Honda Prelude Forum - PreludeDriver.com

Ive been hearing that Honda parts can be quite expensive. is this ture?

They're more expensive than parts for domestic cars, but they're also better quality, so you don't have to replace them as often. My personal opinion on the matter is that it is actually cheaper to maintain an imported car because they are put together so well and rarely break down if cared for. Just make sure that the car you're buying doesn't have any major problems at the outset, and you'll be fine.

Not all parts are more expensive for Hondas (or any import for that matter), just some parts.

Whats a domestic or imported these days.
You have Toyota built in the states and Volkswagen built by Chrysler and GM built in Australia or elsewhere even a car assembled in North America from parts from around the world.

Good point.

Let's just stick with the traditional definition and say that anything stemming from a company originating outside of North America is an import. Therefore, Toyota, Honda, BMW, Lexus, Nissan, etc are all imports.

Yes, Honda replacement parts are a little more expensive than what you would pay if you went to say Autozone or Pep Boys, etc. however, you're getting Genuine Honda Parts quality when you buy the real part from Honda.

However, a lot of Honda dealers parts departments will cut you some slack if you just ask them to. Not all will, but most will if you ask nice.

There are a few really good online Honda parts dealers who are REAL Honda dealers and they will give you a better price than a walk-in dealer will. However, the switch on that is, you have to pay shipping which usually amounts to about as much as you would save......so you break even at the same price if you had walked into a Honda dealer's parts department.

The one I deal with the most is http://www.hondaautomotiveparts.com/ A real Honda dealer out of Rhode Island, USA.

Now, there is one other cheat...... if you have a good mechanic with the right connections, he can get you Honda reboxed parts. These are Genuine Honda parts but they have been boxed to sell out of the US......no name on the box, but real Honda parts inside. Much cheaper.

I replaced my master cylinder a couple of years ago. The Honda part, new, was a little over $150 dollars. My mechanic called his Honda parts guy and got a rebox and it was under $100 dollars. I checked the part and it indeed was a NEW Honda part. Not a rebuilt or reman. No name on the box and the Honda logo and name on the part. Just a bonus if you can get someone to get those parts.

Just remember, whatever part you're buying ... you get what you pay for. You go cheap, you get cheap. You go quality and spend that little extra, in the long run you save.

In my experience, 99 percent of the time, every cheap part I have bought, I ended up replacing it within a matter of months. In the end, the cost for the QUALITY part would have been less than the cost for a second same part and the time spent getting it, uninstalling the broken cheap part and then making the same repair twice, etc.

~ Josh