What's the REAL difference between the OEM Headgasket and the cheap ones you can buy on eBay? Besides price that is ... anything??

Thanks

 

I'm not sure, but maybe compression may get altered a little if the headgaskets weren't made real precise.

I usually figure though that if the job is going to take longer than an hour to buy oem and make sure it'll all work so you don't have to replace a cheap part. Plus, it'll be cheaper to buy an OEM Gasket and be done with it than to buy a cheap one and it leaks and then you end up buying an OEM

 

yeh I usually buy oem but trying to do a budget build ... anyone else?

 

i have a friend on here who bought the ebay kit, and it ****ed him royaly. ended up going to autozone and getting the right kit there for 3 times as much. but, i also have another friend of mine who lives on ebay **** whos never had any problems with anything from there. so i guess its a hit and miss type thing. at least thats the way it seems anyway.

 

i was just thinking of getting the eBay head gasket and oem gaskets and such ...

 

Honda's complete gasket kits include headgaskets.

 

Quality.

 

Yeh but if the parts store one is iso certified than I don't get why the OEM is so much 'better'

 

Eristic head gasket in particular is what I'm looking at ... I've read some pretty good reviews on them ... anyone have any input? Thanks!

 

when going for a head gasket i wouldnt go cheap even if u on a tight on money cuz that a very important part to your car and if would cost u alot more to if leak and have to replace it again so its better to be safe then sorry. cuz its going to cost alot to put it on again or alot of work doing it yourself again

 

Just because a company is ISO certified, doesn't mean that they make quality products. ISO certified just means a company will make what they say they are gonna make. A company can say that they will make crappy products according to their procedures and process and quality control parameters, and have so many defective units. As long as they do what they say, they can get ISO certified. I would look into a company that brags 6 sigma standards than ISO certified.

 

Go buy your CDM (Chinese Domestic Market) parts off ebay. Its your motor, not mine.

 

if you don't know, you don't know haha

just trying to get a good understanding of any differences in workmanship to make an educated decision on the purchase. I'm leaning more towards oem now

 

The real difference is: honda does research and development to test these parts, their head gaskets are a higher price to reflect this (and to pay for it). the after market ones are made by... which engine designer? oh yea they aren't!

If your looking to throw one on that was designed to last 200k miles go with honda. the $20 dollars you could save is not worth it.

 

Just pretend other manufacturers make DSM parts or you have honda

 

good answer, never thought of it that way, thanks!

 

x10

 

plus, you don't know how long the parts will be around. you will be able to find the knock offs after honda doesn't have or make anymore of the genuine parts. if you can get the real replacement gaskets and electrical parts, there's no reason not to spend the top dollar.

still, some parts don't make sense when more efficient or durable substitutes are available. like the radiator. an all aluminum replacement is a better idea.

 

You asked a question and i gave you an answer... OEM parts are the best because they are designed and tested for use on that specific motor. If your planning on buying CDM parts off ebay your going to sacrifice quality for price.

The real difference between OEM and non-OEM is QUALITY!!!!

Im sure that some off brand gaskets will work just fine. There just not going to be the same quality that OEM can offer.

Aftermarket gaskets are made like this... They take a OEM gasket and figure out a way to make it as cheap as possible. I have family that has worked for NAPA and Performance Warehouse for 15+ years.... This is 100% true.

 

true, same for a company I used to work for ... take a good product and knock it off as cheap as possible

OEM it is, thanks for the info guys!

 

Well said.

OEM = Quality and 99.9% of the time OEM guarantees flawless operation and reliability. I will never buy after market parts unless it's an oil filter or maybe an air filter. As far as engine components and pieces are concerned, if Honda makes it, that's where I'm buying it.

 

No problem... Let me put it like this... My mom works for NAPA DC here in Portland. I can save over 70% off what they charge in the store... My sister works at Performance Warehouse in Portland. I can save 40-70% there.... When i rebuild motors i pay top dollar for OEM parts... Saving money isn't really saving money when something goes wrong and you have to rebuild again. You end up paying for it twice which offsets what you saved in the first place.

 

biggest problem with this talk "ebay"

ebay does not make gaskets

refer to the brands sold on ebay. this has a lot to do with quality vs junk

 

eBay = eristic

but it doesn't matter anymore, gonna go oem

 

why would you do this? fel pro actually makes some of the oe post production gaskets, the b18c headgasket you get at the dealer in the honda wrapper...actually made by fel pro. valve cover? while not identical they are so similar and neither have a problem. oil pan..i'm kind of set on oem too even though the fel pro is just like it only blue.