In the last few years, the value of the American dollar has dropped significantly. It now takes more of our hard-earned dollars just to cover the essentials. So it makes sense to save money whenever you can.

One place that you can save money is at the junkyard. Their prices are often half of what the auto parts store charges. And that adds up when you’re performing your own auto repair. Alternators, starters, tires, seats. Chances are, if a part came on the car, you’ll find it at the junkyard. 

Save Time 

Once you’ve determined what part you need, call your favorite auto parts store and ask what the ‘re-man’ part will cost. Remanufactured parts are reconditioned used parts. Every time you return a ‘core’ (i.e. your broken alternator, or powersteering pump), that old part gets shipped off to be rebuilt. Reman parts are considerably cheaper than a brand new part, and it’ll give you a baseline to see how much money you’ll save on a used part. 

Next, grab the Yellow Pages and start calling around. If you’re computer savvy (which you probably are, considering you’re reading this article), Google “junkyards + your city & state”. Under the local search results, you’ll see the various salvage yards in your area. If the yard has a website, it will be listed under the name. Many times, a junkyard will have their entire inventory listed on their website. You can then see if they have your part, and how much it’ll cost. 

Another, simpler way to find used car parts online is http://www.car-part.com/ . This website is the consumer portal to the Hollander part interchange service. Every junkyard that subscribes to the service can upload their entire car part inventory to the system, allowing other yards to see and sell their car parts, if they don’t have it in stock. It will also tell you what parts interchange with which vehicles. 

A simple search here, will tell you what Hollander-subscribed junkyards in your area have the part, the price, and the yard’s phone number. Not all salvage yards use Hollander, so it’s still a good idea to call around.

Save Money

 Full-service junkyards will pull the part for you, while you wait on a grease-stained plastic chair. A pull-a-part type of salvage yard will allow you to pick & pull the part yourself. These are usually cheaper than a full service salvage yard. But you’re going to need your own tools, and a bit of free time. If you’re not a hardcore do-it-yourselfer, just pay the extra few dollars to have the part pulled for you.

Once they have your part, don’t be afraid to negotiate the price. Used auto parts is a cash-business, so many junkyards will be willing to haggle. Especially if you’re buying more than one part. Remember, the worst that they can do is say ‘no’.