Date:         Mon, 3 Apr 2006 09:52:13 -0700
Reply-To:     Daryl Christensen <aatransaxle@DIRECWAY.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Daryl Christensen <aatransaxle@DIRECWAY.COM>
Subject:      Re: Ebay CV "kit"....is it any good?
Content-type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset=iso-8859-1; reply-type=original

I had put a set of rebuilt axles on a 2wd van in Dec and one self
destructed...The cost to me was nil for the replacement, but the tow bill
and the ruined day for the customer and the sheer hassle factor of it all
for both of us will preclude me ever using anything but a new german cv ever
again...
If you do all your own work, and can afford the time to hassle with rebuilt
stuff...go for it...but for those of us who do some work for others...its
not worth it for me...
AA Trans
----- Original Message -----
From: "The Bus Depot" <vanagon@BUSDEPOT.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Sunday, April 02, 2006 6:50 PM
Subject: Re: Ebay CV "kit"....is it any good?


> I have gone the Schucks and purchased
> their $80 lifetime warrenty unit...  When this one gose
> bad in 5-7 years I take it back for a new one for free...
> I did that with my starter (5 times), alternator (6 times),
> and front brake pads (lost count.)
>
> Jere
> 90 Carat-a-version



Well, let's see...  If each rebuilt starter or alternator you bought failed
5-6 times, and the failures were 5-7 years apart, then by my math you
purchased the original units about 36 years ago!  I presume these were not
for your 16-year-old Vanagon. :-)

I'm being facetious, but I'm also making a point here.  Good rebuilds just
don't very often.  It has been said on this list more than once that those
"white box" reman's from the various discount auto parts chains have a
hidden cost, which is the cost (in dollars, time, and aggrevation) of
repeatedly having to remove and reinstall them when they fail.  In the end
you pay much more than you saved on the initial purchase.  Plus, sooner of
later one of these failures is bound to happen at an inopportune time,
leaving you stranded far from home in the middle of the night.

Discount auto parts chains (as a whole, not singling out Schucks) don't get
their remanufacturing done by the best in the business, or even the second
or third best. They buy from whoever can promise truckload qualities at the
cheapest possible price.  Often these "reman's" are little more than tested
and repainted used units. The "lifetime warranty" is a red herring - the
same tried-and-true marketing gimmick used to convince late-night TV viewers
that the $19.99 Ginsu knife is better than a $500 set of Wüsthof's. (It has
a lifetime warranty, so it must be good!)  It cheaper to cut corners on the
part and throw in an free extended-warranty, than to build the part well in
the first place (and you get to play the "Ginsu knife" marketing angle to
boot).  The cost of "rebuilding" to this standard can be so cheap that they
can afford to exchange it once or twice and still make a profit.  Moreover
(and this is what they are banking on), most people never take advantage of
the warranty when the part fails.  Many lose their receipt. Others are
caught in a bind when they unexpectedly break down, and forgo the warranty
in favor of getting a replacement quickly wherever they can. Others move,
sell the vehicle, or just get fed up after the second exchange and buy a
replacement somewhere else.

My 1989 Vanagon (140k miles) has only had one replacement starter,
alternator, and set of CV joints since new. My '85 Vanagon and my Bus (about
200k miles) had two. A quality part lasts, and often doesn't cost very much
more. Rather than replacing the same part again and again, isn't it smarter
to buy a quality part in the first place and just be done with it?

Off my soapbox... :-)

- Ron Salmon
  The Bus Depot, Inc.
  www.busdepot.com
  (215)  234-VWVW

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