Advance Auto Parts, the Roanoke-based company and No. 2 auto parts chain in the nation, shares the valley with the stores of market leader AutoZone.

This year, Advance may share its home market with another major competitor.

O'Reilly Automotive Inc., the No. 3 auto parts chain, wants to move in.

The Missouri-based auto parts chain on Wednesday filed a site plan to open a store on Williamson Road in Roanoke.

It would be the first O'Reilly Auto Parts in the Roanoke Valley.

O'Reilly's corporate office declined to confirm the company has plans for a Roanoke store. Company spokeswoman Ashley Clark said O'Reilly plans 150 new stores in each 2009 and 2010. The red-and-green stores typically are open seven days a week, employ five to 12 people, and sell both to do-it-yourselfers and professional mechanics and garages, Clark said.

The company is active in the East, having opened a 300,000-square-foot distribution center in May in Greensboro, N.C.

O'Reilly wants to build its store at 4611 Williamson Road N.W., according to its filing. It is the site of the former Roma Restaurant, which has been vacant for at least 15 years.

Wendy Jones, who directs the Williamson Road Area Business Association, said the association would welcome O'Reilly or any other viable business to the location.

Asked for a comment, Advance spokeswoman Shelly Whitaker said: "O'Reilly's is a strong competitor. In most markets, we compete with multiple competitors."

The nation's top auto parts retailers, and the store totals they have announced recently, are as follows: AutoZone Inc., 4,340; Advance Auto Parts Inc., 3,405; and O'Reilly Automotive Inc., 3,337.