In our industry, auto parts are a big percentage of how we do business. We would like to take a minute to educate our customers about quality auto parts and how they affect your vehicle’s repair.
We would like to take a minute to educate our customers about quality auto parts and how they affect your vehicle’s repair.
OEM or Factory parts:
These parts can only be purchased through factory authorized dealerships. They are held to a standard that must follow federal guidelines. However…
Many parts that are labeled “OEM” are made by aftermarket manufacturers and will charge you several times the retail cost. Example: The Fram Filter Company, manufactures many of the oil and air filters for American vehicles. They are rebranded and sold by the dealer as an “OEM” part. The same goes for spark plugs and wires, batteries, oil and other fluids, wipers, etc…
All of these examples are in stock for much less, at local auto parts suppliers.
Aftermarket Parts are also broken down to different quality grades.
We’ll use aftermarket brake pads as an example:
Premium = Highest quality materials
Standard = For average use but tend to wear faster.
Value = Lower quality materials ( usually purchased by used car dealerships)
CERAMIC ( Premium )
Ceramic pads have excellent stopping power and disperse heat well. This is ideal for most normal driving applications, they produce very little dust or noise and are long lasting. Many foreign and domestic vehicles are equipped with ceramic brake pad formulations from the factory.
SEMI-METALLIC ( Standard )
Semi-metallic pads have good stopping power and are very efficient at dispersing heat. They can be noisy and create more dust than ceramic brake pads. This type of pad is also made with friction materials that are harder than most others, and have more aggressive wear to your brake rotors.
ORGANIC ( Value )
Organic brake pads lose friction material and are softer than other brake pads. This material makes them quieter but… means that they wear faster and produce lots of dust.
The More You Know:
A lot of auto parts purchased online today have been re-boxed. The outside packaging may have “Bosch” or “Delco” printed on it, however the inside will be a no-name, inferior quality part.
If we receive a part like this, we’ll send it back and demand quality.
Used Parts
Some parts that can only get sourced from the factory dealer may be discontinued or obsolete, When unavailable to aftermarket suppliers, a used parts recycler ( junkyard ) may need to be an option. These can save you money, however, they can have a very unpredictable life expectancy.
The best place for high quality parts varies.
Top of the line products will be as good or better than OEM parts.
An important thing is to buy name brands for specific parts. Ex: Gates, Wagner, Raybestos, etc…
Always choose professional grade parts over cheaper, standard or value grades. ( Do it right, do it once )
Some OEM parts are upgraded due to poor original designs. A few common examples of high failure rates are belts, pulleys and tensioners Example: Gates manufacturers an upgraded belt, pulley & tensioner that performs much better than OEM.
If you want good quality auto parts, expect to pay a fair price. If you are willing to settle for the “value” or “cheaper” parts, you’ll always get what you paid for.
Always be aware of the local greedy shops that will charge you premium prices for low quality parts they install.
From the repair facility’s perspective, it makes perfect sense to buy quality products. If we used low quality parts, our customer return rate would be astronomical, as well as losing customer confidence.
Many of our competitors charge for premium grade parts, but opt to install value-line garbage.
( Unfortunately, those shops are usually the ones bad mouthing all of their competition )
At Rob’s Transmissions, we take pride in our trade, workmanship and choice of safe,quality parts.
Please feel free to ask any questions.
We want all of our customers to feel comfortable, at ease….and satisfied
Rob Bourne ( Proud Owner )
401-432-7535
RobsTransmissions.com