Are those cheap ebay clocksprings worth using?

[slacktide_bitog]

Modern Subarus have problems with the clockspring, which Subaru calls a roll connector. The local Subaru dealer wants $300 for it, though online dealers have it for $200.

Rock Auto has the Shee-Mar brand for $100

And of course, there are those really cheap ones on eBay, as in under $20 cheap! Has anyone here successfully used those really cheap clocksprings from ebay? How long has it lasted?

 

[fdcg27]

Modern Subarus have problems with the clockspring, which Subaru calls a roll connector. The local Subaru dealer wants $300 for it, though online dealers have it for $200.

Rock Auto has the Shee-Mar brand for $100

And of course, there are those really cheap ones on eBay, as in under $20 cheap! Has anyone here successfully used those really cheap clocksprings from ebay? How long has it lasted?

For the savings you might want to roll the dice.
Worst that could happen is that you'll have to remove the steering wheel again.

 

[SC Maintenance]

I have used the $25 ones in my Nissan. You get a couple years.

The OEM one comes with the steering angle sensor but the eBay ones do not. You have to transfer your old sensor - a few screws. OEM is like $300.

I can change my Nissan one in about an hour. If it was a bigger job I would get OEM.

 

[wavinwayne]

The guy from South Main Auto on Youtube says never, never, never use an aftermarket clockspring. Claims they are all complete garbage. For what it's worth.

 

[Drifter]

Wow. That is a steep price. I would take the gamble as fdcg27 suggested too.

 

[RBT]

Modern Subarus have problems with the clockspring, which Subaru calls a roll connector. The local Subaru dealer wants $300 for it, though online dealers have it for $200.

Rock Auto has the Shee-Mar brand for $100

And of course, there are those really cheap ones on eBay, as in under $20 cheap! Has anyone here successfully used those really cheap clocksprings from ebay? How long has it lasted?

In most cars the clock spring is part of the electrical system for the airbag. Do you reasonably think the eBay version is the same quality as the original? Yes I know the original is expensive, but How much is your personal safety worth to you? With that type of part, I would buy only the original part from the manufacturer. Not trying to sound as if I am not sensitive to cost - I have a coffee machine in my office because it is more cost effective (and convenient) but on some things you want to make sure the quality is right.

 

[dishdude]

To be fair, it sounds like the original is junk so how much worse can aftermarket be? Any input on Subaru specific forums?

 

[SC Maintenance]

In most cars the clock spring is part of the electrical system for the airbag. Do you reasonably think the eBay version is the same quality as the original? Yes I know the original is expensive, but How much is your personal safety worth to you? With that type of part, I would buy only the original part from the manufacturer. Not trying to sound as if I am not sensitive to cost - I have a coffee machine in my office because it is more cost effective (and convenient) but on some things you want to make sure the quality is right.

The 17 year old airbag on my Xterra fired when my daughter ran into someone - eBay clock spring and all. Lucky perhaps?

It’s just a spiral spring in the end.

If there is anything wrong with the clock spring you should get an airbag light/code - shouldn’t you?

 

[slacktide_bitog]

I have used the $25 ones in my Nissan. You get a couple years.

The OEM one comes with the steering angle sensor but the eBay ones do not. You have to transfer your old sensor - a few screws. OEM is like $300.

I can change my Nissan one in about an hour. If it was a bigger job I would get OEM.

The OEM clockspring doesn't come with the steering angle sensor, either

 

[goblin]

...
If there is anything wrong with the clock spring you should get an airbag light/code - shouldn’t you?

Depends...
My 1996 4Runner's clock spring is going bad. No airbag lights, but honk works only on good days and cruise control - even less so. And the cruise control on/off light never works.

Took it out three times, each time to replace it with one I thought would work - every time everything matches except one two-wire connector. So I remount the old one. So now I have an airbag light, but the honk works every time

And yes, I should cut my losses and get an original one but that one for some reason retails for $600 and I can't find it under $450 rebates and all, so - nope.

 

[D60]

The OEM clockspring does not come with the steering angle sensor

Neither does aftermarket but it's easy to transfer over.

I've installed two of the ~$30 ebay specials in SJ Foresters. The longest data I have is about 15 or 16 months and the horn still works and the airbag hasn't deployed under NOT-accident circumstances (shrug)

I also put one in a 2nd Gen Tundra. It cured the airbag light and restored cruise. A couple years later he told me the airbag light is back on but I have not been able to inspect the vehicle and this guy is WONK -- he once told me a serpentine belt I installed disappeared the next day. He was still driving the vehicle, and I determined the belt was perfectly fine. His response? "Oops I just didn't see it there"

The cheapies seem well-regarded on Tundra forums, but it's difficult to get solid tech on those forums.

I also put one in a '13 Highlander to restore the horn.

In the case of Subaru specifically, I agree OEM sucks donkey huevos. I've seen the horn stop working at ~70k miles. So, unless sAfETy!!!!! is your concern, it's difficult to believe aftermarket could be much worse.

 

[The_Jeff]

If there is anything wrong with the clock spring you should get an airbag light/code - shouldn’t you?

The airbag computer tests the resistance of the airbag firing doohickey to determine if it's still all there.

Wiring that is too thin gauge to fire the bag will still be adequate for this test.

I would at least hold the new and broken parts side-by-side to see if they cheaped out.

 

[dogememe]

I know we’re talking clock springs not airbags, but it’s still a part of a very important system!

https://gmauthority.com/blog/2026/0...placement-airbags-linked-to-crash-fatalities/

 

[D60]

The airbag computer tests the resistance of the airbag firing doohickey to determine if it's still all there.

Wiring that is too thin gauge to fire the bag will still be adequate for this test.

I would at least hold the new and broken parts side-by-side to see if they cheaped out.

They look identical. If they cut corners it's internal and not easily spotted.

 

[dnewton3]

You had me at " ... cheap ebay ..."

 

[PandaBear]

So, the Subaru design has problem and need a more frequent replacement? or just your Subaru has a bad one?

If it is not a common design problem I would just get a used one pulled from a junkyard (that is still good), or look for a specific redesign one if it is a bad original design rather than eBay aftermarket.

I have never heard that this is a wear item on any car I owned.

 

[RBT]

The 17 year old airbag on my Xterra fired when my daughter ran into someone - eBay clock spring and all. Lucky perhaps?

It’s just a spiral spring in the end.

If there is anything wrong with the clock spring you should get an airbag light/code - shouldn’t you?

There is not a right or wrong answer. The way I look at it is this: I can do something 100 times; 99 times the result is favorable and one time the result leads to serious injury (or worse). Do you undertake the risk? Particularly if the risk is less easy to quantify (I have made up odds for illustration, no one really knows what they are here), but qualitatively the foreseeable results (i.e., avoidable injury in an automobile accident when airbag does not go off, or the injuries that could result when an airbag goes off unexpectedly or improperly) are very clear. If I get to a point with a car that I am trading off safety to save money on parts because the car is no longer worth the value of the parts for a proper repair or breaks frequently enough to call that cost equation into question, then you get a different, newer vehicle. That's my view. Have a good day.

 

[The_Jeff]

I have never heard that this is a wear item on any car I owned.

They flex a little by design, and flexing wire eventually breaks it from metal fatigue.

Obviously the geometry of the design is to spread the flex out over a couple of feet, flexing only a degree or less, so it's trivial, but apparently not non-existent.

You would also hope they engineer safety systems with a million-mile life, unlike something like a power window that can break at 120k and make you feel like you have an old car and should trade it in.

 

[SC Maintenance]

There is not a right or wrong answer. The way I look at it is this: I can do something 100 times; 99 times the result is favorable and one time the result leads to serious injury (or worse). Do you undertake the risk? Particularly if the risk is less easy to quantify (I have made up odds for illustration, no one really knows what they are here), but qualitatively the foreseeable results (i.e., avoidable injury in an automobile accident when airbag does not go off, or the injuries that could result when an airbag goes off unexpectedly or improperly) are very clear. If I get to a point with a car that I am trading off safety to save money on parts because the car is no longer worth the value of the parts for a proper repair or breaks frequently enough to call that cost equation into question, then you get a different, newer vehicle. That's my view. Have a good day.

I understand your position and agree to each their own. However I think a lot of the posts about the safety aspect are speculation from people who don’t even understand the Sytems. Now that I understand the entire airbag system from fixing one, I realize why airbags often don’t deploy at all in collisions. There sort of rinky dink. The clock spring is monitored at least in my Nissan, it’s the rest of the system that concerns me.