The Certified Automotive Parts Association (CAPA), an independent non-profit standard-setting and certification organization for automotive crash parts, announces that it has certified more than 128 million aftermarket parts since 1990. Representative samples of the parts were tested and certified to CAPA’s standards by a third party, independent test laboratory.
“For over 30 years, CAPA’s priority has always been to ensure that high quality, certified aftermarket parts are an option for insurers, repairers, and ultimately consumers,” said CAPA Chairman Clark Plucinski. “Without these high quality alternatives to OEM parts, it is likely that more vehicles would be considered ‘totaled’ simply because they would be too expensive to repair using only OEM parts, and that’s not good for consumers or the collision repair industry.
“We are proud to continue to work with the dedicated manufacturers who chose to obtain CAPA certification for their parts. This is especially true for manufacturers whose products fall under newer CAPA standards for which the market may not be fully developed. These are the manufacturers looking forward and anticipating the future needs of the industry,” Plucinski said.
CAPA currently has 14 standards for the certification of aftermarket parts:
CAPA 101 Metal Parts: Fenders, hoods – cosmetic parts on the exterior of the vehicle
CAPA 201 Plastic Parts: Bumper fascia, grilles – cosmetic parts on the exterior of the vehicle
CAPA 202 Nonwoven Fabric: Parts Hood liners, fender liners
CAPA 301 Lighting Parts: Headlamps, taillamps, turn signal lamps – exterior vehicle lighting
CAPA 401 Attachment Parts: Bumper brackets, mounting brackets, hinges
CAPA 402 Front Support Parts: Radiator supports, upper and lower tie bars
CAPA 501 Bumper Parts: Bumpers, reinforcement bars, energy absorbers
CAPA 601 Radiators: Radiators
CAPA 602 Air Conditioning Condensers: AC condensers
CAPA 701 Exterior Mirrors: Passenger & driver side mirror assemblies, mirror glass, housings
CAPA 702 Exterior Cameras: Rearview and sideview cameras
CAPA 703 Sensors: Ultrasonic part distance control sensors
CAPA 801 Automotive Glass: Windshields
CAPA 901 Replica Wheels: Replica wheels Automotive aftermarket (AM) parts are those sold for use after the vehicle enters the marketplace. There are a variety of types of aftermarket parts including those sold by the car companies under their own brand, independently manufactured parts, recycled, and remanufactured parts. Not all aftermarket parts are certified – car company branded parts are not independently certified, and only a few manufacturers take the steps to have their parts CAPA Certified. CAPA Certified parts can be identified with a yellow, two-part seal with a unique number and bar code, and are verified to have the same fit, finish, and performance of the car company service part.
