anyone have any comments on non genuine parts, in particular; bonnet, front grills, and rear quarter panells. do they fit alright or am i better off getting genuine parts?

If it's a showcar, you'll have to get genuine... I should have.

If it's a daily driver or race car, repro is fine.

Chris

i got all repro and the one of the problems was my front gaurds didnt fit very well and i had to play wid them a bit to get them right. i think some of them can be pritty good but. i must have got a dodgy batch.

In some cases getting a repoduction item is a good thing. That said the only case I can think of is with the bonnets cos they're ussually lighter and have less framing so are more ideal for racing and its related modifcations

They are cheap, i all ways get two new guards when i'm doing a 1200. because it saves so much time, and the old ones are always rusty.

some of the doors are a bit crapy.

a good rule is that non genuine panels are a cheaper and poorer quality item so what you may save in the purchase in most cases will be soon lost with the extra time required to make them fit as good as the genuine item.
my advise is to price new genuine parts first and then make your decision.
cheers ade

I'd go with genuine parts a friend of mine bought aftermarket gaurds for his datto and had to redrill most of the bolt holes two or three extra hours and bad reviel lines to.

better off getting a good second hand bonnet as for the gaurds all depends if ur going to flair them or leave them standard if ur going to have to mod them imports r ok but u will find the left gaurd fits better then the right but they are about 250 dollars cheaper each then factory gaurds

I bought some ute tailights yesterday, non genuine - $39.00 ea. And i was most dissapointed, not only are they far from a nice fit, they have the wrong plug to match my existing loom. Grrrr. Non genuine/Aftermarket leaves alot to be desired.

I think Ade is spot on. If it is a backyard build and you are not paying for labour, it is probably fine.

Handza: Use the original taillight bucket (back piece) and swap the seals and lenses across.

You get what you pay for. . .