I've started to use FCP Euro for a lot of my needs. Everything is from OE suppliers, and they have a lifetime guarantee. For real...people return worn out brake pads and rotors and get credit. I understand they even will take back used oil:eek:

A set 4 of OE German made rotors, Hella brand pads, and wear sensors for my W210 Benz runs about $250 for the complete kit.

Be careful. “OEM” gets thrown around a lot, it means almost nothing. If you buy through a dealer network, you know you’re getting the correct stuff. Buy from anybody else and you’re getting some meaningless marketing buzz word attributed to a product by a salesman that wants to sell you everything he has, because that’s his job.

There are sometimes parts available that are made by the same manufacturer that makes the parts for the carmaker, and often they may be the same thing, just without the carmaker’s logo on it. The operative word is maybe. Which has about the same meaning as maybe not.

If I eat one less steak in a restaurant each year, that makes up for any additional money I might spend on car parts during the year.

I would also be careful of counterfeit parts. I have personally experienced this, buying a Bosch part in a Bosch box that was identical in appearance to the correct part, made by some ******* in China and that didn’t work. I acquired the part when getting the car serviced by a local independent shop, when I let them supply the parts. They had a pretty good track record of sorting out the crap from the good stuff over the years, but incidents like that pop up from time to time and catch everyone by surprise.

Rock Auto's web site is similar to their commercials - crude.

Amazon. Too easy. Parts arrive in a day or two.

I get 'real' parts (I think), the easy 'buy-again' button, and good options (like the correct pair of wipers for my car, no searching and ordering for two different lengths).

For oil I use FLAPS or Walmart.

I have pretty much the same take as you on parts but I will use brands I trust such as ATE and Textar or Jurid brake pads and Zimmerman or Brembo rotors on my cars, knowing that they may or may not be exactly what is sold over the dealer's parts counter. I keep the same pads F/R on all cars for the balance or proportionality you were mentioning.

I love buying dealer parts in the original box and I will every chance I get, not always from the dealer, though. For some parts, nothing but original will do for me, more so on my Ford truck than older European cars, oddly enough because I know my Euro aftermarket parts really well but domestic stuff is mostly garbage. The exceptions would be things like Moog suspension and steering parts which are made in the USA and are generally better than original. I always try to use the best parts I can get.

On filters and oils/fluids, you are 100% correct and it's a fool's economy to use unknown crap. I'm about to do an oil change on my employee's Camry and I'm using a dealer oil filter, purchased from one of my regular parts houses for CHEAP. Yes, the correct filter in a Toyota box is cheaper than some of the questionable ones. Why would anyone use anything else?

On European cars, I'll use a Mann or Mahle oil filter on older cars because they were the original supplier. It even says so on older Mercedes oil filter housings, "Mann (part#)."

To take your remarks about oil filter specs a bit further, not only are there no "specs" but many filters and other products are protected by numerous patents. It was explained to me years ago by an engineer from Raycor on this forum that no other fuel filter for my Ford Powerstroke diesel could possibly be correct because the original has patented features that impact its performance. The only brands that have the features are Motorcraft and Raycor, who designed the filter and the rest of the fuel system for the engine. No one else could have the correct bypass because it was patented.

Using correct parts on my various machines has given me great performance and reliability, just like the ads for original parts said back in the 1960s when AC Delco billboards were everywhere. :)

There is some real schit coming through MB dealers over the parts counter these days but that is a whole 'nother conversation. The world is changing.

One thing I forgot to mention wrt "OEM" parts; years ago, when I had my SC, I bought a Dansk muffler from Pelican for it. Actually, it was a 1974 style since I had installed SSIs. The part was advertised as "Porsche OEM" even though everyone knows that Bisch made the original mufflers for 911s. Apparently, Dansk supplied the muffler at one time for 924s or some other Porsche badged car and therefore earned the eternal right to call themselves a "Porsche OEM supplier" while providing absolute crap mufflers for older 911s. No similarity to an original Bisch at all, which was either NLA or cost prohibitive.

So there is also that. It helps to know the auto parts business, otherwise buy the best you can get for the best price.

For true consumables (oil, filters, windshield wiper fluid, brake fluid, cabin air filters, etc) I go to the FLAPS. I skip over the cheapest oil filters, though, and pay the extra 2 or 3 bucks for the Mobil 1 or equivalent. I go to the FLAPS for exactly the reason above. It's a little far for walking distance (maybe a mile away?) but I pass it by on my way home from work.

For occasional consumables like brake pads/discs (or some items that manufacturers or the word-on-the-street claim are not so interchangeable/mixable, like power steering fluid/transmission fluid/antifreeze) I'll go to the dealer. Who knows what goes into some of the stuff sold at the FLAPS? Like others have pointed out, with a little planning, it's not hard to find dealerships willing to sell online for 25% discount. I'll usually do so for parts too, as I've found that the mass-produced stuff from FLAPS/online retailers may look right, but often don't fit right. Sometimes, if the part is oversize or some weird shape, the local dealer may be cheaper than the online dealership after figuring in shipping.

For the Porsche or one of the motorcycles, I'll usually go to a specialty online retailer like Pelican.

I just posted the exact same thing on the "other" forum.
Porsche and BMW are easy to buy quality parts for.
I don't know s##t about Subaru.

Dansk makes crap parts, including their sheet metal body parts. For what it’s worth your original muffler was a Bischoff...

:D

I use FLAPS for most stuff. They carry the Mobil 1 I use in the truck and the RP for the Cobra. I use K&N oil filters since they seem to be as good of a quality as Mopar/Mobile 1 filters and have a nut welded on. The local dealer used to have a couple Fram filters on the service desk that were burst. After seeing a few cut open I can see why and don't understand why anyone would use one. Wix are decent also.

The new car still gets serviced at the dealer so it is all from the MFR.

Sometimes there are fakes on Amazon so check the seller reputation. Even that is sometimes not reliable.

As far as online, I have used eBay quite a bit but also Amazon.

Price and convenience plus delivery date all factor in.

I have also used my FLAPS on occasion.

It depends but I'm very grateful to have options.

Of course. I was hesitating slightly as I typed that, memory isn’t what it used to be. :)

FLAPS is too expensive. I priced shock absorbers for my car and they were much higher at NAPA and I had to pay shipping. I got Gabriel shocks on line from Autozone for much less. Gabriel used to be a good brand, hope it they still is.
Amazon is a crap shoot, but they have useful reviews. I was looking at H4 light bulbs and there were some with attractive prices, but the reviews revealed that they were all for right hand drive cars!

I find ********'s EDIT r o c k a u t o s website and offer outstanding. I have been using them for years and moved away from p a r t s g e e k because of their service. Maybe it's an acclimation thing?

I buy parts daily. Online, FLAPS, LKQ, salvage yards, Pull-a-Part. Depends on the customer and the project.

I buy cheap parts for not so well heeled people after I explain to them what they are paying for. Their car is always on it's last leg. Silk purse/sows ear.

Anything that requires a core, my one or two go-to FLAPS is the only choice. Screw boxing up a caliper and sending it.

I like KYB, Dorman and Moog. Monroe Quick-Struts (loaded) are the bomb. Big savings, like half online vs FLAPS even with my discount. KYB is better for loaded but damn, spendy.

Dealer stuff? I am too small to leverage a discount but I find if I have some comedic BS on I can wrangle a discount, even with BMW. Depends on who answers the phone.

I've had nearly 100% success getting discounts from dealer parts counters by just politely asking whether they want to compete w online dealer parts sources. They always do and sometimes they even beat the online prices. I'm talking about competing w actual Ford/Mercedes/whatever dealers who are selling parts out the back door online.

if we're now allowed to post competing businesses on this site, (which I feel a little uncomfortable with), I have much better sources for European and Japanese parts than anything listed on this thread so far and they all drop ship the next day w free shipping and no tax. One of them sells brand name European parts for pennies over cost, sometimes .01 over. Like what Pelican pays for the parts or less. It's a crazy world out there.

If you are willing to share your European parts source please send me the info via PM . Thanks

Gonna bet it's not going to be ECS Tuning. Just saying.

You will have good luck with ECS till you don't .