OEM vs Aftermarket Parts
 

Hey guys,

Recently I have been thinking about the parts that I would need to purchase as my BRZ continues to grow in mileage. The engineers of the ft86 platform have by design created a very good balance between safety, reliability, sporty-ness, etc. My goal in my BRZ is to slightly increase performance, while maintaining practicality.

I just wanted to open a discussion as to when (1) OEM parts are always the best, (2) aftermarket parts are the best, or (3) when it depends on the needs of the driver.

I think OEM parts are the best when they have been produced specifically for the car in question. The parts that have been scavenged over to save costs are where you might find some lack in ... 'quality' for a better lack of word.

Case in point, the stock air box is the result of countless wind tunnel tests and is designed to work optimally when the car is at the stock-ish level.
Many people buy CAIs and RAIs just for the sound for what I know.

I think a lot of people will agree with me when I say that the exhaust is lacking on this car, but if you take a look at it, it's not a very heavily engineered piece of equipment, mostly because I think the engineers figured the aftermarket would more than cater to that area and thus they just made something that would pass emissions and sound.

Wheels+tires, these are really just a choice for the driver. The stock tires are fun but true performance tires unlock the car's potential.

I think the general consensus is that once you start pushing the car for more HP/TQ, that's when the stock design constraints hold you back and consequently, that's when you would turn to the aftermarket for parts that are more engineered for that specific area.

The real question is, how much power can be extracted without the need for such aftermarket parts whilst in my case keeping the car DD-able.

Many people have to keep in mind that manufacturers these days have the resource and capital to do countless hours of R&D to test in all sorts of conditions while an aftermarket company may not be able to do the same level or type of R&D research and thus may only focus on a very specific bracket.

For example, take Crawford's air-oil separator; it worked very well in the hotter areas of the world but, up where I live, because there was no form of temperature control inside the can, the difference in temperature in winter would cause condensation on the inside of the can, causing contamination in the oil that would recirculate back into the intake. (the new V2 AOS eliminates this problem)

I also agree with your statement. OEM parts tend to be the best option for most owners as it fits the vehicle's original intended purpose. For instance, after reading the forum, I discovered that the OEM oil filter produces the correct about of oil pressure and out performs most of the aftermarket options.

However, in the case of my father's Audi Q7. I found that many of OEM consumables such as brakes pads, rotors, and tires do not last more than 20k miles. Although my father is a more aggressive driver than I am, his problem is consistent with with other Audi forum members. So recently, I have been shopping for stronger parts to replace the poorly designed OEM parts.

Its relative and depends completely on the specific part.

OEM mass production parts are not necessary the best as it could have been designed and engineered within a fixed budget with some sort of compromise. However, you would be hard pressed to find an aftermarket company that has the same level of access to research and development as a top-tier car manufacturer.

I think the safest bet is limited production aftermarket parts made by renowned OEM companies designed and engineered specifically for your car model.

To elaborate on this, look at the companies that are the primary partner/sponsor to toyota/Subaru on the major motorsports stage. These are the companies that will have the greatest amount of development and testing of performance parts. Bilstein, BBS, etc.

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One thing I forgot to mention is that performance and reliability can actually be inversely proportional to each other. Yet reliability (a function of time) and durability (under given conditions) are not necessarily the same thing.

OEM parts have to also meet a certain level of safety and emission standards that are set by regulatory bodies and have to perform a certain way in order to meet said criteria (for example an OEM wheel has to deform / collapse a certain way in the event of a crash that is deemed safe).