1st Gen parts Corner of Shame - OEM minus or plus?

We all know the classic non OEM parts replacement fails. The coil packs, the LBJ’s etc. what non-OEM parts have served you well in place of the $$$$ OEM option? And what major fails have you had straying from the factory replacement parts from Toyota and its OEM suppliers?

OEM minus fails-
-mevotech tie rod ends, lasted 2 months. Developed over an inch of play with knocking.
-no name wiper transmission arm mechanism, still on the truck. Wiper blades rest too low on the cowl and wipe too far off the windshield onto the A pillar. But $128 vs $6-800, I’ll deal.

OEM alternative wins-
- CURT trailer harness adapter
- Bosch universal 4 wire O2 sensors. Over 100k miles of trouble and code free operation.
- Moog tie rod ends. Replaced the terrible Mevotechs with these (I’m hard headed) and they’ve been great for several years now.
- Moog lower ball joints . Still on the truck, still working great.


Whatcha got?

 

Wins:
Suspension Maxx Sway Bar Links.
Gates(I think) radiator hose and serpentine belt.
O'Reilly radiator. Not a ton of miles yet but approaching 4 years installed.
Poly steering rack bushings. Can't remember which brand.

Fails- Counterfeit Denso sparkplugs from eBay. Almost ended horribly.

 

Hitachi makes the Toyota MAF sensor for our trucks, or so it shows on mine, but Hitachi brand is 1/2 the cost or even less.

I know one of my O2 sensors is Bosch also, and it seems fine.

RUSTYNUTS swears by these "million mile" XRF lower ball joints (they're on fleaBay).

Good video from @wtrbrdm showing why OEM is typically superior, in the form of non-OEM LCA:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_6lgyhA3nA​

To that point, you want to see why Moog and other brands suck, but OEM doesn't? This is why - part quality has gone down the shitter with non-OEM (credit to @Tundra2 for this vid):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQWwTB8w2Hk
​

Some more of that guy's videos cutting open aftermarket parts, courtsey of @Tundra2

https://youtube.com/shorts/V3nu20CFs9M?si=zSPrHj3ZUJQa6dcB

https://youtube.com/shorts/gnywGP2mMwo?si=ZWFq47Z4RUr9Kcd_

https://youtube.com/shorts/lMBZNwA80f0?si=f7pT06e1I47FMv-v

https://youtube.com/shorts/TtpQR_AaVp8?si=RMQYo6wUTKbRucLo
​

 

Ditto. I never installed but ordered a couple sets to see if even the 'reputable' ebay sellers had real ones.


Fail: ebay radiator with less than half as thick core.

Wins: aisin fan clutch
koyo radiator

 

OEM alternative fails-
-Mevotech LCAs (don’t go there…)

OEM alternative wins-
-Moog sway bar links (easier to remove and guaranteed for life)
-Moog inner tie rods (cheaper and long lasting)
-AVS hood protector (double stick tape better solution over metal clip OEM hood protector that damages paint)
-PIAA wiper blade replacements

OEM alternative win/fail pending-
-Moog LCAs
-A1 coils (2 years and still going @$150 for 8) - update: made it to the 3rd year and replaced two of them. Could have only been one bad though.

 

OEM alternative win:

Denso radiator from RA

 

Can we even say that DENSO isn't OEM? I mean, it is literally the same thing without the name plate.

 

With thus and thine thou art truest and most noble in intention and dissemination of this wisdom.

 

Nice. Maybe an Ebonics translation would work too.

 

What the fuck

 

Weird how my quoted post translated Noah…

 

Nothing but wins. Cheap RA carrier bearing, powerstop brakes, raybestos MC. Granted i have less than 10k on everything, but everything is good so far.

 

What sort of devilry is this?

 

We’ve been hacked! That isn’t at all how I typed that…… it switched back when I quoted it again. Shenanigans afoot!

 

At least the shenanigans are cheeky and fun, not cruel and tragic

 

It’s corporate Toyotas attempt to thwart our discussion regarding reasonably priced alternatives!!!

 

This reeks of @GODZILLA or of @hagrid

 

AI has taken over. A little prose and rhyme to make the monkeys dance.

 

Skynet is upon us

 

Bring on the nukes.

 

I figured it was TJ. Must be a boring day in Colorado.

 

Hmmm. I need to improve my phone-foo!

 

I wish. This thread is delivering herculean quantities of excellence.