Poor quality parts!
Thread Starter
Advanced
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
From: Acworth Georgia
Poor quality parts!
I was just curious if others were having the same problems I'm having with parts suppliers. I have gotten a bad MAF, a bad relay and yesterday I was left on the side of the road by a 2 month old coil! Cost me a flat bed ride back to the house. A couple of months ago I bought a TPS and I couldn't plug in the connector. I can list more. To top it off, the suppliers don't want to accept the items as returns---they want to give me another POS.
I'm being nice by not calling out suppliers. I just got to thinking about all the crap parts and was wondering if it was just me.
Which suppliers do you guys think provide the best parts for the money? (quality, fit, function)
I'm being nice by not calling out suppliers. I just got to thinking about all the crap parts and was wondering if it was just me.
Which suppliers do you guys think provide the best parts for the money? (quality, fit, function)
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 2,954
Likes: 2
From: Obama=death for America
Let's see. China has been exporting to the U.S., poisonous foods and parts to everything made out of crap. I wonder if crap will perform well in our cars? There's your answer why the parts have been sheet.
Safety Car
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 3,651
Likes: 10
From: Apple Valley MN
I must live a charmed life - the only parts I ever got that were bad were my Hurst shifter, which didn't have bearings installed (this was a common issue for a while), and Summit Racing took excellent care of me. And a set of valve cover gaskets that didn't include the rubber donuts for the bolts, which I got at NAPA, and they got me a new set pronto. I've ordered or bought stuff from plenty of sources - Summit, Corvette Central, MidAmerica, Ecklers, Rock Auto, epowershops, thepartsladi on ebay, Corvette Recycling, Willcox, NAPA, O'Reilly, AutoZone, just off the top of my head - never had a bad experience.
Race Director
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 17,700
Likes: 1,667
From: moraga ca
I must live a charmed life - the only parts I ever got that were bad were my Hurst shifter, which didn't have bearings installed (this was a common issue for a while), and Summit Racing took excellent care of me. And a set of valve cover gaskets that didn't include the rubber donuts for the bolts, which I got at NAPA, and they got me a new set pronto. I've ordered or bought stuff from plenty of sources - Summit, Corvette Central, MidAmerica, Ecklers, Rock Auto, epowershops, thepartsladi on ebay, Corvette Recycling, Willcox, NAPA, O'Reilly, AutoZone, just off the top of my head - never had a bad experience.
Thread Starter
Advanced
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
From: Acworth Georgia
AMEN brother. Seems like most of the mechanical stuff is usually OK. I just got a bad run of electrical stuff. It's not just from one store. I've been to all of them over the years. I just hate spending more for the same part I can get somewhere else cheaper. I guess I'm a cheapskate! Half the reason we all turn our own wrenches. But when the part fails or doesn't fit---where's the savings? Too bad I can't be King for a month and fix some stuff that needs fixin.
Team Owner
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 96,443
Likes: 9
From: Fort Knox, KY
Cruise-In IV Veteran
Cruise-In VI Veteran
Cruise-In VII Veteran
Cruise-In VIII Veteran
The battery was five years old, but still under the seven-year warranty. They replaced it after I showed my original receipt. My info. was still in their computer, too, after I gave them my old residential phone number.
Last edited by onedef92; Jun 10, 2009 at 09:34 AM.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Instructor
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 197
Likes: 1
From: Pennsylvania
I was just curious if others were having the same problems I'm having with parts suppliers. I have gotten a bad MAF, a bad relay and yesterday I was left on the side of the road by a 2 month old coil! Cost me a flat bed ride back to the house. A couple of months ago I bought a TPS and I couldn't plug in the connector. I can list more. To top it off, the suppliers don't want to accept the items as returns---they want to give me another POS.
I'm being nice by not calling out suppliers. I just got to thinking about all the crap parts and was wondering if it was just me.
Which suppliers do you guys think provide the best parts for the money? (quality, fit, function)
I'm being nice by not calling out suppliers. I just got to thinking about all the crap parts and was wondering if it was just me.
Which suppliers do you guys think provide the best parts for the money? (quality, fit, function)
Replaced it with a cheapo "discount auto parts store" relay, also from China.
I would and do pay more for quality parts when I can find them, that can be hard sometimes. And I work in the auto parts business.......
In my experience its not one store or supplier that's the best, its the manufacturer they carry. And almost everyone re-boxes the SAME parts.
Sometimes it pays to call around and ask what brand they carry and where it was made. If you look at "Wells" brand electronic components for example, they vary by country of origin. Find a box stamped made in Japan and compare the part to a made in China and you WILL see feel and smell the difference in materials and quality. It is surprisingly significant.
Most chain parts stores will refund $ for a defective part, they just don't want to. They would rather send the loss to the supplier as opposed to taking the lost sale personally. Ask to see a copy of their return policy, read the fine print and point it out to them. Do try to stay on good terms with them, as its likely they could point out a good supplier to help you find quality.
Instructor
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 171
Likes: 1
From: west chester pennsylvania
them and advanced auto.
ive gotten a defective master cylinder and rack&pinion from there among other things.
just bring it right back and and they dont even question you, and theyll give you another one for free.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 785
Likes: 3
From: Richmond Virginia
Sadly I'm afraid this may come true 
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 2,954
Likes: 2
From: Obama=death for America
Another problem with defective parts is the time you spend removing the defecting part and installing the new Chinese piece of crap. Removing an alternator can take an hour or two if it's in a bad spot, then you spend another hour or two getting it in just right only to have it go south on you in a month. What good is a warranty if you constantly need to spend countless hours under your hood? I'd much rather pay twice the cost for a well made product than a piece of sheet from China.
Safety Car
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 3,759
Likes: 8
I remember a few years ago I got a master cylinder from either Autozone or Advance, and it leaked when the guy was bleeding it on the bench.
The shop I used to go to before it closed up got all its parts from Napa. Just about every part they replaced, it would fail and they'd have to replace it 2-3 more times. Starter, alternator, radiator, water pump, etc.
As a matter of fact, on my Firebird years ago, I had a Napa alternator installed. A month later went out of town, and my battery was dead. Replaced the battery and my volts was still low. Had to turn in the brand new Napa alternator for a core at Autozone. I still have that Autozone alternator for the past 5 years.
The shop I used to go to before it closed up got all its parts from Napa. Just about every part they replaced, it would fail and they'd have to replace it 2-3 more times. Starter, alternator, radiator, water pump, etc.
As a matter of fact, on my Firebird years ago, I had a Napa alternator installed. A month later went out of town, and my battery was dead. Replaced the battery and my volts was still low. Had to turn in the brand new Napa alternator for a core at Autozone. I still have that Autozone alternator for the past 5 years.
Thread Starter
Advanced
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
From: Acworth Georgia
I feel better that I'm not the only one. But I just hate to hear it. I just replaced an alternator on my truck and it whines. It puts out just fine but the whine is annoying. I replaced the alternator on the Vette and it works fine. (Both Duralast from Autozone)The only thing is the dash reads 13.4 or so and my DVM reads 14.1 across the battery while it's running.(go figure) As best I can tell, every parts store is carrying Chinese, Japanese, Indonesia, Mexican parts. I know they want to sell for less than the other guy but it just chaps me good when I gotta take it all apart again to replace some POS they sold me. But hey---just think if the money I save by doing it myself!
Instructor
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 197
Likes: 0
All these "cheapy sh*t" parts from China / India / Indonesia should carry a 25% LANDFILL surcharge since that is where they end up in a year +1 day.
My brother worked for an auto electrical parts mfg and had to go to China. The Chinese could not get it thru their heads what was wrong with a 10% failure rate. Couldn't figure out what was wrong with a 50 cent (their cost LOL) failing. They don't understand $75 per hour dealer rates.
The PROBLEM is you cannot even find certain products (not just auto parts) that aren't exclusivily made in China. I'd gladly pay 20-30% more for a well mfg American made product.
My brother worked for an auto electrical parts mfg and had to go to China. The Chinese could not get it thru their heads what was wrong with a 10% failure rate. Couldn't figure out what was wrong with a 50 cent (their cost LOL) failing. They don't understand $75 per hour dealer rates.
The PROBLEM is you cannot even find certain products (not just auto parts) that aren't exclusivily made in China. I'd gladly pay 20-30% more for a well mfg American made product.