OEM vs. after market

[JohnBrowning]

It depends on wich makes we are talking about??? If we are talking about traditionaly domestic products then the aftermarket parts can be as good or better then the OEM parts and might even be the same supplier. If we are talking about imports I think that usualy with very few exceptions the OEM parts are far better then the aftermarket parts.

The key area's I see a vast difference in are in cap's,rotors,coils,sensors,plug wires,rotors,starters and gaskets. Now when it comes all the other stuff like brakes pads,brake drums,alternators,waterpumps,powersteering pumps,master cylinders,clutch kits,calipers,belts and hoses etc......I go aftermarket mainly because of the price difference. I always try to get parts with lifetime warranties becasue they are still normaly 1/3-1/2 the price of an OEM part that will have a 12 month warranty. For import starters Autozone is hard to beat becasue most after market import starters seldom last more then 3 years so it is nice to be able to take it back and simply swap it out!!!

 

[Mike_dup1]

I don't know about your part of the county but here there are 4 different parts stores (NAPA, CarQuest, AUTO Value and no name) and they are competing in price on just about every part.

A friend has a repair shop (since the 1960's) and uses all of them. I often chase parts for him and see a lot of cheap imported parts marketed for NA built vechiles. The same part is boxed under several store brands.

 

[porcupine73]

I decide OEM vs. aftermarket on a part by part basis. In some cases, I have no choice but to go OEM because there is no aftermarket version (my suspension springs for example). In cases like sensors I had an engine coolant temperature sensor go and I bought OEM because I want it to have the same characteristics as the original. Sometimes an OEM part costs so much more than an aftermarket part the choice is easy.

Thanks for the tip on the AZ warranty; I might need some half shafts soon myself.

I don't know if it's the same for other makes, but my local Subaru dealer more than doubles the list price of OEM parts if I walk in to buy, so I buy parts from a dealer who sells on the Internet for about 10% less than dealer list.
-Louis

 

[wtd]

It depends on the part. For most tune-up or engine management parts, I use OEM. For others I will use aftermarket. I usually can get OEM parts over the internet for close to the same price as local aftermarket parts.

Wayne

 

[PandaBear]

I believe that most reputable auto brand use the higher quality parts vendor as OEM (i.e. Toyota and Honda) while some less reputable auto brand use average quality parts vendor (i.e. Daewoo, Mitsubishi, Yugo).

Then there are some Chinese/Mexican/American knock off that are completely junk, to a point that you would return them when you open the box after signing the receipt.

So, it all depends on who is your OEM and who is your aftermarket.

 

[VNT]

Sensors I would only use OEM. Likewise starters and altenators. Most aftermarket electrical is junk.

Things I do use would be name brand shocks(Bilstein, KYB, Monroe etc), belts(goodyear,gates), hoses, T-stat(stant), etc

I think the aftermartket rebuilt suff is hit and mis and nothing sucks more than doing a repair twice.

A friend had a Acura. he bought aftermarket wires,cap and new NGK plugs. tuned it up and had a skip.

I told him to ditch the wires and cap and get OEM or Magnecore. Didnt listen, sent it to local shop who swapped in a bunch of other parts to the tune of 200$, didnt fix it. Sent it to dealer who swapped in OEM wires and fixed problem. Parts store gave him money back on wires but he was out a bunch of $$ and time. He wished he had listened to me in the first place

 

[PandaBear]

quote:

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Sensors I would only use OEM. Likewise starters and altenators. Most aftermarket electrical is junk.

Things I do use would be name brand shocks(Bilstein, KYB, Monroe etc), belts(goodyear,gates), hoses, T-stat(stant), etc

I think the aftermartket rebuilt suff is hit and mis and nothing sucks more than doing a repair twice.

A friend had a Acura. he bought aftermarket wires,cap and new NGK plugs. tuned it up and had a skip.

I told him to ditch the wires and cap and get OEM or Magnecore. Didnt listen, sent it to local shop who swapped in a bunch of other parts to the tune of 200$, didnt fix it. Sent it to dealer who swapped in OEM wires and fixed problem. Parts store gave him money back on wires but he was out a bunch of $$ and time. He wished he had listened to me in the first place

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I heard Monroe is junk, and NGK plugs were Honda OEM (maybe he got the wrong one). It may not be the cap's fault if he is only replacing that without replacing the rotor. They should always be changed together using the same brand.

But, aren't all wires the same as long as they are not shield or have anything fancy on them?

 

[kschachn]

sifan wrote:

-- Anyone knows good web sites that sell Toyota OEM parts with low prices? --

This is a good one I found. They seem to sell everything Toyota sells, right from the website:

http://www.trademotion.com/champion/champion.html

I've bought stuff from them and they have been OK in the past.

 

[Chris Meutsch]

I've gone both ways on this topic. Certain specialized electrical parts (turn signal switch, fan controls) I only use dealer. Brake pads/rotors, only dealer now after bad experiences with chain parts stores. Oil filters, Amsoil and dealer, but before then it was Bosch Premium only. Air Filters, K and N and back to dealer after reading this site!
Ignition, all Bosch, all the time. Never had a problem.