Know the Facts

What is a quality replacement part?
A quality replacement or aftermarket auto part is a new part produced and/or supplied by a company other than the original equipment manufacturer (OEM). This categorization may also include those parts originally manufactured by endorsed OEM suppliers, which have later followed alternative distribution and sales processes. Although this part category is often only associated with collision replacement parts, the automotive aftermarket also includes a large variety of mechanical and custom parts.

How many people does the replacement parts industry employ?
The replacement auto parts industry employs tens of thousands of American workers. Quality alternative auto parts companies operate and/or distribute in all 50 states and are available at more than 40,000 body shops nationwide.”

How big is the replacement parts market?
The market for replacement auto parts is an estimated $16 billion. Despite the beneficial impact on the price structure of the repair parts market, the independent parts manufacturers have only captured about 10 percent of the market or approximately $1.6 billion. The car companies continue to dominate with more than 73 percent market share. The remaining 17 percent represents the salvage and remanufactured market, a portion of which also is controlled by the automakers.

Are replacement parts safe?
The quality of alternative replacement parts is assured by manufacturers that are QS 9000 registered and the distributors who provide warranties on their parts. QPC members often have warranties that exceed those offered by the car companies.

Additionally, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety conducted tests of a Toyota Camry with and without its original-equipment collision parts intact. Both Camrys earned good crash-worthiness ratings according to the Institute’s evaluation procedures, proving that the “source of a car’s cosmetic crash parts is irrelevant to crash-worthiness” and asserting that the “real issue about cosmetic parts is cost of original-equipment parts, not the safety of aftermarket parts. Read the report from the IIHS. Click here to view the crash-test video demonstrating the irrelevance of safety in the cosmetic crash parts debate.

The European Union is in the process of adopting a similar design directive. On November 20, 2007, the Legal Affairs Committee of the European Parliament voted unanimously in favor of the commission-proposed Repair Clause. In December of 2007, the European Parliament voted in favor of adopting the repair clause. The Council of Ministers is expected to address the repair clause in early to mid-2008. Adoption of this clause by the Council of Ministers will set a positive precedent for U.S. design patent law and ensure the EU as a whole joins Australia, Belgium, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain and the U.K. in ascribing to free competition in the replacement automotive parts market.