[Allpar News System]

Mopar has sent out a mailing to some customers and body shops advertising a new collision parts conquest program. Designed to bolster sales of original-equipment quality parts in cases where customers or insurance companies may opt for cheaper aftermarket pieces, the program works by asking customers or body shops to build an estimate as they normally would; then to send the full estimate to a participating dealer, who will “pull out all the stops” to match the aftermarket pricing. While aftermarket parts are often far cheaper than factory replacements, there have been many complaints by body shops and end customers that they often do not fit or are not well made. Allpar tested an aftermarket mirror from a reputable manufacturer and found that the fit was incorrect, a flexible seal was replaced by a hard piece of plastic, and the mirror shakes while the car is running; but the price..

View the original, full post

 

[MoparDanno]

FWIW, this program has been around in one way shape or form for 10+ years now.


I use it daily Its a great tool to be able to sell genuine parts vs the crappy aftermarket pieces.

Something else that alot of people arent aware of, is that the aftermarket pieces, by law, have to be something like 10% different than the OE piece. That can be material difference, shape, contour, whatever, just somewhat different. Thats why so many body shops hate the aftermarket stuff, but the cutrate insurance companies like Gieco, Progressive, and even Allstate, demand that they use the cheap stuff. Price matching lets me match the aftermarket prices, so that you are more likely to get OE parts on your car when it gets fixed.

Danno

 

[TWX]

Keep in mind, cheap aftermarket parts probably help reduce the number of cars that are totaled out. So, while I'd rather use genuine parts, cheap parts keep cars on the road. This best-of-both-worlds where the genuine parts suppliers are willing to attempt to come down to the cheap parts levels is nothing but a good thing in my opinion.

 

[normtest]

Yup. I've often wondered how Chrysler can charge so much for parts for a currently made vehicle that they make 100,000+ of each year. Pay retail and a nose ends up being more than they pay to build the whole car.

 

[jerseyjoe]

Chrysler parts always cost more than GM and Fords equivalent parts. That's why Chevy engines wind up in so many classic MOPARS.

 

[proun91]

Sorry, but if I can buy a brand new off-brand turn signal assembly for less than $20 shipped on ebay without ever having to talk to dealers, mechanics, insurance and pop it in myself … thanks but no.

 

[Mike V.]

Sorry, but if I can buy a brand new off-brand turn signal assembly for less than $20 shipped on ebay without ever having to talk to dealers, mechanics, insurance and pop it in myself … thanks but no.

You get what you pay for...

Mike

 

[valiant67]

I've also had people in the business tell me there's often more work getting a cheap aftermarket part to fit or to make it smooth enough for paint. So sometimes the cheapest part to buy isn't the cheapest part overall.

 

[jerseyjoe]

There is also steel quality and rust inhibitor qualities to take into account but the after market Neon projector headlights I bought never fogged over. No one ever gave me the brights either but I was close to the ground.: Anyway not all ebay after market parts have a good return policy

 

[SRT]

Aftermarket Parts and OE Parts cannot even be compared. The aftermarket simply licenses the ability to sell the part from the Auto Company. Then they make a part, the problem is, material quality, engineering, R&D, which aftermarkets are not concerned with. Of course the usually make them to meet all local and federal laws, but thats it.

A company like Chrysler/MOPAR spends billions a year and houses a staff in the thousands just for Parts Quality/Cataloging/Testing/Service Engineering/Analysis/Supplier Quality/Validation, to name a few. In the world of OE automakers, they usually end up taking a loss on Service Parts. Its a neccesary business model needed to properly service their customers vehicles. Which are the Companies Primary Focus. Making quality vehicles that last. Using the BEST parts and materials available.

I know this area of the Business VERY well, i really cant say more than that. But trust me, as has been said earlier....YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR. Now dont get me wrong, I've used aftermarket parts in the past when I or the person who's vehicle I was working on was in a pinch. And they can fix your vehicle and get you back on the road.

But that was then, and if you care for your vehicle like I do, then you'll use OE parts. You really cant compare. This is a great program that has been Announced.

 

[Boo Boo]

Biggest problem with Mopar parts isn't the price, it's availability. Especially with new models. And when it comes to accessories here is a hint to upper management, don't advertise the part if you cannot produce it for the customer. Too often a customer comes in and pays for a part at the dealership only to have to wait months to actually receive the part. It happens much to often. Try explaining to a customer that they cannot get their car back on the road after a fender bender because a service part is not available while the assembly line keeps cranking out vehicles with the exact same part. It leaves a bad taste for a customer that has a brand new vehicle. Also, redesign the Mopar website and make it as easy to use as any other parts store site and you will have much more traffic for Mopar parts. IMO.

 

[srtaholic]

Just recently ran into this. While my car was in the shop (2008 dodge Charger SRT8) I decided to fix the front bumper as it was peeling horribly (previously painted) Come to find out it was not fixed properly so I decided to replace it instead.. the price for a new SRT8 Factory Bumper was 1200 Dollars. The price for an aftermarket was 450. Now i worked at a body shop before and I knew the issues with aftermarket but never had HUGE problems with it. But this bumper, although it fits fairly well, Has a horrible nose gap from the middle of the hood to the bumper. Crazy thing is it's even on the sides but the middle has an inch gap so it looks like my hood is open.. I'll deal with it for awhile and eventually get what I should have got a factory replacement lol.

 

[SRT]

BooBoo,

While i dont disagree that availabiilty of new accesories is sometimes lagging behind newly launched vehicles, all parts that are not currently available for one reason or another, are released with bulletins, infact the systems produce these bulletins when a Dealer is trying to order when you come to pay for it. So if the Parts Guy doesnt pass that info along, its the Dealers Fault.

And as Far as a fender, if the Dealer contacts MOPAR about an issue where a common service part is not available for the vehicle, causing a vehicle to be down, MOPAR will pull one from the Plant and overnight it to the Dealer to fix the issue. Its common practice

 

[Moparian]

I believe its law for a insurance company to use OEM parts to fix a car that is less than 3 years old.

 

[hondapartsguru]

I am on the Honda version of this program for just over a year now. The program has resulted in an estimated 20% gain in parts sales that were previously lost to used and aftermarket parts. My bodyshop gets to use OEM parts where the insurance company has allowed for used, aftermarket or refurbished parts. This benifits the dealer,the repair shop and the customer. It creates more work for the parts department but the end results are worth it.

 

[MoparNorm]

Keep in mind, cheap aftermarket parts probably help reduce the number of cars that are totaled out. So, while I'd rather use genuine parts, cheap parts keep cars on the road. This best-of-both-worlds where the genuine parts suppliers are willing to attempt to come down to the cheap parts levels is nothing but a good thing in my opinion.

Keep in mind, that many, if not most, of those "cheap" parts are imported junk.
Cheap is not always inexpensive, just cheap. If you have to buy TWO cheap parts rather than one quality part, you haven't really saved anything, except maybe a job in china.
Anything that keeps Americans working is a good thing.
Many Americans are willing to fight and die for their country, likely due to a trade cause...having experienced that first hand, it's far less painful to spend a few extra bucks on the correct part the first time. It's that basic.