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JC Whitney- Friend or Foe?

755 views 10 replies 7 participants last post by  Sycho15 
#1 ·
Our family has been ordering out of JC Whitney for ever. Here are my Questions.

Is the Rough Country 3" any good? and for 450 is it a good deal?

Has any one tried the Economy Set-up? (Add-a-leaf) Good or bad?

-other wonders-

How is the trail Master 3" for 600???
Is there any 2.5 inch lifts for a 90 YJ that is worth while and not $$$$$$$$??

Ready to head to Gunnison

 
#4 ·
After there chapter11 reorganization, they now handle name brand stuff. Same "stuff" you would buy from any other place. If there prices are better than others, buy from them.

A few things that have been ordered from them have arrived in decent time, and were every bit what was expected. Plus, they actually were decent to work with.

Enjoying Montana's Big Sky
 
G
#5 ·
I've got the Rough Country 3". It's got everything you need. Seemed like a good deal so I went for it. As far as performance, I'm new to this so I don't have much to compare to. It was about as good a ride as my stock suspension (somewhat bumpy). Overall I'm happy with it. Go to http://rough.roughcountry.com[url] ...0s/3" Rough Country suspension/1.25" shackles
 
#6 ·
I agree with jfralph.. In 1991 I visited Chicago and one of the "highlights" of the trip was to see the old JCW warehouse. Wow, was it decrepid, bricks almost falling off as I drove by. That was in the midst of their last bankruptcy.

I've ordered from JCW for 30 years, in good years and in bad years. They are the first place I look outside of my hometown if I have to go Mail order. The reasons are sound. If I can get brand "X" from JCW for 15% less than I can from another dealer, I'll do it. I believe in competition, so when I order such a part I will try three or four diffrent places for prices. If the prices are the same I ask them why I should order from them. What makes their company special as opposed to XYZ company? If they start to bad-mouth the competition and give no reasons for the opinion... it's a strike against them. If they don't match JCW's price, it's a strike against them. If they tell me I'm a fool or stupid for ordering from JCW it's almost hang up time. I hate being called stupid, or a fool. Them's fightin' words. As an example, I was once shoping around for a fiberglass body. I called every manufacture I could find and ended up talking to June at AJ's Fiberglass Bodies. It was June who was half owner and the "J" in the name. As our conversation continued I realized she met all the criteria I had to purchase from...and I threw in JCW as a "bargening chip." She said that the bodies her company made coudl not be compaired to JCW fiberglass bodies because.... and she went on to list the differences and justify the increased cost of AJ's. When she was done... she'd made good sense and at no time did she offer an afront to JCW. She just spoke to the differences in the product. That was class, in my book.

On the other side of the scale I called 4Wheel Parts Warehouse and they were just the opposite, obnixous, accusatory, lying, belitteling and just plain rude. I asked for a supervisor and gave him a piece of my mind about their business practices. I'm glad to know they've changed.

The other example was about a year ago when I needed a 1/4" torque wrench to complete the automatic transmission repair. I called everywhere and finally dug out my "Tool" catalog from JCW. The price was right and it came to my house 2 days later.

Yes, they do foul up orders on occasion. When this happens I ask for a discount on the product I ordered as a "Gee, we're sorry. We'd like to keep you as a customer." inducement. I usually get at least 20% off. When I rebuild the Jeep tub I did not want to use imported steel. I BUY AMERICAN! So I asked them where they bought their steel repair panels. They did not know, and I hung on the phone with the order taker as she:

Tracked down the Vendor (in California).
Dialed the Vendor.
Confrenced me to the vendor.
The Vendor Identified the manufacture (a small comapny in Misouri).
Hung up with the vendor and placed a confrence call to the company in Missouri.
Found an engineer who could confirm where the steel came from
Confirmed the steel was made in the US from NEW steel, not Recycled steel.
Hung up with the manufacture.
Took and confirmed the order.

Now that's customer service. IMHO, thier an OK company to deal with.

 
#7 ·
I've had good luck with them as well. I have bought two Superlift kits from them in the last 3 years and haven't had a problem. I was going to order my 1 piece axels from them, but the brand wasn't listed. I called and asked, and the rep looked it up and told me. Wasn't name brand so I didn't get them, but it was good that they could find the info quickly. I also like the fact that they finally got a toll free number!

My girlfriend said if I spent one more dime on my Jeep she would leave. Man I'm going to miss her!
 
#9 ·
From what i conclude, Hard name Brand parts are just as good from every were else. All you have to do is find the right price.

What would be my best bet for getting a good 1"-2" Suspention lift from. What should the asking price be?

Ready to head to Gunnison

 
G
#10 ·
I got pissed at JC Whitney after they would not refund me for some defective junk electronic ignition that I bought for a bug. The new distrubitor shaft / housing locked up and spun around ripping all the spark plug wires out. They said fine, send it back we will refund you. They did. Then one week later charged me again. This went back and forth, I was put on hold 100 times... I finally gave up. It was less than $100 I think, so it became a waste of my time to follow up on it.

I vowed NEVER to buy anything from them again, and so I ask everyone else to do the same.

-carl



 
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