nascar03kc

I have been a loyal customer of Rockauto.com for a long time. Had issues now and then, but always worked out. That is until now; ordered a heater core for my 85. Didn't want the cheap aluminum ones so I saw a picture of the OEM brass one, most expensive also. Ordered it and waited. When it arrived, I had already torn the car down to save time. I opened the box and there it was, an ALUMINUM core. Not Brass, Aluminum. An aluminum core that isn't even the same size. I called them and was told that we use the "picture" the vender sends. I stated that no where does it say aluminum or show an aluminum core on the one I bought. I tried to explain that they are misrepresenting a sale by doing this and would be returning it. Guess who has to pick up the return shipping costs? YEA. You know you can get some good stuff at decent prices, but I get sick of their tactics and "not our fault" attitude some times. Bottom line, do your homework before you by from them, cause in the end it costs you more than it would have to go the the local parts store and get the correct one.

dukeallen

Pics in any ads are always representative, and meant to impress. Never trust pics. Always read the fine print.

Good luck with it.

Lord.Baal

i often see pics that i know dont match the actual item on these sites, seems they find some stock pics from who knows where and add it in, then when you read it if your lucky they tell you up front its not a pic of the real item.

thanks for letting us all know, always good to know the trustworthy places from the not, and hopefully your hard learned lesson will help others in the future!

Midnight 85

Rock Auto always posts the brand name of what they sell. I go by this, if it is some unknown brand I keep looking. I just bought all top name rings & bearings to freshen up my old 383 for $55. shipped.
However, even buying a part that is in a brand name box is no guarantee the part inside was made by that company. If a parts store switches suppliers, the new supplier comes in with a sh1tload of their own empty boxes and the just put the parts in their boxes. I used to work in a parts store and saw this done.

Red86Z51

What's wrong with aluminum? Your radiator is aluminum, and I'll bet your radiator has so far outlasted your heater core...am I right? My radiator (and heater core for that fact) have 157000 on them--the aluminum radiator is clean as a whistle....the heater core on the other hand is . Personally, I wouldn't stick another brass heater core in mine, as I don't want to be in there changing it out again...ever!

I got the aluminum on from Rock for mine and have had no issues with it...it bolted right in and works great.

Good luck with whichever way you go, but keep in mind, the aluminum heater cores work just as well as the OEM brass units.

Dave

WVZR-1

This the RockAuto "business model" - this is what they buy and resell. The parts that aren't able to be easily cross-referenced OR have very slow sales histories that the vendor doing the "change-over" doesn't feel deserves the "shelf-space"! Is it all they sell? No. But where do you believe the product that doesn't meet the QC challenge goes? Yep, to the on-line vendors. Amazon buys from other than Amazon "direct" are likely reselling the same "B" or less grade product too.

Nothing beats a "local-buy" - it's a "toe to toe" transaction. Discrepancies are certainly more easily rectified. Is there a time and place for the Internet buy? Probably but most often the buy can be competitively purchased in the local market. Always? No.

I've never done a RockAuto buy. An Internet purchase for sure but auto parts are done locally and if a reseller isn't a "verified" reseller of the brand - never, to the best of my knowledge.

Regarding the aluminum vs copper argument, if performance or durability are concerns if it's a known "brand" copper that should be the choice.

QCVette

Good luck resolving your issue. I hope it works out for you.

I have been buying from Rock Auto for a long time. My experiences have been very good. I have received what I expected and at good prices. Maybe I have been lucky, but lucky a lot of times.

nascar03kc

The core wasn't leaking, 221000 miles. I was rebuilding the air distribution box (foam on doors and actuators), rebuilding the plastic instrument panel, building a new main wire harness and decided to do the core while I was in there. Down to the firewall anyway, right? The brass core was designed to flow air and not be as prone to clogging by using larger openings in the fin area. It also flows air better than the cheap new alum. replacement types. The one I received looked like it would be lucky to survive any dirt or dust without blockage. Very thin fin openings, VERY thin. Size wise; smaller core area, but they tried to get the same dimensions by adding brackets and filler on the sides. They gave me "stick on foam" to cover the areas that didn't get closed off with the new core. Aluminum radiators I don't like period, but it's whats available. I rebuilt enough plastic/alum radiators under warranty to last a lifetime. Seals and warped tanks. To each his own. You like aluminum, I don't. 30 years with G.M so I feel I know what I want in my car. Thanks for responding though. KC