Advice please on purchasing an Air Mass Meter

[BigDusty]

Hi all,

I have been looking on eBay for an Air Mass meter and have found the exact part

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NEW-...33557QQitemZ8028165693QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW,

problem is it's not a genuine Mercedes part or should I say Bosch.

Has anyone had any experience with these OES or aftermarket products, are they any good or should I avoid them like the plague and stick to the genuine but more expensive parts.

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[Parrot of Doom]

Personally I'd buy a branded item. You should at least get a 12 month warranty on it, you try enforcing that when buying through Ebay from the USA

 

[BigDusty]

Personally I'd buy a branded item. You should at least get a 12 month warranty on it, you try enforcing that when buying through EBay from the USA

Hi Doom,

Very good point, they say they will replace or refund if there is a problem but as you said there not exactly just down the road.

But saying that, lets pretend they are local, would the OES product be a reliable part and function as good as a Genuine one or is it just false economy.

I suppose it's a difficult one to answer but I'm still thinking on taking a gamble just to see what happens, unless someone advises me otherwise.

 

[nickmann]

Hi Big Dusty

I'm sure that OES make a reliable part that functions as well as the OEM one. Let's face it, MB probably just buy them in from Bosch etc anyway.

The difference is that when you buy the OEM one you pay for
a) the warranty,
b) the sales support (ie the parts guy making sure you get the right one),
c) the service support (troubleshooting and resetting)

Do you think you need a b and c?

Not an easy choice, but consider this. Imagine you fit the Ebay one, and you still have a problem. You go to the dealer and you ask them to sort it. They suggest the MASS. "No problem" you say, "I bought one from Ebay so it must be fine". They would be acting perfectly reasonably if they said "well Sir that's all very well but we can't place any faith in parts of unknown provenance, so we want to fit a genuine one".

I've said this before, and I stand by it - if you use the dealer, and OEM parts, you may (only may) pay more, but you only pay once. If you cut corners, you are gambling that you won't have to pay twice.

Plus, if you use the dealer, you build a relationship, and they are much more likely to say "OK Fred, seeing as its you we think it might be your MAS, we'll just whip one out of that car over there, or get one in on sale or return, and give it a try"

Not an easy call. I know how you feel, I had the same decision to make last summer.

Good luck.

 

[Valps]

Before you shell out £100 odd plus postage, is it worth contacting one of the UK suppliers advertised on ebay to see if they can help?

I am in agreement about OEM parts sometimes being dubious and would advise caution.

Good luck with your purchase.

 

[Stratman]

Would you be happy, let's say, flying in a plane where critical components were provided by the supplier with the cheapest quote?

 

[mobeyone]

remember aswell if you buy from the states, you maybe subject to customs... which could inflate the price of what originally seemed to be a bargain.

keep looking on ebay uk, they do come up.

 

[BigDusty]

Hi all,

Thanks for all the advice and on that note have decided to give this eBay purchase a miss. This is what is so good about these forums to seek advice from others who have either had experience or could point out many of the pitfalls.

The good news is that I'm not under any pressure to replace this part yet as I am still trying to find out why my car is missing occasionally and have irregular idling but I have been told that it could be the Air Mass Meter, so I was looking around for advice and prices just in case it did turn out to be the problem.

I will be having the car serviced and checked soon by MB and hopefully I should find out then what the problem may be, if it is the Air Mass Meter at least I have piece of mind that I have done some homework when I part with £200 - £300.

Thanks everyone.

 

[alexh]

HI

I'm new here, but I think There may be a misunderstanding
OEM - Original Equipment Manufacturer - e.g. MB
OES - Originial Equipment Spares/Supplies - e.g. Bosch. meaning they are authorized to be sold and installed in the vehicle by the vehicle manufacturer.

This is from a EU regulation somewhere

I might be still dubious about buying from EBAY in the USA for a critical part though

 

[BigDusty]

HI

I'm new here, but I think There may be a misunderstanding
OEM - Original Equipment Manufacturer - e.g. MB
OES - Original Equipment Spares/Supplies - e.g. Bosch. meaning they are authorized to be sold and installed in the vehicle by the vehicle manufacturer.

This is from a EU regulation somewhere

I might be still dubious about buying from EBAY in the USA for a critical part though

Hi,

What also made me ask for advice concerning eBay was that the seller also has a website selling parts for many cars

http://www.foreigncarpartsonline.com

and is selling a Bosch Air Mass Meter for $324.29 the One on eBay is an aftermarket part made in Germany selling for $169.99. This price difference is the reason why I had to ask for advice.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Parrot of Doom]

Don't bother with the stealer, ask on the forum for a good independant in your area. Service will be just as good (if not better), and a heck of a lot cheaper.

 

[Vips]

Hi all,

Thanks for all the advice and on that note have decided to give this eBay purchase a miss. This is what is so good about these forums to seek advice from others who have either had experience or could point out many of the pitfalls.

The good news is that I'm not under any pressure to replace this part yet as I am still trying to find out why my car is missing occasionally and have irregular idling but I have been told that it could be the Air Mass Meter, so I was looking around for advice and prices just in case it did turn out to be the problem.

I will be having the car serviced and checked soon by MB and hopefully I should find out then what the problem may be, if it is the Air Mass Meter at least I have piece of mind that I have done some homework when I part with £200 - £300.

Thanks everyone.

Hi There

have you tried KMS off the A406 opposite Ikea. They sell a Bosch one for 175.00. There is 20.00 surcharge, but you get that back once you return the faulty one.

 

[BigDusty]

That's worth a look, thanks Vips.

Going in for a service next week, will let you know what the outcome is.

Cheers

 

[Wezzel]

Mine packed up last week. I took it to my local indy this week and had a new probe fitted (the bit in the middle - the rest is just a plastic tube). Cost £60 for the part plus fitting

 

[BigDusty]

Mine packed up last week. I took it to my local indy this week and had a new probe fitted (the bit in the middle - the rest is just a plastic tube). Cost £60 for the part plus fitting

Hi,

"Indy", That's a new one to me, could you explain again where you went for that part?

Cheers

 

[Dieselman]

Hi,

"Indy", That's a new one to me, could you explain again where you went for that part?

Cheers

Independant repairer.

Your car takes a different MAF and it won't be anywhere near as cheap.

 

[BigDusty]

Independant repairer.

Your car takes a different MAF and it won't be anywhere near as cheap.

Thanks for the info.

I can now see how the probe is separated form the black tube, but the other problem is that the torx screws have those annoying anti tampering pins in the centre of the screw head.

I'll work something out!!

 

[KLee]

You need special torx screw drivers to remove the two screws first. Btw I think alexh is right and looking at the price of the MAF on your usa ebay advert ... its roughly the same price I paid for my MAF Merc# 0280217100 Bosch# 0000940048 from an independant parts store that dealt with original parts from original suppliers ie Bosch, Hella etc You know the story, Bosch makes it and once it goes into a MB box with the white/blue label the prices skyrockets. Well these parts store buy direct from Bosch and so the part is destined for a MB car and has all the correct MB part numbers engraved. So for the price I was getting an actual Bosch made part with MB numbers on it too ... if the usa ebayer's part isn't even from Bosch then don't bother.

 

[tamrsoft]

Mine has the same P/N (094 00 48) and is made by Pierburg. As stated in the last article, it can be removed very easily by removing two small torx screws and extracting the unit from the air filter casing.
I remove mine regularly and give it a blast with an electronics component spray (do not use anything else) to clean off any crude which is usually a light oil deposit. Just hoping this will extend its life and avoid the outrageous £60 replacement cost.

 

[KLee]

If the inserts are of equivalent quality then yeah go that route based on cost alone cos you could get 2 if it should go again as another thread (Steve) said his went after 2.5 yrs! Don't complain about your prices read this for oz prices from MB downunder.