venting - quality of replacement parts

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sasilverbullet

sasilverbullet

Joined
Aug 22, 2004
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Location
San Antonio, Texas
So in the last 2.5 years here's my lovely record: (all aftermarket)
1. alternator for 06 civic - had to get three before found one that worked.
2. alternator for 70 MK III - had to get two
3. battery for 70 MK III - went thru two
4. fuel pump for 70 MK III - only lasted two years, (1 yr warranty)
5. distributor for 70 MK III - 1st one had the wrong mounting plate in it.

Not to slam O'Reily's, they always have what I need and have been ever so nice about returns, but all these were purchased from them. Parts came from various re manufacturers.

ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

There, rant over.


Thanks for sharing my pain and frustration...

So are there any quality re manufacturers out there?
 
I think it's awesome you can get parts for a 43 year old car at the corner parts depot.

Beats the old days of swap meets, mail order, and yellow-jacket infested junkyards. Unless you LIKE that part of the hobby.
wink.gif
 
honestly, as the world keeps rotating, EVERY manufacturer is constantly looking for ways to cut corners and safe costs, to increase profits. What does this mean for us? Parts that were original referred to as high quality, based on the name and because it was made in Japan, those parts are now being made in China. I've noticed this ALOT lately.

Remanufactured starters are lasting as long as they used too. The Autozone replacement starter on my 98 Camry is over 6-7 years old. I've personally replaced 5 starters AGAIN (having done them ALL a year or two earlier) on 5 different cars. Thank God that each at least had the lifetime warranty, so as least replacement was free, not counting labor.
 
So which manufacturer/rebuilder did you use, sometimes it is best to use OEM replacements.
 
Originally Posted By: zzyzzx
Try getting your rebuilt alternators from NAPA or fix it yourself.


NAPA is pretty pricey, and for the most part uses the same re manufacturers.
 
Originally Posted By: VNTS
So which manufacturer/rebuilder did you use, sometimes it is best to use OEM replacements.


I've not been given the opportunity to "choose". Mostly there's only one reman company offered for a part. If I do have a choice, I choose the one that looks better made.

If you know some info on this please share, I'd sure like to get better quality stuff.
 
Originally Posted By: sasilverbullet
Originally Posted By: zzyzzx
Try getting your rebuilt alternators from NAPA or fix it yourself.


NAPA is pretty pricey, and for the most part uses the same re manufacturers.


I find that NAPA rebuilt parts are mostly done in Mexico, O'Reilly more often China or elsewhere n the other side of the world.

But frankly- you're in San Antonio. If there isn't a good alternator/starter shop down there, drive straight up I35 (yes, I know traffix sux!) to Texas Alternator about 1/2 block north of Rundberg@I35 on the northbound I35 access road in Austin. Or ship to them. They do great work, or at least always have in the past for me.
 
I always ask for REMANUFACTURED parts, not REBUILT. The latter just replace the parts that are broken and do nothing about parts like bearings in an alternator that may have 100,000 miles on them. A remanufacturted part is far more likely to have all wear parts replaced.
 
NAPAs Rayloc (alt/start) used to have among the worst reputation in the industry.
Its a sign of the times now,everything is rushed and made cheaply.When looking for parts I prefer new/NOS vintage Mopar replacement parts...things were made far better in the 1980s than today.Had a backup light switch from Standard brand last 1-2 days,a vintage new Mopar switch still working after 1-1/2 years.
 
Originally Posted By: VNTS
So which manufacturer/rebuilder did you use, sometimes it is best to use OEM replacements.


That might work for the '06 Civic, but the Ford counter man would laugh at you if you asked for parts for the 1970 Mark III.
 
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Originally Posted By: sasilverbullet
Originally Posted By: zzyzzx
Try getting your rebuilt alternators from NAPA or fix it yourself.


NAPA is pretty pricey, and for the most part uses the same re manufacturers.


I find that NAPA rebuilt parts are mostly done in Mexico, O'Reilly more often China or elsewhere n the other side of the world.

But frankly- you're in San Antonio. If there isn't a good alternator/starter shop down there, drive straight up I35 (yes, I know traffix sux!) to Texas Alternator about 1/2 block north of Rundberg@I35 on the northbound I35 access road in Austin. Or ship to them. They do great work, or at least always have in the past for me.



Thanks! Putting that address in my phone. Will use them next time.
 
Originally Posted By: Kruse
Originally Posted By: VNTS
So which manufacturer/rebuilder did you use, sometimes it is best to use OEM replacements.


That might work for the '06 Civic, but the Ford counter man would laugh at you if you asked for parts for the 1970 Mark III.


I don't have any lookups for anything that old. Beyond 1980, I can't look up anything. Our books ended up in the recycling bin a few years ago because everything was obsolete and our mircofiche has bullet holes in it.
 
Originally Posted By: zzyzzx
Try getting your rebuilt alternators from NAPA .
not anymore! Napa has those parts rebuilt in China now and the failure rate is huge now. Most other places have stuff rebuilt here or mexico.
 
A word of advice... Remember that the companies that cater primarily to the retail market(az,aap,O,pep) all have price points as their primary concern.

Try some of the auto parts stores which cater to the repair service industry, NAPA, Carquest, etc. I have found that they have much higher quality parts as long as you are willing to pay for them.

I know that when I worked at AAP(many moons ago), it wasn't unusual for a cust to have to go through several parts before getting a good one; sold one guy 5 alternators before he finally got one that worked.
 
Last edited:
If you have a part # they can search.

Sometime they also have rebuilt parts, especially stuff like altenators, starters and what not. I have plunked some NOS stuff from Chryslers system dating back 1969. It is out there you have to search.

I have replaced an altenator a few years ago on my 86 Daytona, new in box mopar, stuff is out there.

Originally Posted By: Kruse
Originally Posted By: VNTS
So which manufacturer/rebuilder did you use, sometimes it is best to use OEM replacements.


That might work for the '06 Civic, but the Ford counter man would laugh at you if you asked for parts for the 1970 Mark III.
 
but does Ford offer any rebuilt common stuff for the older cars?

Originally Posted By: bdcardinal
Originally Posted By: Kruse
Originally Posted By: VNTS
So which manufacturer/rebuilder did you use, sometimes it is best to use OEM replacements.


That might work for the '06 Civic, but the Ford counter man would laugh at you if you asked for parts for the 1970 Mark III.


I don't have any lookups for anything that old. Beyond 1980, I can't look up anything. Our books ended up in the recycling bin a few years ago because everything was obsolete and our mircofiche has bullet holes in it.
 
Originally Posted By: bdcardinal


I don't have any lookups for anything that old. Beyond 1980, I can't look up anything. Our books ended up in the recycling bin a few years ago because everything was obsolete and our mircofiche has bullet holes in it.


Does that include the 1979-80 Ford Fiesta MKI?
 
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