PSA: start buying and stocking up your parts now

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Obnoxious_Gamer@reddit

And so you bought Moog parts that have a 50% chance to be bad out of the box?

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theuautumnwind@reddit

Moog like every manufacturer has a value line and a quality line. Get "problem solver" stuff and it's fine.

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theuautumnwind@reddit

I wasn't saying you didn't. Just that the hive mind is wrong... To poopoo Moog in general.

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Yeah for most stuff I've had great luck in the past several years running moog problem solver and mevotech supreme parts. I've honestly been impressed with the corrosion resistance of the mevotech parts.

Now, for daily drivers that see a lot of miles (like my wife's Acura), I try to go OEM wherever possible. Or, find who the actually OEM for the part is, and buy their part if they sell it. Specifically I remember saving a lot of money buying an AC/delco gold ball joint for a Toyota because the "Genuine Toyota" branded one was actually the exact same part. iirc it was a 555 part being sold under different labels for wildly different prices.

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Bass_attack@reddit

More like 95%. I just bought like 10 tie rods and only one wasn't bent. Ya I'm retarded but wow the quality control on returned parts is non existent

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

Historically they've been good, but I have been seeing some off things over the last few years in the forums. However, they are the only ones that offer a problem solvers series. TBF, just about everything is Chineseium these days.

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newcarscent104@reddit

They are not the premium brand of yesteryear and have been riding off their previous good name for a while now

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

Who is the go to these days? I've heard Federal is a no go.

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Awkward-Stranger-505@reddit

It's funny nobody has a recommendation but everyone has a opinion about moog. Out of the reasonable priced options I had moog was the best in my opinion grease them correctly though.

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

Exactly. I'm still waiting to hear on better recommendations. Sorry, OEM is not an option for my 1970 Plymouth. so if people want to talk crap, give some better advice. I'm all ears

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Zhurg@reddit

This is Reddit. People just want to bitch and tell you you're wrong.

They don't actually have any idea what is good, they just remember the comments saying something is bad that got up-votes.

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whyunowork1@reddit

Parrots

Parrots everywhere.

And when you call them out for talking out there ass about something they dont have any experience on, you get downvoted to oblivion.

This place used to be where you could find the occasional expert or knowledgeable DIYer to give you the good dope on procedures and parts.

Now it's just as bad as the forums were when they died.

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Awkward-Stranger-505@reddit

I was looking at QA1 but of course it's damn near about as much as I paid for the whole car!

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strangerimor@reddit

QA1 quality is very good but it does come with a price

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T00luser@reddit

Not an endorsement of rockauto but they categorize everything in drop down list based (loosely) by “economy”. “Daily driver”. “Premium “ “HD” Etc. my own experience and my favorite mechanic seem to mostly concur.

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thatonegamerplayFH4@reddit

Moog and trq are my go to right now. Moog and trq come with grease fittings where applicable like on my 85 Nissan 4x4 I have trq and there is one for the top but not the bottom ball joint since it's at risk of getting knocked off. I have put just over 10k hard miles on them and have abused them with no issues whatsoever.

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dknj1@reddit

I’ve had very good luck with mevotech suspension parts, just don’t get the cheap versions.

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hunted_fighter@reddit

Can you recommend some brands, i have to rebuild my suspension before Christmas

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thatonegamerplayFH4@reddit

Trq makes decent stuff. Really anything comes from the same hole in the wall anyways. Anything you buy at AutoZone is likely a rebranded moog part

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TheSpaceBoundPiston@reddit

Moog is fine. I have a bunch of their crap on stuff I beat the fuck out of.

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LGCJairen@reddit

Moog used to be great, now it really has been like almost half what I buy not fitting to spec or dying way early.

I've moved to dorman xl lately for most daily stuff

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racecars_and_drugs@reddit

Hahahhaha I was thinking the same exact thing!!!!

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Iamshoprat@reddit

So what you're saying is we need to create the shortage before it may possibly could might happen?

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pistonsoffury@reddit

Like all the morons that went out and bought all the toilet paper the first day of covid. Like wtf, guys.

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Troutsicle@reddit

And then recently again when the dockworkers threatened to strike. Kirkland TP isn't imported ya fuckwits.

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PuzzledHelicopter541@reddit

Can here for this comment. Self fulfilling prophecy in motion here then they get to say “I was right!”

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punkassjim@reddit

And that’s why you don’t choose tariffs as your economic plan, much less say it publicly before you do it. Everything gets fucked up as soon as it’s said, or as soon as you do it, whichever comes first. Dude is either a complete idiot, or legitimately hates America.

Column A, column B, etc.

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rainingblood427@reddit

I think it's large quantities of both.

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PuzzledHelicopter541@reddit

I had no issues getting parts for anything 8-5 years ago when “he” had tarrifs then. I don’t care who’s in the White House. What is it with Reddit and this political doom and gloom in every sub? No one knows what will happen but I’m certain self fulfilling prophecies are a thing because every time I see stuff like this there is shortages created. Instead of toilet paper being a self fulfilling prophecy, this time it could be car parts. I do respect your opinion as you have a right to it and you also could be right. the world could be prepared to punish us for tarrifs this time. Just don’t make it self fulfilling. I’ve said my peace good luck on your project!

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munche@reddit

"What is it with Reddit and this political doom and gloom in every sub? No one knows what will happen"

People are listening to leaders who are telling them what they're going to do and believing them rather than shoving their head in the sand and going "Meh I bet it'll be fine"

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waffles02469@reddit

Because if history has taught us anything it's that politicians always do exactly what they say they're going to do on the campaign trail.

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munche@reddit

I watched washing machines go up $400 overnight the last time Tariff Man did his Tariff Plan so yes I do believe he will do again the thing he did last time

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

Do you seriously think that the roughly 100 people who are going to see this post is going to make that huge of a dent, LOL. Perspective

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Duncansport@reddit

About the only suspension parts I trust these days are OEM. Moog especially is hot garbage, I don't think it's been good for at least 15 years. But their marketing is excellent

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

Can you help me find OEM parts for my 1970 Barracuda. No?!? I know their quality has gone downhill, but what else is out there that's good? Nobody has answered that question yet. I know Federal also has problems.

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Duncansport@reddit

Stop being dramatic, you know what I mean

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

You still haven't answered the question of what else is better out there? Folks want to poop on Moog and that's fine, but offer up a better solution.

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6-plus26@reddit

If it I had your car and I couldn’t/didn’t want to source new complete arms with bushings… I’d only buy from OER…. At my shop we take in consignments that need work and their parts fit and have performed ok

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

I did look at getting the complete upper control arms, but the problem that I saw is that they use non-standard ball joints and it made me question availability in the future (it also looked like they used the standard bushings and not the offset ones that would be better for a radial tire setup. This is going to be a driver, not a show car). Most of the parts I'm getting are OER when available, as you know it's not a cheap endeavor to begin with, but I've stepped up wherever I could. New M&H harnesses front to back, the expensive Metro interior panels, Legendary upholstery, powder coated wheels and dash frame, AMD fender/lower quarters/doglegs, etc.

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6-plus26@reddit

Ok just making sure you knew about oer. I know it’s all expensive. I’ve been waiting all year for Black Friday sales to grab a few things for my car it’s a process

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

Same here, I keep searching for coupon codes and coming up with nothing the last couple months. Best I get is free shipping or $150 off a big order ... which covers shipping, LOL. I'm really really hoping to get a deal on a Vintage Air system because they are $2k now ($1500 pre covid.... Partially why I'm panic buying now .... Will it be $2300 in 6 months?)

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6-plus26@reddit

I shelved a jeep project to work on a more expensive Porsche project only to watch from the sidelines as what were cheap jeep parts are steadily increasing and I’m not ready yet to buy them ahhhhhhhh it’s frustrating

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mostlywhitemiata@reddit

Depends what you're looking for. Personally speaking: Denso for electronics, sensors and HVAC, Dorman for odd OEM-discontinued stuff, Standard for bearings, have had good luck with SKP and Delphi for suspension and Centric for brakes.

Someone in this thread shouted out Mevotech for ball joints, but I'd avoid. At least a couple years ago they had clearance/grease problems and that's not really a game I'd like to play with ball joints.

Obviously it's a bit of a game of get the best of whatever you can get, and sometimes Moog is that option, but ever since they sold me tie rods that were too short to safely get aligned, I've been avoiding them and have since heard bad stories from other shops I speak with regularly. I recall they also caught ire when it was discovered that some parts they sold had "Made in USA" on the box but "Made in China/Korea/Mexico/etc" on the part itself inside the box. That alone is a red flag that they can't be trusted.

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

Good info! Appreciate the contribution

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

Good info! Appreciate the contribution

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JerkedMyGerkFlyingHi@reddit

This thread is convincing me that the internet is all bots. Absolutely ridiculous people in here

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mac10fan@reddit

To be fair I’m not sure what you mean. In op’s defense everyone is acting like he’s an idiot for buying mog but not a single person has recommended an alternative option. Oem parts obviously aren’t an option for his car.

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Duncansport@reddit

QA1 makes quality front end parts, probably a better starting point

My response wasn't aimed at his specific 1970 barracuda, more at his comment about stocking up on parts.

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carguy82j@reddit

I agree. I used to use Moog. Now I wouldnt touch them with a 10 foot pole unless they are maybe the HD line of parts.

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fiddlythingsATX@reddit

Hey, I dunno, protectionist tariffs worked out great in the 1930s, right?

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ChloricSquash@reddit

You mean when everyone returned from war and we had figured out how to do jobs without them? Plus farmed the dust bowl... Into a dust bowl

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pzpzpz24@reddit

by the time you see the effects of manufacturing switching back to the US the orange guy will have died of old age.

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whyunowork1@reddit

Not only that, out manufacturing base doesnt have the economy of scale that a lot of these other countries invested in.

American eagle alloys, the oldest aluminum wheel manufacturer in the country went under from his last round of tariffs.

And they made there shit here.

This is gonna be an absolute shit show.

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lonewanderer812@reddit

And they made there shit here.

If my company moved all of its manufacturing to the US like it was decades ago, we'd still have to get our materials from somewhere.... which is China....

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whyunowork1@reddit

Not only that.

But these manufacturing plants dont exist anymore over here effectively.

The buildings were gutted and the tooling was sold decades ago.

The men who knew how to work the machines didnt pass the knowledge on and we dont even have the people to operate them effectively anymore.

To create a manufacturing base from the ground up that would take over a decade and trillions of dollars invested.

And thats just one industry.

We are in for a very rough ride

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Superdefaultman@reddit

And they told me you had to be smart to work on cars...

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fiddlythingsATX@reddit

You and I must have had very different econ and history professors in college! Though admittedly I did go to a conservative public U in the deep South, so maybe my education wasn’t as complete as yours.

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90Carat@reddit

30's? Shiiiiiit. The lat Trump tariff war is estimated to have cost the US 250,000 jobs.

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lingy-dingus@reddit

Great Depression pt. 2 baby!

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Threewisemonkey@reddit

That’s the plan. Then scoop everything up for pennies.

Fuck parts - save your cash and buy cars when people get desperate

Theres a reason Warren buffet and co liquidated holdings for cash over the past few months

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carguy82j@reddit

Lol, I avoid as many Chinese made parts as possible. I know you can't completely avoid it, but if there is a higher quality non Chinese part available. I would rather install that then do the job twice or three times with a cheap Chinese part.

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

I 100% agree. Whenever I'm looking for parts, the first thing I do is look for NOS or pre 1995. I've been able to get a few things, but a lot of the old/good stuff is just getting harder and harder and harder to find.

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carguy82j@reddit

I have an 87 Buick grand national and people have been reproducing GM certified restoration parts. I also have an old 90s BMW im restoring and have had a lot of luck sourcing original parts from Eastern Europe.

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theuautumnwind@reddit

I've been stocking up on parts for years....just need the time to install them. Maybe once my kids are in college?

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lonewanderer812@reddit

I was stock piling parts for future installs and getting extras of things for my racing ATV. Well my garage burned down and none of those parts were covered under my insurance. Now I'm afraid to buy things in advance but I've started just sticking things in the vehicle themselves which I don't really like doing.

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trivletrav@reddit

Yeah I’m doing the same. I fear we may be saying goodbye to rock auto here very soon. Advance is also circling the drain, closing 700+ stores over the next couple years.

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circledawagons@reddit

RockAuto is what is putting Advanced out of business

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SirBiggusDikkus@reddit

Thanks for taking the time to inject politics into projectcar. I was just thinking how annoying it was that we hadn’t been divided into opposing groups yet…🙄

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TrainedCodeMonkey@reddit

Trumps tariffs are gonna be akin to Joe Biden’s student debt relief promises. This stuff is promised all of the time by both sides and nothing happens. Maybe a few things will have tariffs increased but it’s probably just a horse and pony show by another end of the political spectrum.

I recommend buying parts as you NEED them. Aftermarket parts are dodgy as it is. It’s already bad enough our projects never work. Let’s not add in political stress lol

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CompanyMan_PUBG@reddit

I know half a dozen people who's student loan forgiveness was life changing and my social circle is pretty small.

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DiscussionMassive277@reddit

nothing happens

It's probably just a horse and pony show

MFW

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TrainedCodeMonkey@reddit

Brother this was 1828. Global trade is much different now lol. Toyota wasn’t even established in the states until 1957. We’re gonna be alright. Quit stressing and go wrenching

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DiscussionMassive277@reddit

The United States relies more on foreign trade now than it did in 1828. The difference in the tariff's percentage is only 18% to what Trump is proposing now. I applaud you for trying to remain optimistic, but this country is about to enter a dire economic situation, the likes of which we have not experienced in our lifetime.

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MoNoMo1987@reddit

Joe Biden didn't have control of the house, the senate, AND the supreme court. Trump does, along with absolute unquestioned authority of his party. For at least the next 2-4 years, he is effectively an emperor. If he wants tariffs he'll get tariffs.

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TrainedCodeMonkey@reddit

Have you seen how absolutely slow the government moves even on stuff they agree on? See the Sunshine Protection Act to eliminate the clocks moving. Everyone hates daylight savings and this bill has been around since 2018 and it gained unanimous approval in 2021, yet here we are in darkness at 5pm again. The point I’m making is nothing is going to change. It rarely does.

In fact if we all started stock piling parts the opposite would happen: demand will increase with limited supply. We work on cars. I doubt most of us understand economics and I’m also not surprised to see people downvote me for pointing it out.

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Gamestop_Dorito@reddit

Multiple laws have been enacted over the last century that allow the president to enact tariffs without congressional approval. If Trump chooses, he can implement tariffs on his first day in office and the effect would be immediate. It was immediate the last time he did it as well. There is no reason that it would not be immediate and the examples you gave are not relevant. Our only hope for this not happening on day one is if he is sleepy or distracted or someone convinces him how bad it would be.

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patrido86@reddit

not sure why the down votes. I bought so much extra stuff now I have a boxes of parts I haven’t looked at in years. if a person has a 40 yr old project car that means it was designed to be reliable so you should only be replacing wear items after a few 10s of thousands of miles

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stifferthanstiffler@reddit

I wish I'd known China was going to cheapen the steel quality years ago, and bought good parts then.

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TrainedCodeMonkey@reddit

I think people are just mad that I’m saying nothing is going to happen politically. I don’t blame people for wanting something to happen. It’s been a rough couple years for most. There’s just a fundamental lack of understanding on how slow things move politically. We’re turning a battleship with a single oar here. This is how the beginning of every presidency goes.

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munche@reddit

Yeah the last time when the dude put tariffs on washing machines I watched the price go up $400 per item overnight and it never went back down but sure it'll never happen king

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

I'd love to be wrong. Either way, I'll need it all eventually, so I'll hedge my bets now. It's not like prices will decrease, so no harm no foul.

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TrainedCodeMonkey@reddit

Ahh the old “just let me buy the parts now and then I’ll do it soon enough” excuse. Who are you? Me!?

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Skvora@reddit

Well, good thing all my major parts have been long bought and aren't what's stopping finishing my projects.

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Physical_Market973@reddit

I will say, the majority of MOOG is made in the USA

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mercury-ill@reddit

parts person here. not true unfortunately

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Physical_Market973@reddit

Parts person here too, do me a favor and zoom in on that K772, 5th line down says made in USA. I will say 4+ years ago when I still dealt with MOOG they were still primarily made in USA; But I now work in a dealership for big trucks so not really in the “auto” industry

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mercury-ill@reddit

your mileage may differ i guess. i can tell you the wall of moog parts at the store i work at is mostly foreign, not 100% of them but my eyes ain't lying to me

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Physical_Market973@reddit

Damn that sucks. I use to push the hell out of MOOG mainly because of that stamping, and because they were obviously superior to masterpro lol

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circledawagons@reddit

So I thought you were dumb and then saw the Moog parts and that confirmed it

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twistedmekanic@reddit

Wanna know a secret to avoid Tariffs? Manufacture in America! quit buying Chinese junk that has to be shipped here after manufacturing. Buy parts that are manufactured here, which creates jobs, which builds the economy.

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F1m@reddit

Kinda hard to buy parts made in America if you have a classic German car.

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

If only corporations had thought about this a long time ago. 🙄 And why is it that those corporations moved all of these manufacturing facilities and jobs overseas or down south over the last few decades? And with the losses of those good paying jobs, there isn't as much money to go around sometimes to pay that price differential between a foreign made part and an american-made part (example: a set of quality American made QA1 upper control arms is close to $500, a set of stamped ones from overseas is $200). I will always buy an american-made part when available and the cost makes sense, unfortunately corporations have made that harder and harder over the years.

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FarmerSquilliam@reddit

I'm right there with you. The last backorder and part shortage prevented me from finishing a project the way I had planned. I have 50% of the sheet metal panels for a square body Chevy in the garage. Didn't want to wait 2+ years with the truck torn apart for those missing parts to ship.

As far as Moog parts you'll be fine. It's a 70's Plymouth, no one is putting 10k miles a year on one of those. Don't let the armchair mechanics ruffle your feathers. I don't use Moog often but never have an issue when I do. Their problem solver series is pretty cool. Fixes common issues and usually comes with all necessary hardware.

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Fakyutsu@reddit

Do we know if it will affect container shipping from overseas?

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Tje199@reddit

The actual cost of shipping, probably not, at least not directly.

That's not where the price increases will come from though.

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Fakyutsu@reddit

I import a lot of used parts from Japan and am not looking forward to more disruptions after what happened to shipping costs just after the pandemic well into 2022.

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ThrillsKillsNCake@reddit

I got shafted on an f20c short block. Paid £3500 for it from tegiwa, then 6 months later still no block. Get a call saying can’t be done and now the price is £5000 or something.

Cancelled it. Looked a while back and i think it was around £7000 for the block.

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Fakyutsu@reddit

Damn that sucks.

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Tje199@reddit

As the importer you're going to be responsible for the tariffs, given that the originating country of manufacture is probably outside the US. Shipping costs will likely be the least of your worries. Parts being used won't exempt them from tariffs.

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Fakyutsu@reddit

I should clarify I’m not importing as a business, I’m asking as a customer of a business that imports used parts.

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Jojothereader@reddit

Are they overnighted

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Fakyutsu@reddit

Nope, container, so weeks

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DyingOfBoredom2day@reddit

Japan is our ally so not likely to have much if any tariffs applied.

The main things likely to see tariffs are Chinese steel and other building materials cars etc..., and opec and Russian oil and gas. Probably imported food too. Basically anything that competes directly with existing American industry from a country at odds with us. So get your cheap solar and wind power equipment now, also pc parts I expect.

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FimmishWoodpecker@reddit

He said a 20% tariff on ALL imported goods. 50% on all chinese. So you are just making things up, and I am going by what the man says

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Threewisemonkey@reddit

Bird and cow flu have been in the milk supply for months, but this admin isn’t going to shut shit down no matter what happens, so ports will likely stay open (stateside at least)

Japan will lock tf down if they need to tho

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TyburnCross@reddit

Not directly. The tariffs will increase the cost of the goods themselves. This could cause demand for overseas goods to stall. If this happens, it is likely that the SSLs will begin to cancel sailings. That will inevitably lead to container price increases as we saw earlier this year, where the carriers would not book space at contract rates and would only accept a bid that was at a “premium” to the standard.

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Fakyutsu@reddit

Thanks for explaining

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Troutsicle@reddit

I'm betting the same is going to be true for firearms and firearm accessories/ammunition. How I miss those sweet pre-covid CPR rates.

I've already made a couple overseas automotive part purchases for JDM parts that I planned to put off until late 2025. My thinking was the exchange rate would drop, however the dollar is actually up 3% over the yen since the election. But yeah I'm still super skeptical of part prices going higher just because.

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jonny24eh@reddit

Who's "we" and "our"?

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Coalecanth_@reddit

Muricans

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Coalecanth_@reddit

Nah I'm good!

But if you guys need parts from Europe, dm me I'll send some care packages, promise!

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BadBadBenBernanke@reddit

Just did a bunch of damage on the credit card doing just that. I usually don’t bother to rebuild brake and clutch hydraulics but days of cheap wheel cylinders might be coming to an end.

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SovietMacguyver@reddit

Tbh encouraging repair is a surprise benefit of increased prices due to tariffs!

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FalseRelease4@reddit

How the turntables! My kingdom for a brake lathe! 😂

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NameJeff111@reddit

Fucking reddit lmao

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TweeksTurbos@reddit

Start?

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tsukiyaki1@reddit

I’m legit worried as hell about this. All of a sudden Rock Auto gonna be O’Reilly prices, Oreilly gonna be dealer prices… and dealer prices…? Well who knows. We’re gonna cripple the country with tariffs because stepping away from foreign made goods isn’t as easy as flipping tariff a switch. 🥲

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EC_CO@reddit (OP)

Quality contribution to the discussion!