Car repairs are costly, and it is always tempting to try to save money wherever you can. Keeping a car running is usually one of our highest outgoings so it’s understandable that as a car owner you may cringe at the thought of shelling out slightly more for official parts, but in the long run, are you actually losing out, or putting yourself in danger?
There is more to consider when repairing your car than simply the cost. In this article we run through three of the main reasons you should go for genuine replacement parts from the manufacturer, over unofficial aftermarket parts.
Quality
VW Motor Parts, genuine VW parts dealers told us: “The quality of car parts made by the manufacturer of your car will usually be higher. As they say, you get what you pay for, and the parts made by official car manufacturers will be made to a high standard, and expected to pass testing both in a laboratory, and in car.”
Because official parts are made for the specific make and model of vehicle, rather than a generic part, you know that they will definitely fit your car and work correctly.
You will likely find that aftermarket parts do not last as long, and you could end up spending more in the long run from having to replace them more often than official parts, and they could even cause more problems as they cause stress on other parts.
Safety
You actually run the risk of compromising your safety when you buy unofficial aftermarket parts, which is possibly the biggest reason of all to avoid doing so.
The reason for this is a combination of factors. Aftermarket parts do not have to meet the same stringent safety standards that official parts do, and often the materials are cheaper and of lower quality. They also are not designed specifically for your car, and can not only cause unexpected problems, but disrupt things such as the highly sensitive calibration of your airbags.
Warranty
It may be a requirement of keeping your warranty intact that you use official replacement parts. Using aftermarket parts could void your warranty, and while of course, during the warranty period most people will have their vehicle repaired by their official car dealership, those who perhaps wish to add modifications for reasons other than a repair will want to bear this in mind.
Additionally, genuine replacement parts usually come with a warranty of their own, so should something go wrong with a part that you have replaced you are covered. This is generally not the case with aftermarket parts, and so you can end up spending far more in the long run if things do go wrong again.
All in all, we wouldn’t recommend taking the extra risk of buying unofficial parts for the purpose of saving a bit of money in the short term. Check out this article from the Legal Examiner which discusses further the issues and risks surrounding the sale of aftermarket car parts.
