Car repairs are often both surprising, unwanted, and unplanned for. When they’re needed, it’s helpful to have a basic understanding of the three major sources for car parts: factory, after-market, and used.
Factory car parts, or original equipment manufacturer are, as they sound, obtained directly from the factory. Their advantages are that they are readily available, can definitely be found in your make, model and color, arrive quickly and often have a warranty or guarantee. Their disadvantages are, of course, the price. If you decide to purchase a car part from the factory, you can locate the nearest dealership by googling the manufacturer’s website and using their dealership locator or visiting Carsearch.com
After market parts are car parts that are made by a third party instead of the dealer. Their advantages are that they are often cheaper than buying factory made parts and that after market parts can customize cars’ bodies and engines and with options that are not available from the dealer. Their disadvantages are that not all auto parts, particularly body parts, are available after market. Another disadvantage, of which wisegeek.com warns in its article “What are After Market Auto Parts” is that in many cases using after-market auto parts can void the vehicle’s warranty. Two sites that sell after-market car parts are Partstrain.com and Autoparts Warehouse
Finally, used parts are the still-working parts from wrecked or junked cars. The advantage of these is obvious: buying used parts is much cheaper than purchasing factory made parts. The disadvantage is that they’re not always readily available, and even if a particular part can be found, it may not be a precise match to your model and color. If you decide to purchase a used part, begin your search at a local wrecking yard or used parts source. If you’re unable to find them there, you can search online. Two sources for used parts are Woodfins.com and Junkyarddog.com.