Mercedes water pump makers..

bigfelipe

bigfelipe

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So I need a water pump for my Sprinter. Damn thing is $380+tax from Mercedes(some Italian parts maker). Seems like a couple German parts makers(HEPU specifically) sell aftermarket parts for around $120... And then there's the chi-com eBay sellers ranging from $27-85 or so...

Really don't want to do the job again in 6mos. So, I'm thinking the Chinese cheapos are out...

So, do I pony up for the peace symbol or do I go aftermarket German?

Thoughts?


@Mike Overlay
 
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What do reviews say about the aftermarket????

You know the benz one works, also would depend on how hard the job is if it needed to ever happen again.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
 
Johnny said:
Check out my old sponsor, https://www.autohausaz.com/mercedes-auto-parts/mercedes-sprinter-water_pump-replacement.html

Then Rock Auto.

Screw the Benz dealer, you can get the oem manufacturer for less elswhere. Also cross reference it to Dodge and Jeep Cherokee.

Fwiw, meyle is a decent brand and oem manufacturer for lots of nazi cars.
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Thanks. Been looking at Gates and and a couple others too. Not much out there on reviews sadly...

Autohaus is a little high on the couple pumps they carry that I recognize. Never heard of Meyle. I'll look into them.

I hate rockauto's website. I haven't checked it yet.
 
Johnny said:
Rocks site does sucketh but the typically have the best prices and pretty much every available manufacturer broken down into 3 or so easy to figure out quality categories,
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I agree. As much as it hurts my eyeballs, parts for the BMWs I have owned usually come from rock auto.

I've branched out a wee bit and used parts geek before, but I'm not necessarily recommending them. Just mentioning the site.
 
BloodRunsThicker said:
You know the benz one works, also would depend on how hard the job is if it needed to ever happen again.
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Not meaning to crack on you, BRT, but I would assess my situation in depth before I reached that conclusion. (And maybe you know @bigfelipe 's Sprinter and that's why you made the comment.)

If the Sprinter has 240K miles on it and completed the Pike's Peak Challenge in 1st gear, and then the water pump went out, then yeah --you know the Benz one works.

If the Sprinter has 50K miles of everyday use and the pump went out, then the Cheap Chinese Commie Pump becomes a why not? proposition.

Like Sgt. Schulz, I know NOTHING about this Sprinter or the WP options! But, as the owner of a high-mileage vehicle that's been too reliable to give up on, I weigh as many factors as I can ($, reviews, difficulty of replacement, liklihood of having to do it again 'cause I'm a cheapskate) before dropping my hard-earned cash on either the super-premium mega-best option or its it'll-hold-till-the-X member-cracks alternative.

And now I know about Rock Auto, so thank's, y'all, for that! :)
 
The van has just under 100k on the odometer. It's going to be a beast of a job. Not something that I want to redo on the side of the road if the new part fails early. Have to pull the radiator to get to it.
 
bigfelipe said:
The van has just under 100k on the odometer. It's going to be a beast of a job.
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Oof. I understand why you'd want to get the most reliable one; cost concern varies in indirect proportion to the job difficulty factor.

FWIW, I recently replaced the wp on my '02 F150. It was a PITA, but not a Beast. It also had 305K of highway history on it, so there's that! My assessment consisted of:
1. Remaining life expectancy of this engine (which continously surprises me, and has rendered previous decisions on parts quality ill-advised...)
2. Availability of part, i.e., at this age, are there any real alternates? Or do they all come from the same factory in Guangzhou Province, just labeled for Seller X? Internet pics and hands-on lookie-lou'ing at parts shops helps.
3. KQ ("KaChing!" Quotient)
4. Reviews, scuttlebutt, misinformed friend's opinions

IN MY OPINION (grain of salt applies), a failure at 100K miles doesn't inspire a great deal of confidence the OEM part, especially at that price point. If I could find the OEM pump at the same price as the mid-range alternate, I'd probably go for it. Otherwise, I'd be seriously tempted by the German or other reasonably-priced aftermarket option. As young as yours is, I'd avoid the low-end parts.

But remember: I self-identify as a cheapskate, and refer to parenthetical part of point #1 above.
 
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