tlebovic

Another chapter in the ongoing Uro parts saga.

My fuel pump started clicking loudly so my mechanic said it was time to change it.

Other people recommended that I swap the in tank pump for the older screen instead. It made sense to me - why have another item that can wear out if's not really needed?

So I placed an order for the parts, knowing that I'd be getting an aftermarket replacement instead of the factory screen. Then I got the box and saw the dreaded brand name URO. I went over to Pelican Parts and found that the factory screen was only $14 more than the URO so I ordered it.

Comparing the 2 it's easy to spot the quality differences. Notice that the threads on the factory part are much longer. You can also see that the factory part seems to better polished. One thing you can't see is that the threads on the factory part are rolled and the URO part threads are kind of sharp when you run your fingers over it. I don't have enough experience to know if that's significant or not but something in my reptilian brain says that it is.

I was lucky that the factory part is still available and not much more expensive. In other cases I might not be as fortunate.

The question is: How do we get the aftermarket vendors to make the parts correctly?




Tom
89 S4 Auto
177k miles (so far)

icsamerica

URO makes lots of obsolete parts and I'm glad they do... sometimes. If they didn't make some things, they wouldn't be available at all in many cases. In many cases the parts are not up to OE standards. URO has improved greatly over the years and that Porsche parts pictured seems to be one of their better reproductions.
As for the poor parts...I'm not sure there is much you can do unless you know someone at URO and get their attention.

URO does have a contact form, linked below but I have no idea how responsive and receptive they will be.
https://apaindustries.com/contact

hacker-pschorr

I treat URO parts like stuff from Harbor Freight. I ask myself: "When this fails, will I die. Or how badly will I be stranded"

If the answer isn't all that bad, then I'll chance it. Nothing electrical, ever. Not worth the risk.

That's the kind of thing that will bite you in the *** years down the road when you go to remove it.

Unless you have a well documented failure that was a direct result of their poor design or craftsmanship, they aren't going to care.

One outfit I work with orders over 100 turbos a year (same turbo) from a major OEM supplier.
For this particular turbo, the only one better is directly from the manufacturer for 3x's the cost. No consumer is willing to pay that. 10% - 15% are defective right out of the box, they know what to look for, and it's typically in batches of 10 or so. Their response? "Meh, send'em back". I guarantee they are being repackaged and shipped to someone else who won't notice up front and chances are by the time they realize it's not performing 100% the warranty will be up.
One shipment were packaged so bad the wastegate actuator was damaged on every single one (20). It takes about one minute to swap those, but instead of simply shipping them 20 actuators they shipped back the entire lot and shipped out another 20 units.

TLDR - these companies are so big, that unless the returns / warranty claims start to show up on their balance sheet, they don't care.

ROG100

I choose very carefully what I sell that is made by APA. Some parts I wont sell but others I will as they have proven good. A bad product costs me money so I am quick to drop someing that does not work.
The strainer is a good example - I sell plenty with zero issues. Sold 280 in the last 18 months v 3 Porsche strainers. Looking at the two differences you state regarding the strainers - neither are of siginicance and/or detrimental to the product at all.
APA are very responsive and easy to work with. There engineers are responsive to ideas and upgrades.
As an example the Fuel Level sender, they make and we sell, was very prone to damage during shipping as the float was not "locked" in place. I worked with APA developement and they added a float lock. Not one issue with transportation in the last three months. We sell hundreds of them.
I will not sell the oil pressure sensor by choice but customers do not want to pay the premium price for the OEM version.
Do not be too quick to regale a manufacturer that is making multiple parts no longer supplied by Porsche or the OE.

tlebovic

Roger,

I'm sure this is true:

The strainer is a good example - I sell plenty with zero issues. Sold 280 in the last 18 months v 3 Porsche strainers. Looking at the two differences you state regarding the strainers - neither are of siginicance and/or detrimental to the product at all.

But I'm afraid that this will be true too:

Quote:
Originally Posted by tlebovic
One thing you can't see is that the threads on the factory part are rolled and the URO part threads are kind of sharp when you run your fingers over it. I don't have enough experience to know if that's significant or not but something in my reptilian brain says that it is.
That's the kind of thing that will bite you in the *** years down the road when you go to remove it.

Realistically, I don't think I'll be the one replacing the screen again in my lifetime but do you really need to sell another tank thread repair kit? I don't know what the right answer is. I had the same replacement parts problems with every car I've owned that I worked on once the factory parts were gone, especially European cars. It seemed to be better with American and Japanese parts but I haven't owned one of them for a long time so things are probably different there too.

In the end, would it really cost that much more to add another 3-4mm of threaded area to the strainer? And roll the threads? Or hit it with a buffing wheel? Penny wise and pound foolish to me. Unless you want to sell more parts and don't care about your reputation because you're the only game in town. That's a valid business model too.

But what do I know? I'm just a database guy...
Well, what I do know is that my mechanic, who works on European cars all day, every day, says to run from URO parts. He won't install them anymore. Turns down the work if he can't get a different brand. Picky? Yes. Snobby? Maybe.

-Tom
89 S4 177k miles

ROG100

I am glad we have a choice. And again I will not sell a part that gives me (the customer) an issue. The strainer is not an issue. Fits only once and in normal use will not come out again for another 20 years.
Your car your choice of parts. I give my customers the choice and they decide. Customers will soon tell me a part is bad and I in turn do something about it.
Even some Porsche parts are made in China or India!! - Look at the absolutly crap TO bearing that blows up and damages the early cars. Porsche refuses to do anything about it so we have to use an aftermarket alternative.

hacker-pschorr

IMO this just goes to show how lucky we are to have vendors like you so we as a community have a voice with these companies.

Yea, don't get me started on that f*cking TO bearing disaster

Hey_Allen

I'm generally skeptical of Uro parts, and like others am even more reluctant in safety related matters, or where there is a significant level of difficulty or time involved to replace the parts of they fail.

That said, I choked on the price of Porsche air filter housing straps for $48 each at the time, and found that the Uro branded ones were around $2.50 each.

Will they be good for as long as the Porsche ones? Who knows, but I can replace a bunch for the price of one Porsche strap, much less four!

G.P.

I pre-emptively replaced my non functioning in tank pump with a filter/screen (I cannot guarantee if it was an original Porsche or aftermarket screen) about 8-9 years ago.
About 2-3 years ago the engine conked out, luckily not far from home.
After having the car towed home and finding that the fuel pump had jammed, I removed the screen, only to find out that the plastic screen had slipped out of the metal screw insert, inside the tank. Thus letting a bit of crud into the fuel pump and jamming it.

To repair this - I decided to use the external part of the old in tank pump, with the pump removed, and a piece of fuel hose and couple of clamps and the screen.
I had to buy a new pump, the old one was jammed solid. No amount of reversing polarity, banging and swearing would free it.

a4sfed928

I had the same issue with the URO strainer where the screen fell out but luckily for me it fell out in my hand prior to installation. There is also another difference in the URO strainer part which is the inner diameter of the outlet tube is smaller than the factory part, not sure it really matters on a street car but it may be and issue with track cars. Both issues are easy to correct by drilling out the outlet tube and adding some fuel safe adhesive.

Michael Benno

Has anyone had issues with URO coolant hoses weeping from the ends via the cords? The URO hoses I removed seemed to have coolant crusties on the ends of both the large outlet and the inlet of the water bridge. Normally I wouldn't think twice about using URO for rubber hoses, but this has me wondering

Mrmerlin

The URO hoses are not as good an made of thinner rubber I have noticed the same weeping of coolant from the ends of these hoses
I suggest if your gonna replace the hoses on the WB and Rad pay the extra cash and get the Porsche hoses also consider you will also have to replace the clamps if you use URO hoses on the Rad.

olmann

Exactly! I have had all of my URO rad hoses weep no matter how tight I clamp them. Use Porsche only for those.

DHS928

this group makes some parts also, I have a 87 924S also and put in new motor mounts, this is the brand I was sent. They were just like the ones (originals) I removed and they stated OEM on them.

Kevin in Atlanta

ECS stopped selling their parts. Failed 993 Suspension - separated tie rods