Alright guys, I have always done my own maintenance and repairs. All my parts (new ones) have come from either Autozone or Oreilly. I have seen a lot of talk on here about Moog parts for suspension parts. When I checked them out they are priced significantly higher than the local auto parts store. Are they that much better, or is it a name you are paying for?

 

They're that much better. For small cars, the house brands can be okay, but given the weight and stress our trucks put on their suspension parts, it is not unusual to break a house brand part within a year or less. Moog stuff is often better than OEM quality and can solve problems encountered with the OEM design whereas the house brands are typically low buck copies of the original - very low buck.

Moog parts are carried by Vatozone and O'Reilly in addition to their house brands, btw. And you can get Moog stuff cheaper at places like RockAuto anyway.

 

thanks for the quick reply. Sounds like I will be saving money before my next suspension fix. thanks for the tip, and clearing it up.

 

x2 on that... (even if I don't type it out, does that make it plaigarism? )

You're paying for the name, too, but Moog is often times better than OEM, as Spyktr said, because they take the time to engineer and resolve problems that were there from the factory.

Compared to house brands they're expensive, but compared to OEM parts sold by a dealership, they're very reasonable for the quality you get.

 

Summit has good prices on Moog stuff. I'm about to buy the F250 springs and alignment bushings from them and if you spend $100 or more you get free shipping right now

 

Funny as in a lot of the forums I'm reading I hear a lot of negatives about Moog. They aren't the part they used to be. So I wouldn't buy based strictly on a name. I've had guys say they get one part and it's great then the next moog part appears low quality.

I have heard lots of good things about XRF brand ball joints and tie rods. Pricing is good and they have a good reputation so far. We put a set in my brothers Blazer. Installed fine.

This is the cheapest place I've found to get XRF joints. You might search part numbers on their website then order from here.
XRF - Search Result : MIBearings LLC

 

appreciate all the input guys. I'm gonna have to look into both Moog and XRF... Nothing is busted up right now, but if the reputation of the house brands holds true then, it won't be long.

 

You can also get TRW (OEM supplier to many US-made vehicles) through RockAuto, sometimes for cheap. I just got two of the long tie rods for my F-350 for less than $40 each, TRW-made, from RockAuto.

 

Nice! not a bad price at all. I'll definitely be upgrading soon. I just did a 2x4-4x4 swap on my 95 f150 (96 donor) and replaced the tie rods with autozone house parts. As long as they hold up til tax return time I'll be good. Guess I'll go ahead and replace them with some beefier ones when I Throw the lift on there.

 

O'Reilly has been around for decades and originally sold high quality parts (when they were largely Missouri-based), but recently have morphed into more of an AutoMoan player specializing in low quality stuff (with higher margins for its shareholders) ......Moog is superior by a mile......

 

silly rumors.all of them.some of the best ones i get a kick out of are the rumor poster boys claiming made in China now.when confronted it says made in USA the rumor goes,yes but only the box.they don't want to give up lol.

if you'll notice,the rumor posters are almost always sure to recommend the brand XRF following their moog bash fests.research some more.you'll see what's going on.

i run moog.............issue free........on the ttb.

 

Got a lower control arm for 2004 Grand Marquis. NAPA - Moog part was $100 cheaper than trough a Ford dealer. The part had a Ford engineering number and Ford Oval in it.

 

Moog parts have always been good quality in my experience, better than the cheaper options at O'Reilly's and the like for sure.

As far as I'm concerned, you'd be better off getting Moog parts and doing the job right the first time, and not having to do it a second time.

 

I prefer Moog as well..
Watch out for the rebuilt Moog units. They will be cheaper than normal Moog prices, they also have a R in the part number if I remember correct. Those parts are rebuilt but not necessarily with Moog bushings. I ran into this while buying upper control arms for my T Bird. Same Moog description but the part number was a letter different and the price was $40 or so cheaper.

I have seen alot of Motorcraft parts on Amazon lately. I just bought all new battery cables for my F350. Way cheaper than dealer.

If you shop Advance Auto Parts online here is a code for 30% off up to $50 in savings. trt30.
Just bought new batteries for my F350 and got them for $110 each out the door. I order them online then pick them up on my way to work so I can maximize the savings all the time. You can get Moog parts through them as well. This is where they had the 2 different part numbers and prices for the same part.

Whatever route you go just remember you get what you pay for with suspension stuff.

 

I am a firm believer in doing the job right the first time, but unfortunately the job is done (unknowingly with inferior parts). As long as they last me til tax return I'll be good. I'll be doing a lift at that time, and I'll swap it all out with new tie rods etc...