Costco comments and questions

[badatmath]

The Costco tire shop has excellent prices on car batteries, too. I had one fail at 33 months into their 36 month warranty. I got credit for the cost of the failed battery but had to pay a $25 upcharge for the new battery because the price of the new battery was $25 more expensive now. Costco batteries are less than half (closer to 1/3) the price of batteries sold elsewhere.

Well does Costco tell you when you DON'T need a battery. My favorite local battery guy added water and sent me home on Friday, no charge. Gave me a little battery test report and I was on my way. I'd have definitely bought one otherwise.

 

[Buckeye]

Well does Costco tell you when you DON'T need a battery. My favorite local battery guy added water and sent me home on Friday, no charge. Gave me a little battery test report and I was on my way. I'd have definitely bought one otherwise.

I took it to Advance Auto to be checked and when they said it was dead, I drove it over to Costco to swap it for a new one. Costco doesn't do any diagnostics, as far as I know. You just go in and buy one or order one and that's that. Costco didn't even confirm it was dead. They just accepted my story about my car not starting and the results from Advance Auto (no written report).

 

[SnowballCamper]

Ah, is that what is called the PX?

A colonel friend of mine asked me to move his big screen TV that he bought at the local PX. He gave DW and me a tour of the place before we loaded up the TV in my vehicle. I was surprised that prices were at best comparable to Costco and often higher. I'm sure there were some real bargains to be had, but it wasn't some "paradise" (kid in a candy store) type experience as far as I was concerned. It wasn't what I expected, given all I'd heard over the years about how much less military paid for things at the PX.

I'm happy for anyone who can beat Costco as a general shopping experience. I'm just not sure, from what I saw, that the PX beats Costco but YMMV.

The two primary shopping benefits for military servicemembers are the PX and the Commissary.
The PX is a department store. My understanding is that they are not allowed to price below the local market in the US, but strive to be equal to the lowest price in the area. The PX generates income which is all routed into morale and welfare programs on military installations. No sales tax is charged. They also operate gas stations and convenience stores. Costco usually beats their gas prices by a couple cents.

The Commissary is the grocery store where they are allowed to undercut local stores, and generally do. In the past there was no "store" brand. As a result, local stores would sometimes have their brand of staple products available at lower prices than what was available in the commissary. But in the last few years the policy shifted and there is now a commissary brand, and it is nearly universally cheaper than any grocery stores regular price. The Commissary is subsidized by the DOD, but I don't know by how much. A "surcharge" is added to each item at checkout that is undeclared except for one line at the end of the receipt.

The commissary consistently beats Costco on milk and bananas. Costco wins on rotisserie chicken, dates, mixed nuts, and the quality of various other items. With only two of us in the house, getting bulk perishables like bread, salad and fresh vegetables just didn't work out with Costco. I think Costco is great... I happen to have the commissary option that makes the Costco membership not quite worth it, until I need tires, a new bed, or similar big ticket item.

 

[badatmath]

I took it to Advance Auto to be checked and when they said it was dead, I drove it over to Costco to swap it for a new one. Costco doesn't do any diagnostics, as far as I know. You just go in and buy one or order one and that's that. Costco didn't even confirm it was dead. They just accepted my story about my car not starting and the results from Advance Auto (no written report).

Hmm. I have found from experience the local parts store tells me incorrect info all the time. I have gotten years out of a battery they pronounced "dead" before. . . . Not saying yours is the same of course just I have had really good experience at some local shops near me.

AZ heat eats batteries like M&Ms so I went through a lot before I started paying attention.

 

[NameTaken2]

DW needed a jump a few wks back -fortunately nearby, and a good weather day.
Advance Auto said the 4yr-old OEM battery tested OK.
Had them replace it anyway.
4yrs is in lifespan band, and "CYA" move to avoid a less convenient repeat regarding timing/location/weather.
Not to mention Q's from DW regarding not addressing the issue the first time LOL.

 

[Koolau]

I took it to Advance Auto to be checked and when they said it was dead, I drove it over to Costco to swap it for a new one. Costco doesn't do any diagnostics, as far as I know. You just go in and buy one or order one and that's that. Costco didn't even confirm it was dead. They just accepted my story about my car not starting and the results from Advance Auto (no written report).

That's interesting. The technology to determine the health of a battery is simple and relatively inexpensive. You'd think a battery dealer would have that technology on site. Some batteries are okay but become discharged due to failing alternators or even something as simple as a slipping fan belt.

 

[Koolau]

The two primary shopping benefits for military servicemembers are the PX and the Commissary.
The PX is a department store. My understanding is that they are not allowed to price below the local market in the US, but strive to be equal to the lowest price in the area. The PX generates income which is all routed into morale and welfare programs on military installations. No sales tax is charged. They also operate gas stations and convenience stores. Costco usually beats their gas prices by a couple cents.

The Commissary is the grocery store where they are allowed to undercut local stores, and generally do. In the past there was no "store" brand. As a result, local stores would sometimes have their brand of staple products available at lower prices than what was available in the commissary. But in the last few years the policy shifted and there is now a commissary brand, and it is nearly universally cheaper than any grocery stores regular price. The Commissary is subsidized by the DOD, but I don't know by how much. A "surcharge" is added to each item at checkout that is undeclared except for one line at the end of the receipt.

The commissary consistently beats Costco on milk and bananas. Costco wins on rotisserie chicken, dates, mixed nuts, and the quality of various other items. With only two of us in the house, getting bulk perishables like bread, salad and fresh vegetables just didn't work out with Costco. I think Costco is great... I happen to have the commissary option that makes the Costco membership not quite worth it, until I need tires, a new bed, or similar big ticket item.

Thanks for the explanation.

I'm thinking proximity might also play into the decision. Our Costco is "walking distance." Heh, heh, full disclosure - we never walk it. The PX that I visited was near Pearl Harbor - 15 miles away. All things being equal, I'd go to Costco, just for proximity.

It's great that you have the option!

 

[ransil]

DW needed a jump a few wks back -fortunately nearby, and a good weather day.
Advance Auto said the 4yr-old OEM battery tested OK.
Had them replace it anyway.
4yrs is in lifespan band, and "CYA" move to avoid a less convenient repeat regarding timing/location/weather.
Not to mention Q's from DW regarding not addressing the issue the first time LOL.

The electronic tester used no days do not always find a bad battery, the old school analog ones do a better job.

 

[Buckeye]

That's interesting. The technology to determine the health of a battery is simple and relatively inexpensive. You'd think a battery dealer would have that technology on site. Some batteries are okay but become discharged due to failing alternators or even something as simple as a slipping fan belt.

They might have a tester but I didn't see it on my visit for a warranty battery exchange. Maybe I wasn't the first.

 

[More Cowbell]

I went to fuel up at Costco today. Wanted to beat the Memorial Day weekend crush! The line seemed long because a fuel truck blocked the entry so only a single lane of cars could pass. Once past the truck, the line moved quickly.

After I committed to a fueling island, the car in front of me couldn’t exit because another car in the next island stopped at an angle so their car’s rear end blocked the passing lane. The offending car eventually straightened up enough to allow the other car to pass. I pulled up and was gassing up when the flustered young driver who had blocked the passing lane asked to swap sides with me “because the hose wouldn’t reach.” (Pretty sure they just needed to pull farther forward.) I was midway through fueling and told them to talk with the next person in my lane. Luckily the Costco attendant came over to help guide the challenged driver.

Amazingly no one honked or yelled.

Once home, I told DH. He doesn’t miss getting gas and getting oil changes since he drives an EV. But for the record he got quite stressed out with charging during our first EV road trip.

 

[More Cowbell]

I just read that the latest iteration of the Costco phone app will now allow any Visa card to be added to the Costco app Wallet, not just the Costco Citi app. There’s also a Quick Access toggle which will pull up your Digital ID Card up on your lockscreen when you are at a warehouse. And finally, you can order custom cakes and cookie platters from the app instead of going into the warehouse and writing your order with pencil and paper.

 

[athena53]

I went to fuel up at Costco today. Wanted to beat the Memorial Day weekend crush! The line seemed long because a fuel truck blocked the entry so only a single lane of cars could pass. Once past the truck, the line moved quickly.

I rarely use the Costco gas station at mine. I shop there only every 2 weeks and the line is usually loaded with vehicles with 50-gallon tanks. I don't want to wait behind a bunch of them to make an 8- or 9-gallon fill-up.

As I've posted elsewhere, my house is under contract and my microwave died- a button on the control panel to set AM or PM stopped working so it wouldn't cook anything. It was from 2007 and I figured there was a good chance the appliance repair people would tell me they couldn't replace the part and still charge me $99 for coming out. I ordered a new one through Costco with a delivery date of 5/23. Got follow-up e-mails with mixed messages- sometimes the same e-mail would say 5/23 in one place and 6/3 in another. I was going to be out of town 6/2-6/10. A friend offered to be there but I wanted to make sure the installation went OK although I'd already measured the space. On 5/23 I'm in line at the grocery store and the installer calls- he'll be there in 40 minutes. I hustled back home and he was a darn nice guy, in and out in maybe half an hour.

And if I download the app and scan the bar code of any prepared food it will automatically calculate cooking time. No, thanks.

Still haven't figured out the reason for the discrepancy in delivery dates.

 

[Koolau]

I rarely use the Costco gas station at mine. I shop there only every 2 weeks and the line is usually loaded with vehicles with 50-gallon tanks. I don't want to wait behind a bunch of them to make an 8- or 9-gallon fill-up.

I often enter the gas station from a line on the street. Sounds bad! But the line moves quickly and I'm rarely in line longer than 10 minutes. People DO leave too much space between cars when they are in line, but other than that, it tends to move pretty quickly. Also, in our area, most gas stations seem to have lines. They're shorter than Costco, but no one leaves their car at the pump at Costco to go into a mini-mart to pay for gas or buy coffee and a danish or to "shop." The gas station is for gas and you stay with your car. It moves quickly.

Also, I buy once a month so I'm typically down to 1/4 tank and need 12 or 13 gallons. Well worth the wait for the 30 cents (minimum) savings - more like 50 or 60 cents most days. Sorry your station is problematic.

Oh, and one nice thing about where I live: I rarely (as in VERY rarely) see an RV. We just don't really have 'em, so no 50 gallon tanks.

 

[More Cowbell]

I have a potluck to go to and investigated the cookie tray order in the Costco app. There is a two day lead time for cookie tray orders at my preferred warehouse, and no choices to delete the oatmeal raisin cookies.

 

[isisdave]

I bought my last two batteries from AAA's battery service. It does cost 30% more than buying at Costco, but ...

The first one was because I had to leave pretty soon, the car was nose-in in the garage, and I didn't have another vehicle handy.

The second one was because the first one lasted nearly five years, and I guess I was kinda in a blow-the-dough mode. They do test first.

 

[EastWest Gal]

A new Costco opened near us late last year. The other Costco we used to go to was crowded and there were always long lines, and not enough parking. The new one never has lines for gas, and they also have someone who helps people ahead of the checkout line by hand scanning everything in your cart after scanning your card. When you go to checkout, you just scan your card and everything loads up on the screen. You don't have to take anything out of the cart. We get our tires at Costco. I'm really happy with their meat and dairy as well.

 

[Turbo29]

I bought my last two batteries from AAA's battery service. It does cost 30% more than buying at Costco, but ...

The first one was because I had to leave pretty soon, the car was nose-in in the garage, and I didn't have another vehicle handy.

The second one was because the first one lasted nearly five years, and I guess I was kinda in a blow-the-dough mode. They do test first.

Here in Arizona with the desert heat, Costco batteries are lucky to make it two years. Last time I got a battery, I got an AAA battery from NAPA auto parts. It was definitely more than Costco but at almost 3yrs old, it's still going.

 

[Semi-Retyrd]

In Las Vegas there was good news and bad news about car batteries. The bad news is none ever lasted beyond two years. The good news is they always died within warranty. So replacement was free.

 

[More Cowbell]

Went to the Executive Member early opening for the first time today. This warehouse was not as empty as hoped for, but much better than a normal weekend. I generally avoid this warehouse on the weekends except but I was on a mission to get potluck food. The deli came through with roasted chicken rollers. Hopefully Costco will add Party Platter pre-orders to the app in the near future.

Picked up some Kirkland Signature women’s activewear (hoodie, pants, shorts) that Costco Redditors claimed were near duplicates of Vuori, and indeed the material seemed just as buttery soft.

Disappointed that the corded scanner guns seem to have disappeared from self-checkout registers since the last time I was there!

 

[tutan]

Went to the food court to get a chocolate/vanilla ice cream. There is no more chocolate. Instead the new flavor is strawberry. Maybe the recent spike and then drop in cocoa/cacao price has not worked its way to the food court ice cream shop.

 

[Texas Proud]

Went to the food court to get a chocolate/vanilla ice cream. There is no more chocolate. Instead the new flavor is strawberry. Maybe the recent spike and then drop in cocoa/cacao price has not worked its way to the food court ice cream shop.

Do they actually use real chocolate?

 

[badatmath]

Strawberry is limited time only so get it while you can. Or so I heard on another forum. 750 calories. Ouch.

 

[tutan]

Do they actually use real chocolate?

Of course! Try it yourself.

 

[Markola]

I bought some COST stock to balance all the tech concentration and what I fear might be excess mania. Anyone else thinking this way?

 

[Kings over Queens]

I bought some COST stock to balance all the tech concentration and what I fear might be excess mania. Anyone else thinking this way?

I have some exposure in my index funds and that's enough for me, but I do love Costco and if I were to buy individual stocks, it's one I'd certainly consider.