Caesar68

I was ripped off last week and I wanted to post it here so everyone could be aware of this scam.

I have not changed the fuel filter on my C5. So, since I don't know if the prior owner ever changed it, I figured I would change it just to be safe.

I have seen the AC-Delco brand filter advertised on the forum for around $80. I called a local Chevy dealer's parts department and they quoted me $95. I told the guy I was with COM (local Corvette club) and he knocked it down to $85. With tax I paid $90.

So I pick up the filter in a red, white and blue AC-Delco box. I open it and out slides a new shiny filter. I identified it as the correct one by the pictures and figures I had seen before.

I open the box when I get home and look at it again. It says "made in the USA". I think to myself, "that's refreshing to see that some parts are still made here and not in Mexico". This is where it gets interesting. I notice the filter has a thick black line on it. This line is not straight and consistent, like something a machine would make. It is wavy and inconsistent, like a human with a black sharpie would make.

I grab some alcohol wipes and rub off the sharpie ink. WIX 33737 is revealed underneath. WTF? A quick check on Rockauto reveals that this is the correct fuel filter for my C5. But, it is made by WIX filters and it costs $33.

Is this the dealer's parts department ripping me off? Or, was this GM ripping me off. Remember, the filter came in a new AC-Delco Box.
Does WIX manufacture this filter for GM and just rebrand it AC-Delco? I think the latter is the case and thus GM is the culprit. The Corvette tax? Pay triple what its really worth, just because its for a Corvette.

Just for comparison, the fuel filter for my F150 is about $10 from Motorcraft.

Fair Warning. Buyer beware.

Big Duk

Dealer

Oh 2 Fun

Wow....that seems way too obvious a cover-up to actually be a cover-up....or at least a cover-up by a SMART person!!

Did you call any auto parts stores first to see if they had a filter? Just wondered what made you ask a dealer first.

Pretty amazing! Please let us know if find out any more info....

Good grief!

jornahow

Are you going to return the filter? If so let us know what happens.

renegad44

Man, that's nasty. I'd bring that directly back where I purchased it, and get my money back. I don't have a photo of mine but I just had an OEM fuel filter replaced on my 2000-Coupe about 2 weeks ago..., here's what they cost at GMPartsHouse...

http://store.gmpartshouse.com/parts/...&siteid=214638

hdkeno

I think I paid about $46 for a Napa gold ff on mine.

racebum

my money would be on the dealer doing that. the other possible is someone buying one from gm then returning the wix in the gm box for a refund.

wix makes a good filter. you just happened to over pay for it

baxsom

thats why i went straight to Bennet and got a Wix one.

yaknow

interested to see where this goes

Vetteman Jack

I would certainly question the dealer about it. Every part from AC Delco I've seen has the AC lettering on it.

ALLEGRO

There is NOTHING wrong with a Wix filter, but if you purchase a AC Delco, that is EXACTLY what you should get.

Keep us posted as you get to the bottom of this.

ALLEGRO

There is NOTHING wrong with a Wix filter, but if you purchase a AC Delco, that is EXACTLY what you should get.

Keep us posted as you get to the bottom of this.

LoneStarFRC

+1

LoneStarFRC

You Ford F150 fuel filter does not have the fuel pressure regulator built into it like your Corvette filter does either.

KillSwitchNY

Man, that sucks, but there is nothing wrong with WIX at all. They are actually very good. I get it that that's not what you paid for though.

jrose7004

One of the many reasons that you stay away from a dealership.

mxz800

We owned an Autoparts store for years then retired. Our Autoparts Store was Big A (We sold AC Filters when we first opened) then we switched to Carquest years later. What most people don't know about car parts there is "Re-boxing", and there is "Shared cost parts".

Ok an example of re-boxing, lets say Carquest sold X brand of filter, they got a better deal on Y brand of filter. The first thing Y brand does is send a team to the warehouse(s) they slap a sticker over the oil filters use a marker to cover the number on air filters, gas filters etc. The filters that don’t cross over because Y doesn’t sell that odd ball filter they get sold to a close-out store or they crush them. Then they send out two man teams to the stores to swap out the boxes, and bring new books etc.

The cost of sending all the X brand filters back, then sending out all new Y brand filters would cost to much. I think you bought a re-boxed part.

Now it might be hard to believe but the cost of making a part that you might not sell many of can force companies to work together. X might make a fuel filter for a Corvette, Y might make an air filter for that same Corvette. X will sell the fuel filter to Y, rather then Y having to tool up to make their own.

When I go to any parts store I open the box while I’m still in the store. I want to know if I’m buying wagner brakes or raybestos brakes.

LoneStarFRC

This is true in the aftermarket auto parts world, but not so much at a factory franchised dealership where, in this case, they are obligated/restricted to sell only GM parts or ACDelco (GM) parts. GM (as well as Ford and Chrysler) are hugely "brand name" conscious.

ACDelco is a manufacturer, as is Wix (in North Carolina), and ACDelco does not re-box Wix products. If any agreement were ever struck between AC Delco and Wix, then AC Delco would require the AC Delco brand name and logo to be labeled on every part.

I too used to work in the aftermarket auto parts world years ago, and as has been stated by others, I think it likely some dealership customer (probably from one of their retail garage accounts) returned this item for refund/credit and the dealership parts man (or delivery driver) never looked inside the box before returning the item to the warehouse shelf. I have seen this happen at the auto parts stores as well, but usually it was a case of a customer trying to scam the auto parts store in some way.

A screw-up like this at the dealership wouldn't be the first time this type of thing has happened. Just an embarassing mistake, no "scam" involved.

jbondfl

Doesn't seem all that different from when I ordered a GM Bra and picked it up at the dealer....The box had a GM label and a CarKing label as well.......

renegad44

Correct, there is nothing wrong with a WIX filter, I use WIX oil filter with AMSOIL for my oil changes, but, unfortunately the OP did not get what he paid for and thought he was getting. That's why I said, "back to the store it goes," for a refund, or replacement of exactly what's suppose to be in the box.