OEM what does it mean?

What does OEM mean

OEM is an acronym for original equipment manufacturer. OE stands for Original Equipment. When buying replacement auto parts, an OEM part is one that’s manufactured by the car maker. So an OEM Toyota part is made by Toyota. OEM parts are available from car dealer and many online sellers—you don’t always have to buy OEM parts from the dealer. However, the brand names may be slightly different.

Ford sells genuine Ford parts under the Motorcraft brand. GM sells genuine GM parts under the ACDelco brand. Chrysler sells genuine Chrysler parts under the Mopar brand.

Another definition of OEM and OE

Parts sellers can also use the OEM acronym to indicate a level of quality. For example, a parts store may sell an “economy,” OEM or OE, or premium grade part. You can expect the economy grade part to be the lowest quality. An OEM or OE part is intended to be equal to what the car maker installed at the factory, while a premium part will meet and exceed OEM quality.

What to buy

Economy parts are of such low quality that you should only buy them if you intend to sell or trade the vehicle immediately after installation. Economy parts, even when sold by a name brand parts manufacturer are usually foreign sourced parts made from inferior materials. They often look the same as OEM or OE, but don’t perform as well. In some cases like sensors, they often don’t work at all because they’re made to sloppy tolerances.

Never make the mistake of thinking you’ll save money on economy parts because they don’t fit or perform as well and fail early.

©, 2018 Rick Muscoplat