I've noticed the OEM MOPAR parts are getting quite expensive out there and it seems like whenever someone posts a thread as to which aftermarket brand is best, EVERYONE tells them they'd be doing the job several times over unless they spend 4x on a MOPAR part. Honestly, I don't get it. Maybe it's just me, but I've had just as bad luck with MOPAR parts as I have with aftermarket brands. For example, the previous owner had Pep boys replace the water pump at some point. I saw this in the records, got a little sketched out, and pulled it out and replaced it with a MOPAR pump. They appeared to be of similar build quality with the pep boys pump having a metal impeller instead of plastic. That water pump lasted 60k miles and was still good, just pulled it because of paranoia.
The new MOPAR pump as I was recommended to replace it with on here lasted 900 miles before the plastic impeller flew apart and it started leaking from the weep hole. Loved changing it out when it was 115 outside in Phoenix that summer haha. My MOPAR thermostat? Went bad too in less than 50k miles. Replaced it with a Robert Shaw and that's been great. That's why when it came time to replace the radiator too, I was told to spend $400 on an OEM MOPAR radiator but considering my other experiences with MOPAR parts, I instead spent $80 on a CSF and called it good. So far, it's been working great for the past 60k miles as well. So really, I don't understand. When I'm looking for what part to buy on these sites, I just see "MOPAR", blanket statement, as 100% always the answer.
Maybe I've just been unlucky, but just why? I would understand going MOPAR for something like a sensor that maybe has finer tolerances, but for something as basic as a water pump or a radiator, or even an idler pulley, does it really make sense to spend a few times the price as a reputable aftermarket brand?
