Custom Automotive Parts Boxes
Custom automotive parts boxes sized to the part — filters, pads, sensors, belts, kits — in board that survives a parts rack, with the panels a counter needs, from 100. Dieline and price the same working day.
The box a parts counter reads before it reads the part
- Board
- B flute, E flute, 20–24pt boxboard; laminated on retail-facing cartons
- Builds
- Tuck carton, crash-lock, divided kit carton, sleeve, board wrap
- Panels
- Part number both ends, fitment front, barcode patch, reserved label panel
Get a price for Automotive Parts Boxes
Send the size and quantity — we reply the same working day with a price, a dieline and a date. Artwork optional at this stage.
- Free dielineThe flat drawing comes with the quote, before you commit.
- Proof before pressNothing is printed until you have seen it laid on the dieline.
- Die kept for reordersTooling is paid once. Every reorder skips straight to press.
- Quoted in four marketsUS, UK, Canada and Australia, in the delivery currency.
Which carton for which part
| Filters (oil, air, cabin) | Boxboard tuck carton or E flute; full color; a window on premium lines |
|---|---|
| Brake pads and discs | B flute carton with a divider or a board wrap; heavy, sharp-edged |
| Sensors, electrical, small parts | Small boxboard carton with a bag or a board insert; anti-static bag inside if needed |
| Belts and hoses | Sleeve or a flat carton with a hang hole |
| Kits (timing, service) | Divided corrugated carton with a parts list printed inside the lid |
Panels, numbers and the rack
Print is planned as a system across the range, so a new part number is a text change on a template rather than a new design.
- The part number on both ends, large, so it reads from either side of a rack.
- Fitment on the front; a reserved panel for a later applicator label where SKUs share a box.
- Barcode on a matte, unvarnished patch with the quiet zone clear.
- A color band per product family, so a picker sees the category before the number.
Board that survives a warehouse
Parts boxes live on racking, are picked and re-shelved, and travel in a mixed van. B flute for anything heavy or metal, E flute for a mid-weight part that also has to look good in a retail bay, 20–24pt boxboard with a laminate for filters and small components. Our shipping boxes for parcels and distribution are the outer that a mixed order goes out in.
Holding a heavy or sharp part
A brake disc or a machined part will cut through a light carton in transit if it is free to move. A board wrap around the part, a corrugated divider between two pads, or a die-cut insert that locates a sensor keeps the part still and the box intact. The insert is drawn from the part; a photograph beside a ruler is enough for most.
Say if a part is oily or has an anti-corrosion coating. It changes the board and whether an inner bag is needed.
Runs, ranges and reorders
Aftermarket brands run hundreds of part numbers in a few box sizes. We map the range onto as few dies as the parts allow, keep the dies and the print template, and run a new number or a reprint without setup. A range review at the start saves a die every time a part is added.
Automotive Parts Boxes — specification
The rows that are specific to this build first, then what applies to every job we run. Anything not listed is a question, not a limit — send the brief.
This build
- Board
- B flute, E flute, 20–24pt boxboard; laminated on retail-facing cartons
- Builds
- Tuck carton, crash-lock, divided kit carton, sleeve, board wrap
- Panels
- Part number both ends, fitment front, barcode patch, reserved label panel
- Inserts
- Corrugated divider, board wrap, die-cut locator, inner bag
- Full color on retail; 1–2 colors on shippers; color band per family
- System
- Range mapped to shared dies and a print template
- Minimum
- 100 boxes per size
On every job
- Print process
- Digital below about a thousand, offset above it. One side or both, with spot colors where a match has to hold.
- Color
- CMYK as standard. Uncoated and kraft stocks print lighter and warmer; a spot color is the only exact match.
- Tolerance
- Cutting plus or minus 1 mm, creasing plus or minus 0.5 mm, confirmed on a plain sample before the run.
- Tooling
- A cutting die per size, made once and kept. Foil and emboss dies per artwork, also kept.
- Food contact
- Food-grade board and inks where the carton touches food, with the interior left plain.
- Sustainability
- Mono-material board wherever the product allows; recycled-content and FSC stocks; no claim printed the pack does not earn.
- Artwork
- Vector PDF or AI, 3 mm bleed, 4 mm safe area, fonts outlined. We check every file and send a proof before press.
- Dieline
- Supplied free with the quote, before you commit. Yours whether or not you order.
- Sample
- A plain unprinted sample at the finished size on request, for fit and construction.
- Reorders
- Skip the tooling and go straight to press at a lower unit price.
- Lead time
- Quoted with the price against your fill date rather than promised before we have seen the spec.
- Markets
- United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia — priced in the delivery currency, freight included.
Boards and films we build automotive parts boxes on
A folding carton is one sheet of board, so the board is the product. These are the stocks we run for cartons, what each is good at, and where it lets you down.
Natural kraft
Unbleached folding board. Warm, hides marks, costs least. Mutes color — one or two flat colors print well, photographs do not.
250–350gsm sleeves; 14–24pt cartonsWhite SBS
Solid bleached sulfate: bright, coated, the retail carton standard. Takes accurate color and every finish. Shows scuffs sooner than kraft.
14–24ptWhite lined chipboard
A recycled gray core under a white printing face. Cheaper than SBS and slightly duller; the back of the sheet stays gray.
16–24ptKraft-look coated
A kraft face over a coated inner. The natural look with a barrier behind it — the answer where oil, grease or moisture would mark plain kraft.
14–20ptRecycled-content board
Post-consumer fiber with a gray-brown cast. Right for outers and inner components; poor for bright whites and photography.
16–22ptMicro-flute E and F
A fine corrugated layer where a carton needs structure it cannot get from board — a large panel, a heavy product, a box that ships alone.
E 1.5 mm; F 0.8 mmUncoated and textured
No clay coat, or a linen or laid grain. Print reads softer and warmer; a deboss goes deeper. Photographs do not sit well on it.
280–350gsmMetallised and pearlescent
A metallic or pearl face for a shelf that needs to catch light. Costly, and it fights a photograph — a mark or a pattern suits it better.
16–20ptNot sure which? Say what goes in it and where it is sold — the material follows from that. Our notes on recycled, recyclable and compostable cover which claims each stock can honestly carry.
- 01
Send what you have
A dimension, a photograph beside a ruler, or the product itself. No technical drawing needed — that part is ours.
- 02
We quote and draw
A price, a dieline and a date come back together. If a different build would suit the product better, that is in the reply too.
- 03
Approve the dieline
The flat drawing is yours to check: which panel is the front, where the folds fall, how deep the cavity really is.
- 04
Artwork on the dieline
You place your design on the flat we sent, or we place it for you, and you see a proof before anything goes to press.
- 05
A sample if you want one
A plain unprinted sample at the finished size shows fit and construction — the things a drawing cannot.
- 06
Cut, printed, shipped
The die is cut once and kept, so every reorder skips the tooling and goes straight to press at a lower unit price.
Format
Vector PDF or AI where possible. Raster artwork at 300dpi at final size, in CMYK.
Bleed
3 mm past every trim line, so a fraction of drift on the cutter never leaves a white edge.
Safe area
Keep type and anything important 4 mm inside the cut and away from every fold.
Color
Convert to CMYK before sending. Uncoated stock prints lighter; a spot color is the only exact match.
Fonts
Outline them or supply the files. A missing font substitutes silently and the proof will not match.
Barcodes
On a light, matte, unvarnished patch with the quiet zone clear — a code on gloss fails the scanner.
Not set up that way? Send it anyway — fixing a file is a short conversation, and we check every one before press. Our guide to preparing print files covers each point.
Every finish here is a decision about light on a shelf, not about luxury.
Matte lamination
Reads considered, hides marks, takes a ballpoint.
Gloss lamination
Lifts color; glares under shop lighting.
Soft-touch
Velvet in the hand; shows fingerprints in a bag.
Hot foil
Real metal leaf — the most reliable premium signal.
Emboss / deboss
Shape with no ink; works in the dark.
Spot UV
Gloss shapes on a matte field.
Uncoated kraft
Warm, natural, mutes color.
Textured stock
Texture in the paper; cannot scuff off.
Not sure which suits the shelf it sells from? Say where the product is sold and we suggest one — our notes on specialty finishes show them on real boxes.
Sizing a folding carton so the die comes out right: automotive parts boxes
Measure the product, not the box it is in now. A carton is built around what has to fit inside it, assembled — cap on, lid fitted, folded if it folds — at its widest point in each direction. Send those three numbers and say which is which.
- Length x width x height
- Internal, always. External dimensions include the board and are what the carrier measures, not what the product needs.
- Clearance
- 2–3 mm a side for a snug fit; more where an insert or void fill goes in. A carton cut exactly to the product is slow to pack and transmits every knock.
- Board thickness
- Heavier board takes internal space from the product. It matters most on small boxes, where four walls of 24pt is a real share of the cavity.
- Varies between batches?
- Glass, textiles, molded parts and cured soap all do. Measure several and build to the largest.
- Cutting tolerance
- Plus or minus 1 mm on folding board. Confirmed on a plain sample before the run.
- Units
- Metric or imperial, as long as you say which. Mixing them in one spec is where mistakes happen.
Not sure your numbers are right? Send the product dimensions rather than the box dimensions and we work the box out — the full method is in our guide to measuring for a box.
Interactive · five steps · no sign-up
Build your Automotive Parts Boxes in 3D
Pick a shape, type a size, choose a board and a finish. The preview on the left redraws as you go, and the spec lands with us exactly as you set it.
Frequently asked questions
Got a question about automotive parts boxes? The answers below cover what we get asked most. If yours is not here, send it with a brief, message us on WhatsApp, or call +1 503-461-4788 — we reply the same working day.
Can one box design cover many part numbers?
Yes. A print template with the number and fitment as text changes, and a reserved panel for an applicator label, lets one box serve a family.
What board suits brake pads?
B flute corrugated with a divider between the pads. They are heavy and sharp-edged, and a light carton fails in a van.
Where should the part number go?
On both ends, large enough to read from either side of a rack, as well as the front.
Do you make kit boxes with compartments?
Yes, divided corrugated cartons with the parts list printed inside the lid.
Can the barcode be guaranteed to scan?
It is printed on a matte, unvarnished patch with a clear quiet zone, which is what makes it scan at a counter.
What is the minimum order?
100 boxes per size.
Can the box have a window?
Yes, on filter and premium cartons where the part sells on appearance.
What about oily or coated parts?
Tell us. We specify a board that does not stain through and add an inner bag where the coating needs one.
Do the boxes ship flat?
Yes, cartons, dividers and wraps all ship flat.
How do I plan a whole range?
Send the part list with dimensions. We map it onto as few dies as possible and set up a print template for the numbers.
Do you keep the dies?
Yes, per size, so a new part number on an existing size is a print change only.
Do you ship outside the US?
Yes, to the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, quoted in the delivery currency.
Same range
