Jmatt07

Does anyone replace parts from sources other than fcp euro? How has it worked out?

I know fcp euro has the lifetime warranty and uses oe equipment but let me give an example...

My 2006 E55 needs new front control arms. They are on sale at fcp for $206 for the pair. They are only $80 for the pair at partsgeek.com. I've read that they last typically between 40-50k miles, so I'm wondering if going fcp is really worth it since it cost over double.

Mainly curious if people have used parts from other sources like parts geek, carports, autozone, etc and have had good luck or is it all junk compared to fcp.

Saurabh914

Are you sure they are both from the same
manufacturer? FCP sells OEM/OEM branded parts. Hence why theirs is more expensive. Partsgeek sells a whole slew of brands that aren’t OEM. I usually go to rockauto and order the same OEM branded stuff if I don’t feel the need to have the lifetime warranty.

nd-photo.nl

In the Netherlands, we dont have a FCP Euro with lifetime guarantee, so I dont know any better

kiluminati616

For the most part, FCP has earned my customer loyalty with their lifetime return program. Over the past few years I've completed 9 oil changes on my and my wife's cars while only having to pay for the first one on each so I kinda feel like I owe it to them even when their prices are occasionally a few bucks higher than the competition. However, when buying brakes for my wife's sq5, autohauzaz had the same exact parts for a $100+ cheaper and I knew we weren't going to own it long enough to ever replace them again so i didn't use FCP then

Yuille36

Last year, I did a complete suspension rebuild. And sourced many parts from FCP Euro, but sourced some suspension parts from Rock Auto, because they were cheaper. Then quickly found out that the parts label for my E63 weren't actually E63 parts, and didn't fit.
It seems that the parts were for an E350, when compared to the actual AMG part, even though they had the same part numbers. So, I had to send them back. And ended sourcing those parts from Mercedes.
As my car was taking up space on the lift, and couldn't afford 4-5 days for parts to arrive from Rock Auto. But, I have used others like Pelican Parts, OEM parts, AutohausAZ and others.
The one thing I've learned, just buy stuff like air/oil filters, wipers and such from Rock Auto, but buy suspension, engine parts from FCP Euro. And you will never be disappointed.
In all, I sourced 98% of my parts from FCP Euro, sent every Rock Auto part back, and purchased rear torque arms and thrust arms from Mercedes. I truly learned my lesson the hard way, but never again.

HLG600

In many cases, you don't need to get Genuine MB parts (dealer), but at least try to stick with the OE Manufacturer (e.g. Lemforder).

The lowest-cost aftermarket options tend to not be worth the likelihood of rework.

hachiroku

be weary of parts retailers like partsgeek.com, rock auto.com, etc as many sell very low grade replacements that are lacking features or quality with an OE supplier brand. OE suppliers have strict design, manufacturing, quality, and usability guidelines to stick to which cause manufacturing costs to be higher than brown box or mystery brand parts which usually focus on ease of manufacturing and lowest cost possible.

Yuille36

That is why I specifically purchased only Lemforder parts for my suspension rebuild, but had to get some MB-AMG components from the dealer.