February 19, 200719 yr Any opinion on aftermarket Knock Sensors? Good or Junk?Obviously, OEM would usually be the "safe" route. However, if you decide to try aftermarket, it may help to know that Unisia JECS (a merger between Atsugi Unisia and Japan Electronic Control System Co.) were OEM for Subaru. Hitachi bought Unisia JECS out. So a knock sensor with those company markings may actually be OEM even if sold in the aftermarket.
February 19, 200719 yr Author Obviously, OEM would usually be the "safe" route. However, if you decide to try aftermarket, it may help to know that Unisia JECS (a merger between Atsugi Unisia and Japan Electronic Control System Co.) were OEM for Subaru. Hitachi bought Unisia JECS out. So a knock sensor with those company markings may actually be OEM even if sold in the aftermarket. Great info! Thanks! AutoZone has a wells for 43.99 but I can get it at 1st roo parts for $50, so not worth the hassel for non oem.
February 19, 200719 yr Okay...here comes the stickler: Original Equipment Manufacturer This is not the same as "Genuine Parts". Unisia can chose to sell the same parts they deliver to Subaru, but without any Subaru logos and these parts are OEM. It's like buying KYB shocks for you Subaru. Nothing to worry about there. Buying Monroe or Gabriel shocks would be aftermarket. :) :)
February 19, 200719 yr Okay...here comes the stickler: Original Equipment Manufacturer This is not the same as "Genuine Parts". Unisia can chose to sell the same parts they deliver to Subaru, but without any Subaru logos and these parts are OEM. It's like buying KYB shocks for you Subaru. Nothing to worry about there. Buying Monroe or Gabriel shocks would be aftermarket. :) :) I wish it were as clear-cut as that. There are situations where the original equipment manufacturer sells the part to a third party (not the car manufacturer), who reboxes it with their own company logo. Since the part isn't being sold by the car manufacturer, and it isn't obvious from the box who the OEM is, the part is considered "aftermarket". However, upon examining the part, it is sometimes obvious that the part is indeed from the OEM. One might wonder why this situation occurs at all; there are two possible factors involved. The first is that the car manufacturer may have contractually required the OEM not to market the part directly. The second is economic -- it's sometimes less expensive for an aftermarket parts company to buy from the OEM source than it is to reverse-engineer and produce an "equivalent".
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