Cost of buying cheapest aftermarket

"VincentMalamute-Kim" (VincentMalamute-Kim)
08/22/2020 at 15:17 • Filed to: None

I saw LongVoyager’s recent posts. They reminded me that in the same amount of time it took him to install his engine, I managed to replace the yellowed headlights on my friend’s 2004 Forester. So there!

The Subaru dealer quoted her $940 to replace the headlights (!!! ). OEM headlights are about $400 online . So her d ealer is charging her more than $600 for labor!!! . I got her the cheap RockAuto EagleEye brand for $180/pair.

I know that aftermarket stuff, the cheap kind, will be of lower quality. A nd most aftermarket stuff has fitment issues regardless of cost .

I had to Dremel down three of the mounting points on the headlight next to the grill so the OEM retention clips for the body colored trim piece would fit. But t hat’s within expected tolerances for cheap aftermarket parts .

Two of three lower mounting points for that trim piece are visible under the passenger side headlight. Those mounting points on the new lights are waaay too big to hold the clips. Can’t easily fix that . I figured those clips are n ot really necessary so I left them off .

I’m also not that happy with the quality of the beam pattern.

I’d forgotten about the tradeoffs for buying cheap aftermarket. In retrospect, I would’ve had her buy the OEM lights for $400.

Oppos short of cash will be fine going cheap aftermarket. These do the job. This is also fine for old / cheap cars (i.e. my friend’s Forester ) . Just know t hat you’re trading off something for the low cost. I know there’s one or two Oppos that are new to wrenching who might find this info useful.

DISCUSSION (19)

dumpsterfire! > VincentMalamute-Kim
08/22/2020 at 15:58

Those are some old Boulder County plates!

This is what we'll show whenever you publish anything on Kinja: > VincentMalamute-Kim
08/22/2020 at 16:04

Idk CoFL, I just came out of the store to find that someone had smashed both of my headlights. This city is crazy. So that was a $200 deductible, right?

VincentMalamute-Kim > dumpsterfire!
08/22/2020 at 16:04

Colorado plates have county codes? And you can tell age?

hmm. Two of my vehicles start with “C”. The third starts with “N”.

VincentMalamute-Kim > dumpsterfire!
08/22/2020 at 16:23

Those are Mad Max plates!!

dumpsterfire! > VincentMalamute-Kim
08/22/2020 at 16:45

In t he old version, white letters/numbers on green background, the 3 letters were grouped by county and Boulder mostly had M as the first letter. Those plates-3 letters and 3 numbers were probably new around 1990?

notsomethingstructural > VincentMalamute-Kim
08/22/2020 at 17:11

The 3 piece bumper is sorta cool, most cars you have to drop the front fender liners, under tray, and bumper at minimum to change the units.

GoodIdeaAtTheTime > VincentMalamute-Kim
08/22/2020 at 18:06

Next time see how much a body shop would charge, and ask for OEM quality parts. A lot of times they are much cheaper than having a dealer/indy shop do the job. Plus, the body shop may be more willing to negotiate on price ;)

VincentMalamute-Kim > dumpsterfire!
08/22/2020 at 18:49

My friends been in Boulder since the 70's. At least.

MFP - Main Force Patrol

VincentMalamute-Kim > This is what we'll show whenever you publish anything on Kinja:
08/22/2020 at 18:50

“CoFL” Cars of Fort Langley?

That’s nuts about random headlight smashing.

VincentMalamute-Kim > notsomethingstructural
08/22/2020 at 18:52

I haven’t changed headlights on newer cars. I no idea it was that complicated. T his was easy - no touchy bumper. Little trim piece was the only thing to remove other than the grill.

VincentMalamute-Kim > GoodIdeaAtTheTime
08/22/2020 at 18:57

Interesting thought about a body shop. That never occurred to me.

This job was too easy to outsource though. Plus I try not to outsource to anybody except for a trusted garage that I’ve had a long standing relationship with. Which I don’t have in Colorado. The only things I won’t tackle is tire replacement/balancing, differential gear changes, machine shop work. And diagnosis which I suck at.

The only body shop experience I had was bad - my parent s had the entire side of their Toyota Van replaced and the shop used crappy aftermarket sheetmetal that started rusting in a few years.

Taylor Martin > VincentMalamute-Kim
08/22/2020 at 19:19

Yep, I’m an Oppo new to wrenching, and more often than not I’m short on cash, so I’ll take heed to your advice and do my best not to skimp unless it’s soul crushingly expensive.

notsomethingstructural > VincentMalamute-Kim
08/22/2020 at 20:20

Yeah, usually the mounting points are behind the bumper cover, which makes sense because if they weren’t they would be visible and ugly. You have to pull the units forward unless you want to put your engine on a hoist. So bumper cover goes, which is usually attached to the corner of the fenders. To get to the fender clip you usually have to take the fender liner off. Modern bumpers also attach at the lower dam to the under tray so they don’t flap around, so you have to release that too at minimum if not drop it entirely.

6 hours of labor is a bit much for that if you have a lift, but 4 hours to do the work and aim them on most cars... its probably close. It’s a definite headache. Should have been less with the 3-piece bumper though.

VincentMalamute-Kim > notsomethingstructural
08/22/2020 at 23:05

Makes sense for modern bumpers. I’m hope I don’t have to replace my Sienna headlights.

T he bumper on the Subaru is one piece but doesn’t have to be touched. Take off the grill (6 clips) and the little trim pieces next to the headlights (7 clips) then 3 bolts for each headlights are between the grill and headlight.

Should not take them an hour to do both if they include a 30 min lunch break. $600 for labor (which might be 3-4 hrs depending on their shop rate) is a ripoff.

VincentMalamute-Kim > Taylor Martin
08/22/2020 at 23:14

Hope it helps you.

Of course I’m not saying to avoid all aftermarket stuff. Just to know what you’re buying and what the trade off is when you do. I bought cheap aftermarket axles, suspension parts, and other stuff for my crappy 98 Forester. But I bought quality aftermarket clutch, shocks and springs for it though.

And for my ‘17 Transit and ‘11 Sienna, I’m buying OEM stuff . I’ll buy aftermarket rotors and pads for them though.

This is what we'll show whenever you publish anything on Kinja: > VincentMalamute-Kim
08/22/2020 at 23:23

It was a joke, because he was an insurance adjuster. A crap joke apparently.

notsomethingstructural > VincentMalamute-Kim
08/22/2020 at 23:28

Yeah. I wonder if they didn’t know and just assumed. That’s fishy.

VincentMalamute-Kim > notsomethingstructural
08/23/2020 at 00:12

I usually think the worst of dealers. I assume they saw an older female who knows nothing about cars and saw a sucker. Which she is - she would’ve given them the $940 until I said it was a ripoff.

VincentMalamute-Kim > This is what we'll show whenever you publish anything on Kinja:
08/23/2020 at 00:13

I usually do the bad jokes around here.