Who manufactures quality aftermarket car parts now ?

[ajlelectronics]

Had a 'Lucas' ignition switch that failed straight out of the box.
Used an aftermarket Harley switch instead, which is nicely made, and reputedly pretty much bomb-proof.

They do say that 95% of Harleys are still on the road, after all.






The other 5% made it home.

 

[8ob]

i get that

however when a manufacturer recommends an interval and the item was to fail prematurely through faulty parts or fitting then surely some kind of warranty would cover the repair or replacement of the parts?
this has become very evident with the number of ecoboost timing failures and the number of warranty claims being pursued ( my bro has just had a new engine fitted to his 2019 focus UNDER WARRANTY due to oil pump belt failure at 50,000 miles, guess what length of warrenty the new engine has? yup 12 months) so if a belt is changed why would it not have the repeated length of warranty?
parts do fail due to manufacturing defect even i have seen that but even more so if it hasn't been fitted correctly
not having a pop at anyone but naturally i question workmanship if the original warrenty cannot be replicated
probably why i change all my own belts

With used engines there are way too many variables to give a new belt a similar warranty to a new oem unit, there are too many other factors that can eat belts that are out of the control of belt manufacturer. New vehicles are normally dealer maintained for the first few years so they have some kind of control over it and little to no chance of a slippery side step when it comes to warranty claims, bring in a third party to maintain the same vehicle and warranty claims turn into a blamefest.

Bob

 

[Smallfry]

Lucas. Ceased to be a long time ago. Mostly Indian made now.
Borg and Beck. owned by AP Lockheed, now an Indian company. Both names trading on past glory, now mostly tat
Quinton Hazel. As above
Girling brakes, was part of Lucas, all brake rubber stuff is now Indian.

This is just for starters ......mind has gone blank

Really is a minefield now. I try to stick with the makes others have already mentioned, at least you know it will fit something like properly, but have resigned myself to having to change "it" every other year. Now I am not working, I don't do the mileage now, so gives the illusion that it lasts longer !

 

[Red'n'Black]

I put a Gates timing belt kit on my Subaru when I bought it, still ok 18,000 miles later.

If it did break before the service interval was up, it wouldn't even occur to me to claim on the warranty TBH - as a DIY install they'd have an immediate get-out that I must have fitted it wrong.

I've fitted three Gates kits in the last few years, all bought from local factors. So far so good.

 

[dobbslc]

I realised I had fitted a Gates belt to the Surf a few months ago which is odd as I was certain I'd fitted the normal full genuine Toyota kit
Must have been skint that month but it's been on for 5 years now and due a change.

 

[steveo3002]

had bosch and genuine vag stuff made in india lol

 

[Smallfry]

I put a Gates timing belt kit on my Subaru when I bought it, still ok 18,000 miles later.

If it did break before the service interval was up, it wouldn't even occur to me to claim on the warranty TBH - as a DIY install they'd have an immediate get-out that I must have fitted it wrong.

I've fitted three Gates kits in the last few years, all bought from local factors. So far so good.

Must have fitted/done it wrong. Yes, this is the get out of jail free card for just about everything now.

I find Gates expensive now, so my go to for belts pulleys and bearing stuff is INA Schaffler or SKF.

 

[mechman]

Had a bit of niggle with the key fob on my Skoda (still under warranty). THEM. Bring it in with a genuine Skoda battery and we'll sort it. ME. I'll bring it in and get the battery from you. THEM. We don't do the batteries you have to get them from the Honda dealership then we'll fit it and sort it. Long story short. The guy from Honda sorted it ( Real nice Guy). The genuine Skoda battery From Honda was a 2032 type Panasonic made in Indonesia.
Norm.

 

[Smallfry]

had bosch and genuine vag stuff made in india lol

You will see a lot of genuine Bosch stuff now, with made in PRC on the label.

 

[steveo3002]

You will see a lot of genuine Bosch stuff now, with made in PRC on the label.

always used to trust and pick that brand , not so much now

 

[roblane65]

A bit similar I've just spent 4 weeks chasing Audi because things aren't always what they seem , i'll try and be brief
car sold me feb 24 full service history blah blah blah 2 yr warranty ( audi ) slightly high miles 88 thou .
Had to go in to newcastle audi for a warranty issue ( brake pressure valve ) was done sorted no issues however on picking up the car I was handed a health check stating " immediate attention " the cars only done 3k since purchase
1) brake fluid change 2yr £127.98 +
2) spark plugs every 40k £217.20 +
3)transmission oil / haldex every 38k £361.00 + so I'm presuming dsg box and haldex or rear diff model dependent .

so on some checking of the history and five calls to bristol audi over two weeks to clarify the history not a single return call !
so of to Audi uk I went , it took bristol audi 10 days to supply them the information to clarify the history the upshot was the brake fluid was due 10 days after buying the car the plugs had only been done once at 56k and the dsg / haldex or diff have never been done ever !
also the new discs and pads fitted all round the fronts were fitted by audi but not recorded in the history and rears fitted by a third party and non gen . the end result is Audi are paying for the transmission service , brake fluid ,and new rear pads ( excessive brake dust ) I'm paying for the plugs as technically they are not due till 96k due to the late change . So the moral is check everything with a fine tooth comb because they'll try and get away with it if they can . My main pry bar was the fact it was sold to as FSH and it clearly wasn't . Audi UK were great and easy to deal with and bristol audi were s***e and in all honesty I didn't think I was going to get anywhere

 

[Smallfry]

always used to trust and pick that brand , not so much now

I can understand why they have shifted production to cut costs, but I would hope they keep a very close eye on QC.

 

[premmington]

A bit similar I've just spent 4 weeks chasing Audi because things aren't always what they seem , i'll try and be brief
car sold me feb 24 full service history blah blah blah 2 yr warranty ( audi ) slightly high miles 88 thou .
Had to go in to newcastle audi for a warranty issue ( brake pressure valve ) was done sorted no issues however on picking up the car I was handed a health check stating " immediate attention " the cars only done 3k since purchase
1) brake fluid change 2yr £127.98 +
2) spark plugs every 40k £217.20 +
3)transmission oil / haldex every 38k £361.00 + so I'm presuming dsg box and haldex or rear diff model dependent .

so on some checking of the history and five calls to bristol audi over two weeks to clarify the history not a single return call !
so of to Audi uk I went , it took bristol audi 10 days to supply them the information to clarify the history the upshot was the brake fluid was due 10 days after buying the car the plugs had only been done once at 56k and the dsg / haldex or diff have never been done ever !
also the new discs and pads fitted all round the fronts were fitted by audi but not recorded in the history and rears fitted by a third party and non gen . the end result is Audi are paying for the transmission service , brake fluid ,and new rear pads ( excessive brake dust ) I'm paying for the plugs as technically they are not due till 96k due to the late change . So the moral is check everything with a fine tooth comb because they'll try and get away with it if they can . My main pry bar was the fact it was sold to as FSH and it clearly wasn't . Audi UK were great and easy to deal with and bristol audi were s***e and in all honesty I didn't think I was going to get anywhere

I do these DSG fluid changes for £180 in our workshop en mass - done a few for members on here...

Made them sit and watch me and drink tea - while I done it...

We done so many - I bought the fluid in-in 208ltr barrels...

 

[roblane65]

I do these DSG fluid changes for £180 in our workshop en mass - done a few for members on here...

Made them sit and watch me and drink tea - while I done it...

We done so many - I bought the fluid in-in 208ltr barrels...

It's a good job i'm not paying it but whilst it's in my 2 year warranty I'm sort of tied to audi . as I pointed out to them in the service history argument if my box or some thing else goes west are going to honour my warranty
shame I'm not anywhere near Norfolk .

 

[Ubique]

A bit similar I've just spent 4 weeks chasing Audi because things aren't always what they seem , i'll try and be brief
car sold me feb 24 full service history blah blah blah 2 yr warranty ( audi ) slightly high miles 88 thou .
Had to go in to newcastle audi for a warranty issue ( brake pressure valve ) was done sorted no issues however on picking up the car I was handed a health check stating " immediate attention " the cars only done 3k since purchase
1) brake fluid change 2yr £127.98 +
2) spark plugs every 40k £217.20 +
3)transmission oil / haldex every 38k £361.00 + so I'm presuming dsg box and haldex or rear diff model dependent .

so on some checking of the history and five calls to bristol audi over two weeks to clarify the history not a single return call !
so of to Audi uk I went , it took bristol audi 10 days to supply them the information to clarify the history the upshot was the brake fluid was due 10 days after buying the car the plugs had only been done once at 56k and the dsg / haldex or diff have never been done ever !
also the new discs and pads fitted all round the fronts were fitted by audi but not recorded in the history and rears fitted by a third party and non gen . the end result is Audi are paying for the transmission service , brake fluid ,and new rear pads ( excessive brake dust ) I'm paying for the plugs as technically they are not due till 96k due to the late change . So the moral is check everything with a fine tooth comb because they'll try and get away with it if they can . My main pry bar was the fact it was sold to as FSH and it clearly wasn't . Audi UK were great and easy to deal with and bristol audi were s***e and in all honesty I didn't think I was going to get anywhere

You should have been given a printed copy of the online service history when you bought the vehicle - brakes are a 'maintenance' item, so not on the service schedule, unlike brake fluid, which is.
I would keep a firm hold of the correspondence with regard to the transmission - DSG (known as Dog S**t Gearbox) are very prone to internal clutch or valve block failure if the oil is left too long, I've known vehicles be refused warranty on the transmissions by Audi for being less than 5k over the service interval, the same goes for the Haldex, although this usually doesn't result in more than a replacement pump needed - often just an oil & filter (if fitted) then a quick prime through with ODIS followed by top-up & level check.

Transmission rebuild is a niche job, not many Audi workshops have experienced staff (and getting fewer by the day as they retire / move on) to do it - even the VWG DQ200 dry clutch 'boxes have a complex procedure to shim the dual clutch assembly correctly, I did one the other week, there's an allowance of 0.4 hrs for it, took the best part of 2 hours, so in my view, it's not the sort of job that could be reliably done by a general workshop - far better, should you need it, to get an exchange unit from a reputable co., someone like Winchester Gears but for Audi/VWG

 

[Ubique]

...shame I'm not anywhere near Norfolk .

I've never heard anyone say that before!

 

[roblane65]

You should have been given a printed copy of the online service history when you bought the vehicle - brakes are a 'maintenance' item, so not on the service schedule, unlike brake fluid, which is.
I would keep a firm hold of the correspondence with regard to the transmission - DSG (known as Dog S**t Gearbox) are very prone to internal clutch or valve block failure if the oil is left too long, I've known vehicles be refused warranty on the transmissions by Audi for being less than 5k over the service interval, the same goes for the Haldex, although this usually doesn't result in more than a replacement pump needed - often just an oil & filter (if fitted) then a quick prime through with ODIS followed by top-up & level check.

Transmission rebuild is a niche job, not many Audi workshops have experienced staff (and getting fewer by the day as they retire / move on) to do it - even the VWG DQ200 dry clutch 'boxes have a complex procedure to shim the dual clutch assembly correctly, I did one the other week, there's an allowance of 0.4 hrs for it, took the best part of 2 hours, so in my view, it's not the sort of job that could be reliably done by a general workshop - far better, should you need it, to get an exchange unit from a reputable co., someone like Winchester Gears but for Audi/VWG

As soon as audi uk told me what BA had said I asked if she could email a copy of their reply which she duly did so I have it in black and white about the box . Which to be honest was my main concern especially with the mileage . I did have a full printed history in the car pack but never really studied it until the warranty visit when bells started ringing ,

 

[roblane65]

I've never heard anyone say that before!

I'm usually down there once a year for boat week on the broads ( well fishing really )

 

[premmington]

I've never heard anyone say that before!

That comment made me an "old man" - smile....

 

[premmington]

You should have been given a printed copy of the online service history when you bought the vehicle - brakes are a 'maintenance' item, so not on the service schedule, unlike brake fluid, which is.
I would keep a firm hold of the correspondence with regard to the transmission - DSG (known as Dog S**t Gearbox) are very prone to internal clutch or valve block failure if the oil is left too long, I've known vehicles be refused warranty on the transmissions by Audi for being less than 5k over the service interval, the same goes for the Haldex, although this usually doesn't result in more than a replacement pump needed - often just an oil & filter (if fitted) then a quick prime through with ODIS followed by top-up & level check.

Transmission rebuild is a niche job, not many Audi workshops have experienced staff (and getting fewer by the day as they retire / move on) to do it - even the VWG DQ200 dry clutch 'boxes have a complex procedure to shim the dual clutch assembly correctly, I did one the other week, there's an allowance of 0.4 hrs for it, took the best part of 2 hours, so in my view, it's not the sort of job that could be reliably done by a general workshop - far better, should you need it, to get an exchange unit from a reputable co., someone like Winchester Gears but for Audi/VWG

@Ubique - We got into these DSG 6 and 7 speed gearbox repairs early - we got the flat bars/measuring kit - tool to pull the clutch arm back.

Plus we done loads of "cracked" accumulators/back plates on early boxes.

Mechantronic units we have done multiple/exchange - re soldered solenoid valves.

Seven speed boxes fail because the - plastic retainers/bushes for the selector arms fail and the ball bearings fall out.

We did well in the early days with these - took allot of money - but to be honest - the market is flooded with "eastern european DSG experts" working for nothing - low margins...

As for clutch changes the Ford Powershift boxes are more difficult to do - and just nobody wants to get involved with them...
(which means there is more money involved with them for a repairer)...