Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2008 09:24:07 -0400
Reply-To: Ken Wilford <kenwilfy@COMCAST.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Ken Wilford <kenwilfy@COMCAST.NET>
Subject: Re: Reliability of AutoZone (Duralast) alternators
In-Reply-To: <3E3476BC97E84FCF9BAD4B7E0C1019C5@RON>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
Ron is spot on with this one. I have a Autozone alternator in my 90
Carat right now that I had to buy while on a trip to Georgia a couple of
years back.
It is now making a bunch of noise and I will soon have to replace it but
it got me out of an emergency situation (they had it on the shelf) and I
am thankful for that.
However if you are typing this on this list that means that you have
time on your hands to plan ahead for your alternator replacement. I
would suggest buying a quality one
(Bosch) instead of buying the cheapy one. The Bosch units are
"remanufactured" and look like new units because they have been gone
through and brought back to new specs.
Many of the cheapy "rebuilds" are merely units that are tested, with new
voltage regulators, and a paint job. Great in a pinch but not something
you would want to count on for the long run.
Spending a little more for a quality product now always pays off in the
end. I have found this to be true over and over.
Ken Wilford
John 3:16
www.vanagain.com
The Bus Depot wrote:
>> They are rebuilt, and I use that term loosely. More like
>> cleaned, spray-painted, and perhaps tested. Not unusual for
>> them to fail frequently, the lifetime warranty is the only
>> reason they can sell them.
>>
>
> The discount auto parts chains (not speaking of AutoZone but in general) buy
> their rebuilt electrics strictly on price. Whoever can deliver a truckload
> of electrics for a wide range of models, quickly and for the lowest bid, is
> who stocks their shelves. Then the chain store tacks on a "lifetime
> warranty" to sell the product. They know that in 90% of the cases they will
> not need to make good on that warranty, even when (not if) it fails. Right
> off the bat you may not have the proof of purchase handy when you need it.
> And if you do, you may break down at a time when obtaining a replacement
> quickly and near where you are stranded matters much more than finding the
> nearest XYZ Auto Parts location who can honor the warranty (and has one on
> the shelf).
>
> >From the discount store's standpoint, given the unlikelihood of actually
> having to make good on the warranty, it's more profitable for them to sell
> you crap adorned with a "lifetime warranty" than to pay for a thorough
> rebuild in the first place. From your standpoint, however, it's smarter to
> buy a quality product that won't need that warranty to begin with. When you
> break down in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night, the fact
> that you'll get another free crap alternator after wasting hours of your
> time and paying $100 for the tow will be little consolation. Especially if
> it happens more than once. I have had customers tell me they went through
> three or four discount-store rebuilds before the finally bought a Bosch.
>
> Not that Bosch is the only good product. Many of the non-Bosch rebuilds I
> carry come from a rebuilder I've trusted for years - an independent
> specialist who has done nothing but VW electrics for 25 years. I have put
> his rebuilds on my own Vanagons without hesitation. Also, in some
> communities you can still find local mom-and-pop auto electric specialists
> who can individually rebuild your existing unit to quality standards at a
> reasonable price.
>
> In your case, you were stranded and you did what you had to do. Broken down
> 200 miles from home on a Sunday night, I'd probably have done the same. I
> can't say I'd personally go as far as pulling it out of my Vanagon once it
> was there and working. Who knows, maybe it will last years. But I'd keep
> that receipt in the glovebox just in case. Sorry if that wasn't the
> resounding resassurance you wanted to hear, but it does seem to be
> consistent with what others are writing as well.
>
> - Ron Salmon
> The Bus Depot, Inc.
> www.busdepot.com
> (215) 234-VWVW
>
> _____________________________________________
> Toll-Free for Orders by PART # : 1-866-BUS-DEPOT
>
>
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