Sparks Parts went downhill

I have ordered parts, and referred them countless times to other Tundra owners, over the past several years.

I ordered their painted parts for the front end chrome pieces on my ‘22 and have been extremely disappointed in the entire experience. The wait time, I could live with as they stated such at the time of order. But receiving one broken part (large crack) and another part with a paint issue was not something I expected.

I received my shipment Sunday evening, and called them Monday morning. Was told by the guy that I spoke to, who could care less about what experience their customers had, that I needed to email pictures and wait for a response.

I did, and heard back within a few hours. Not bad. I then sent my response on what option that they had provided that I would like to move forward with. One was that I would have to wait another month and a half to get a replacement. That wasn’t an option in my opinion. They also offered to refund the paint charge and send a replacement part that I could have painted locally. I’m fine with that option - as long as I can receive the replacement part quickly and it’s not received damaged.

I haven’t heard back from them since. I sent a follow up email earlier today - and still nothing from them.

As much as I referred them in the past, I will make sure that I update my experience and expectations of dealing with them just as well.

Please use caution and don’t expect a good customer service experience with them if you have to deal with them on an issue.

 

They can’t control what happens during shipping and it sounds like they are helping you fix the problem. They run a bust outfit but I am sure they will fix your problem?

 

I can see both sides. To be fair, they don’t pretend to be customer oriented - they say when you call the phone number you will be charged more for placing an order with a human instead of online - it’s clear they are automating as much as possible. They also order a bunch of items from Toyota as they are purchased rather than stocking inventory…

If you want customer service try the local parts counter - it’ll probably come at MSRP not the significant discounts Sparks offers.

 

I hope so - but after talking to the guy on the phone and then being ghosted, I have my doubts. Again, I do hope you’re wrong and will update if so.

Parts being damaged during shipping I get. The way the parts are packed for shipping will aid in reducing damages if done adequately - which it wasn’t. The inspection after paint didn’t happen either, or the other part that had a bad paint spot would have been caught.

Having already waited over a month, I would expect to be put on a short list for damaged shipments - not at the back of the line.