OE Replacement News » Product News

Wiper Blades (Premium Flat Blades)

Josh Razgunas — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 19:56:20 +0000

Flat wiper blades didn’t catch on at first. “After all,” people asked, “aren’t they all the same? Why use replacement flat wiper blades when the plain old windshield wipers I’ve been using for years suit me just fine?” Everyone’s answer came in a different way. Maybe they drove an import car with the best wiper blades for sale today. Maybe they needed a wiper blade refill, but didn’t like replacing the whole wiper arm to do it, and instead wanted an easy wiper replacement. No matter whether you’re using a Bosch wiper, Anco wipers, a silicon wiper blade or Rain X wiper, replacing your old windshield wiper blades with a flat Valeo windshield wiper will make a difference to your driving experience.
The great thing about flat wipers, though, is they’re a complete wiper system. It’s not just a piece of high-tech rubber; the whole wiper blade is carefully engineered to balance flexibility to match the curve of your windshield, strength to stand up to the weather and durability so they last. Did we mention winter? There’s no question flat wiper blades are the best possible choice if you’ll ever see so much as a flake of snow. Any snow, ice or slush that builds up on regular wipers will just make them stop working, period. It doesn’t take much, but if you use the best windshield wiper blades you can get—premium flat wipers—there’s nowhere for precipitation to build up, so they work perfectly in all conditions. Wiper blade reviews have proved it time and again.
You might say you live somewhere hot, and you’ll never need snow and ice performance. Have you ever tried to spray washer fluid to clean off your windshield, only to find it smears dirt all over? It’s not the fault of your washer pump: It’s your conventional wiper blades. If you want the best windshield wiper you can get, wiper blades that work even with rain-sensing systems, premium flat wiper blades are the refill or replacement for you.

Water Pumps

Josh Razgunas — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 19:47:42 +0000

A car water pump is one of those car parts that doesn’t get much thought until it starts leaking, but without a working water pump, the car’s engine won’t last long. The water pump is an automotive part without which a car won’t work.
Like any other car parts, a water pump won’t last forever. Eventually, the bearings may start to make noise, it might start to leak from a weep hole, or it might develop a worse problem, like major coolant leaks. Unlike an oil pump, which is a shaft-driven part inside the engine, it’s a lot easier to replace a water pump on a car.
Water pump failure is indicated by coolant leaking from the water pump. It often starts as a slow leak, and that’s the time for car water pump repair, before more severe car water pump problems lead to car water pump failure. One of the reasons a regular tune-up is a good idea is because it’s a chance to glance at car parts like the water pump, and see if it’s time for repair. Any coolant underneath a car in the morning is always a bad sign, too.
There are symptoms other than coolant leak that can indicate it’s time for car water pump repair. Car overheating can mean there’s an internal water pump impeller problem, but before that, it will usually make noise. It can be hard to tell where water pump noise is coming from–it can be a belt, or a bearing. Fortunately, water pump cost is not very high, usually under $100. It’s definitely a cost-effective auto repair when considering how much engine overheating can cost with warped head gaskets, a cracked manifold, or worse engine problems.
Performance applications are turning to electric water pumps, which are appropriate for drag racing and other high-speed activities, but an electric car water pump install is not an everyday activity. When it’s time for automotive water pump repair, an OE quality water pump replacement is the way to go. Remember that using coolant in a 50/50 mix, rather than plain water, is critical, because the coolant lubricates the water pump.
Auto repair is a fact of life, and fixing a water pump is one of those car repairs that will come along no matter what.

Transmission Filter Kits

Josh Razgunas — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 19:35:13 +0000

Few people give much thought to their automatic transmission, whirling along quietly without a problem. Then one day, something happens. Suddenly, an automatic transmission starts slipping. Whether it’s serious may depend on whether there’s been regular maintenance. Maybe it’s leaking fluid: it’s time for the dreaded automatic transmission rebuild or repair. Very often, though, none of that would have been needed if there’d only been a new automatic transmission filter kit installed.
When automatic transmission fluid circulates through transmissions, it does more than lubricate the transmission parts. It’s actually one of the components that makes a torque converter work, transmitting power from engine to the wheels. So the first line of defense against transmission problems is a transmission flush, part of any transmission service. We recommend transmission fluid changes every other year for all transmissions, including the popular GM TH-700R4 or 4L60 automatic transmission. After that, the typical transmission service interval is 50,000 miles, which is when it’s time for a new automatic transmission filter kit, along with fresh ATF. If you don’t do it, expect transmission problems at 60,000 miles.
A transmission service can actually fix many minor transmission problems before it’s time for repair. Transmission fluid breaks down over time, and troubleshooting doesn’t always mean it’s time for an expensive rebuilt transmission, or even any transmission parts other than the transmission filter and gasket that come in automatic transmission filter kits. Over time, contaminants build up in the filter, lowering the pressure within the transmission hydraulic system and causing slow shifting, hard shifting, slipping and other transmission problems.
The other benefit of a transmission service that includes an automatic transmission filter kit is it provides an opportunity for inspection of the filter itself. Since the filter has trapped any particles that are inside the transmission fluid, just looking at the filter will show at a glance if the transmission has any problems. Clean, but used up fluid, is a good sign, but small metal particles, or burned-looking fluid, can mean transmission problems. The longer the interval between routine transmission services, the more likely automatic transmission problems are to develop–not minor transmission fluid issues, but the big problems that require transmission repair or rebuild. A couple of bucks for a new automatic transmission filter kit starts to look like an awfully good deal when you think about it.

OE Brake Pads

Josh Razgunas — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 19:24:57 +0000

Disc brake rotors and brake drums, brake calipers and brake master cylinders and brake lines are all important when stopping a car, but the brake pads are what actually slow a car. When a car is built, the manufacturer spends months and sometimes years testing disc brake pads, making sure they work with the brake rotors on the car, and making sure they’ll last long enough that it won’t need brake repair any time soon. Brake pad replacement will be necessary in every car some time, but original equipment quality brake parts guarantee safety and quality as good or better than the original.
Front brake pads will need to be replaced more often than rear brake pads, since they usually do about 80% of the stopping. Rear brakes have a lot more to do with keeping your car straight than with stopping it. Front brakes are also almost always discs today, while brake drums are still common in the back. But a brake job or other brake service is an easy home repair for anyone who needs a brake service, whether it is for brake noise, a brake bleeding, or to improve brake performance. The first step is to compress the brake pads in the brake caliper, which is easy to do with a simple clamp. This can push brake fluid up the lines into the brake master cylinder, so be prepared for some to spill. Then, use an Allen wrench to release the brake caliper, and swing it out of the way. After that, most brake kits include disc brake pads and shims. Use some brake lube between the brake new rotor pads and the brake caliper to prevent squeaking, clean everything with brake cleaner, and compress the front brake pads with the clamp. After that, the brake calipers swing back over the disc brake, and with a little Loctite on the bolts, they are ready to go. Bleeding the brakes at this stage is a good idea.
Brake repair is a simple job, and using original equipment brake pads, or making sure a mechanic used OE brake pads, whether they’re performance brake pads, ceramic brake pads or as good as the best brake pads the car maker installed, is a good idea for any brake pad replacement.

HID Bulbs

Josh Razgunas — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 19:20:06 +0000

Piercing the night–does a new sun dawn? Or is that brilliant white light from an HID headlamp? If you were behind the wheel of a car with HID bulbs shining, you might not know if it was day or if it was night. Only the most sophisticated manufacturing can produce a high intensity discharge car headlight, like a xenon projector bulb. It requires sophisticated circuitry not only to get HID headlights to turn on, like a BMW’s angel eyes halo effect, but to keep them going. So if your car was equipped with OE halogen headlights and you don’t have HID projector bulbs, you can’t just replace your old headlight bulb with new HID lights; rather, you’ll have to retrofit an HID conversion kit with a high-voltage wiring assembly and ballasts.
Inside the HID light bulbs that make it so easy to see when used as fog lights or driving lights, xenon is used to light off an arc, which is why a ballast needs to generate around 400 watts. Then mercury and metal halides in the headlight assembly start to glow at a color temperature determined by the composition of the xenon and other metals inside, only using 35 watts. Brightness is expressed in lumens, and all HID headlights are a very bright 3,200 lumens or so, but the color can be a matter of preference. 4300K is close to daylight, and OEM HID bulbs are usually between 3800K and 4500K. HID xenon headlights at 6000K are a bright blue-white, and 8000K HID bulbs are definitely blue or even European-style purple–as an example, a D2S bulb could be 6000K. If you’re thinking of a headlight replacement with HID lighting, you might be tempted by 6000K xenon bulbs, or 8000K HID replacements. But all HID light bulbs are the same brightness, two or three times brighter than halogen bulbs, and daylight spectrum HID headlights are easier on your eyes. If you really want new HID car lights, xenon projector driving lights or fog lights might be the way to go.

Halogen Headlight Bulbs

Josh Razgunas — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 19:17:51 +0000

Nothing is as satisfying as replacing a dim or burned out headlight bulb with a fresh, bright halogen replacement. Unless you have sealed beam headlights, an aftermarket headlight replacement is as easy as opening your hood, pulling off the wiring harness and slipping out the old bulb. Make sure you never touch the surface of your new car headlight bulb, though, because oils from your fingers can flash vaporize when it turns on, and ruin your new car headlight, even if its a fog light bulb or driving light.
Halogen bulbs aren’t as expensive as HID bulbs, but they have a lot going for them. You can get a xenon headlight look, the HID or projector headlight appearance without an expensive HID conversion. In all the most common sizes–H7 headlight bulbs, 9006 headlight bulbs and H11 headlight bulbs–there’s a halogen replacement headlight that will be brighter than the original headlamp bulb. They’re sometimes called halogen HIDs, but in fact they’re a high-wattage, ultra-bright white or blue headlight bulb that plugs right in without needing a new headlight lens.
The startling color and intensity of Xenon bulbs is due to their color temperature. 6000K headlight bulbs produce a white light tinged with blue, and 8000K halogen headlamps are a European-style blue or purple light. While HID conversions are sometimes illegal, Halogen HID bulbs and halogen headlights with the same colors as Xenon headlight bulbs are a legal aftermarket headlight replacement. For fog light bulbs and driving lights, you can have the same car bulbs as regular car headlight bulbs. The PIAA headlight look is only as far away as a headlight replacement in any of the same HID or Xenon bulb colors as your regular headlights.
A car replacement headlight bulb isn’t just a convenience. If you have one burned out, then a new halogen headlight is cheaper than a ticket. If your headlight bulbs are just dim and yellow, it could be a step up to a xenon or HID look, and if you’re thinking about a full HID conversion headlight, it’s an inexpensive way to see if you like 6000K and 8000K xenon headlights.

Fuel Filters

Josh Razgunas — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 19:14:26 +0000

Fuel filter replacement isn’t the first thing most people think of, but with car tune up prices so high, it make sense to avoid fuel filter problems before they start. Changing a car fuel filter isn’t always easy, but as auto parts go, it doesn’t take much skill. If the car or truck is a diesel, then replacing the fuel filter is usually much easier. Diesel fuel filters are always large, and generally located upright in a canister below the hood. While the fuel filter location for a Diesel is obvious, a fuel system diagram may sometimes be needed. The only part is usually the filter itself, but it may also be a good idea to replace a gasket on some diesels, where the whole fuel system and all the fuel lines are highly pressurized. While gas fuel filters are usually inline with the fuel lines, a diesel filter sits in a fuel bath. There’s no way to clean or repair a fuel filter, so replacing it is the only option.
Many problems in gas and diesel cars and trucks can be traced to a fuel filter problem, since all the gas or diesel fuel going to the engine has to go through it. One tip to avoid needing both a new fuel filter and a replacement fuel pump is to pay attention when you pump fuel. When a gas station gets a delivery, it stirs up all the contaminants in their underground gas tanks, and the dirt makes its way into the fuel tank of any car or truck fueling up. Then–you guessed it–it shortens the life of fuel pumps and fuel filters (and fuel injectors), leading to problems and the need to install new fuel filters. Using 89 octane fuel, 91 octane, 92, 94 or even 96 octane fuel won’t make any difference at all if there’s dirt in the fuel lines.
A car fuel filter is often much harder to replace than in a diesel truck. An owner’s manual may have instructions on fuel filter removal and solving fuel problems; it will certainly indicate the interval to change fuel filters. But because the fuel system may need bleeding or other repair, it’s a good idea to know what you’re doing when it’s time for fuel filter replacement.

Cartridge Oil Filters (Ecological Oil Filters)

Josh Razgunas — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 19:10:31 +0000

For generations, an oil change was a weekend afternoon tradition, and everyone knew how to change oil: Remove the oil pan nut, drain the old oil out into a pan, get an oil filter wrench and take off the old filter, put on a replacement filter and fill up with new engine oil. Eventually, synthetic oil became available, if the car owner wanted it. Most people probably don’t change oil themselves now, and instead have it done at an instant oil change shop or the car dealership, but it’s just as important as ever. And now, ecological cartridge oil filters are increasingly part of car maintenance.
Used motor oil is easy enough to dispose of, and can either be recycled or burned in a waste oil furnace, but there’s one problem remaining: what to do with used oil filters. They’re not just full of used motor oil; they’ve done their filtration job and removed all kinds of toxic contaminants. The first part isn’t that hard. Every garage, auto shop and most home mechanics know to puncture the oil filter and drain it, but the filter then gets wrapped in a plastic bag and dropped in the trash, taking its load of harmful metals and chemicals with it. Obviously, there must be a better way, and there is: cartridge oil filters, or ecological oil filters.
A filter cartridge is essentially the inside of a traditional replacement oil filter, but the steel casing never gets thrown away. In fact, a cartridge filter has no metal at all, just the same paper element in a regular oil filter, and two (usually plastic) discs that support it. During oil changes, the casing is taken off, the cartridge taken off and a replacement filter cartridge dropped in. There’s no metal to recycle and more important, all the oil can be easily squeezed out of the cartridge, and the old filter can be safely incinerated. Ecological cartridge oil filters work just as well with synthetic Mobil 1 motor oil as they do with conventional Pennzoil, and instant oil changes like Valvoline Instant Oil Change, Firestone Oil Change, EZ Lube, Jiffylube and Quick Lube are starting to have replacement cartridge filters available.

Cabin Air Filters

Josh Razgunas — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 19:08:06 +0000

Of course, there’s an air filter under the hood of every car keeping dirt out of the engine, but in many cars there’s also an automotive cabin air filter, doing yeoman work filtering dirt, mild spores, mildew, pollen, road dust, grease and other pollution from the air inside. And just like your engine air filter, with time, an auto cabin air filter gets clogged up with all the pollution its adsorbs. Fortunately, all styles of auto air filters are designed so they’re easy to replace; unfortunately, there’s no such thing as a universal air filter. All we can tell you is its location is in the cabin somewhere, almost always under the dash. In many cars, a new automotive cabin air filter is as easy as opening a small compartment and snapping a new one in; in some, carbon cabin air filters can be hard to reach, and it makes sense to have a mechanic install charcoal cabin air filters if they’re in a difficult location.
Interior air filters need to be changed regularly, about every 10,000 to 12,000 miles, but it varies depending on how much dirt the filter has trapped. In addition, the best cabin air filters have a charcoal element that helps eliminate odors and prevents mold and mildew from growing.
If the recommended service interval hasn’t passed, it doesn’t mean a carbon cabin air filter doesn’t need replacing. All the air from the cabin air intake passes through a car cabin air filter, and if it gets clogged up, there’s no way for air to circulate. A car will have trouble producing heat or cooling, and the car fan or blower may make noise. Eventually, the extra work the fan is doing will shorten its life, and then the job is a massive one, with a dashboard coming apart. So clearly, if a car has an old automotive filter, or if driving conditions involve lots of dirt and dust then it could mean it was time to replace a car air filter. Changing cabin air filters, and installing the best cabin air filters available, is much less of a headache than ignoring the warning signs.

Ignition Wire Sets

Josh Razgunas — Fri, 01 May 2009 14:33:38 +0000

OEReplacement.com is proud to introduce a line of Ignition Wire Sets that meet OEM specifications in every way possible. Asian applications use the mag core wire (SAE type 4), which results in more alloy turns per inch, and has a protective coating. For German vehicles it is the copper core wire (SAE Type 1). Fiberglass braiding is another added benefit, along with EPDM insulation, stainless steel terminals (positively crimped), silicone jackets (all applications), and OE style configured boot seal at the wire and the spark plug. These wire sets match OE design and integrate any needed resistors, clips, vents, or locks. Wire separators and dialectric grease packets are included where applicable.