Used Parts Versus New

Are used auto parts a bargain?  Let's look at some numbers and find out.

As I noted in an earlier posting, used auto parts, like used tires, are one of those "bargains" that the poor seek out and end up even poorer for doing so.  As I noted in my tires posting, often used tires are sold as "bargains" for being half the price of new ones.  But since they have less than half the usable tread left and since the mounting costs are the same for less than half the mileage (effectively doubling your mounting costs or more) they are no real bargain, any more than a half-roll of toilet paper at half-price is a "bargain" compared to a new one - the cost per sheet is actually higher.

The same is often true for other car parts.  But unlike my tire posting, I did not run numbers on car parts in my previous posting on the subject. Suppose we use as an example, an alternator for a 2005 Chevy Silverado, which is a pretty popular truck.   What is the spread between new and used parts costs?

One junkyard site produces the following hits.

Year Part Model	Description	Part Grade	Stock#	US Price	Dealer Info
2004 Alternator Chevy Truck Silverado 1500	w/o hybrid; 105 amp (opt K68),5.3L	C	6E0418	$50	Martin's Auto Salvage, Inc. USA-NC(Raleigh) Request_Quote 1-919-231-6416/1-888-325-3301 Request_Insurance_Quote
2003 Alternator Chevy Truck Avalanche 1500	105 amp (opt K68),5.3L	A	6F0302	$50	Martin's Auto Salvage, Inc. USA-NC(Raleigh) Request_Quote 1-919-231-6416/1-888-325-3301 Request_Insurance_Quote

This site has both new and used parts:

Year Part Model	Description	Part Grade	Stock#	US Price	Dealer Info
Alternator	03-04 CV CK PU 4.3L V6 4.8L 5.3L V8 (6S) ALT -Aftermarket List Price	AFT	e4499 2-08291	$292.56	Ace Auto Parts USA-MN(Saint-Paul) Request_Quote 800-637-6752 / 651-224-9479 Request_Insurance_Quote
Alternator	03-04 CV CK PU 4.3L V6 4.8L 5.3L V8 (6S) ALT	AFT	e9373 2-08291	$111.15	Ace Auto Parts USA-MN(Saint-Paul) Request_Quote 800-637-6752 / 651-224-9479 Request_Insurance_Quote
2002 Alternator Chevy Truck Silverado 1500	4.8,A,10-01MATCH		e1183 GB0206	$45	Ace Auto Parts USA-MN(Saint-Paul) Request_Quote 800-637-6752 / 651-224-9479 Request_Insurance_Quote
2004 Alternator Chevy Truck Silverado 1500	5.3,A,2-04		e1183 GI1342	$45	Ace Auto Parts USA-MN(Saint-Paul) Request_Quote 800-637-6752 / 651-224-9479 Request_Insurance_Quote
2004 Alternator Chevy Truck Silverado 1500	5.3,A		e1183 HB0169	$45	Ace Auto Parts USA-MN(Saint-Paul) Request_Quote 800-637-6752 / 651-224-9479 Request_Insurance_Quote

Note the staggering cost of a new alternator - almost $300!   The used one for $45 sounds like a bargain, right?

But what about new parts?  Autozone wants $139.99 for a basic alternator for a 2005 Chevy truck.  Sounds like a lot more, until you realize the new alternator (or rebuilt) has a warranty and should last the remaining life of the truck.  The used alternator?  Anyone's guess, as it is from a truck as old as yours is, and thus may not last very long at all. 

If you don't mind waiting a few days for shipping, for $88 you can buy a rebuilt alternator on Amazon, with free shipping - $40 more than one from a junked car.  Plus, you don't have to drive to the junkyard and spend an hour removing a greasy old alternator.

The big deal is, the new or rebuilt alternator will likely outlast your use of the truck.  The used one might be something you replace next week, next month, or next year.   Parts wear out, and if the alternator on your truck is worn out, chances are, the one on a junked truck is pretty much worn out, too.

It isn't worth half of the cost of a new one, or even one-quarter.   But like with used tires, the retailers of these used parts use lower prices as a come-on to get you to buy.   But you are not buying half as much alternator for the money, you are buying maybe 1/4 or even 1/10th.   It just isn't worth the hassle to save $40.

But this illustrates how shitty deals are sold to the poor.  It is like the lady who bought recap tires thinking she was saving money because the upfront cost was less.  What she didn't realize was that the overall cost would be more, over time.

The poor have no access to capital, either through savings or lending, so they bite on poor deals like this.   They end up spending more than rich people do or certainly more than middle-class people.  The middle-class person has the cash or credit card to buy new or rebuilt parts and not have to dick around pulling nearly-worn-out parts from old cars.   He comes out ahead of the poor person, who not only gets shitty deals in car parts, but in banking, lending, renting, home ownership, and so on.

So, this begs the question:  Which came first, the chicken or the egg?  Are poor people poor because they bite on shitty deals, or does being poor force them to accept shitty deals?   Given the narrow spread between "poverty" and "middle class" in this country, it is an interesting question.

I can only say from personal experience that you can be "poor" on $30,000 a year or middle-class on $30,000 a year, depending on how you spend your money.


NOTE:  This is not to say that used car parts or recaps or used tires are NEVER a good deal.  If you run a trucking company, chances are you put recaps on your trailers.  But that doesn't make them a good deal for passenger cars, and in fact, they are darn hard to find these days for passenger cars, due to liability concerns.  Used tires CAN be a good deal if you find a set of brand-new "take-offs" with rims that some idiot removed from his car so he could have bling rims.  His loss, your gain.  Similarly, used BODY parts can be a good deal, although new stampings from China are certainly cost-competitive.  And used parts for rare and antique cars, suitably refurbished, are often the only source for those vehicles.  But the local junkyard doesn't usually have that sort of thing, but rather later model junked and wrecked cars that are being parted out before being crushed.

But those are exceptions to the rule, and I mention them only because some yahoo, like clockwork, will respond with "Well, used car parts can be a good deal in certain circumstances where......"

Don't be that yahoo.

Used Car Parts - a Worthwhile Bargain?

Is yanking old car parts off a junked car worthwhile?  Usually not.

You've seen the ads in the Pennysaver.  The local "Pick and Pull" has some new cars in!  Come on down boys, and pick them apart for some good used parts!

Like the drones on the Borg Cube, many folks fall into the trap of buying used parts - picking workable parts off of wrecked or junked cars and installing them on their personal vehicles.  Are used parts a good bargain?  In many cases, no.  And here's why.

Like used tires, used car parts may be partially worn out.  As a result, all you are doing by installing used parts on your car is replacing a worn-out part with one that is just nearly worn-out.  Thus, you will end up revisiting the job later on, when the nearly worn-out part you installed fails again shortly.

Now, if the parts were super-cheap or free, this might not be a bad scenario, if your time and labor is essentially worthless.  But my experience with "junkyards" is that they tend to charge a lot of money for parts of questionable value.

For example, the starter motor in my truck fails.  A new starter might cost on the order of $100.  A rebuilt one can be had for maybe $50.  The junkyard wants $25 for one out of a wrecked truck.  A real bargain, right?

Well, not exactly.  You see, every time you use a starter motor on your car, it wears it out a little bit. The commutator brushes (made of soft carbon) wear a little bit.  The bendix mechanism wears. The pinion gear wears on the flywheel ring gear.  That's how your starter failed in the first place - with the culprit most likely being the commutator brushes.

Both the new and rebuilt starters have new commutator brushes and will provide many years of good service.  And the cost is not that great.  The "used" one, however, has an unknown service life.  If it was pulled from a late-model wreck, it may be in good shape.  If it was taken from a junked car, it may be only days away from failing.

And if you factor in your time and effort, in pulling the used part off the wreck (as is the norm these days at junkyards like pick-n-pull) you are spending more time than necessary.  And since the used part is not likely to last as long, if you keep the vehicle, chances are, you'll do the job again - doubling your labor.

Even the rebuilt starter will have some sort of warranty, while a used part rarely does.  For most cars, the stater motor might be replaced maybe once or twice in its lifetime of 150,000 miles.  If you keep throwing used starters at it, well, you might be doing this job over and over again.

And as my article about the Weibull curve notes, as a car gets older, you will have your hands full with repairs as it is, so when you do fix something, you want to make sure you are doing it right and for good.  If you are doing it yourself, and saving $75 an hour on labor, why go cheap on parts?

And unfortunately, poor people fall into this trap again and again, which is why they stay poor.  Joe Paycheck buys a clapped-out car near the end of its design life, and spends countless hours with it jacked up on tree-stumps in his front yard, "fixing" it.  He buys used parts to "save money", but ends up wasting tons of his time.  And the car is never fixed for long, as the used parts rarely last long and as the car is so worn out, something else breaks almost immediately.

So how do these used car parts places stay in business?  Well, the same way casinos do.  People make idiotic economic choices - look around you.  People convince themselves they are getting a "bargain" at bad bargain places, and such places stay in business.  Most people make horrible economic choices in life.  To succeed, you need only make slightly more rational ones.

Are there times when used car parts make sense?  Yes, in limited circumstances.  For example, you have a car that needs a new fender, because you've smashed yours into something and you don't have collision insurance.  If priced properly, a used fender could be a good bargain.   If it is in a matching paint color, particularly so.  Similarly, trim and interior pieces, nearly impossible to get at a dealer (for a reasonable price) might be found at a junkyard.  These are parts that don't "wear out" per se.

If you are selling a car, and it needs an expensive part, like a transmission,  a used one could be a good deal as well.  If you are keeping the car, a used transmission from a low-miles car could be a good deal, compared to rebuilt or new.

But again, check the Weibull curve before "investing" money like that.  Usually, when things like engines and transmissions go south, the car is reaching the end of its design life.  Even a used transmission, with labor, could end up costing more than a car is worth.  You might be better off scrapping the car (sending it to the pick and pull) than throwing another $1000 at it in repairs.

Used car parts are rarely a bargain.  Fishing this far downstream rarely yields any substantial bargains.  It is a lot less hassle and a lot less money and work to simply buy something newer and spend less time with dirt under your fingernails.


UPDATE:  Before going to the pick 'n pull or other junkyard, price out the parts you are looking for both online and at local stores.  Some junkyards charge more for used parts than retailers charge for new or rebuilt parts.  Some new parts can be remarkably cheap!

Second, don't let them pull the old "bait and switch" on you.   I've read countless horror stories about yards that will quote you one price for a part, and when you go pull the part, they then say a different price.   Some people, after spending an hour pulling a part from a car, give up and pay, instead of walking away - and end up paying more for a used part than a new one.

Also, beware of the multiple parts game - they quote you a price for a part, and then claim it actually comprises several parts, and their price was only for one portion.  So you get an alternator, and they claim the pulley and mounting bracket are separate parts for an extra charge.

Don't be afraid to leave the parts on the counter and walk away.   Odds are they will cave in, and if not, well, you are better off buying new or rebuilt parts and letting them go out of business.

Used parts aren't worth much.  The real value in a junked car is the scrap metal and any money they make selling parts off a car is just found money to them.