Who manufactures quality aftermarket car parts now ?

[james butler]

@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)...

so glad i bought a manual

 

[premmington]

so glad i bought a manual

You laugh - get in early - read "the manual" - and you are away... (before the rest of the idiots)...

Bit of research can bring you an awfull lot of return in the motortrade...

 

[harveyp6]

You laugh - get in early - read "the manual" - and you are away... (before the rest of the idiots)...

Bit of research can bring you an awfull lot of return in the motortrade...

You lose time and money learning on the first jobs, then once you're all clued up it's payback time.
Find jobs that other people can't or won't do and your quids in . I never wanted to keep up to date, so when my particular niche jobs came to an end I moved on to vehicle recovery, but nothing lasts forever and now I'm glad I'm out of all of it.

 

[Ubique]

@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)...

Yep, done loads of mech's in & out of dealer networks, to the point of I don't really count them any more - accumulator repair kits are the way to go if you don't have to put anything more than a sales warranty on the job, I've seen a fair few secondary issues but that could be down to the repairer rather than a latent defect in the kit...
I was the only tech in three Audi dealerships within the dealer group that'd done the specific DSG training to strip & rebuild the transmissions, so you can imagine my workload.... it got to the point where they'd get other tech's to take the transmissions out for me to do the 'difficult' (until you were familiar with the process) bits because of the backlog - hadn't made so much bonus since the PSA Turkish piston recall!

Funnily enough, I never found the Powershift rework to be onerous, getting ETIS to provide a good enough slippage graph for warranty to auth. the repair was the awkward bit of that job!

 

[Bobupndown]

For brake pads and discs add in Allied Nippon.

Yes my local motor factors sell Allied Nippon, they seem like good quality, certainly the coated discs stay looking presentable and aren't a rusty mess within 6 months.

 

[Trevorleach]

Hgv truck parts are a minefield.
Scania track rod 600 quid, might last for two years, I have seen new trucks with lateral play in the track rod end, aftermarket 120 quid might do 18 mths.
DAF front axle brake chamber 1057 quid, aftermarket 385.
Daf arb bushs 112 quid, aftermarket 20 quid.
Scania retarder oil cooler 2.9k, aftermarket 1k.
Scania drop wing 219, aftermarket 26 quid, I have no idea why Scania are struggling!

 

[premmington]

Yep, done loads of mech's in & out of dealer networks, to the point of I don't really count them any more - accumulator repair kits are the way to go if you don't have to put anything more than a sales warranty on the job, I've seen a fair few secondary issues but that could be down to the repairer rather than a latent defect in the kit...
I was the only tech in three Audi dealerships within the dealer group that'd done the specific DSG training to strip & rebuild the transmissions, so you can imagine my workload.... it got to the point where they'd get other tech's to take the transmissions out for me to do the 'difficult' (until you were familiar with the process) bits because of the backlog - hadn't made so much bonus since the PSA Turkish piston recall!

Funnily enough, I never found the Powershift rework to be onerous, getting ETIS to provide a good enough slippage graph for warranty to auth. the repair was the awkward bit of that job!

DV6 Turkish pistons = you the expert at getting the engines in and out on these then...?

I have changed a few sumps on VAG DSG boxes of late for rotting thru on real high mileage cars - so not all of the early boxes were bad. Only place I can source sumps is eBay. Be honest - I not done a failed DSG for a while now - they must be getting better - it just all fluid changes of late.

 

[premmington]

Hgv truck parts are a minefield.
Scania track rod 600 quid, might last for two years, I have seen new trucks with lateral play in the track rod end, aftermarket 120 quid might do 18 mths.
DAF front axle brake chamber 1057 quid, aftermarket 385.
Daf arb bushs 112 quid, aftermarket 20 quid.
Scania retarder oil cooler 2.9k, aftermarket 1k.
Scania drop wing 219, aftermarket 26 quid, I have no idea why Scania are struggling!

Not bought any truck parts for years - don't do any little 7.5 tonners now....

 

[Ubique]

DV6 Turkish pistons = you the expert at getting the engines in and out on these then...?

I have changed a few sumps on VAG DSG boxes of late for rotting thru on real high mileage cars - so not all of the early boxes were bad. Only place I can source sumps is eBay. Be honest - I not done a failed DSG for a while now - they must be getting better - it just all fluid changes of late.

I think there were 16,000 in UK alone - three recalls, one was test & replace engine if fail, one was test & replace engine & exhaust if fail, the other was replace in in VIN range. All were pre-sale or <50 miles - if over 50 miles then it was deemed 'OK'. We got 13.7 hrs per engine change (supplied 'bare') I got it down to ~7hrs for a C4 Picasso which were the majority of the affected vehicles. I did nothing else for over three months, one of the peculiarities of PSA warranty rules was that if you started the job, you had to finish it - only the MT (or 'consultant tech'. in PSA-speak) could carry out the tests so we had to replace the engine, despite it being a job other tech's were qualified to do and we already had a high workload, still, good times for the bank balance! I put tape marks on the floor for the wheels & engine trolley plus extra lighting because the engine crates either side of my bay made it too dark!

I think the DSG 'problem' is that well known now, that all the affected 'boxes have later parts fitted or the owners have committed to a stricter maint. schedule...

 

[premmington]

I think there were 16,000 in UK alone - three recalls, one was test & replace engine if fail, one was test & replace engine & exhaust if fail, the other was replace in in VIN range. All were pre-sale or <50 miles - if over 50 miles then it was deemed 'OK'. We got 13.7 hrs per engine change (supplied 'bare') I got it down to ~7hrs for a C4 Picasso which were the majority of the affected vehicles. I did nothing else for over three months, one of the peculiarities of PSA warranty rules was that if you started the job, you had to finish it - only the MT (or 'consultant tech'. in PSA-speak) could carry out the tests so we had to replace the engine, despite it being a job other tech's were qualified to do and we already had a high workload, still, good times for the bank balance! I put tape marks on the floor for the wheels & engine trolley plus extra lighting because the engine crates either side of my bay made it too dark!

I think the DSG 'problem' is that well known now, that all the affected 'boxes have later parts fitted or the owners have committed to a stricter maint. schedule...

 

[chris pruteanu]

I noticed that with places like AUTODOC and ECP. Many choices for a lot of things, some say OE quality and I’ve never heard of that brand. Stuff like Ridex I know to avoid but there are so many others it becomes a minefield.

Sticking with known brands like Valeo, Lemforder, Meyle seems to be the best one can do if main dealer is not in the desired price bracket. Research just takes forever as I am finding out in Spain. Everyone just seems to want the cheapest over here so it took a 2 week wait to get new rear shocks from the main Audi dealer……only to get a pair of Boge shocks, and with Boge being a ZF company, they certainly aren’t OEM.

Boge is oem

 

[Wedg1e]

I think there were 16,000 in UK alone...

Best not start on JLR engines then. Boss got a call from them; could he go and offer some advice. No problem, quoth the chief, who do I need to see?
No, not the main plant, they said, come to <this address>.
Turned out to be a very large new industrial unit, no signage outside.
Inside: rows and rows of workstations with JLR engines in various stages of undress.

 

[Wedg1e]

Ford will have a different go/no-go criteria for the components than the manufacturers do for direct aftermarket sale quality. You also benefit from the Ford (or whichever vehicle manufacturer) warranty, some are two years and in the event of a confirmed defect, the parts and any consequential damage will be made good using genuine parts at the manufacturers expense.

Isn't that likely to be only the case where the parts are installed by a Ford techie, not me as J. Public?

 

[james butler]

You laugh - get in early - read "the manual" - and you are away... (before the rest of the idiots)...

Bit of research can bring you an awfull lot of return in the motortrade...

so very true!

 

[Smallfry]

I wish people would get it clear what OEM actually means though, along with reconditioned, rebuilt, and remanufactured.

Would save a lot of disappointment.

 

[Ubique]

Isn't that likely to be only the case where the parts are installed by a Ford techie, not me as J. Public?

Or an independent business, such as @premmington

 

[dobbslc]

My boy fitted the new Apec track control arms himself yesterday with only a little help from me.
Only one snapped bolt from the undertray so not too bad really. The new arms look ok quality wise but only time will tell... The were roughly in the middle range as far as price goes.
One thing is that I discovered that my 'big' torque wrench ain't big enough * it tops out at 200Nm and we needed 230Nm.
The adjuster actually goes quite a bit further but isn't scaled so we just wound it up another few millimetres, anyway it was FT on the big bolt and the others weren't set as high anyway.
* Possible Christmas present incoming of the model 300 torque wrench
I took my boy up the pub after the job as a celebration as it's the first really big job other than a service he's done on a car and he did well!
Thanks for the input and keep this thread going if you like regarding the quality (or lack of) of aftermarket car parts.

 

[premmington]

Or an independent business, such as @premmington

Dealership parts warranty for Indies depends on who you are dealing with (and how big your spend is). That is the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth... Just plain business. If you are a big spender they will play as they don't wanna loose your custom - if you only have a few odd parts a year - you wasting your time to be honest.

"Back to base" dealer warranty claims - can be nasty... Sometimes it is cheaper just to re order the part(s) in question - re fit it - suck up the cost and service your customers needs.

Get your customers car moving and on the road again - then when the dealership monthly bill lands - start the begging - give them a dose of "I treated my customer better than I being treated as a customer of yours" - best you can hope for normally is a "contribution" - sometimes they will pay this out in drums of oil - I kid you not...

Indies don't get treated much better than retail customers when it comes to dealership supplied parts warranty to be honest... It is a poor state of affairs - but it is how it is...

Some marks - offer "warranty approved fitting centres out of the network" - but the cost and hurdles to jump thru is unreal - not practical - unless you got a private fleet of 500 of the same vans and your own workshop.

 

[RetroPug]

I noticed that with places like AUTODOC and ECP. Many choices for a lot of things, some say OE quality and I’ve never heard of that brand. Stuff like Ridex I know to avoid but there are so many others it becomes a minefield.

Sticking with known brands like Valeo, Lemforder, Meyle seems to be the best one can do if main dealer is not in the desired price bracket. Research just takes forever as I am finding out in Spain. Everyone just seems to want the cheapest over here so it took a 2 week wait to get new rear shocks from the main Audi dealer……only to get a pair of Boge shocks, and with Boge being a ZF company, they certainly aren’t OEM.

RIDEX is autodoc's own budget brand.

You can get good branded stuff on autodoc typically cheaper than the bad ones at ECP, CP4L, local factors etc and the only tradeoff is that you must wait a while.

 

[premmington]

RIDEX is autodoc's own budget brand.

You can get good branded stuff on autodoc typically cheaper than the bad ones at ECP, CP4L, local factors etc and the only tradeoff is that you must wait a while.

I struggle with AutoDoc

Returns - wrong bits - delays.

Does not suit a repairing garage to get parts for customers cars.

But I have got stuff from them - I just can't get from anywhere else at times

But then the package arrives - opening it - can be like all your bad Xmas presents rolled into one...