Delco parts

[Verle R.]

Has anyone else noticed a decline in the quality of new Delco parts?

I have been paying higher prices for Delco because they worked. I'm finding that is not necessarily true now. More of the parts are made in China and other points Far East.

Verle

[Mike M.]

Re: Delco parts

it's not a recent problem. i remember ordering in some coils from local AC Delco dealer 10, maybe 15 years ago and refusing them when boxes marked made in the orient. long live junkyards. mike

[Joe L.]

Re: Delco parts

Verle-----

As I've mentioned previously, Delco has not been a parts MANUFACTURER for many years now. AC-Delco is a MARKETING organization only. Years ago, many of the AC-Delco branded parts were manufactured by internal GM operations. All that changed when DELPHI was spun-off from GM. With the DELPHI spin-off, most of GM's part manufacturing operations were gone. DELPHI, being a "leaner and meaner" organization shed a lot of the manufacturing of old parts for SERVICE. So, AC-Delco had to find new sources for the parts or discontinue them, altogether. High volume parts were retained; low volume parts were discontinued. In many cases, the new manufacturing source for the parts is the same as the source for other aftermarket brand parts. So, these days, the parts that you get in AC-Delco boxes, especially for older applications, are likely the same as those you get in the boxes of other brands that you can buy at Pep Boys, Kragen, or Auto Zone.

[Verle R.]

Re: Delco parts

Mike and Joe,

The problem seems to be getting a lot worse over the last couple of years.

I naively hoped that "Delco" would try to maintain quality.

To paraphrase Mike.... "back to the salvage yards".

Verle

[Joe L.]

Re: Delco parts

Verle-----

One thing to keep in mind: while I agree that parts supplied in Delco boxes, especially those for older applications, is not up to the apparent quality of the older parts, I still think that buying AC-Delco is about the best assurance of quality that you can get. That's not to say that it definitely assures high quality, but it's the best assurance out there.

Also, just because a piece is of foreign manufacture does not mean that it's bad. Japanese bearings, for example, are the highest quality bearings in the world. New Corvettes feature parts made all over the world, including the places we generally like to avoid when we buy parts.

[Mike M.]

Re: Delco parts PS

PS- forgot to mention that the "DELCO" coils contained within the made in oriental carboard were configured nothing like the coils AC delco cranked out in the 40's thru mid-80s'. the towers on the orientals were so incorrect morphologicaly , it was enough to gag a maggot. mikie

[Tracy C.]

you're being meladramatic again Mikie... *NM*

[Kevin M.]

Re: Delco parts PS

I found them slightly larger round also and won't fit into the bracket without taking the screw out.

Kevin

[Charles P.]

Re: Delco parts PS

Speaking of coils you are right on. Stay away from the Delco part. For my C-3 I had several choices (ie used (which I save for judged shows), Delco (made in Mexico with poor performance), or Parts store pot luck and wound up with an Ecklin part number IC 12 available at Napa. It does wonders for performance and is a spot on match for the original part (minus the embossed case and Delco Remy on the tower of course). I am told that there is a company in california that takes these and matches them with original cases and towers ...viola a quality new "Delco-Remy" coil. I have their number if anyone is interested. If the person I spoke with that helped me find that Ecklin part reads this post ---THANKS!