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give our sales people the ability to see the availability of parts and to respond more quickly to the customer.” For example, he says that fuel filler doors are worth- while for them to sell and they make it easy for them- selves by inventorying the part type and taking more pictures upfront when doing the inventory. “Fuel filler doors are good parts for us to sell because we find that customers are willing to pay a fair price to get one from us in a certain color rather than from the dealer and have to paint it. We find it makes it easier if we have more than one picture of the small part or the specific area of the vehicle so that when a customer asks, we can match it to what they need.” Swift says that they have increased their sales of fuel tank filler necks thanks to the Interchange. “Fuel tank filler necks is a small part that we have increased the value for,” said Swift. “We used to sell them for $35. The Interchange has changed that by making it easy to see the list price. We now easily get $75.”
According to Swift there is no aftermarket parts for sun visors, rocker moldings, and other parts, which
makes them very attractive for auto recyclers to sell. Paul Davis, President of A Plus Parts and Salvage, agrees that sun visors are worth selling. “I agree with other recyclers who are selling sun visors – some are quite valuable as are inside mirrors,” said Davis. “Lots of little interior bits, such as radio bezels, can have worthwhile value. The trick is to not waste time with the ones that are not.” Many recyclers have seen tires sales rise so dramati- cally that it places them in the top ten of small parts sales. Both Swift and Nordstrom can attest to that. “We used to have tire racks sitting outside our yard and have to go outside and dig through the tires when a customer would call and ask for a specific tire,” said Nordstrom. “It was too much work, so we started telling customers to come down and look for them- selves. But our location is a little way off the beaten path, so it wasn’t that convenient for the customer. “Then, we changed the way we thought about tires and the process. We created our own numbering sys- tem utilizing the 585 part type for tires within our Powerlink system. This system gives us the tread
March-April 2015 | Automotive Recycling 51