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Thread: Dont buy fake SH|T ( Good article ) Mike Kojima's site.

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Posts: 31-40 of 75
2012-01-17 05:07:35
#31
Originally Posted by ashtonsser
I dont think those companies will go anywhere, their products still sell because of their quality, Companies such as tial still make high quality wastegates and bov's and there are still plenty of people that will spend good money on their bov's. Most people are smart enough to know better to use a knockoff wastegate. Your just asking for trouble. I love the Tial gates, while expensive, you gotta pay to play and play reliably.

Bov's, a little different, your not gonna blow up your motor from a faulty bov unless you have it on the cold side pipe and the valve or something falls apart and gets sucked into the motor. Different story as Ive seen Turbosmart bov's and a couple other name brand bovs do the same thing. So again in that aspect what is stopping someone from spending less to get the same quality.

Turbos, i mean its pretty much common knowledge that the knockoffs are not gonna last. Most people with any type of common sense wont use ebay turbos. So Precision, greddy, turbonetics, Borg Warner, all their turbos will still sell pretty well.

Companies just need to focus on making innovative parts that are not copied and not likely to get copied. They need to drop their prices on intercoolers and so on to sell them competitively. Cuz again your not gonna blow up a motor by having an ebay intercooler vs a greddy. lol. Both will last equally as long.


Youve hit the nail on the head... Agreed! Some parts that are legit need there prices dropped. Im sure if someone saw an ebay intercooler for 150 and a greddy for 225 they would buy the Greddy.. I know I would, and an intercooler is prob the only ebay part on my car.
2012-01-17 05:18:10
#32
Yep, only ebay parts on my car are my intercooler, bov, and piping. Everything else is name brand,

Anything that can potentially damage the motor or the car is all genuine parts, I wouldnt buy anything fuel system related thats a knockoff, internal wise, suspension wise, wheel wise, turbo system wise, just wont do knockoffs.

Agreed if Greddy and all these other companies using their cores or precision cores making custom intercoolers would lower their prices, im sure they would sell alot more. The reason for the high prices on those custom intercoolers is mainly the cost of the cores than anything. If the core prices come down to where they should the prices of the genuine intercoolers would drop and more people would buy them.
2012-01-17 06:15:29
#33
Originally Posted by Harris
Sounds much like capitalism, a very American concept, no?

In the end, it's the market forces that have created and justified the existence of companies that make knockoffs. Most of the "original" power adders have a price tag that's just too high for the average enthusiast to afford. To sound like an economist, the prices that some of these companies demand are excessively above the supply/demand equilibrium. These companies are relying on selling few items but for a high markup instead of selling thousands of them for a low markup. They need to learn something from the likes of Walmart to figure out what goes on in the mind of the people they're trying to sell stuff to. Yes, I get it, Walmart is much bigger, but if HKS/Greddy/AMS/Mazworx/whoever really wants to make a profit, they need to see profitability from a long-term perspective instead of trying to immediately recoup R&D and production costs.

And let's see this from a consumer perspective as well. If I had bought brand-new items from HKS, Greddy or whoever else for my EVO, I would have spent well over $15,000. By going used and even knockoffs for non-crucial parts, I ended up spending $4,000. Now, if you were an average consumer looking to get the best bang for your buck, tell me why you'd rather spend the extra $11,000 when you could get the same reliability out of either used originals or knockoffs that work?

More of the arguments seem emotionally charged and not focused on realizing that regardless of what you think, people are not spend-thrift and would rather build their wealth than give it away to an entity that has overpriced a commodity it is trying to sell. It's Economics 101, literally.



Originally Posted by tswii
Every corner of every market in the US is flooded with Chinese products. We all bitch about them, but keep buying them. It's never going to change. We can't boycott Chinese shit, because if we did we wouldn't have anything we need for every day life. Every place I shop anywhere is littered with that junk. The major part of name brand stuff is chinese made. I see many Craftsman tools that aren't US made any more. Our govt., companies, and selves are selling out every day. We just keep buying, and bitching. I hate their shit too, but use it every day. On important stuff I buy used, or just normally don't buy at all, since I can't afford the price like many have already pointed out.



^ This pretty much sums it up!!!

It would be nice if we lived in an ideal world but we do not and we will never ever see this idealism come to fruition. The only way we would see that is if we had some cataclysmic world catastrophe and we had to start all over again! Anybody got a nuke??

What spurred on all of this cheap chinese crap? Governments, big businesses and consumers! I think that pretty much includes everyone, save for a few. Human beings today have no sense of home because we live in a Global Economy. We want instant satisfaction at the cheapest price point possible. That, unfortunately, is China, They have us by the balls and they know it. We have become so accustomed to having things this way that we are ALMOST powerless to stop it! You can't shop anywhere or purchase anything without atleast one of your items being made in China or some of the materials being used to make your product being produced or manufactured in China. Sorry folks, but the wheels are in motion and you can't stop it!!!

The car I own is Made by a Japanese company and built/assembled in Mexico. The o-ring I just bought for my distriutor was made in China. I called Nissan and they wanted double the price and I had to wait a few days for them to have it shipped in. China It is! All of the stuff from the big-box dollar stores, all of the stuff from Walmart, even most of the stuff we buy from our local parts store is made over seas, mostly China. It really does suck but there isn't much you can do other then buy North American products, or local to you products, whenever you can. If I had an endless supply of money I would always buy locally made parts unless something made overseas was superior in quality, which is rarely the case.

I can remember christmas shoping a couple of years ago with the GF and for shits and giggles we walked through a few toy isles and checked the tags and almost everything was made in China. Consumer demand pushed this, big business profit margins pushed this and even governments pushed this. How did governments push this? Free trade. Governments are all in a race with eachother to bring in big dollars from foreign countries to stimulate their economies! Who has the most money? China! End point!!

One thing local governments can do is demand that foreign companies who import things into North America have to meet certain standards. Like demanding that chinese baby products are free of BPA and other chemicals that harm our children! Foods, plastic toys, clothing, all of these things can be more heavily regulated. If we are going to allow this garbage into our Countries, then we should make them, at a minimum, meet and or exceed local regulations. This would be hard to impose on car parts, as nobody really cares what they are made of so long as they last. However, if all of the other products that we can control are more heavily regulated it would bring up the cost for these foreign countires to manufacture them. Maybe not enough to offset the loss of home-brewed jobs and companies completely, but it is a start atleast! At the end of the day this rings true:

Originally Posted by vqman
SSAC has 50 cent an hour (probably) child labor...


You copy-cat lovers, here's my challenge to you. Develop a 4-1 header and sell it for $100 .. see if its worth your time.


I was always against free trade with 3rd world countries, because we can not compete with what they pay their employees. More specifically I was against open world markets. I was told I was behind the times and the world was a changing place. Never a more true/truer statement has been made!
Eventually the world will be a mish mash of everything and all of the lines we now draw to separate things will be blurred and even erased. Good? Bad? Who's to say really. None of us will be around to see it.

Maybe I drifted a bit off-topic here.

Bottom line: I would love to see companies like Hot-shot and others come back and once again be profitable and continue to make so-so products at not so 'so-so' prices (<--- see what I did there?? ) but the writing is on the wall. The only thing we can do is BUY LOCAL whenever possible and only buy the 'EBAY' stuff when you have to, be it because of pricing or quality or brand name. And we need to FORCE these foreign companies to have products that EXCEED our regulations before they are allowed into our Countries!!!!!! This will help to bring up their price point.

I wish I had grown up in the fifties because the world moves too fast for my liking. Always has and always will. I am by no means old, just old at heart. Technology and all things alike are just 'necessities' that I have to incorporate into my life in order to keep up to the rest of the world. I tolerate it, but I do not care for it too much. Only when it helps me out. Which is what makes me human and........the cycle continues. QUICK, EASY AND CHEAP. These are the foundations of everything that our society has become!

...and as much as I hate to say it.....America has grown FAT and failed to keep up with the rest of the world in so many areas. It is time to trim down and live within the limits of it's citizens. Where there are shortcomings, the citizens need to be pushed. However all of this is impossible when you have a two-party system that can't even agree on some budget cuts. The rest of the world is laughing and China, with India and the rest shortly behind, is counting all of America's money. Hell, they even wipe their ass with the American greenback. Not because they don't care about it but because they have so much of it!! Time to go on a diet and start keeping pace with the rest of the world. Why? Becasue this IDEAL EUTOPIA that swe would all like to see........doesn't exist! The world will swallow you up if they get to eatin' before you!!

Sorry for long rant....the car is once again pissing me off and I took it out on this thread I guess!!
2012-01-17 06:25:27
#34
I bought a B&M knock off shifter from eBay. Had to grind the shit out of it to make it work, but it worked. I wish I had that or a pacesetter or something made that would have worked originally as intended.
2012-01-17 06:40:13
#35
^^ Having said that. See my long-ass post above!! I think it is great that Web-sites such as MotoIQ and any publications that do the same, continue to write articles exposing companies that blantantly try and trick consumers into thinking they are buying A Cusco item when it is actually a "Busco' item and lying about it. The consumer deserves to know about these things. It really isn't right when you can go around a corner and get a knockoff product for 1/10th the price of the name brand product, especially when they are using the same name. If you want to knock off my product and slap your name on it, provided my copyright has expired, then so be it. But if you want to knock off my product and under false pretenses 'slap' my logo on it......Throw the book at 'em Johnny!! Kudo's to MotoIQ and others for bringing this blatant abuse of name-brand recognition advertising to the eyes of the masses. Unfortunately, kudos must also be given to Chinese companies who take a design, improve upon it, make it for a fraction of the price and slap their own name on it. It is a dog eat dog world and some countries are falling behind!


Okay, I promise I'm done now!
2012-01-17 09:11:38
#36
I am all about quality built products so just like I others I pick and choose where I can budget. I for one will also be using a Ebay IC on my car. We have had great results with them for the power goals we were/are shooting for.

I for one like one off custom made parts that are also expensive but, at times they are not as expensive as the name brand products and IMHO look and perform the same if not better.
2012-01-17 10:50:12
#37
you have to remember that exchange rates make name brands expensive,

a few years ago i bought everything new from japan at roughly half the price they are now,

why do you think that japanese cars are generally full of real name brand stuff and not chinese copies? because over there its not overpriced at all, its well within reach of the average car enthusiast. Just sucks that i'm pretty much as far away from japan as possible lol

i don't neccersarily have a problem with things being MADE in china, I would prefer it not but its never going to happen. Its the way it was designed that matters, a lot of the larger volume name brand stuff is made in china, but it was designed by someone who has a clue (specifying materials, quality controls etc) and therefore ends up being made to a decent standard.
2012-01-17 11:10:50
#38
Originally Posted by 59bhp
you have to remember that exchange rates make name brands expensive,

a few years ago i bought everything new from japan at roughly half the price they are now,

why do you think that japanese cars are generally full of real name brand stuff and not chinese copies? because over there its not overpriced at all, its well within reach of the average car enthusiast. Just sucks that i'm pretty much as far away from japan as possible lol

i don't neccersarily have a problem with things being MADE in china, I would prefer it not but its never going to happen. Its the way it was designed that matters, a lot of the larger volume name brand stuff is made in china, but it was designed by someone who has a clue (specifying materials, quality controls etc) and therefore ends up being made to a decent standard.



You arguement on the exchange rate is silly. Yes the exchange rate is not in our favor and will not be for some time

but.........

10 years ago Nismo Injs were still $600-$800 for 4. HKS Tomie and Greddy sold their shit at a premium cost, damn their intercoolers are still more than the best intercoolers from Spearco, Bell Tech or Precision. Same shit with thier rods. The rods from HKS, Tomei and Greddy are no more better than Eagle, Manly and Crower but yet their rods are twice as much. Shit look at pistons from HKS, Tomei and Greddy, they cost double the price of pistons from CP and J&E.

I belive in you get what you pay for but the bullshit from the big companies has forced the consumer into the situation that we are in.

Nissan can sell a 370cc and S15 444cc inj new for $110, and you know the mark up is huge on Nissan parts. The cost to make a 370cc, 444cc, 555cc, and 740 cc inj are the same yet HKS will sell the same injs for $200.

So if you know that Nissan is making a large markup on their factory 370cc and 555cc injs then what the hell is going on with the HKS injs.

When these companies decide to conform to supply and demand or they decide to pay attention to their consumers needs then they will get their sales figures up.
Last edited by Andreas Miko on 2012-01-17 at 11-20-31.
2012-01-17 11:27:20
#39
Originally Posted by Andreas
You arguement on the exchange rate is silly. Yes the exchange rate is not in our favor and will not be for some time

but.........

10 years ago Nismo Injs were still $600-$800 for 4. HKS Tomie and Greddy sold their shit at a premium cost, damn their intercoolers are still more than the best intercoolers from Spearco, Bell Tech or Precision. Same shit with thier rods. The rods from HKS, Tomei and Greddy are no more better than Eagle, Manly and Crower but yet their rods are twice as much. Shit look at pistons from HKS, Tomei and Greddy, they cost double the price of pistons from CP and J&E.

I belive in you get what you pay for but the bullshit from the big companies has forced the consumer into the situation that we are in.

Nissan can sell a 370 cc inj new for $110, and you know the mark up is huge. The sot to make a 370cc, 444cc, 555cc, and 740 cc inj is the same yet HKS will sell the same injs for $200.

Sp if you know that Nissan is making a large markup on their factory 370cc and 555cc injs then what the hell is going on with the HKS injs.

When these companies decide to conform to sipply and demand or they decide to pay attention to their consumers needs then they will get their sales figures up.


the parts are expensive because with low production products the likes of tomei etc are made in house,

so you have to pay expensive labour charges utilising expensive equipment,

the likes of cp and je make pretty much nothing but engine internals so of course its going to be cheaper than those who have a small volume production of similar components.

as for injectors you would be very surprised at how much money is made on parts, after every department has taken a chunk out (design, manufacture, quality, logistics, storage, sales etc) I bet its peanuts.

But that's the trade of off having a set quality procedure in place for producing components from a large company. The reason China make things for peanuts is because its essentially slave labour without any procedures to follow, but in general its crap. A set of Nismo injectors are going to be as good if not better than nissan parts, but has its associated costs.
2012-01-17 11:31:12
#40
I also feel that if Mike K wants to get his point across properly he could have made a good comparioson on intercoolers.

For example Chinese made Intercoolers vs HKS, Tomei, Geddy vs Spearco, Precision and bell Tech.

The real problem that Mike K missed in my opinion which he has argued hard about in the past is buying American which I agree with him but then bringing up an article on Cusco defeats the purpose in suporting or own great Amercan products that are in the high performance market like Turbonetics and Precision that sell turbos like HKS and Greddy but our own companies sell these comparable turbos for less than the Japan made companies do.
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