Dorman VS ACDelco VS Duralast VS NAPA VS?????????

[B-train]

So here's what I've learned.....ACDelco is not OE parts quality. Detroit axle isn't either just off reviews I've read. Carquest can be hit or miss depending on which part it is. NAPA for the most part seems to have decent stuff, but unfortunately they are owned by Raybestos and have cousins at acdelco, car quest, and others in the brake and suspension world.

Anymore I buy GM OE parts unless I can verify the aftermarket is as good or better. Sometime that does work, but not always.

Example: AC Delco upper control arms on a 2007 Denali. I bought them young and dumb 'AC Delco is GM, so it's no problem ' WRONG! Originals lasted 160K, AC Delco bought on Amazon lasted 23k and failed. I was able to warranty them with some effort, but still, what a PITA.

 

[MassHoe04]

Kind of disappointing to see this though:

View attachment 354017

I am not surprised.
There is still a very good chance the very part installed in the factory came from the same place... There was no way every component used by GM at time of manufacture came from within the US. Global sourcing was a thing, even back in the early 2000's.

I would bet a dollar a NOS original part off a dusty old dealer's shelve is the same exact thing.
I could be wrong, but I don't think I would have any real expectation for most anything electrical recently used (in the last 40 years) by auto manufacturers to be sourced from the US.

 

[TollKeeper]

SKF U-Joint from Oriellys failed in 70 miles! And yes, it was installed correctly!

 

[OR VietVet]

I am a fan of either Genuine GM or Dana Spicer u-joints.

 

[Thrust]

SKF U-Joint from Oriellys failed in 70 miles! And yes, it was installed correctly!

I had a voltage regulator from O'Reillys that failed after install. They about wouldn't give me my money back because it was an electrical part. Didn't shop at O'Reilly for a long time after that.

 

[OR VietVet]

It is pretty common for parts stores not to warranty an electrical part when there is a very quick return. They figure the buyer was unsure of the diagnosis and just wanted a "known" good part to plug in to see what happens. What they usually do is easily do a swap out for another part but no money back. Gotta say, I can't really blame them.

I have heard of shadetree guys have a newer vehicle that they cannot figure out and then rent a vehicle to swap a part out on and then hope it fixes the problem.

 

[Thrust]

Well, after replacing the voltage regulator and the battery still draining down, I took the car to a shop which promptly told me the voltage regulator was bad. So lucky for me I had a receipt from them showing what they had to replace. Help my case with OReillys in getting the part refunded.