Cascade Crew

[chevymad]

It's not just cheap stuff.. though that really gets you when the stuff you've replaced needs to be replaced over and over again.

First.. got the 87 out today and scrubbed it up. Hasn't been moved since it got back from dyno. Planned on taking it to see Iron Man tonight.

So then I get cleaned up, jump in the car and huh.. rearview mirror fell off. For the umpteenth time. The mirror glue we get at napa now I don't think works for poo since they got rid of the glass capsule of primer and switched to the wet nap.

Anyway, off I go to Longview going to meet Deb when she gets off work. I get about 1/2 way across Longview and this horrendous noise starts. Sounds like something stuck in spokes. I drive it on to target and then check it out. The new napa alternator I put on before dyno ... well something wrong with the bearings cause the fan slid back until it contacted the alternator housing. Bent the fins out with a screwdriver and the noise quit.. but still need to swap it again.

Pick Deb up.. head towards the restaraunt and I had switched off the AC when I was investigating the noise. This turns off the radiator fan unless the fan switch turns it on.. Well I notice the temp hit 260.. evidently the fan switch is dead yet again. Think this is # 5 or 6.. Another strike for napa.

We see the movie and I head home with Deb following in case the alternator decides not to make it.. I get to Skamokawa and here a loud whining .. Thinking alternator .. until I go to turn. Evidently I now also need a power steering pump.

Getting to be alot of work for 2 drives this year.

Oh... and I noticed the other day on a reman napa starter.. that it was reman'd in china now. Apparently now its cheaper to ship something across the pacific twice then to even have mexicans rebuild it.

[iansane]

It also sucks being the guy that peddles that cheap crap.

[aaron_sK]

Napa has really fallen off in the last few years as they try to compete with Schucks/Autozone/whatever. Same problem with their employees. Long time guys get rotated out in exchange for dumbasses at minimum wage.

It's getting to the point where most of my parts come from RockAuto because I can choose the brands I want to avoid the cheap knockoff crap. If I have to buy local I try to shop at Baxters. Not because their parts don't come from China, but because all the Baxters up here used to be Pac Nationals and they've had the same guys behind the counter since the 70's.

[Alphius]

Wow B, that is quite a tale of woe.

I bought a reman alternator at Napa for my LS1 before dyno and the voltage regulator was bad, the output voltage would oscillate between 13v and 16v at an interval of roughly 1 second. The replacement for my replacement is still working, at least for now.

I'm in the same boat as Aaron, usually unless I need something ASAP I will order it from RockAuto. You can get cheap shizzle at way lower prices, or go for the good stuff at the same price as local parts store reman junk. The funny part is that if I had ordered a brand new not-reman Remy Gold alternator from RockAuto it would have cost the exact same as buying the crappy one at Napa, and I would have gotten it in the mail on the same day as I got my working Chinese alternator from Napa; they had to order it in both times so I waited four days for a working alternator.

Cheap disposable crap has gotten the better of me many times.

[alloy]

I took my Blazer in for a $25 alignment special at Les Schwab. Keep in mind I replaced all 4 ball joints and the idler arm in October of 2011.

So 10 minutes after he pulls it on the rack he comes and tells me my ball joints are bad, idler arm bad, need a pitman arm, tie rod end, and the control arm bushings. Almost $1000 to repair it.

I think he could see in my face I was pretty skeptical, so he took me out and showed me that the wheel had play in it, definitely ball joints bad. I can see where the bushings could stand a replacement.

What gets me is is he ball joints only lasted 18 months. They weren't from Napa, they are Auto zone parts, but almost any ball joint should last longer than 18 months. I never go off road, just highway driving.

Is there any place we can get high quality parts that last longer than 18 months????

[chevymad]

Kinda stuck with Napa since I work there and get cost + 10. Several years ago I bought a starter there too. Went through 3 or 4 that wouldn't engage because the drive wasn't built right. Then I ordered our brand new version instead of a remain. Its still working however it goes click click start almost every time.

[chevymad]

Got the alternator off. Hangs up and is hard to turn in one spot. Even when the fans not rubbing.

Just ordered a new fan switch from summit. No more Napa garbage there.

Can't complain about the Ps pump since it has 300k on it. Other then its timing anyway. I bet this is the source of the dyno rainbow. Its empty yet shows no real leak.

[Al Hasse]

I just got done replacing a tie rod end on Mom's car (2000 Dodge Stratus). The same one I replaced not long ago. Seems to have failed only a few months after I replaced it, a clunk every time the suspension moved. Maybe I didn't get the nut tightened all the way, but sure felt like I did - IIRC, it was a NAPA piece also.

[chevymad]

I'm sure its not just Napa pieces. They're all made at the same places, but there should be higher quality options. And when you spring for them they should hold up as long as a stock piece

[iansane]

[RSFreak]

Speaking of stuff falling apart, the CAT fell off my T/A on 167 today. It was fun driving the rest of the way home with open headers!

Remember all those reman starters I was throwing in my Taurus every few months.

I had a bad experience with Rockauto before the Volvo blew up. I bought a new surge tank which was supposedly pressure tested before it was shipped. The plastic top seperated from the tank in less than 24 hours.

[aaron_sK]

So we finally figured out just how long my "get you to the exhaust shop" job was good for, eh John?

Why would RockAuto test a tank? They're just a vendor.

[redlava]

I have learned to ask for what other parts are available. Usually their are several different brands for the same part. Replacing a new starter in a parking lot is not my idea of a good time. I noticed that some starters from schucks ranged from 90 dolars to 230 dollars. Obviously the 90 dollar one is a pos. had the figure that out the hard way. Cost to benefit should be considered for all parts .

[RSFreak]

[chevymad]

[QwkTrip]

Oh, boy! Complaining about cheap crap is one of my favorite topics!

If it makes you feel any better, no matter how crappy the China-made stuff is here, the stuff sold in China is even worse!

[aaron_sK]

[RSFreak]

[Twilightoptics]

Gone through several Oriellys thernostats at work and off site.

It's time to go buy parts from the dealer if they're available.

[fiveoformula]

Couple years ago when I still had my S10, I was working at O'Reillys. the starter had been going out since I bought the truck, one day it took like 10 tries till it actually engauged to the ring gear so I decided to swap it out. Went to fire it up and worked great the first try, shut it down and turned it over again and it kept going after the engine started!