How not to buy spare parts?
Many, out of inexperience, do this: they drive the car to the service, they disassemble it and tell the customer what spare part to buy. The owner of the car goes to the store, buys the part and takes it to the service. There it may turn out that this specific part is not suitable for this modification. The spare part has to be returned (and that is sometimes not easy if it is without marriage) and urgently looking for the right one. And at the moment the car is stationary on the service. In other words, you rely completely on the experience of mechanics and parts sellers. Both can fail and you will have to pay for their incompetence.
To avoid paying too much, you should dive into the problem yourself and find good and cheap parts that will definitely fit your car. Most likely, the spare part will have to wait a few days, so you should start the search in advance, and not on the day of the repair.
How do you search for spare parts to repair your car?
The search can be divided into 4 main phases:
- Find the item for the original spare part (check if it is suitable for your car, according to the VIN code);
- Find the article of the analog (non-original spare part). Check the VIN compatibility again;
- Choose a supplier with the most favorable price offer;
- Reserve the necessary spare part on the site and pick it up yourself.
How do you find the part number?
You will need a dealer or unofficial catalog for this. These can be found on the web at various sites (some of the most popular: Exist, Autodoc or Elcats).
Find your model and see the right spare part. Don’t forget to check for matching VIN number.
Unlike dealer catalogs, unofficial catalogs can be used for free. However, in such cases, as a rule, non-European VIN codes, as well as VINs of domestic cars, cannot be deciphered.
There is no need to buy original spare parts. In addition, you will often find non-original markings in the original packaging. After all, car manufacturers are not involved in the production of parts for steering and hydraulic systems, various filters and attachments for the engine. Automatic transmissions for Bentley, Volkswagen, Peugeot and Citroen are produced by Aisin.
To search for an analogue, it is enough to find out the manufacturer of the original spare part (for example, by looking at the marking of the part of your car or searching the forums) and find the so-called cross – this is the slang name for the analogue of the original part.
If you like the prize, the search can be considered over. But you can save more at least 20%.