Poor quality rubber components

[steve-45]

Its not just the cost of the failed item, but the time, cost and effort involved in having to change it again !

I would certainly be willing to pay a premium on parts that had a guaranteed life of say 10 years, but this guarantee would have to cover the labour cost involved in its replacement, not just a "free" replacement part !

[RoverDan]

Agree with all the comments that we are our own worst enemies... cheaper definitely not best but we have been demanding cheaper for decades. Guilty as charged in this case, but learning my lesson and I started this thread as a caution to others

Fitting cheap parts is like fitting used parts - in that you don't know how long they'll last, and that the labour cost/time may significantly outweigh the purchase price - except that with used genuine parts you know they were properly specified and manufactured at the outset.

My recent search for a fuel pump and for an aux belt tensioner/spring showed that many suppliers don't state the manufacturer. Perhaps we should only shop where we know the source of the item? Curiously, fishing around the Land Rover parts suppliers (as a Freelander 1 TD4) yielded far more disclosure of what make the various alternatives were, letting you make an informed (prejudiced?!) decision as to price/confidence trade-off.

[SCP440]

White box parts have been available in the US for years but are regarded as cheap and you only fit if you are selling a car, if the manufacturer wont put his name on the box there is a reason for that.

Would you put a battery in your car with no label and only a 12 month warranty?

[Mintee]

Originally Posted by RoverDan

Agree with all the comments that we are our own worst enemies... cheaper definitely not best but we have been demanding cheaper for decades. Guilty as charged in this case, but learning my lesson and I started this thread as a caution to others

Fitting cheap parts is like fitting used parts - in that you don't know how long they'll last, and that the labour cost/time may significantly outweigh the purchase price - except that with used genuine parts you know they were properly specified and manufactured at the outset.

This is not a new thing. Back in the early 70's a friend of mine bought a 1950's Velocette Venom (in a tea chest, in bits for £40!). He screwed it together and rode it about. The old, original, parts began to wear out and he started fitting 'pattern' replacements. Many of these were shocking quality and failed very quickly. He was so incensed he wrote an article about it - either in 'Bike' or 'Classic Bike' in the late 70's*.

So the problem is nothing new - OEM parts are built to a standard, expected to last a specific duty cycle, production ends but people still want parts and the aftermarket knock out replacements that fit and work but might not be made to quite the same standards. If there is enough demand the replacement parts will eventually be made better (Hagon have become a lot better at making shocks for old English motorcycles, the first iterations of their Girlings was pretty awful!) or cease to exist because demand falls.

(*He eventually sold the Velo to a 'collector' for a lot of money and went on to design a motorcycle using car parts which, although somewhat of a 'George Washington's axe', he still rides even though he is now in his late 70's!)

[AndyN01]

Interesting thread - thanks.

IMHO we have three avenues of choice.

1.
Pay peanuts for "cheap" copy parts. You might get lucky, you might not.

Totally agree that it's not funny if you've spent hours taking all the bits off and then putting them back on again to have to do it all again a few weeks/months later.

2.
Find "original" OEM parts - if they are still available - and pay a premium for that, knowing that they have all the correct original design specifications.

3.
Buy "specialist" after market parts. These tend to be quite expensive but some/most are actually better than the originals because they are from small outfits who have everything to lose if they supply duff stuff. Things move on, materials change, tolerances improve and quality control can be better.

The bike shock absorbers example is a case in point. I had shocks which were fully adjustable and had a 5 year warranty and were still way cheaper than OEM (with a one year warranty).

Just look at the threads about clutch masters/slaves/friction plates.

You pays your money and makes your choice.

Andy.

[EastPete]

Originally Posted by AndyN01

Interesting thread - thanks.

Just look at the threads about clutch masters/slaves/friction plates.

You pays your money and makes your choice.

Andy.

The clutch parts issue is a minefield - we thought we were getting improved quality masters/slaves with the all-metal versions marketed by Tazu/Xpart, but now they seem to have their own problems. Changing a clutch to replace duff parts is not a trivial matter !

The rubber components issue is particularly bad on older classics. For my MGB I have tried to keep the car original using rubber bushes rather than going to polyurethane, as many owners do. You get a better ride on rubber bushes, but the lifespan can be woeful- less then 2 years and they are often completely shredded.

Pete

[Mgaz]

Looking at it another way, that rubbery part seems a bit rude.

Originally Posted by RoverDan

What is going to happen about all these failing rubber components? The classic car magazines appear to have woken up to this, looks like a ticking time bomb for any rubber parts replaced in the past 10 years or so.

Here's a trivial (i.e. non-safety) example: a gear lever gaiter for a Land Rover 110. I replaced a torn gear lever gaiter 7 years ago when we changed the engine, and the then-new replacement has perished around many of the creases. It's not been nibbled, or worn, or abused... just the rubber material has failed:



It was a non-genuine pattern part bought from a reputable LR parts specialist. The cost difference is currently £33 genuine vs. £7.50 non-genuine. I suspect it was a similar disparity when I purchased the above.

The same style of original (genuine!) gaiter is still working perfectly on our 29 year old LR 90. Guess which one I bought this time round?

What of hoses and suspension bushes that aren't so visible but are much more important?

[jackatesme]

May be cheap rubber is why there are so many kids today.

[Mgaz]

Originally Posted by jackatesme

May be cheap rubber is why there are so many kids today.

I bought some for £1 once... Was the best £1 I ever spent!, till the rubber broke.

You did get a whopping 10 of them in a pack though, so I guess the quantity made up for the lack of quality? Right?

[jackatesme]

Ten in pack,must have been x small size.