A question of parts..

[biffa75]

Hi all,

Firstly I would like to say before I go any further, this thread isn't meant to cause any ill feeling of any kind towards anyone as mainly based on my findings and feelings.

I've had my 75 now since October a 2.0 V6 Connie se auto. A great car that needed a few things correcting namely a few years of low mileage and some maintainence being overlooked I suppose.

The issues Ive found while correcting some of the issues is the parts.

I won't name names as I don't think that is fair or even helpful and due to not being a mechanic although capable of most things, some issues could be down to my fitting (not had much of an issue with any other car I've owned or repaired however..).

I've so far had issues with a thermostat opening too early (still is) but thankfully no leaks
Expansion caps, the first new cap ordered after fitting the thermostat kit and while bleeding the system, noticed after allowing the engine to cool that the top hose was collapsing (vacuum effect). When removing the cap, the centre section that screws into the expansion bottle remained screwed inside the expansion bottle. (Appeared the little black locating lugs on the under side of the cap weren't big enough to help retain the centre section of the cap that goes inside the expansion tank).

Ordered another from another supplier and... It leaked from the get go.

I've recently ordered a supposedly "genuine mg Rover" item from another supplier and just from looking at it, I don't believe it is.. the centre yellow section that usually has 140 stated, is blank. The centre section to cap appears a looser fitment than the current one fitted to the car (the current one on the car is the one the car came with when I bought the car).

I've ordered seals for the fuel feed pipe to rail in the past from one of the previous suppliers, only to find once on the pipe, the pipe can't be inserted into the fuel rail.

There's been similar issues with other parts ordered but I'm sure you get the idea.

My main issue is, I went from supplier number 1 after becoming a little concerned about the quality to supplier number two, only to become concerned about the quality of the parts that were advertised as genuine items.

Now don't get me wrong.. mg rover went out of business quite some time ago, regardless my thoughts of genuine are " made by the original supplier to mg rover or at the very least, made to the same specification, material and quality standards". Am I wrong to think this is what the word "genuine" implies?

As it stands, I'm now a little unsure as to what to do for future items that I may need, who do I turn to? Do I continue to use one of the " better value" suppliers I have previously used as paying a little more doesn't mean it's any better from what im finding, and just hope I'm lucky?

As instated earlier, I don't intend for this thread to cause any Ill feeling towards anyone or cause any issues, mainly looking for a solution to what feels like standing between a rock and hard place in terms of where to buy parts.

Thanks
Rob