924Board.org

[newbie]

Hello everyone. My title refers to my recent purchase, after long years of looking and lusting, of a black on black 1988 924S. Glad I found this site (and others). The Porsche is beautiful cosmtically, but has begun a thirst for parts and work just in the drive home. I've been getting some great advice on the 924S board about those issues, but thought this forum might be a better place for a broader question...

When selecting repair/replacement parts, I already understand the desireability of new vice remanufactured. What about the desireability of OEM versus aftermarket? OEM definitely seems to be the logical choice, but some parts may be better from aftermarket due to more recent design changes, etc. Any specific example out there?

Quality parts availibility? I see enough on EBay, and have been checking prices against some retailers... Any suggestions?

Thanks
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"Those who fail to learn from history's lessons are doomed to repeat them."
< taken from Chinese court documents written approximately 5000 years ago! >

[Paul]

Most times I use OEM, Porsche has a 2 year warranty on most of them.

I usually get a price from www.eurowebparts.com then call my local Porsche parts department and ask them to match the price. More times then not, I get a pretty good deal.

We need to support the dealers so that they will be able to continue to supply the more scarce parts for our 20 year old cars.

[Neil924]

If you plan to sell your car after market isn't as pleasing and they tend to wear out more often than OEM due to not being subjected to the same durability standards. If you put aftermarket/low quality parts in you leased car you probably will void the warranty. But if it's that much more money and it isn't a part that wears that much you can cheat a little with after market. Just my two cents.

[gohim]

In some cases, the aftermerket parts are the same as the OEM parts. I mean face it, Porsche manufacturers something less than 40% of the parts that is uses to assembly it's cars.

But, Porsche branded parts come with a 2-year warranty. and Porsche will stand behind the warranty. The aftermarket stuff sometimes you get no warranty. and warranty service is spotty. The aftermarket stuff seldom includes any more than one year warranty.

The price of the aftermarket stuff is very attractive when compared to the price of some of the commonly replaced service items, like the "front of engine" service parts. Porsche gets $40-$50 each for the rollers and pulleys, and you can get a complete aftermarket set of belts rollers, and pulleys for between $125-$140.

I have no problems using Sachs Clutch components. Sachs supplies/supplied the clutch parts to Porsche for the 924 and 944 series of cars. Reintz? gasket sets are again supplied as Porsche OEM. Lasco water pumps? Not an OEM Porsche supplier, and definitely not the same quality.

When considering aftermarket parts, you need to consider the reputation of the source, the warranty period offered, and the actual brand and reputation of the manufacturer of the parts to be supplied. Even reputable aftermarket suppliers sometimes get bad lots of parts. What will the supplier you are considering do for you if a part fails within the warranty, and who is responsible for the cost of repairs, and the replacement part/s.

I use some aftermarket parts in my Porsches. But before I order them, I have a conversation with the potenital supplier and ask about the actual physical characteristics of the part that I will be getting. Like rollers and pulleys for the "front of engine" service. Are they all metal, as the Porsche supplied parts are? What is the country of origin for the parts. What happens if the parts fails in warranty, and my engine is damaged as a result?

I know the answer to these questions when I buy from the Porsche Dealer, and the parts come from Porsche AG. If I save $50-$100 when I do some work on my car, great. But only if I end up with the same quailty of job. Saving $50-$100 on a service, and risking $3000-$5000 in repairs is not smart.

[Neil924]

I didn't meen to bash all after market shops. Just go to who you know if you don't want to pay dealership prices.

[Mikri184]

When buying aftermarket parts you get what you pay for. Certain manufacturers can make things cheaper because there products are cheaper, Stick to names you know and reconize. If your not sure, ask. I have found that most parts out there for our cars are quality, and have few complaints myself. If you want to save a few bucks. You can always buy quality used parts
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Life is to short to be looking for something?

[kaffine]

Not all parts are made by the company that's name is on the box. I bought a fuel pump at autozone it has a lifetime warrenty the brand name was Master I got it and it had Porsche part numbers on it along with bosch part numbers. Often times aftermarket companies will buy the oem parts put them in their box and sell them at a lower price than the oem because they get a quanity discount.
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80 924
80 931

The best desciption of an atom boils down to something unknown is doing we don't know what.
Sir Arthur Eddington

[Neil924]

[kaffine]

The only problem is trying to find out which parts are rebadged oem or if it's a cheap knock off.


Another thing with oem parts especially for older parts it may not be the same manafacture anymore. I know when I worked at a dodge dealer some of the older parts that we could still get were made by an aftermarket company the bought the rights to continue making that part you sometimes run into problems as they don't always follow the same specs and it may not fit like the true oem part.

I either get name brand parts or parts with a life time warrenty from a large parts store then keep track of whre I bought what. Seldom do I go oem if it's a normal wear item.
_________________
80 924
80 931

The best desciption of an atom boils down to something unknown is doing we don't know what.
Sir Arthur Eddington

[wdb]

I think if you need alot of parts, its best to go cheap. get the car on the road , then you can replace them with quality parts as they fail . unless your talking about a part that requires alot of work to get to , like a fuel pump where you have to pull the tranny and fuel tank, then its probably smarter to go with the best quality you can get.

[Neil924]

[Lizard]

[numbbers]

A lot of aftermarket parts are better than OEM, and they are always cheaper. Think of it this way, if OEM parts are so good, why are you needing to replace them.
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1980 924 Turbo

[wdb]

no just guessing, havent pulled a feul pump, was trying to make a point about hard to reach parts .

[Roger]

I agree with Gohim alot of the parts Porsche used were made by someone else. Bosch, Lobro Molly, Sachs... You can buy these parts at other outlets and save money.

The Porsche waranty is nice so is the pretty Porsche box they come in, but the markup sucks.

I would stick with OEM parts for the big stuff but you dont have to buy them from the dealership. As for the little stuff buy it where you can and save some money.

Ebay and online companies are a crap shoot. Unfortunatly it can be a learning process. I buy most of my parts from the local shop, Performance, junkyards or Auto Atlanta. I have hade some problems with Auto Atlanta though.

In my oppnion it depends what you are buying and how you plan to drive the car.
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1981 924 NA

Some people are like Slinkies. Not really good for anything, but you
still can't help but smile when you see one tumble down the stairs.