Autozone has a pretty cool deal where you show up, and they check the health of your battery and alternator for free. Two years ago I purchased a battery from Autozone with a three year warranty. The extra money to pay for the 'gold' series made sense. I went to the 43rd street location recently because my battery was acting up and they told me it's because my battery was bad and not my alternator. Unfortunately they did not have my battery in stock, and was told to go to the Antoine/Pinemont location.
This is where it got shitty. I came in after the 43rd street store told them I was coming for a battery, and they sent a competent employee out to check my battery. He removed my old battery to take in and replace due to my 3 year warranty. On the way in his manager told him that it was time for him to go to lunch. I'm sure that Autozone has controls over their employees hours to control their costs, but this was a little obnoxious. Maybe it would be wise to do it after he replaced my battery? I went inside after this and was told I'd have to change my own battery. I had to ask for the tools to do the change. I went and did the replacement, returned the tools, and drove home. I'm a little irritated that I had to do this while the battery was under warranty.
If you're wondering if this is a good place to go buy car parts, you're likely wrong. After this experience I won't be buying anything at Autozone, especially since there is a NAPA across the street. So long Autozone, hopefully you guys figure it out and pay your employees for the work they need to do. Until then, I'm done. read more