[A. Brodie]

ok,

i need a new rack and pinion for power steering and a new water pump on my NA mkiv. i have a couple of options here. i can go the less expensive route and have my rack and pinion refurbished by rockauto.com? this would be $300 cheaper (1/2 the price) of Curts OEM price and comes with a lifetime guarantee. Also, at rockauto.com i can get the a1 cardone water pump for $55 (1/2 the price). Do you guys think i should do this or play it safe and order from Curt? Has anyone had any trouble with generic brands like a1 cardone or websites like rockauto in the past? and is there any brands you guys recommend?

Thanks, Brodie

 

[J. Cooper]

Hey bud im having the same problem. Get the OEM.

 

[TonyN]

find someone with experice using the rebuild one from that company if you can, esp with the lift time warranty (read what it covers and what it does not) is pretty good, if you cant find anyone with personal experience then i would go oem.

 

[A. Brodie]

i had a feeling id get that answer but hoped i wouldnt cause of my lack of $$.

...anyone with experience on the generic brands want to chime in?

 

[IGGYWOOWOO]

I have seen others use a rebuild service for the steering rack with great success. I too am in need of either replacement or rebuild, but I am really leaning towards rebuild.
I do have experience with aftermarket water pumps... stay as far away from them as possible. I bought one for my 94 TT from Oreilly Auto Parts for about half of the price of a new OEM unit and it was convenient as I did not have to go to Toyota AGAIN! Long story short... bastard left me on the side of the road in less than 3000 miles. The seal failed!

Lesson learned.

B

 

[A. Brodie]

went ahead and orderd the o.e. water pump. held off on the steering rack for now (isnt that bad yet). had the water pump was dripping all over my alternator, so i had to make a purchase fast.

thanks helpful info iggy!

 

[Suprasarecool]

A1 Cardone makes really good stuff

 

[IGGYWOOWOO]

went ahead and orderd the o.e. water pump. held off on the steering rack for now (isnt that bad yet). had the water pump was dripping all over my alternator, so i had to make a purchase fast.

thanks helpful info iggy!

You may also note that there will be a nipple on the bottom of the new pump that your old pump did not have. Toyota did this so that you could attach a hose and run it down past your alternator. In the event of a seal failure, the pump will not leak on the alternator.

 

[SupraSonic]

Mine is rebuilt and is good as new.

 

[exvelocity]

I'd rebuild the rack, buy OEM waterpump or aftermarket one from Japan,not China

 

[93 twintrbo]

A1 cadone is not that bad. We install rebuilt parts all the time. Probably have about 10% of them fail in the first year. With that said, we mainly install the re-built PS pumps as A1 cardone has revised some of the design flaws that the factory pumps have. I would not put a A1 cardone water pump on my car unless I absolutely had to in a pinch. I always stick with OEM whenever possible.

I have had only one Rack fail from A1 cardone in 4 years. I'd say that is pretty good rebuild quality.

 

[93hardtop]

Rebuild. Its a freakin Toyota, not Bentley

 

[A. Brodie]

Rebuild. Its a freakin Toyota, not Bentley

no... its my daily driver. so reliability is important