| What you should know when shopping for auto parts | | Posted Wednesday, January 25, 2006 5:04:03 PM by Alex Molin |
Knowing the difference among brands is very important when shopping for auto parts.
Buyers are often tempted to purchase inferior parts which usually cause more damage and extra costs due to additional repairs.
First thing you need to know about auto parts is that most auto manufacturers assemble cars from purchased components and manufacture only the sheet metal components.
Therefore, the "factory part" you can buy from your dealer was most likely made by another company, sold to the car maker and then resold to the dealer for ultimate sale to you.
In this regard there are some important terms being used:
- OEM (original equipment manufactured)
- OES(original equipment supplied)
- OE - refers to the brand that came as original equipment on the car.
Most cars will require some repair work in the first or second year. Unfortunately, some parts for these repairs may still only be available through the dealers but there is an upside- it is good for your warranty purposes.
As been mentioned before, you can buy copies of the OE parts in the “aftermarket” and it will cost you less, but you should know what you are looking for because in most cases it's usually an inferior product and ends up costing you much more. (Someone once said: “I am not that rich to buy that cheap”.)
Another way to find the perfect auto part for your vehicle is by shopping online. Naturally you want to get the best deal, in a convenient shopping process and as fast as you can. But before you click the purchase button, we recommend you browse and ask around to ensure a satisfying online purchase. Make your deal with only with trusted sources that guarantee the best price, quality, and customer support. Vendors with years of successful business are also a vital characteristic in searching for the right source.
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| | | Storms batter parts of Britain | | Posted Thursday, January 11, 2007 2:52:06 PM by Blog57 Team | | High winds and heavy rain are battering parts of Britain and the wild conditions look set to continue. A Met Office forecaster said severe weather warnings are in place up and down the country. She said: "There have been strong gusts quite widely. Pretty much all of Scotland has had, or currently has, warnings." She said it would remain extremely windy throughout the day but expected the stronger gusts to die down. Western Britain will be particularly badly .... | |
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| | | Car parts store robbed Sunday | | Posted Thursday, November 23, 2006 12:49:06 PM by Blog57 Team | | Shreveport police detectives are looking for two men who robbed the AutoZone in the 3400 block of Greenwood Road late Sunday. A man entered the store around 5:30 p.m. and acted as though he was shopping, Shreveport police morning patrol reports say. A few minutes later, the second man appeared, pulled out a revolver and demanded the store's money. The clerk handed it over and the men fled on foot together. Police would not release the amount of money taken. The first robber was described as a black male standing around 6 feet 3 inches tall, weighing around 170 pounds and last seen wearing a black skullcap and a ball cap, sunglasses, brown pants and a long-sleeved sweatshirt. The second robber, the gunman, was described as a black male standing around 6 feet 2 inches tall, weighing around 150 pounds and last seen wearing a white shirt with a brown hooded sweatshirt over it, and blue jeans.... | |
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| | | Car parts firm 'has a pistol to our heads' | | Posted Sunday, November 12, 2006 2:51:24 AM by Blog57 Team | | A UNION involved in crisis talks with struggling car parts maker Visteon said yesterday that the company was holding a "pistol to the head" of staff involved in an industrial dispute. The Transport & General Workers' Union said it had recommended its members to reject the company's restructuring package, which involves pay freezes and pension changes. Visteon, which has a base at Halewood supplying the nearby Jaguar factory, said that failure to implement the restructuring package "will have serious consequences for all those who depend on Visteon UK for employment or pensions". A spokesman for the T&G said: "We met with the company yesterday. The company is in a difficult position in the UK and globally, and has put forward a package of pay and pension which they said is the only package they can afford.... | |
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| | | Crooks now targeting parts on your car | | Posted Tuesday, November 07, 2006 10:49:32 AM by Blog57 Team | | There's something out there that crooks are targeting for a quick buck and anyone with a car could be a victim. Crooks are now stealing catalytic converters off of cars. Every car has at least one, and, to a criminal, it can be valuable. It takes mechanic Chris Birch just a few minutes to take off the catalytic converter of a car, but you don't have to be a mechanic to do it. The average person could probably take a converter out in about a minute, two minutes," Birch told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS.Eric Shulz of AAA Auto Salvage in Rosemount said thieves are targeting his business."They've jumped over the fence and come into our facilities and literally cut them out of cars that we haven't processed yet," Schulz said. So what makes it so valuable?"There's actually platinum inside the converters.... | |
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| | | Stresses rising in U.S. auto parts sector--TRW CEO | | Posted Thursday, November 02, 2006 6:48:32 PM by Blog57 Team | | CHICAGO, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Conditions are getting worse for already stressed auto parts suppliers and more companies could file for bankruptcy in the near future, TRW Chief Executive John Plant said on Wednesday. TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. -- one of the more profitable U.S. auto parts makers -- has had to deal with problems among its own suppliers in the past two years, but production cuts the past quarter by U.S. car makers have had even more impact, Plant told analysts in a conference call. "At the moment, we are working through (difficulties) with several distressed suppliers and my expectation is that we will see further bankruptcy filings over the next few months," he said. TRW on Wednesday said its third-quarter earnings fell 50 percent and cut its full year outlook for the second time in two months due to production cuts in North America by automakers.... | |
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| | | Auto parts import grows steadily | | Posted Saturday, October 28, 2006 10:50:18 PM by Blog57 Team | | The economically booming Guangdong Province in south China, a motor vehicle manufacturing base, imported 1.13 billion U.S. dollars worth of auto parts in the first three quarters, a growth of 17.8 percent year-on-year. According to local customs sources, of the total, 1.04 billion U.S. dollars worth of auto parts, or 92.3 percent, were imported from Japan, up 17.3 percent, and 30 million U.S. dollars worth, from the European Union, up 36 percent. The nine-month period saw Guangdong's imports of car automatic gear boxes went up 49.6 percent to 390 million U.S. dollars worth, or 34 percent of the province's total, the sources said. The robust growth of auto parts import were partly ascribed to expansion of motor vehicle production in Guangdong and a reduction of import duties from 12.9 percent-18.6 percent to 10 percent.... | |
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| | | Amazon now selling auto parts | | Posted Tuesday, October 24, 2006 10:48:25 AM by Blog57 Team | | Looking for brake pads for your 1977 Mustang II? How about a muffler for your 1985 Chevy El Camino? Now, Amazon.com will compete against established auto parts stores such as NAPAonline.com by selling automotive parts. Officials at the Seattle online retailer (NASDAQ: AMZN - News) said there are 1 million new, used and remanufactured parts at its online automotive store. Parts are available for 10,000 different car and truck models built in 1975 and later. "We're providing a broad selection of products for auto enthusiasts, who are passionate about the appearance and performance of their cars," said Steve Frazier, vice president, Automotive at Amazon.com, in a statement. Published October 23, 2006 by the Puget Sound Business Journal .... | |
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| | | Car parts maker Irons in administration | | Posted Monday, October 23, 2006 12:49:04 PM by Blog57 Team | | There are more problems for South Australia's manufacturing sector, with the future of car components company Irons Engineering in doubt. Irons Engineering, based at Keswick in Adelaide, makes seats, shock absorber and transmission parts for suppliers to Holden and Ford. The firm is in administration and the Australian Workers Union (AWU) says a collapse appears imminent. Organiser Joe Kane says a Melbourne firm has now offered to buy Irons' assets, but that does not guarantee production or the jobs of 41 workers. "Asset sales mean the company goes into liquidation and all the employees will be made redundant," Mr Kane said. The union says Irons' customers - including Holden - had been asked to prop up the company and, if production did stop at Keswick, Holden's Elizabeth plant would feel the effects within days.... | |
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| | | ThyssenKrupp Sells Budd Car-Parts Unit to Martinrea (Update2) | | Posted Thursday, October 19, 2006 6:48:59 PM by Blog57 Team | | Oct. 16 (Bloomberg) -- ThyssenKrupp AG, Germany's largest steelmaker, sold its Budd car-parts unit to Martinrea International Inc. for $95 million as it reorganizes its North American automobile business. ThyssenKrupp's automobile supply business, its third-largest unit, was the least profitable division in the last reported fiscal year. The company has sold assets worth more than 4.7 billion euros ($5.9 billion), including an aluminum castings unit in the U.S., and is closing a plant in Detroit to cut losses. ``This sale is positive news; Budd has been a big problem,'' said Alan Coats, a London-based analyst at HSBC Holdings Plc who has an ``underweight'' rating on ThyssenKrupp shares. ``ThyssenKrupp has been trying to sell this business for a long time.'' Martinrea, based in Ontario, will assume the unit's debt, giving a total transaction value of $275 million, Dusseldorf, Germany-based ThyssenKrupp said today in an e-mailed statement.... | |
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| | | Car lovers came from all around to Shaker Village | | Posted Sunday, October 15, 2006 6:49:11 AM by Blog57 Team | | As many as 200 antique and classic cars, from the early days of automaking to late 1970s muscle cars, converged on Canterbury Shaker Village yesterday for the 10th annual Classic Car Show. Cars are not the first things that come to mind about the Shakers. But the religious community that lived at Canterbury Shaker Village was among the first in New Hampshire to own an automobile in the early 20th century. The Shakers owned a succession of vehicles, starting with a 1907 Reo touring car, and showed a preference for large well-made vehicles, owning a seven-passenger Atlas, a Model 40 Overland and a White truck, among others. Later they bought a Hudson, a Pierce Arrow and a Cadillac. Russ and Gail Whitney of Windham arrived in the oldest car, a 1907 Autocar that used to race at the Reedville dirt track in Dedham, Mass., around 1910.... | |
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