If you take your car to a dealership for collision repairs, you know they’ll use the same parts that were originally installed on your vehicle. But if you bring your vehicle to an independent auto body repair shop for body work, you may end up with either OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) parts or aftermarket parts. Ultimately, the type of parts you have installed on your automobile is largely up to you — or your insurance company in some cases — so which type should you get?

Let’s take a look at OEM vehicle parts, how they compare to aftermarket parts, and why original parts may be the best choice for your vehicle.

What Are OEM Car Parts?
Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) parts are vehicle parts manufactured by the same manufacturer that fabricated the parts that were on your vehicle when it left the assembly line. That manufacturer might be the automaker itself, or it could be a different manufacturer that holds a contract with the automaker to fabricate specific parts.

It’s common for automakers to subcontract the creation of certain parts out to other manufacturers, and those companies fabricate vehicle parts to the automaker’s exact specifications. Over time, OEM manufacturers can change because they submit bids to the automaker, and automakers may choose to opt for a lower bid at some point.

What Are Aftermarket Parts?
Aftermarket vehicle parts are parts fabricated by manufacturers that have no contract or affiliation with the automaker. The quality of these parts can vary widely from manufacturer to manufacturer, but they tend to be quite a bit more affordable than their OEM counterparts.

Why Choose OEM Car Parts?
When you need auto body repairs, it may be in your best interest to trust those repairs to an independent shop because dealerships tend to price their services much higher. What’s more, many dealerships outsource their auto body repair services to independent shops anyway. Why pay more to the dealership if you’re ultimately getting repairs from an independently owned business?

Going to an independent collision repair shop means you’ll have the choice between OEM and aftermarket parts. If you don’t already have aftermarket parts installed on your vehicle by choice, opting for OEM components is probably your best choice for the following reasons:

● OEM parts are guaranteed to be of the same quality as the parts that were originally installed on your vehicle. They’ll perform the same and provide the same degree of safety protection.

● OEM parts come with a warranty of at least one year; the same is not always true of aftermarket parts.

● With OEM parts, you won’t deal with any decision fatigue as you might with aftermarket components. OEM parts only come in one type, so there’s no need to weigh the quality of several parts to find the best one.

It’s important to note that in some cases, insurance companies encourage vehicle owners to choose aftermarket parts rather than OEM because of the cost difference. If you’d like OEM parts, and your insurance won’t pay for their full cost, you can cover the difference and get high-quality, guaranteed replacement components installed on your vehicle.

Minnetonka Collision Center: The Twin Cities Preferred High-End Auto Body Repair Shop
When you need quality auto body repairs in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro, you trust our team at Minnetonka Collision Center to deliver. For more than 20 years, we’ve proudly provided vehicle owners with a wide variety of collision repair and body enhancement services, including paintless dent repair, major dent fixes, precision color matching, and more. We offer limited lifetime guarantees on all our work and can help you file your insurance claim from start to finish.

To learn more about our services or get a quote, give us a call today at 763-230-7805 or schedule a free estimate online, and we’ll be in touch!