so we're always trying to make sure we match the mark for our customers.

And I know I'm running on just a little bit here. I'll just say one more thing.

As we get further into that part supply chain, we try to get our people to be more educated about what the shop needs,

what the professional shop needs, what is their expectation.

And we got to make sure those match because sometimes we'll get folks that are in the repair side of things

that maybe came from another business background and they know business very well,

but they may not know the parts usage availability.

And so they start to have some some interpretations if there's any flaw.

And the realism is, is that flawless is not realistic.

We just don't want to have unnoticed damage or unnoticed problems that can't be identified to let the shop know what they're getting.

And so they can make a decision on their usability prior to it even getting there.

The advent of technology has helped us so much.

Pictures can fly around like crazy.

Most everybody in the professional arena on our side of the fence has got a quality control process

that allows a part to be stalled in the process if it's not matching so they can reach out to the shop to ask them,

you know, here's what we found. Is this going to be okay?

And trying to eliminate those down times and the cycle time problems that we don't want the shops to have.

Trying to make sure we keep things on track for them.

All right, well, let's talk cycle times a little bit because that's a huge, huge problem for auto repair shop owners

is obviously being able to source parts in a timely fashion.

That's probably according to our research, the number one issue people are having right now.

How do these parts impact cycle time and customer satisfaction and all these things that shop owners are looking for?

Well, I know right now if you have availability of a clean 50 aluminum fender for a newer truck,

you could probably sell it to 14 people in five minutes because they need that part to finish the job.

It's not about finishing the job in two days versus one day. It's about even finishing the job.

You can't finish the job without the fender.

And that goes back to what Vince said earlier during COVID.

I think a lot of folks rediscovered the professional automotive recycler because they just couldn't get parts

and they were reaching out for some that hadn't for a long time and they were accessing our inventories

and we made a lot of great relationships that have stuck through post COVID because they realized that

maybe that automotive recycling industry has changed a little bit since last time they took their sample size

or maybe they've made their sample size based on a couple of bad experiences

and never revisited it to see what potential is out there with qualified vendors.

And there's programs out there in our industry like the ARA. We have the Certified Autoracycler Program

and on top of that we have the Gold Seal Quality Assurance Program

and these are the types of things that are making promises with the customers

on the way we're going to behave in our transactions and how we're going to handle things,

how we're going to handle returns, how we're going to handle payments,

all these different things that are available to make a service level agreement

with somebody that we're working with on how we want to do business together.

Part of the challenge in this comes in with electronic sourcing of parts

and I'm guessing that I haven't listened to all these episodes

but I'm guessing that it comes up often that in the electronic sourcing of parts

when the insurance companies start putting multiple parts from multiple vendors

of recycled parts onto estimates, they're probably working hard to accomplish their goal

of bringing the estimate down but that's really not helping the professional shop in their cycle time

when they start having parts coming from multiple different vendors

and sometimes when they start doing that if they're not paying attention to the quality aspect

of the part that's offered and the price becomes the issue

it puts the professional repair in a bad position because they may have picked a part

that had a lower price point but not realize what the quality standard was

and then the shop has that estimate to work with

and then they find that that part was not of quality

either when they check on it to buy it

or they order it and find out that it wasn't what they thought it was going to be

and those are huge disruptors in cycle time

and I think that we would definitely be in the camp to say

let's try to get as many parts sourced close to me as I can

so we're not getting parts also sourced into a larger regional footprint

that becomes problematic where it's, I'm sorry I'm wandering here

and just going on but it's such an issue for shops

I feel their pain and so we're trying to cooperate with shops

to let them know that we want to help them through that process

if they happen to get something on an estimate that doesn't make any sense to them

is there a way we can help them figure that out with the inventory that's closer to home

Yeah, for people who have the perception

I guess that use might mean less reliable quote unquote

how would you respond to them?

I want Shannon to answer since he's an owner-operator

but we can talk all day about warranties and quality

so go ahead Shannon

Yeah, 100%

you know when we bring the vehicles in

we are whenever possible, however possible

run testing that vehicle and checking the components

we're taking a YouTube video going around the vehicle with it running

and showing the dashboard

our inventory techs have access to scanners that they use

if there's check engine lights to see what might be causing that

something related to the accident from the car we got it from

or did it have a previous problem

there is obviously as we go through our processes

we utilize car facts

we utilize whatever service records we can get our hands on through that process

to help us find out if the vehicle had replaced components

as it had warranty work done

in our mechanical arena part of the certification standard

for being recall certified

we run each vehicle through a recall check

at the inventory process at the dismantling process

and on certain components of the sale process

to make sure that we're not selling recall parts

and the level that we go to

and we teach to at the professional side of things is quite high

now I'm going to just temper myself back

not all of our members take things to that level

that another member might

it doesn't mean the other one's wrong

they just might run a different business model

and that's why it's important if you're a shop owner that's listening

and I know there's some that are going to be listening

that have wonderful relationships with automotive recycling facilities

and they lean on them a lot in the mechanical world to help them

and there's going to be others going to say

ah that never worked for me

they were always a problem

they sent me junk

it has always bent dirty stuff stuck on it that I had to torch off

I mean that's out there

I'm not going to deny

but that's where you look for members of the Automotive Recyclers Association

you look for people that have got the certified auto recycling

certified automotive recycler standard

people that are in the Gold Seal program

we're currently working with another one of our industry

sisters and brothers in the industry

the United Recyclers Group

putting together a quality assurance program

that will be a combined effort between both groups

that will take that to another level yet

and that's something that's coming out here in the next half a year

the process is in place

but there is a big big desire

for what we do at a professional level

people want the parts

and we have a desire as a Recyclers Association

to teach and promote our members to be able to reach those standards

and not everybody's going to make it

but you know at the same time

as you have listeners and owners

there's some owners that have got everything figured out

and it runs like a well-oiled machine

they got employees they've had for 15 years

and everything works great every day

and there's other ones that don't

and they have challenges

they're trying to figure out

and so we're no different

we're trying to run profitable businesses

but we want to make ourselves great partners

with our shop customers

so we want to know what they need

and try to match that

offer great warranties that have labor allowances

so if something doesn't go right

there's labor reimbursements

that's all available if you find the right partner

and Vince this is something that we talked about

a little bit before the show

shop owners have a

not all shop owners

but shop owners in general

are fighting this reputation within the industry

of being crooked

trying to

rip off their customers

and things of that nature

Vince you had alluded to this industry

dealing with that same reputation

and trying to prove

tell me a little bit about what we're

I would say to

shop owners who are listening

who've had a bad experience

with an auto recycler

look like Shannon said

there are professional auto recyclers

and then there's junkyards

and unfortunately

we exist in the bubble

we know exactly how to determine the difference between the two

but I would say that if

some of the people listening to this

would say the same thing about

their peers

you've got responsible, ethical

auto repairs that have integrity

and are focused on customer service

and they probably know a half a dozen people

who they wouldn't trust

and so it's the same thing

but how do you tell the difference

between a trade association

a training certification

everybody knows what ASC is

and you look for those standards

within the auto repair industry

it's no different in the auto recycling industry

you've got to look for those standards

and yeah we do fight against it

we're a trade association

we provide this training that we're talking about

we provide the certification tracks that we're talking about

but we don't force it on anybody

it's there

and if somebody wants to become a member

that they're interested in elevating their business

if they become a member and then they want

to become a certified automotive recycler

that's another level of significance

that shows that they're investing in their business

and their reputation

at the end of the day everybody's got to do their homework

and make sure that they're doing business

with businesses that are

interested in more than just

the transaction that takes place

across the counter but they're actually

working in their business to build a reputable

business with ethical standards

so what is the best way for a shop owner

to start confidently

sourcing especially if they've never done it

before where do they start

yeah so probably a good place to start

is there's a couple of ways

to start if you have a

relationship with a local auto recycler

most of the auto

I would say I'm saying most because I can't definitively

say all but I would

suspect all of the auto recyclers

who've gone through the process of becoming

a certified auto recycler

are going to broadcast that

you're going to see that

first of all you go to their website

and you should see that they're a member of the

Automotive Recyclers Association

that's kind of the first level that you go

okay these people are investing

in their trade association that's a good sign

then you see that they're a certified

automotive recycler and maybe they have a few endorsements

like high voltage vehicles

and recalls and airbags

and you can say okay these people are at the top level

they're gold seal certified

at the top level of their industry

and that's a really good

indicator that you're dealing

with a professional automotive

recycler and you can build that relationship

and by the way one of the things we

didn't touch on when we were talking about

sourcing in cycle time but one of the

fantastic things that's happened within this

industry over the past 10 or 15 years

is we there

is the so we have some

fantastic third party

vendor people who

have amazing businesses amazing

technology and tools

that connect auto recyclers

so we've got a trucking

network it's third party it's its own

thing that connects

auto recyclers like

it's like our own industry FedEx

or UPS I can be in Virginia

and I can call my local

auto recycler and ask him

for a part and he will look in his system

and he may not have that part in his

inventory but he can now see the

inventory of one of the auto

recycler in Buffalo New York and he can

get on the phone with me and go yeah I've got your part

I'll have it here tomorrow really

yeah and that

it's definitely been a game changer

for the industry to be able to move

parts around the country efficiently

because that is one of the challenges

that we know we face is that

and I said this earlier when you compare

the distribution networks

of an auto manufacturer that has been

established for a long long

time and logistically

perfected for years as long

as they have product they're pretty darn good

about getting the parts when people meet

them the big box companies

that are out there they've got very

good systems amongst their

buildings and if they

they need to get something moved around the country they've got a pretty good way to

do it our industry has been able

to match that now with Team PRP

is the affiliation that we have

many members do and we're able to

use that trucking network and there's

another set of quality standards there

that ARA is the quality standards

body we hold the standards but together

Automotive Recycle Association

Team PRP and URG

have put together the parts

preparation and shipping guidelines

and so our goal

with this program is that

no different than ordering a Big Mac

in New York and a Big Mac in South Dakota

and it's made by different people in different buildings

you usually get a pretty similar Big Mac

our goal is that if you order

an engine in New York

and you order an engine in South Dakota

that the people that are preparing it

are going to remove it and prepare it

and have it ready for you in the same manner

and this has been an effort

undergoing for a number of years

and it continues that Automotive Recycle Association

has ARA University

that's our own training industry

that is an online university

that our members use as part of their membership

to be able to get trained

on the parts preparation and shipping standards

to be able to get not just the owners

this is for the employees to be able to get trained

and this has been a

very big big deal

we also have safety training on there for our members

but all these things have helped raise the bar

considerably in the industry

for part access and part consistency

are there any misconceptions

that are out there that you

kind of would like to clear up

about the process or about sourcing

recycled parts

earlier when you were talking about

professional repair shops that are listening

just offering them a thought

and that thought would be

is that if you have a customer that comes in

and they need a repair done

I'm not telling anybody something they probably don't already know

but I'm just going to say it out loud

is that if you're a

independent and you have a customer in your shop

the best thing you can do

is figure out the best way to take care of them

and keep them in your shop

letting them be able to be satisfied

they know you gave them a series of options

and that those options gave them good enough options

that they felt comfortable that you were trying to

be fair with them

and you gave them the best opportunity to repair their car

if they come in

and they need an analog brake assembly

for their vehicle

and that new analog brake assembly

is from a Lexus or something

or a high-end Toyota

and it's $2,700 new

and it's going to be another

$500

for diagnostics and installation

you're looking at an individual with a $3,500 repair bill

or $3,200 repair bill

that's a lot of money

the credit card is probably already full of the customer

if you could still have that

job in your shop

and profitably source

a recycled original

equipment ABS module

from a lower-mudge vehicle that crashed

and what this part was not involved in the accident

and you get that in there for say $500

you still put on a reasonable markup

on it

you put it in for the same labor

you should use the same techniques

as you would putting in a new one or a remanufactured one

because it's a different part

you want to salvage and save the part

by using the same techniques

that you're supposed to use for installation

you've all of a sudden got a customer that walks out your door

for let's say $1,200

and their car is working good

and that's the difference between

some people being able to repair a car

and have to take the bus

because some people can't

take pay $3,200

so you've given them an option

that makes them realize that

this shop really does care about me

they're trying to make sure and get me back on the road

and not just get in my pocket book

it's the same thing we face

well like you said not everyone can afford

a $3,500 repair

the guy I used to take my car to

would say it was a matter of good, better, best

and it really was a matter of what I could afford

at the time

first car didn't have a lot of money

he would source parts

and he would give me options

on what I could afford to keep my car

running for me

so I can make it from point A to point B

without having to buy a new car

and there are lots of people in that situation

that can't afford to run out

and buy a new car

when they have a major expense

that they just can't afford

so you bring up a very good point in that vein

along those same lines

are there particular vehicle segments

that you see an increased

demand for these types of parts

whether it's EVs

late model vehicles

well historically

motors and transmissions

have always been the number one and number two parts

by volume sold by

by all the recyclers right Shannon?

yep they're right at the top of the list all the time

and I will tell you that every one of those V8s

that was made ends up in a

recycling yard and they're there

they may be

struggling to find these drivetrain components

and it may be because they're just

not looking in the right place because

they're out there

Shannon you might know the

statistic on this better than I do

but I would say an extremely

high percentage of vehicles

end up at the end of their life

not because of mechanical failure

but because of collision damage correct?

correct and there again when you build that relationship

you're going to find out what kind of vehicles

that professional auto recycler

is sourcing they're

if they're lying a business and we've got

people in our industry that do really good with this

cars that are 10 years old

to 15 years old you end up with more

opportunity for problems because you're getting

to the end of that life cycle

but there is a good

majority of the people in our industry that are working with cars

that are literally brand new

back to stuff that's 10 years old

and we're working with vehicles that have got

30,000 miles

70,000 miles

and that have been well cared for

they just had a bad last 5 feet of their life

and they were not planning

on getting rid of that vehicle until they had an accident

and you'll occasionally get

a problem but that's why we have inspections

and that's why we have warranties

but I can tell you that

at our facility we also sell

a lot of remanufactured

options to go along with our

recycled product we've got a number of lines

that we've brought in to go alongside

of our recycled product

and the recycled motors and transmissions

warranty and failure rate is

similar or less than the remanufactured

items using the recycled original equipment

and these are my own statistics

point being is that things happen to things

and they break

but they don't all break and so

you got to know what to look for and you got to know

what the vendor

cooperation is but there are

wonderful parts out there just waiting

to be installed and take care of a customer

I think there's something that

I said Shannon that is

worth repeating and that is

for the people listening

you need to understand that there are different

types of auto recyclers out there

of course there's full service and self

service right self service pay a few bucks

you go take a part off yourself those are generally

going to be 15 year old

cars and older but then

for what I would

imagine most of the people who would

listen to this you're going to want to find

a good late model

auto recycler somebody who's buying those

newer cars that Shannon was talking about

the cars that have low miles and he said

30,000 miles we all know

for a fact that people wreck cars at 5,000 miles

right and I mean so there are

there are extremely low mileage

cars out there that that auto

recyclers are buying and harvesting

these recycled parts from so

knowing what you're looking for knowing

the type of recycler that you

that you're looking for to buy the right

part to service your customers just

is very important and that's yet

another good point is you know

just because it got into

an accident doesn't mean all of

the components are dead on it it just

means that obviously that car is

inoperable but it could have a life somewhere

else yeah if that were the case

they wouldn't be fixing cars would they

right if all parts were deemed

no good because a few

parts got damaged then why would they

repair cars at all that's a good point

to that's a good point to

know as we've dismantled

cars I've yet to find an expiration date

on a car I hope yeah thanks

I hope as there becomes more awareness

of the sustainability component

the fact that we don't

need to harvest raw

materials and continue to make

as many I'm not saying any I'm just

saying as many new replacement

parts because people become

more confident in the recycled

parts and they feel good about it so

we I like to say it's good for you it's good

for your environment it's great for your wallet right

and people start buying parts

so I would like to see greater utilization

of these parts and building bridges

with with people like the people

who are listening to this show people who are

in the collision repair industry you know

we've got we talked about this before

we started rolling here we've got

to mend some fences right so you know

some of the bad

reputation that our industry has

was earned right now

but we've spent a lot of time and we've spent

years overcoming that and we still want

to have these conversations to

and I think that what was at the crux

of what Shannon was saying is it's

all about relationships and I think

any independent repairer that's

listening to this understands that

like having a relationship

with your partners is key

and having those conversations

like Shannon said so I think

I think the more people realize

what a value option

that recycled original equipment is

the more we'll see usage of it

give me a success story

that someone's come to you with that

really stands out in your head

a few years ago we were doing

we did a reality show

it was kind of a fun infotainment piece

that the ARA did and it was

we would go into auto recyclers

and we would just dig through cars

and find stuff and it was just fun

but I would always whenever we had

the film crew on site I always stuck around

and I would interview customers

I would interview a lady

who was at a self-serve

place and she was getting a door

for her S10 pickup truck

and I asked her about that door

I said you know why are you here doing this

she says because I'm going to save a lot of money

I said well how much money are you going to save on that door

she said well I called and this door

they wanted like $850 for this door

I said what are you paying for this door

she said $57

I'm not kidding you

she was at a self-service facility

she's taking

her and her boyfriend were taking the door

off themselves and carrying it up

this is so important

not to forget

this is keeping

people's cars on the road

who otherwise they just

don't have the choice

they can't spend $850 on a door

and then have to paint it

and then put all the components on it

that truck's not going to get a door

at that home it's just not

right if they don't have this option

so the bottom line is as long as people

have options

they can

know the options they're going to be a happier customer

because they can make a choice

and it doesn't feel like it's a high pressure

choice it's still a hard choice

because they're spending money they weren't planning on spending before the car broke

they didn't wake up that we can say

alright this week we're going to spend $1200

on our car are we everybody ready

that's not reality they wake up and say

okay we got to get the groceries we got to get this

oh crap the car broke

and they're trying to figure out how to fix it

and so having those options is a big deal

and then also being able to sell the idea

and I'm not saying sell it because it's a reality

we have the proof that they're buying

a sustainable option that

the carbon savings equivalent is

substantial every time you reuse a part

you're saving money you're saving

the environment you're saving peace of mind

we really believe in our product

alright finally guys

where can people go to learn

more about the ARA

such a good question I'm so glad you asked

let's talk about it

I know we have some podcasts out there

and I know there's all kinds of information

available like we do so we

we have a website who would we be

if we didn't have a website and it's

ash.org

and that's our website there's a whole lot of

information on there about

everything that we've talked about right

certification membership our events

we have we have an annual conference

every year my my information

you can contact me through

there and man would I would I welcome

I'd be thrilled to get an email

or a chat or something from somebody

said hey I heard you on on the show

and they want to reach out because I would love to

have that conversation call me up beat

me up I don't care because it gives me an

opportunity to either address some issues

or overcome them right but we

have we're pretty

we have a pretty big

social presence so we're on Facebook

we're on Instagram we're on LinkedIn

we we are on YouTube we have a

YouTube channel Automotive Recyclers Association

we have a podcast

called ARA Unscripted

which is just long form

conversations with people in the industry

and people adjacent to the industry

I think you cover a lot of bases there

Vince and I'm thrilled

that we had this opportunity to talk

but I would encourage the people listen if you've had

a had a rough experience or

you've got a stereotype in your mind

or you've you've listened to somebody else

that had a terrible experience

have your own seek out a vendor that

that you can work with and

look for the Automotive Recycler Association members

and if if you don't find one

give us a call and we'll try to

find people in your area so you get some choices

you may not be considering. Absolutely.

And Vince as we said earlier

if we do get inquiries either to Ratchet and Wrench

or the ARA and people have

questions or people bring up topics

that they want to know more about

I'm happy to come back together

and talk it out. Absolutely.

Thank you. I'd love that opportunity. Thank you, Christine.

Yeah, thank you guys for joining me.

It's been a pleasure. Thank you.

That's going to do it

for us today at Ratchet and Wrench Radio

be sure to check out other episodes

on your favorite podcast player

and leave us a review if you found the episode

to be helpful. Also, follow

Ratchet and Wrench on Instagram, Facebook

and LinkedIn. You can get our Ratchet and Wrench

insider newsletter delivered to your

inbox four times a week

at RatchetandWrench.com forward slash

subscribe. Thanks for listening

and may the rest of today

be the greatest day of your life.

Recycled, Reliable, Ready: Why Smart Shops Are Turning to Recycled OEM Parts

Toyota Camry

About this episode

Original notes