Foreign-made Car Parts - Wondered if anyone has experience, specifically, with brake

[Guest CaptainGTX]

parts made in China. I bought Kanter's master brake overhaul kit recently for my 53 Dodge convertible and found all cast pieces (master & wheel cylinders) and shoes to have been made in China. They appear to be pretty good quality, but I am a little uneasy about installing them. Two of the three brake hoses lack any DOT stamp, although they do have the SAE marking. I suspect they are of Argentinian origination, and have heard a few speculations about how safe they might be. I'm sure Kanter sells a lot of these & they say they stand behind them for however long I own the car. At the same time I bought shock absorbers from them and 2 of the 4 were made in Mexico.

My inclination is to return at least the brake items, as safety is paramount & worth spending a few hundred dollars more to assure. Just wondered what others think about their quality & safety. I'm not so smug as to think that other countries can't produce quality goods, it's just unfortunate so much of our production has moved overseas.

1953 Dodge Coronet convertible

1969 Plymouth GTX

[poci1957]

This is an issue that drives me nuts. The parts are probably fine, but, like you, I would gladly pay a few extra dollars for a US made name brand part. I have had times when this came up at the parts store and I had no choice because the import part was the only one available.

[Guest palosfv3]

A little off the mark car wise but kind of on topic for a point. The GM delivery truck just showed up and dropped off a taillamp for a 2008 Malibu. The box had all the GM markings and part numbers and right on the GM parts number identification tag was a " Made in China " . It really gets down to "How do I know this is a quality part ? ".

[Guest doberman]

It would seem that this is the norm any more.

I ordered 4 of the same parts from one distributer

and when they arrived 2 were from mexico 1 from

china and 1 from malaisa.

Our cars and trucks should say MADE IN other country'S

ASSEMBLED IN POOR OLD USA

When will we wake up and put our people back to WORK.

very sad to see so many out of a job for the GREED of $$$$$$$$

[poci1957]

I guess what surprises me is, in Kanter's case for example, the reason you are buying their part is that you have a 50 year old car and can't get the part locally. So how does an obsolete part for 50 year old brakes come from China and not a dusty shelf? It just seems odd, I mean I know about interchange and all and would expect this on current models, but kingpins, ancient shocks and drum brakes? Just a thought, Todd

PS--I would guess the wheel cylinders probably have a wide interchange, but a 1950s master cylinder? Or is it a replacement dual m/c?

[Guest windjamer]

:(Doberman hits the nail on the head. Our own are out of work because of greed. Pumping gas and serviceing cars at a full service Arco station I was upsit to see a lot of my regular customers go across the street to a self serv just to save 2 cents on a gal.I realy am ashamed to admit it done my heart good when a couple ruined an engine because nobody checked the oil.

[Guest kaycee]

:(Doberman hits the nail on the head. Our own are out of work because of greed. Pumping gas and serviceing cars at a full service Arco station I was upsit to see a lot of my regular customers go across the street to a self serv just to save 2 cents on a gal.I realy am ashamed to admit it done my heart good when a couple ruined an engine because nobody checked the oil.

You're absolutely right Dick. Most people today have a half inch thick owners manual for their car that's never been out of the glove box, and do'nt know what's under the hood (if they know how to open it), let alone check the oil, trans. fluid, etc.

It's a shame that there are so few full service stations left anywhere, when it seems just yesterday that's all we had. Things have sure changed in the automotive servicing field, and not for the best! I worked in a few full service stations when I was young, and it was routine to check everything under the hood, check the tires, and clean ALL the windows when a customer came in for gas. Now gas stations are'nt even gas stations. They're 'convenience' stores. Pump your own gas and run in and get a piece of pizza or a sandwhich.

Oh, for the old days!!!

kaycee

[joe_padavano]

I guess what surprises me is, in Kanter's case for example, the reason you are buying their part is that you have a 50 year old car and can't get the part locally. So how does an obsolete part for 50 year old brakes come from China and not a dusty shelf? It just seems odd, I mean I know about interchange and all and would expect this on current models, but kingpins, ancient shocks and drum brakes? Just a thought, Todd

PS--I would guess the wheel cylinders probably have a wide interchange, but a 1950s master cylinder? Or is it a replacement dual m/c?

I guess I'm not understanding your point. Would you rather use 50 year old rubber parts that have been deteriorating on the shelf or brand new offshore parts?

The sad reality is that the combination of labor unions, environmental requirements, product liability, and greedy corporate management have pretty much made it impossible to cost-effectively manufacture items in the US. I suspect that even after you return those parts to Kanter, you'll be hard-pressed to find US-made versions.

As an aside, I also have a GM parts story. My 84 Olds would "eat" heater control valves. Each new "Made in Mexico" valve would start leaking after a month or so. I tried several different parts stores, with several different brands, all made in Mexico. I finally ordered one from my GM dealer. Imagine my surprise when the AC Delco box it came in also said "Made in Mexico". :eek:

And no, that one didn't last any loger either - but it was about 3x more expensive. I finally just got lucky with one of the $14 "white box" valves.

[Guest mercman86]

I ordered my fuel sender from MAC's auto parts out of Lockport, NY. Cost 115.00 with shipping and when it arived "MADE IN TAIWAN" was on the bag. The quality of the part seemed ok and it works great but the replacment wiring harness that came with it was crap, I ended up making my own. The lock ring for the sender seemed flimsy and I installed it with extreme care because i was afraid it would bend while i was putting it on! Wasn't happy about the whole thing but they were the only ones that had it in stock at the time. But so far so good, it works and no leaks.

Edited January 9, 2010 by mercman86 (see edit history)

[Steve Braverman]

I recently did the brakes om my modern driver, a 2001 Dodge Dakota. The original drums had penta-stars on them and were stamped "Made in Mexico" even though the truck was "Proudly Built in Warren, MI," or "Dodge City." The replacements from NAPA are made in China. They warped immediately. The replacements also warped. The NAPA guy says this never happens. The Dodge dealer guy says it does, even with oem stuff. My brakes still pulsate when hot.

The Franklin club recently reproduced drums for Franklins. Guess where they're made?

China.

Turned out to be the only place that would make them to the proper specs.

[Larry Schramm]

Steve,

If you are not using a torque wrench to install the wheels on your car/truck, the rotors are subject to bad wear patterns that will give pulsation. This is especially true if you use an impact wrench. The brake pulsation usually shows up about 2000-3000 miles after the wheels have been r&r'd.

[Guest RenegadeV8]

Made in IndiA:

Indian Chief (1935-53) front and rear cylinders w/ pistons, guides and intake nipples.

Mixed reviews but they require some hand fitting. For the price differential (about 60% less than name brand US made repops) they seem to be ok but not great.

Most of the more modern parts i've bought for grocery getters made in mEXICo seem to be ok. However i've not yet ran into much Chinese replacement parts yet. Lots of China tools out there tho that are NOT desireable.

[Steve Braverman]

Steve,

If you are not using a torque wrench to install the wheels on your car/truck, the rotors are subject to bad wear patterns that will give pulsation. This is especially true if you use an impact wrench. The brake pulsation usually shows up about 2000-3000 miles after the wheels have been r&r'd.

I'm not talking about rotors, these are drums.