Delco OEM vs Professional

MarkB_MI

Well-known Member
Location
Motown USA
When I did a brake job on my 2012 GMC Acadia, I ordered the parts from Rock Auto. I decided to use Delco parts, and discovered that Delco offers both "OEM" and "Professional" lines. They also have a very cheap "Advantage" line that I didn't consider. Using the front pads as an example, the OEM ceramic pads are $97.79, while the Professional ceramic pads are $40.79. Because of the big price difference, I opted for Delco Professional pads and rotors. The quality of these parts appeared to be first rate; the rotors were definitely better than any store brand rotors I've bought.

Last week I was at the dealer for some warranty work on my pickup, and saw that they had prices posted for brake pad replacement with either Professional or OEM pads. Again, the OEM pads were significantly more expensive than the Professional pads.

Is there really any difference (other than price) between the Delco Professional and Delco OEM parts? Or is it just a marketing ploy to get customers to pay twice as much for identical parts?
 
I was once told the differenc is the package. I was at a battery wharehouse. Picking some for a job. The batteries were all blank. I asked about it and the guy showed me. Where on the shipping request. It showed them which label to put on the battery.
 
I would have made the same decision.

There is no magic formula for improving brakes by changing pads. You can shorten the life with cheap soft pads, but paying above and beyond reason for premium pads doesn't improve braking or lengthen the life beyond what the brakes were designed for.

The best policy for brakes, drive it like you want it to last.

Then there is the "scare factor". Sales people, advertising, urban legends... Ideas planted in peoples mind about brake failure, or any other issues, that send the message that the more they pay, the safer they are.

If the factory brakes aren't good enough for what the vehicle is used for, the only solution is get a different vehicle, or upgrade the brakes, as in larger rotors and calipers. Very expensive! And what about the rest of the suspension? Where do you go next?
 
(quoted from post at 17:11:15 06/09/19) You need not.

I care not.

Dean

Goodie for you. So why don't you just go ahead and share some if this unobtainium-type information that only "special" people are entitled to know? What exactly is different?
 
As the owner of an AC Delco professional service center, I can say there is a difference between the Professional and OE lines as far as brake pads are concerned. The OE line are the same as factory, and typically made by Akebono, hence the price. The Professional line are typical parts store type pads, made in India and China. I actually install a lot of the Advantage line pads and have good luck with them on my customer's vehicles. I tend to use the OE or Akebono on heavy or hard worked brakes.

The professional Delco line may or may not have OE in the box on the other lines. Evap parts and oxygen sensors tend to be OE in professional boxes, while the suspension professional line are higher end parts store stuff, not OE
 
Maybe 3 decades or more there was a battery maker in Freeport Illinois call Burgess Battery. A guy who had worked there told my uncle, a mechanic, when he worked on the battery line. He said when they changed from their name brand to the alternative brands the batteries were so much lighter that he almost threw them up into the air until he got used to the lighter weight. Burgess Battery went out of business and there had to be a big environmental cleanup afterwards at the site.
 
> The OE line are the same as factory, and typically made by Akebono, hence the price.

Interestingly, Rock also carries Akebono pads, both standard ($41.99) and performance ($55.79). That's considerably cheaper than the Delco OEM pads ($95.79).

Quite frankly, I don't see how a company can cut corners such that they can produce road-worthy brake pads for less than half the cost of "OEM-quality" pads. So I have to believe it's mostly marketing, and their cost is nearly identical for all three lines. It reminds me of the old Sears Roebuck "good-better-best" marketing gimmick. The "best" line exists primarily to convince customers to buy the "better" line, which is marginally better but much more expensive than the "good" line.
 
(quoted from post at 14:37:58 06/09/19) Maybe 3 decades or more there was a battery maker in Freeport Illinois call Burgess Battery. A guy who had worked there told my uncle, a mechanic, when he worked on the battery line. He said when they changed from their name brand to the alternative brands the batteries were so much lighter that he almost threw them up into the air until he got used to the lighter weight. Burgess Battery went out of business and there had to be a big environmental cleanup afterwards at the site.
had a related experience. Bought Autozone battery for MB, supposed to be equivalent & was same case size. Felt light, so I weighed the two 60# vs 40#.
 
I do not like the brakes on my car. When I first got it home, I took the wheels off and discovered that the pads were new. The cheapest pads are legal, but they are not as good as a mid range pad. I learned that mistake myself, years ago. The difference between the mid range pad and the most expensive ones may not be noticeable. The cheapest ones you can get will preform poorly.
 
You asked if there are differences. There are.

Explanation of the differences if a different question and one that should be posed to one familiar with the procurement documents.

Dean
 
AC Delco does not "build" anything, they just box something they purchase at a certain price point. The Delco OE is only offered for GM vehicles, so I think at times there is some price controls by GM on the OE side. GM dealers are required to buy so much of their Delco from GM supplies, so they control the price so the dealers won't buy directly from Delco.
 
Yes, I understand that Delco is a brand, not a company, and that for the most part GM doesn't make parts. That ended when GM spun off Delphi back in the nineties.

But I don't think it costs GM twice as much for a set of the OEM brake pads as it does a set of Professional. It's going to cost only so much to make a set of brake pads, regardless of quality, so I suspect most of the price difference is due to higher profit margin on the more expensive line.

I suppose the price of the OEM line is kept high so retailers can't undercut dealer parts departments. But I was surprised to find my dealer posting prices for both Professional and OEM pads. I guess that way they can quote a price that's more or less competitive with independent shops, then upsell when the customer comes in.
 
so that applies to all batteries, tires, line oil and fuel ? It is all the same because it was manufactured in the same facility.
That is an absurd line of reasoning.
 

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