Five free practice questions on customer service and quotes: block B of the Red Seal 240P Parts Technician exam, about 26 of its 120 questions. They are in the exam's format: four options, one correct answer. Answer each one before opening the explanation. No account, no email.
01The questions
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A retail customer says a repair shop told her that her car's oxygen sensor has failed. The catalogue lists two different sensors for the car, one ahead of the catalytic converter and one after it, and she does not know which one the shop meant. What does the parts technician do?
- Sell the sensor ahead of the converter, the more common sale.
- Call the shop to ask which sensor position it found faulty.
- Sell both sensors and refund whichever comes back unused.
- Check her past invoices for the sensor last sold for the car.
Show the answer
B. Correct. Deciding which sensor has failed is the shop's diagnosis, so the shop technician who made it is the technical support that settles the listing. A quick call, with her agreement, or a look at the shop's written estimate gives the sensor's position, and she leaves with the one right part on the first sale.
Why not the others
A. Which sensor sells more often says nothing about which one the shop found faulty on her car. A guess can send her home with the wrong sensor and back for a second trip and a return. The shop that diagnosed the car can say which position it meant.
C. This sells her a part she does not need, ties up her money and leaves her to work out which one to fit, with a chance she installs the wrong one. One call to the shop that diagnosed the car identifies the single sensor needed.
D. Past invoices show what was bought before, not which sensor the shop has found faulty now; either one may be the one at fault this time. The shop that diagnosed the car can say which position it meant.
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A fleet's parts room has 14 fuel filters on hand and uses 6 a week. Its next stock delivery from the store is in 3 weeks, and it wants enough to cover usage until then plus a 1-week reserve. Filters are sold in cases of 6. How many filters does the parts technician recommend for today's order, rounded up to whole cases?
- 4 filters
- 10 filters
- 12 filters
- 24 filters
Show the answer
C. Correct. Needed: 3 weeks of usage plus a 1-week reserve = 6 × 4 = 24 filters. Less 14 on hand = 10 short. Rounded up to cases of 6: 2 cases = 12 filters.
Why not the others
A. This covers only 3 weeks of usage less the stock on hand (6 × 3 − 14 = 4), leaves out the 1-week reserve and is not rounded up to a whole case.
B. This is the right shortfall, 6 × 4 − 14 = 10, but it is not rounded up to whole cases of 6 as the stem asks. Two cases are needed.
D. This is the whole requirement, 6 × 4 = 24, without subtracting the 14 filters the fleet already has. It would leave the fleet overstocked.
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During a rush, a technician takes an oil filter off the parts room shelf for his job and says, 'Charge it later.' What does the parts technician do?
- Expense it to shop supplies since it is a small part.
- Write it on a notepad and enter it at the end of the day.
- Let the next cycle count pick up the missing filter.
- Issue it to his repair order in the system right away.
Show the answer
D. Correct. Issuing the part to the repair order the moment it leaves the shelf keeps the inventory transaction history accurate: the on-hand quantity, the usage that drives reordering, and the charge on the right job. Paper notes and 'later' are how parts go unbilled and counts go wrong.
Why not the others
A. The filter went on a customer's job, so it is billed on that repair order. Charging it to shop supplies loses the sale and distorts both shop-supply costs and the filter's usage history.
B. A notepad entry made in a rush is easily lost or entered against the wrong job, and until then the system shows a filter that is not there. The part is issued to the repair order in the system when it leaves the shelf.
C. A count would show a shortage with no record of where the filter went, the customer would never be billed, and the usage history would be wrong for reordering. Issue it to the repair order now.
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A customer returns with a written quote for a radiator dated 45 days ago. The quote says it is valid for 30 days, and the supplier's cost has gone up since. What does the parts technician do?
- Requote at today's price and confirm availability.
- Honour the old price, since it is in writing.
- Charge today's price without mentioning the change.
- Split the price increase with him to keep the sale.
Show the answer
A. Correct. The quote lapsed after 30 days, which is exactly why quotes carry a validity period. The parts technician retrieves it from the business system, updates it to the current price and availability, and reviews the new figures with the customer before taking the order.
Why not the others
B. A written quote holds the store only for its stated validity period. At 45 days this one has lapsed, so it is updated to today's price and availability.
C. Changing the price without telling the customer turns a routine update into a dispute at the till. Requote at today's price and review it with him before the sale.
D. An unapproved discount gives away margin that store policy has not authorized. The lapsed quote is updated to the current price and reviewed with the customer.
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A recall part ordered for a specific customer's VIN arrives on the morning delivery. What does the parts technician do?
- Hold it in receiving until the customer phones to ask about it.
- Put it on the shelf under its part number as regular stock.
- Tag it to that VIN's order and notify the service advisor.
- Leave it boxed until the supplier's invoice is matched.
Show the answer
C. Correct. A recall part ordered for one VIN is reserved for that vehicle. Tagging it to the order and telling the service advisor right away lets the customer's appointment be booked, which is the reason it was ordered.
Why not the others
A. The customer does not know the part has arrived, so waiting for a call can leave a safety recall undone for weeks. Notify the service advisor.
B. Shelving it as stock lets it be sold or issued to another job, and the customer it was ordered for is never called. It is tagged to the VIN's order and the service advisor is told.
D. Matching the invoice is accounting work on its own timeline; the part is received, tagged to the order and the service department told now.
02Answer key
| Question | Answer | Sub-task |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 | B | Identifies retail customers' needs |
| Q2 | C | Identifies wholesale customers' needs |
| Q3 | D | Maintains inventory and records for internal customers |
| Q4 | A | Prepares customer quotes |
| Q5 | C | Implements product improvement programs (PIP) |
03What block B covers
Serving retail, wholesale and internal customers: finding out what a customer actually needs, giving technical information and pointing to the right literature and specialty tools, supporting the service shop, kitting and tool crib records, preparing quotes, no-fee value-added services, customer records, and handling recalls and product improvement programs.
The Red Seal Occupational Standard names this block “Performs customer service”. It carries 21.7% of the exam, about 26 of the 120 questions, split across four tasks. The share column is each task's weight within the block, as the standard publishes it.
| Task and its sub-tasks | Share of block |
|---|---|
| Provides services to retail customers Identifies retail customers' needs; Provides technical information to retail customers | 22% |
| Provides services to wholesale customers Identifies wholesale customers' needs; Provides training opportunities and technical information to wholesale customers | 22% |
| Provides services to internal customers Identifies internal customers' needs; Maintains inventory and records for internal customers | 21% |
| Provides general customer service and support Prepares customer quotes; Provides no-fee value-added services and information; Records customer information; Implements product improvement programs (PIP) | 35% |
04What the questions turn on
Identify the unit from its record
For a shop job, the open repair order carries the VIN, which settles trim and package splits that year and model miss. For a fleet, record each new unit's make, model and VIN under the account.
Ask whoever made the diagnosis
When a listing splits two ways and the customer cannot say which part was meant, the shop that diagnosed the vehicle, or the tag on the removed unit, settles it before anything is sold or ordered.
Quotes have a validity period
A quote past its stated validity is updated to today's price and availability and reviewed with the customer. A quote still inside its period is converted into the order in the system, not re-keyed line by line.
Order for usage, then round up
Add planned work to normal usage, take off stock on hand and on order, and round the shortfall up to the pack size. A seasonal build follows last season's usage, adjusted for what is expected.
05The other blocks
The 240P exam has five blocks. Each has its own page of free questions:
The 240P Parts Technician practice exam page describes the full question bank. How these questions are written and checked: how our questions are made. Found a mistake? Tell us and we will fix it.