October 7, 2010—Diamond Standard has release_notesd a study of four OEM parts, which shows there can be variations between the parts without safety and performance being affected.
For example, the study said the weight of OEM front bumper reinforcement bars can vary plus or minus 3.3 percent. There were also differences in thickness, tensile and yield strength properties between the same parts. Diamond Standard conducted the study to further understand what criteria are necessary for quality aftermarket parts.
“In defining the terms ‘like,’ ‘kind,’ ‘quality,’ or ‘equivalent,’ the OE representative stated that a replacement aftermarket part must be equivalent to the OE-branded part,” said Mike O’Neal, president of Diamond Standard, referencing a Ford presentation on its aftermarket parts study released in July. “But which parts are being referenced? The original production parts or OEM service parts?”
For more information, go to diamondstandardparts.com.
