hi guys just wondering how much better non genuine parts are compared to genuine nissan parts. i have found my new love (86 vanette with full electrics ect..)
i went camping in it and now i love it. but now i wanna reco all driveline for reliablility so is it worth buying genuine nissan waterpumps and oil pumps. if so does anybody have any NOS they wanna sell?

im hoping once i reco the motor, get the box reco'd and new radiator alternator, starter ect.. also gas is being put on so i hope it will be a relaible bus to travel interstate in. what u guys recon?

I believe it's somewhat true that manufacturers make better parts, but not all the time. Certian items in the reco would be better off by being Nissan like the water temp sensor in the head (or so I am to believe) and stuff, but I don't mind using some of this stuff from guys like PowerMax and ####. At least they are still making bits

For a parts maker to sell a part suited to a particular car, It must pass certain standards, usually as good as or better then OEM parts. Otherwise it cannot be sold in Australia.I see no problems in atermarket parts. I just bought a aftermarket waterpump for my A15 today!

never had a problem with after market parts on any car.... on a datsun anything you cantsee must be better than a part sitting on a shelf for 30 years collecting dust, except head gaskets, i always found original ones better for some reason

Yep genuine head gaskets are the way to go, other than that good quality aftermarket parts are fine, I always tip towards genuine because I have a dealer close and they are very helpful. Ezyfit gaskets suck btw.

I have used powermaxx before and plenty of miscelaneous bits and pieces before with no dramas, used a mono torque head gasket but had a perfectly clean block deck and head face for the gasket to seal against so thats probably most of the reliability right there in the preperation.
Inside the motor you can use genuine nissan bearings or king bearings, they are rated pretty good, I always think that nissan over engineered these cars heaps since they seem to go and go and go forever with hardly any issuses ever, I just blew the starter motor the other day after 34 plus years of faithful starting, not bad I think!
Ebay is a good source for N.O.S. items, I bought a starter motor of there, N.O.S. bosche item for $15 plus $21 postage yesterday compared to $270 for a non genuine item from my local auto shop!

A very large percentage of parts in a car are sourced from 'vendors' These are usually specialist manufacturers of certain components for the automotive trade.

I don't know of any car maker that manufacture their own gaskets, electrics, bearings, timing chains, water pumps, oil pumps, fan belts, spark plugs, instruments & many other items that go into making a car.

In our Datsuns, the auto trans is by JATCO [Japan Auto Trans Co] & the diff is by Hitachi, as are the carbs. All of the ball & roller bearings are industry sourced & many of these manufacturers sell these very same parts in their own branded boxes.

Having said that, the genuine part is built to a specification that may, or may not, be the best there is, because, remember, the car is built to a price & as long as the parts survive the warranty period, many makers are happy with that.

Parts that are usually made by the car maker could include the block, crank, & rods, but not the pistons rings or seals. Even the head may be a 'genuine' item, but they buy in the valves, the springs & perhaps other valve train items.

Hell, even the Datsun 1000 bodyshell was made by a contractor. [Zama]

As long as the replacement part is from a respected name in the industry, then you stand a good chance of geting a good part, but always be aware of the 'cheap' replacement part as there is usually a good reason why it's cheap.

That is so wierd about the starter motor, mine just started giving me problems a few days ago. It's 32 years old this year

Talking about starting motors. Yes the Bosch starter motor is far better the the "original" "genuine" Datsun 1200 starter. The newer Datsun starter by Mitsubishi is good too.

For body panels, the genuine Nissan parts are said to be the best.


Like Dman said, most "genuine" parts are made by companies other than the car manufacturer. This is true of Ford and GM as well.

About a year ago, I replaced a fuel pump in my 1200 that wasn't actually defective. (The problem was a clogged fuel line) The aftermarket pump delivered too much fuel pressure and the car was very hard to start because the excess pressure was causing the float level to be too high in the carbie.

I put the 35 year-old original unit back on and it's still working great.