OEM parts pricing

[Don L]

Originally Posted by Celestialsailor

Is the new $72 one Hitachi?

No

And when I searched on line for the new one Hitachi didn't even come up as making one.

[David M]

I get my starters (and alternators) rebuilt. This seems to be the best balance between reliability and price.

[ohdrinkboy]

Threads like this make me love outboards. I'd like my future cruising boat to be a 30 - 34 foot catamaran that has outboard power. Just replaced the water pump on my current boat's outboard. OEM part = $35.

[nigel1]

I was looking at the prices of VP oil filters last year.
To purchase from a VP dealership was expensive, but strangely, the exact same filter, with same part number, and markings, from a Volvo car dealer, was about half the price.
So it seems just as its marine related, VP think its OK to add an extra mark up

[Tellie]

As the counter girl at the local Volvo parts department once told me when I looked surprised at $580 for a simple water pump">raw water pump. "I didn't tell you to buy a boat"

[Blue Stocking]

Originally Posted by nigel1

I was looking at the prices of VP oil filters last year.
To purchase from a VP dealership was expensive, but strangely, the exact same filter, with same part number, and markings, from a Volvo car dealer, was about half the price.
So it seems just as its marine related, VP think its OK to add an extra mark up

Marine suppliers have a short season to put money in the bank, but still have to pay staff all year.BTDT

[Maine Sail]

Originally Posted by Don Lucas

The OEM starter from my boat is acturally made by Hatichi and the same model was used on various makes of engnes and tractors.

There is no way you are going to convince me that price difference is justified (750%) it is just Yanmar sticking it to people. Starters are one of those commodity electric items.

The "marine" price is usually not justified but you usually can't compare a knock off starter to a genuine Hitachi. I have two customers who bought what they thought were "Hitachi" starters and quickly found out they were cheap knock offs that had little in common, other than the shape, with the Hitachi. Same for the Nippondenso starters on Kubota's or the Mitsubishi starters on Westerbekes.

Both of the Yanmar knock offs lasted less than one season and neither turned the motor the way the stock Hitachi did.. I had the old genuine Hitachi's re-built for under $100.00 and they were both re-installed when the eBay quality starters failed.. Same goes for the alternators.

Many unscroupulos re-sellers label these products as "new Hitachi" when what they really are is "new Chinese knock off of Hitachi".... The quality is often horrendous, so bad my re-builder won't even work on them and politely tells me "sorry not worth re-building"....

You can find EXCELLENT pricing on all starters that are real Hitachi but you just have to look harder or have a local shop that knows how to sort through the "marine numbering" bs and get you the same product with an "agricultural" or "industrial" part number.


Good luck with your starter but I'd definitely get the Hitachi re-built, you may find you'll need it...