shop around when looking for car parts

Dear Tom and Ray: I have 2005 Subaru WRX STI 106,000 miles and it\'s time to change the timing belt.
Subaru dealers will do the job for $1,800, but I found a separate garage to do the job for $650.
The difference is that dealers will use real Subaru parts.
The independent mechanic says his parts are from Japan and are as good as real parts.
Should I spend the extra money on real parts or can I save money?
I hope the car will last another five years, but I\'m not in a good financial position right now. Please help. Thank you. —
Bill TOM: In this case, we usually use real parts, because the cost difference in parts can be $100 in this work.
But for a car that is driving more than 100,000 miles, I am not afraid to use good after-sales parts.
They might be fine.
In fact, sometimes they are exactly the same part.
RAY: But since the difference in the price of the parts is very small, there must be something else to explain why the dealer\'s price is three times that of the independent mechanic.
Tom: Like, he has a bigger ship and he is trying to make money. RAY: Could be.
But it may also be that the two stores have different definitions of the word \"timing belt replacement.
For example, when we change the timing belt, we always change the pump as well. Why?
Because the pump is operated by the timing belt.
If the pump is stuck a week after changing the timing belt, what do you need?
New timing belt.
Don\'t you think so?
RAY: when the timing belt is off, most of the work to replace the pump has been done.
So, you won\'t add more than part of the cost: the pump itself.
Sitting on a 100,000 mile car, it\'s crazy not to install it when you can use the new pump.
Tom: on such a car with double overhead cam, we also remove all the sprocket and replace all four Cam seals when the belt is off. Why?
First of all, they are as old as the belts and you can easily reach them when the timing belts are off.
Second, if one of them leaks after two months, the customer will try to blame us.
Therefore, we avoid potential conflicts by making them part of our work.
Ray: if we do such a job, the price may be around $1,200 in your car.
So Subaru\'s dealers may be charging too much, but the other person may be charging too little --
Because he\'s not doing enough.
Tom: So, find out what it really wants to do from these stores.
I guess the dealer is going to do everything we usually do. But check.
You need to know exactly what the other person is going to do for $650.
You can also ask him to give you the price of a new pump, four new Cam seals, a crank seal and a real part (
If you\'re curious).
RAY: then you can make a fair comparison of the price and decide if the real difference in cost is big enough to stay away from the dealer.
This is most likely, but you can\'t know this unless you compare Apple to Apple.
Or Cam seal.