OEM or not?

[Boxsum]

Forum members thoughts?

OEM or not?

Out of curiosity with this subject recently coming up a few times I thought it would be an interesting subject for others to share their opinions?

With a few companies now seeming to offer excellent quality guaranteed replacement parts now at great prices unless you have a mint 10,000 miler hidden away in the garage why would you choose to stay with original parts on a car worth less than a new Ford Fiesta? 
ie still worried about quality? just want to keep original? think one day it will be worth more than that fiesta? etc........

An interesting subject I feel as when I was looking for my 986 I viewed quite a few poorly maintained ones before I found one I was happy to purchase. It’s great to see that this forum shows there are people here that are concerned about maintaining their boxsters to drive as they should relative to there values 

[Liberty]

For me depends on the part.Wouldn't put an after market MAF for instance but did go for a different water pump.If the OEM part is known to be weak then maybe something else is worth a punt?Having said that kind of like the new 718 style  led rear lights but the OEM ones are probably more reliable so yeah good question that..

[999 WRC]

That is exactly the issue I have at the moment (ref my other posts) so am fascinated as to what the consensus is. My Boxster is a 2002 3.2S facelift  model thats covered 60,000 but has suffered from lack of thorough maintenance. It’s now having some fairly major surgery at my local indie but I am torn between ‘investing’ in genuine Porsche parts or decent OEM as the cost difference can be staggering but I’m not sure what the quality difference is as even the OEM/aftermarket parts are branded (Sachs, Febi, etc).  To be fair some parts I have gone back to Porsche for and prices were fair (even cheap!) but for other parts they were more like telephone numbers. Seems very inconsistent. 😳

[McDonald]

I'm moving away from Porsche parts for the first time on mine. Its been run from new with full Porsche servicing but at 16 yrs old, that's a nonsense. I will be very careful to pay for crucial parts, but condensers, drier desiccator, spark plugs, batteries, horn, replacement headlight bulbs (upgraded)  & bodywork repairs will all be swapped out. None of these things need to be maintained as original in my view. I've just bought all these parts online & will have them fitted by a local mechanic.

I also have N rated tyres fitted at present but when they wear out I will buy Michelin PS4s.

I'm the 2nd owner from new & the car has done 48,000 miles.

[½cwt]

Having a full factory parts immaculate early Boxster with less than £10k miles might add value to future buyers, but then you are in an investment market not a user market.  If I can find the Porsche part at a sensible price I will use it.  If I can find the original supplier, some one use MAF as an example  over £100 from Porsche, £60 from Bosch who make them for Porsche, or front top mount £150 form Porsche but less than £30 for Sachs, who make them for Porsche.   Using the experience and knowledge of others gleaned on here then enables the selection of other third party made parts, like Spyder Performance suspension arms.

Horses for courses, but me? I try to keep to a sensible budget on a less than pristine nearly 100k miles 21 year old car.

[Geopat]

I think I’ll try to keep mine at least OEM if not official Porsche. Only because I want to prove that it has been maintained to a high level as it still has a bit of value at 11k miles and I’m not sure yet if  I’ll keep it for a while.

[½cwt]

2 minutes ago, Geopat said:

I think I’ll try to keep mine at least OEM if not official Porsche. Only because I want to prove that it has been maintained to a high level as it still has a bit of value at 11k miles and I’m not sure yet if  I’ll keep it for a while.

There is quite a bit of info on here and in member's heads on who makes what.  There are some bits you simply can't get any longer from Porsche like some of the brake lines.

[edc]

Personally I will go for what I feel is the best value, which isn't necessarily the cheapest, and value will be different for others. 

Sometimes I will take a punt on a non critcal part. I was one of the first posters on here to use the Coolpartsuk condensers and they were Ava branded at the time. Look them up and they a German air con and refrigeration company. I was also one of the first to post on here using the Techworlddirect wheel bolts. In both cases buying these in 2012/13. 

Koni FSD dampers. Again the first to try that here but Koni are a well known damper manufacturer anyway. 

[edc]

5 minutes ago, Geopat said:

I think I’ll try to keep mine at least OEM if not official Porsche. Only because I want to prove that it has been maintained to a high level as it still has a bit of value at 11k miles and I’m not sure yet if  I’ll keep it for a while.

At 11k miles unless it lived outside by the sea or done 11k on cobbles it won't need suspension. You might need to do brakes and even in your shoes I wouldn't be precious about using original Porsche parts as I'll be damned if when fitted you can see any branding on a brake disc and nobody is going to dismantle the brakes for a pre purchase inspection. 

[Beancounter]

Having just done a load of research on water pumps, it would be really great if there was a summary table that captured the OEM supplier, and maybe preferred alternatives, for the key wearing parts.

 For those that are long term owners ib guess it odd stuff you pick up over time;  as a newbie, it takes a lot of thread reading!!  Luckily I enjoy researching - my wife isn’t quite so enthusiastic!!
   

[Geopat]

2 minutes ago, edc said:

At 11k miles unless it lived outside by the sea or done 11k on cobbles it won't need suspension. You might need to do brakes and even in your shoes I wouldn't be precious about using original Porsche parts as I'll be damned if when fitted you can see any branding on a brake disc and nobody is going to dismantle the brakes for a pre purchase inspection. 

One of the bushes has gone on the coffin arms so replacing both this week. But yes, it will be part dependent.

[edc]

3 minutes ago, Geopat said:

One of the bushes has gone on the coffin arms so replacing both this week. But yes, it will be part dependent.

Are you having the work done at OPC too and does your car have full history at the OPC? If you are going to an indy then I'd get a good quality aftermarket part personally.

[Geopat]

5 minutes ago, edc said:

Are you having the work done at OPC too and does your car have full history at the OPC? If you are going to an indy then I'd get a good quality aftermarket part personally.

I thought it best to go with Porsche parts for suspension. I appreciate others would think differently however.

[TROOPER88]

There is lots of confusion out there it seems.

Porsche do not make a lot of their parts but use Bosch and Textar as examples.

If you order an 02 sensor for a 987, you can can order the Bosch one or the Porsche one; one comes in a Bosch box and one comes in a Porsche box.

The contents of the box is the same yet the Porsche one is more expensive, it is called Porsche tax. It is the same on lots and lots of service items as well.

The same with lots of suspension components that are made on the same production line as the one's branded Porsche but will be rebranded. 

What is very common now is since these cars are extremely cheap to buy, lots of people can buy them but can not afford to maintain them properly; forum members tend to slightly buck this trend due to them generally being enthusiastic and have the help of the forum.

This can sometimes be a good thing but not always. I am seeing more and more 986's where the previous DIY owners have attempted jobs and in the process broken fixings, lots screws etc etc

 

[Menoporsche]

For IMS bearing, I'd prefer not to have a Porsche part...  and for door and dash speakers also...

Just because it says Porsche on the box, doesn't mean it is very high quality.

The 986 is now at least 15 years old, some approach 25 years old.  Paying Porsche tax for an OEM part is not an investment.

It is well established here though that window regulators and windscreens can be worth putting your money towards; OTOH, some VAG parts bin savings can be made.

As edc says - a value judgement for each part at each price.

[McDonald]

I took my car to a respected indie & got them to inspect my car. They came back with a list of recommended work and their order of priority. They kindly quoted for each job. The quote came to a little over 6K. This on a car that has a complete, detailed Porsche service history and has done 48,000 miles. I expect to pay a premium for their expertise but the striking thing about the figures was the cost of parts.

As I read the forum, I make notes of the favoured parts & suppliers for upcoming work. I've bought all the necessary parts for a fraction of the cost, all recommended by experienced folk on here. 

I want this car to be as good as I can get it & I'm willing to spend the money to get it right. I'm not willing to be fleeced unnecessarily.

[TROOPER88]

13 minutes ago, McDonald said:

I took my car to a respected indie & got them to inspect my car. They came back with a list of recommended work and their order of priority. They kindly quoted for each job. The quote came to a little over 6K. This on a car that has a complete, detailed Porsche service history and has done 48,000 miles. I expect to pay a premium for their expertise but the striking thing about the figures was the cost of parts.

As I read the forum, I make notes of the favoured parts & suppliers for upcoming work. I've bought all the necessary parts for a fraction of the cost, all recommended by experienced folk on here. 

I want this car to be as good as I can get it & I'm willing to spend the money to get it right. I'm not willing to be fleeced unnecessarily.

I am in the process of prepping one at the moment, a 2004 2.7 (already taken a deposit).

It was at the body shop last week (£1500) plus I did the discs and pads yesterday.

4 weeks and 100 miles prior to me getting the car, it was at my indy for work:

New rear muffler (aftermarket)

4 tyres

Minor service

front drop link

headlight refurb

clear drains

One or two other minor items from memory 

£4250

Although over 6k has been spent on it in the past month, it still needs a fair amount of work

[TROOPER88]

57 minutes ago, Menoporsche said:

For IMS bearing, I'd prefer not to have a Porsche part...  and for door and dash speakers also...

Just because it says Porsche on the box, doesn't mean it is very high quality.

The 986 is now at least 15 years old, some approach 25 years old.  Paying Porsche tax for an OEM part is not an investment.

It is well established here though that window regulators and windscreens can be worth putting your money towards; OTOH, some VAG parts bin savings can be made.

As edc says - a value judgement for each part at each price.

This wasn't what I was saying.

I was saying that you WILL  pay more to have the item in a Porsche box but the item will be the same as the one in a Bosch or Textar box in most cases.

[the baron]

10 hours ago, ½cwt said:

Having a full factory parts immaculate early Boxster with less than £10k miles might add value to future buyers, but then you are in an investment market not a user market.  If I can find the Porsche part at a sensible price I will use it.  If I can find the original supplier, some one use MAF as an example  over £100 from Porsche, £60 from Bosch who make them for Porsche, or front top mount £150 form Porsche but less than £30 for Sachs, who make them for Porsche.   Using the experience and knowledge of others gleaned on here then enables the selection of other third party made parts, like Spyder Performance suspension arms.

Horses for courses, but me? I try to keep to a sensible budget on a less than pristine nearly 100k miles 21 year old car.

This ^^^^^

[McDonald]

1 hour ago, Menoporsche said:

 

It is well established here though that window regulators and windscreens can be worth putting your money towards

 

Why windscreens? How are Porsche screens special? 

[Araf]

I recently replaced the brakes on my Boxster.  I paid £1300 for the parts from Porsche.

Yes, I could have got the whole lot for £600 from ebay but the genuine stuff on the car lasted around 5 years and 50k.

IMHO, for lots of consumables, buying cheap can be a false economy.

[TROOPER88]

23 minutes ago, Araf said:

I recently replaced the brakes on my Boxster.  I paid £1300 for the parts from Porsche.

Yes, I could have got the whole lot for £600 from ebay but the genuine stuff on the car lasted around 5 years and 50k.

IMHO, for lots of consumables, buying cheap can be a false economy.

were the pads Textar?

[Menoporsche]

1 hour ago, TROOPER88 said:

This wasn't what I was saying.

 

Indeed, it's what I was saying.

[edc]

The other confusing issue is that there are a lot of OEMs. But not all OEMs are the OEM for that part with that car manufacturer if that makes sense. Lemforder for example make a lot of parts for Mercedes and Meyle for BMW. 

For Porsche, the OEM will be different for different parts and even for the same part across different generations or models. 

And yes Porsche makes very few if any of the actual parts, but that is true for the whole car industry. In that regard, the car manufacturers like Porsche are just like Boeing and Airbus, who like car manufacturers don't actually make many of the parts. 

[½cwt]

1 hour ago, McDonald said:

Why windscreens? How are Porsche screens special? 

Some believe that the Saint Gobain screen (supplier to Porsche factory) is the one to ahve but most UK insurers will take the more commonly available, and probably cheaper, Pilkington one in the UK.  There are claims of problems with the latter, but bear in mind Pilkington make factory fitment glass to many manufacturers so they are not mugs.  In the case of screens more than most parts it is down to the fitter not the product when there are problems regardless of who made the glass.

Also bear in mind there is a good supply of original parts from breakers if you want an OE part that is not so subject to age, so side glass, interior parts or even body panels without the need to buy new.