Thats a possibility that I considered as well. Or they may have wanted to have a shop of their choice repair it, which they would have ran into the same issue with finding parts that I did. Who knows what I would have ended up with on there or how long it would take. One of my friends recently had his brand new truck in the shop over an insurance claim, got jerked around for like 4 months on the repair and it was STILL done wrong.

Just too many unpredictable variables with insurance vs just biting the bullet and paying out of pocket. An $1100 dollar repair is something I can live with.

 

Most online GM parts outlets would have been significantly less than your price shipped to your door. You could have had an Arb rear bumper for less as well.

Even when my father ran the local Buick dealer back in the day, I still never got any parts through them.

As long as you are happy that is what matters.

 

Oh for sure, I saw that its WAY cheaper on a lot of sites. That was the problem I was running into though and why I came here seeing if anyone knew of some reliable sources. I checked multiple online GM parts distributors, and the bumper I needed is shown as discontinued/unavailable on most of them. Had a couple show in stock but after checking with the ones I could get ahold of, they confirmed that it WASNT in stock and can no longer get it. The remaining websites that listed it as available looked pretty sketchy. Some google searching on those sites showed a lot of recent people complaining about scams and stuff like not getting parts after months of wait time, getting wrong/defective parts, missing parts, and no responses from customer service on refunds/returns or order issues. Apparently a lot of those places are legit but they dont keep direct stock on everything. They acquire the parts from other sources after you place an order. Probably not an issue with more recent vehicles Im sure, but something as old as the H3 that has multiple discontinued body parts? Looks to be more troublesome. I didnt want to tie up $500-600 just to be told after a month or two that they cant get the part. Or worse, they just send me the wrong parts and then have to struggle with customer service and/or not getting refunded.

Also realize now that I accidentally posted the wrong impact bar part number here. The one I posted was #15906921 which is with trailer and rear view camera, and is still being made/available for order. The one I needed was #15850414, which is the impact bar with trailer and without rear view camera. Not sure how major of a difference it is...just looks like it has an extra hole in it for the camera but didnt want to just assume that, order it, then find out after that it mounts different or doesnt fit somehow. Idk.

Dealer was the last place I wanted to go because I know they are overpriced. But after weeks of looking online? The dealership was literally the only place I found that confirmed they had one in stock brand new. According to my dealership here, there were only 2 left at any dealership anywhere. So it was either bite the bullet for an overpriced part thats brand new, or roll the dice on finding a used one in really good condition. For me personally, quality/guarantee was more important than price at the end of the day.

Sorry about the length...just adding what I found in case someone else stumbles across this in the future looking for the same thing.

 

 

For starters, I like how you had nothing useful to say in any prior reply at all about sources to order new OEM bumper replacement parts. Instead, just numerous replies trolling criticism on situation/insurance. Then days later, AFTER I make a purchase from the dealership? You post this photo with no link, no company info, just the part and the lower price tag which I can only see as some kind of weird effort to establish superiority of intelligence/knowledge? Idk what you were trying to do here, but since you did? Here ya go.

If you bothered to read anything in this thread (my last post especially), I laid it out pretty clear what I ran into when looking this part up online. The picture you posted is from gmpartsgiant.com, which just so happens to be the very first link that pops up when you Google the part number.


Yeah, they show the part as being in stock and available to order. If you bothered to read anything in this thread (specifically my last post), this is one of the websites that I was talking about but didnt specifically name. This site is legit but has some sketchy practices. If your ordering newer vehicle parts that are still being manufactured and widely available then they may be ok, but ordering discontinued parts for an older vehicle that are on low/limited stock? Different story entirely. On the same page you took that screenshot, theres an icon for a live chat agent. When you open it up, takes you to a chat window with an obvious fake name/picture. When you start asking real questions? These are the answers you get...



Ironically, its exactly like I explained in my last post. This site and a few others that show them in stock? They have no actual inventory or information on availability, and your paying them to search for the part for you AFTER they secure payment and lock up your funds for an undisclosed amount of time. If you google search their company name and look at reviews, you will find a large amount of complaints/problems others have had with orders, price change AFTER already placing the order, wrong parts, refunds, returns, etc. People went through weeks/months of hell to get their money back or get the right part. Some of them never did. If you really feel comfortable giving these people $400+ on hopes and dreams they can find a discontinued part for you, then by all means? Knock yourself out and you can leave a review on the BBB like this guy...

Another thing you could have done? Is take a glimpse past the first Google link you found and look on other GM parts distributor websites. This is what you will find on pretty much all of them...


GM 15850414 Bar, genuine OEM part
This link has a list of roughly 30+ GM parts distributors. 8-10 dead links, and the rest show this exact same thing...discontinued/unavailable. Imagine that, right?

But sure man, thanks for posting up the bait photo showing you know where to buy it for $400 at the very end of the thread, conveniently leaving out the link/source, and being sure to crop out the site name so others cant look into it themselves. Really cool move, my man...you really showed me a thing or two. Good luck with that weird superiority complex and the passive style trolling. Very much look forward to us never interacting again in the future. ✌️🙄

 

 

Some live and learn, others.......... they got no idea.

 

Maybe Hummerz can buy it for you from the site he listed, then if/when he gets it, he can offer it to you!

JPal375; Sounds like you made the right decision, don't let "some" people on here get under your skin; it's what they live for.

 

All OEM parts available ship free throughout the GM dealer network. I can get it a lot cheaper yet I will have to charge a FEE for my time for pickup additional cost for shipping!

 

Are you a technical writer for your job? These are the longest replies I've ever seen to trolling, with screen shots!