The Parts Manager's Checklist for Following Up on a Delayed Parts ETA

A parts manager's follow-up checklist for delayed ETAs should verify the supplier's revised timeline, confirm the customer's current vehicle status, flag any downstream service delays, communicate revised expectations to service advisors and customers, and document every touchpoint in your DMS. The best dealers treat delayed parts the same way they treat service delays—proactively, not reactively.

Why Delayed Parts ETAs Matter More Than You Think

A delayed parts ETA isn't just a supply-chain hiccup. It's a customer-service failure waiting to happen.

Here's what happens when you don't follow up: A customer drops off a vehicle for a transmission fluid service and new serpentine belt. The belt arrives on time. The transmission fluid is backordered, but nobody tells the customer until they call asking when their car will be ready. By then, the vehicle has been in your bay for three days. The customer is frustrated. Your service advisor is scrambling. Your technician has moved on to other work. Your CSI score takes a hit.

The real cost isn't the part itself. It's the labor reset, the bay re-allocation, the second phone call, the customer who now questions whether your shop knows what it's doing.

Top-performing dealerships treat parts delays like they treat any delay—with a written checklist and a system. They don't wing it. And that's what this post covers: the exact steps a parts manager should take the moment a supplier tells you an ETA is going to slip.

Step 1: Verify the Supplier's New Timeline (And Don't Trust a Vague Answer)

The moment your supplier tells you a part is delayed, your first move is to get a specific revised ETA. Not "next week." Not "soon." A date.

Here's what to ask:

What is the exact revised delivery date? Write it down. If the supplier hedges, push back. "I need a date I can give to the service department, not a range."
Is this date firm, or is it a best estimate? There's a difference. A firm date means the supplier is committing. A best estimate means you need a backup plan.
What's the cause of the delay? Is it a manufacturing issue, a shipping hold-up, a customs delay? The reason matters because it tells you whether the delay is likely to slip further.
Is there any expedite option, and what does it cost? Don't assume you can't afford it. A $40 expedite fee on a transmission cooler might be worth $300 in labor and customer goodwill if it keeps the vehicle moving.
If this date slips again, who do I call and when? Get a direct contact at the supplier. Don't rely on automated tracking.

Write all of this down in your DMS or parts-management system. You need a record of what you were told and when. And honestly? One of the biggest mistakes parts managers make is accepting vague timelines and then acting surprised when the part doesn't show up.

Step 2: Flag the Service Order and Notify Your Service Manager Immediately

The moment you have a confirmed delayed ETA, the service department needs to know. Not at the end of the day. Now.

Here's why: Your service manager has a bay-management problem. They need to decide whether to pull the vehicle out of the bay, reassign the technician, or adjust the promised delivery date to the customer. That decision has to happen before the customer calls asking for an update.

When you notify the service manager, include:

The RO number and vehicle (year, make, model, license plate)
The delayed part name and part number
The new ETA
Whether the customer has been notified yet
Whether this delay blocks other work on the vehicle

Use your DMS notes field or a team chat feature so there's a clear record. Don't rely on a hallway conversation. If you can't document it, it didn't happen,and when the customer calls three days later asking why their vehicle isn't ready, nobody will remember who said what.

Step 3: Confirm the Customer's Current Vehicle Status

Before you contact the customer, find out what state the vehicle is actually in.

Is it still in the bay with other work incomplete? Is it in a holding area? Has the technician already started other repairs that depend on this part? Is the vehicle ready to be returned to the customer minus this one repair?

Ask your service manager or the technician directly. Don't assume. Here are the possible scenarios:

The vehicle can be returned without this part. The customer can pick it up, drive it, and return for the delayed repair when the part arrives. (This is the best outcome.)
The vehicle is blocked on this part. Nothing else can proceed until this part arrives. The vehicle will sit in the bay or a holding lot.
The technician is working around this part. They're doing other work on the RO while waiting. The vehicle will be ready soon, but not until this part shows up.
The vehicle is complete and ready. The delayed part was a secondary repair request, and the customer's primary repair is done.

This status determines how you communicate to the customer and what options you offer them.

Step 4: Create Your Customer Communication Plan

Your customer communication needs to happen before they call you. Proactive beats reactive every single time.

Here's a framework for what to say:

Be honest about the delay. "Your 2019 Pilot's transmission cooler is on backorder from the supplier. The new ETA is [specific date]."
Explain what it means for their vehicle. Either: "We can have your vehicle ready for pickup by [date] without this repair, and you can return it [date range] once the part arrives" OR "We're holding your vehicle. We expect to have everything completed by [date]."
Offer options if possible. "You have two choices: Pick it up as-is and return it for the cooler replacement, or wait and have everything done in one trip. Which works better for you?"
Take responsibility. "We should have caught this timeline earlier. Here's what we're doing to make sure you're taken care of." Then follow through.
Provide a direct contact. "If anything changes on our end, I'll call you immediately. Here's my number if you have questions."

Have your service advisor or BDC rep make this call, not an automated text. This is where CSI lives or dies.

Step 5: Track the Part and Set Internal Reminders

Now that everyone knows about the delay, you need a system to make sure the part actually arrives and gets installed.

This is the part most dealerships skip, and it's a mistake.

Set a calendar reminder for two days before the new ETA. Call the supplier and confirm the part is still on track. Don't wait until the ETA date to find out it slipped again.
Check your DMS daily for incoming parts. When the part arrives, flag it immediately so the technician knows it's in the bay.
Update the RO the day the part arrives. Add a note: "Part received [date]. Ready for installation." This prevents the vehicle from sitting in a holding lot while everyone thinks it's still waiting for a part.
Schedule the final installation work. Don't assume the technician will just grab it. Assign it as a task with a due date.
Call the customer the day the vehicle is complete. Don't wait for them to call you. "Your Pilot is done. We installed the transmission cooler this morning. You can pick it up today between 2 and 5 PM, or we can deliver it to you."

This kind of workflow is what Dealer1 Solutions was built to handle,assigning parts-receipt tasks, flagging ROs for follow-up work, and sending customer notifications automatically. But even with a manual system, the principle is the same: document every step, set reminders, and don't assume anyone else is tracking it.

Step 6: Document Everything in Your DMS

Your DMS notes field is your protection and your proof.

For every delayed parts ETA, document:

The date you were notified of the delay
The original ETA and the revised ETA
The name of the supplier contact you spoke with
The reason for the delay
The date you notified the service manager
The date and time you called the customer
What the customer said and what option they chose
The date the part actually arrived
The date the part was installed and the vehicle was ready

When a customer complains three months later that you left their vehicle sitting in your lot for two weeks, you'll have a documented timeline showing exactly what happened and when you communicated with them. That's not just good for CSI,it's good for protecting your dealership.

Step 7: Follow Up After the Vehicle Is Complete

The work doesn't end when the vehicle leaves your lot.

Call the customer within two business days of delivery. Not a text. A call. "Hi, I wanted to make sure everything's running perfectly with your Pilot and that transmission cooler installation. Any questions or concerns?"

This is a CSI play. It shows you care about the outcome, not just the sale. And if there's a problem,the part is noisy, the vehicle is running rough,you catch it while you can still fix it under warranty.

One Strong Opinion: Stop Blaming Suppliers for Everything

Here's something parts managers won't say out loud, but it's true: A lot of the parts delays we blame on suppliers are actually our ordering problem.

We order a part at 4 PM on a Friday for a Monday morning job. We don't verify stock before ordering. We don't account for shipping time. Then when the part doesn't show up Monday, we act like the supplier dropped the ball.

The best parts managers order two days earlier than they think they need to. They call and verify stock before the PO is placed. They build in a buffer for shipping and handling. They check the supplier's website for out-of-stock notifications before the part becomes critical.

Yes, suppliers do sometimes mess up. But most of the time, a delayed parts ETA is a planning failure, not a supplier failure. Own that.

The Complete Parts Manager Checklist for Delayed ETAs

Here's a quick-reference checklist you can print or save to your phone:

☐ Call supplier and get a specific revised ETA date (not a range)
☐ Ask about expedite options and cost
☐ Get a direct contact name at supplier for future updates
☐ Document the new ETA and reason for delay in your DMS
☐ Notify service manager immediately with RO number, part name, new ETA
☐ Confirm with technician or service manager what state the vehicle is in
☐ Have service advisor or BDC call customer with honest update and options
☐ Set calendar reminder for two days before new ETA to confirm with supplier
☐ Update DMS the day part arrives with receipt confirmation
☐ Schedule final installation work in DMS with due date
☐ Call customer the day vehicle is complete
☐ Follow up with customer within two business days of delivery

Print this. Laminate it. Put it on the parts desk. Use it for every single delayed parts ETA. Consistency is what separates dealerships with good CSI from dealerships with mediocre CSI.

Frequently asked questions

What should I do if the supplier gives me a delayed ETA right before the customer is supposed to pick up their vehicle?

Call the service manager and customer immediately. Don't wait. The customer needs to know within the same hour so they can adjust their plans. Offer to return the vehicle without that particular repair (if possible) or provide a firm new delivery date and arrange a loaner if you have one available. Transparency beats bad news delivered late.

Should I charge the customer for expedited shipping on a delayed part?

No. A delay caused by a supply-chain problem isn't the customer's responsibility. Eat the expedite cost. If you expedite five parts a year and it costs $200, that's a $1,000 annual investment in CSI and goodwill. That pays for itself in one prevented negative review.

How do I know if a supplier is chronically late versus occasionally late?

Track it. Keep a simple spreadsheet or use your DMS reporting to log every parts order: the date ordered, the promised ETA, and the actual arrival date. After 20-30 orders, you'll see a pattern. If Supplier A is on-time 95% of the time but Supplier B is on-time 70% of the time, you need to adjust your ordering strategy for Supplier B,order earlier or find a backup supplier.

What if the part is backordered and the new ETA is weeks away?

Explore alternatives immediately. Can you source the part from a different supplier? Can you offer the customer an OEM equivalent part that's in stock? Can you install an aftermarket part if the customer approves? Call your supplier and ask if there's a core exchange option or a rental program. Document your attempts to find a solution in the DMS. If the customer ultimately has to wait weeks, they need to know that you tried other options first.

Should I notify the service advisor of a delayed parts ETA, or should I go straight to the service manager?

Go to the service manager first. The service manager controls bay allocation and can adjust schedules. The service advisor needs to know immediately after so they can call the customer, but the service manager's decision comes first. If you notify the advisor before the manager, the advisor might promise something the manager can't deliver.

How should I document a delayed parts ETA if my DMS notes field is already full?

Create a separate parts-delay log in a spreadsheet or a team document. At minimum, log the RO number, part number, original ETA, revised ETA, and the date you notified the customer. Link this log to the RO notes field with a simple note: "See parts delay log, entry #42." This keeps your DMS clean while maintaining a centralized record. If your DMS doesn't have good parts-delay tracking, this is a case for upgrading to a system that does.