Buying retail car parts is pretty straightforward, but what if you need to buy them in bulk? You’ll want to look for wholesale sellers who can offer you a wide selection and much more competitive pricing for that kind of purchase. But how do you buy wholesale car parts?
Begin by contacting the manufacturer and asking which wholesalers in your area carry their products. Besides that, you can also check online marketplaces like eBay for companies selling wholesale lots. Lastly, check out the Directory at Carpart.com.au to find wholesalers in your area and get their contact information.
In this guide, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about buying wholesale car parts in Australia.
Who Are Some of the Largest Automotive Suppliers in Australia?
There are plenty of large wholesalers all over Australia, and you’re likely to find one right in your area. Still, here are three of the largest suppliers that you can check out first.
Wholesale Car Parts Plus
Wholesale Car Parts Plus specialises in selling both new and used auto parts wholesale. So, whether you're looking for Japanese, European, or 4x4 parts, they'll have what you need.
This supplier is based in Queensland, and they ship nationwide.
Auto Parts Wholesalers
Auto Parts Wholesalers stock plenty of products from leading global automotive brands. Among some of the perks they offer are free members discount pricing and free technical advice!
This wholesaler is based in South Australia and also ships nationwide.
Rocklea Auto Parts
Rocklea Auto Parts in Queensland specialises in Kia, Hyundai, Volkswagen, other Japanese cars, and parts for 4WD vehicles.
They’re based in Queensland and ship nationwide.
How Do You Shop for Wholesale Car Parts?
To ensure that you’ll have a positive experience buying wholesale car parts, include these four elements in your checklist:
Price Range
Firstly, you need to have a ballpark figure for the price of the parts you’re looking for. To do this, you can check prices online on websites like eBay and others. This way, you’ll have a way of checking whether a quotation is reasonable and within the range.
You can also do it the traditional way by calling several wholesale car parts suppliers to compare prices.
Visual Inspection
Before you place a large order, you should inspect the car parts visually. Sure, that can be very challenging to do if you’re ordering a massive number of parts. One way to do it is to inspect a few samples from the wholesale batch.
Check Parts Numbers
Car parts can sometimes look the same, even though they’re designed for different car brands and models. That’s why you must know the parts numbers before you go shopping for wholesale auto parts.
Cross-checking the parts numbers ensures that you’re buying the correct parts every time. You don’t want to be stuck with car parts that you didn’t want.
Start with a Minimum Order
Suppose you need to buy a large volume of car parts at wholesale prices from a new supplier; it’s best to start with a minimum order.
Most wholesale sellers allow prospective buyers to buy samples, and you should ask for that option if available. If not, stick with the minimum order requirement.
By starting with a small minimum order, you'll get a better idea of the seller and the parts that they sell. That's an excellent way to learn the ropes of working with suppliers and finding out how they meet your expectations.
How to Choose the Best Supplier for Wholesale Car Parts
While there are plenty of companies selling car parts wholesale across Australia, telling the good ones from the not-so-good still proves to be a challenge.
Here are a few steps you can take to evaluate your suppliers and find the best ones.
Talk to potential auto parts wholesale suppliers.
Give them a call! Ask them questions to gauge how much they know their products and how approachable they are to customers.
Even better, you could also visit their physical location and make sure that everything checks out. By that, we mean confirming that the wholesaler’s address is correct and knowing where the parts you’ll order will come from.
Do due diligence.
Before making that call, though, make sure you’ve done your homework. Check them out online and see what other customers have to say about them. Find out how long they've been in the business and what they specialise in. List out potential questions to ask when you make that call.
Start small.
The only way to discover how a wholesale auto parts supplier does business is to become their customer. That’s why it’s best to start small with a minimum-sized order to see how they measure up to your standards.
Test their customer service.
You officially become their customer with your first order, so make sure you pay attention to the quality of their products and customer service. Call them, ask for updates on your order, see how easy (or difficult) it is to reach them, and how effectively they address your concerns.
How to Find Wholesale Auto Parts Suppliers
Searching for suppliers who sell car parts wholesale isn’t as challenging as it might seem at first. Here are the best ways to do that.
Start with the manufacturer.
If you have specific auto part brands in mind, you can find a wholesaler by taking the top-down approach. By that, we mean starting at the top of the supply chain – the manufacturer.
Manufacturers (whether OEM, aftermarket, or genuine parts) typically sell parts to wholesalers who then distribute them to workshops and retail buyers. So, the manufacturer will be able to tell you which wholesalers carry their products.
They’ll be more than willing to share that information with you.
Ask around.
Word-of-mouth is another effective method. Talk to people you know, especially those in the automotive world. That might include mechanics or technicians you know and people at car meets or clubs that you participate in.
Check online marketplaces for wholesale lots.
Believe it or not, wholesalers also make their parts available through online marketplaces like eBay and others. So, add ‘wholesale’ to your keywords to narrow down your search results to wholesale lots.
This method works in two ways: not only will you identify wholesale parts suppliers, but you’ll also get a peek at the items they currently have in stock.
Check car websites for auto part supplier listings.
Lastly, don’t forget to check automotive websites that have supplier listings. One example is Carpart.com.au and its Directory. There, you can quickly narrow down the types of suppliers you want, especially those in your immediate area.
Better yet, the directory has all the suppliers’ websites and contact information for you to get in touch as soon as possible.
To begin your search, please check out the Directory over at Carpart.com.au, where you will find mechanics, auto professionals, and wholesale car part sellers in your area.
By Ray Hasbollah