Another Fun 98.44% Increase in Genuine Parts

[samthejam]

On July of 2024, one of the first things I did to my M3 was basic maintenance. Plugs and coils. Genuine BMW plugs vs NGK was fairly negligible cost difference. So I opted for them since getting the lifetime warranty why not pay a little more.


pain.

To my understanding now using the FCP Euro lifetime warranty basically defeats the point, since it has doubled. Basically will be spending the money again. Be cheaper just to get NGKs now which I know are the OE and basically the same thing. Just frustrating seeing something increase so much for seemingly no reason at all


rant over

[Cubieman]

Lol, its starting to get ridiculous, it will be sad another 5 years down the road when we are hunting on eBay for used junk and still paying 3x the original price.

[tnord]

how much should we be mad at bmw and how much should we be mad at the trump tax/tariffs?

[discoelk]

OE NGK plugs like $10/EA on rockauto or at the local parts store.

[sbay]

Soon we’ll all buy our own part out car

[Cubieman]

Soon we’ll all buy our own part out car

That would be nice at this point honestly, I can just imagine my backyard now with semi-rusted cars and blue tarps, the neighbors will definitely love it.

Need a parts car just for the fucking tail lights these days, fuck.

[nytgamgingcs]

I bought an OE fuel pump a few years ago for $250 on ebay (new). I think its like $700 now.

[Nate047]

Enjoy these cars while you still can. I mean that on several levels. I think anyone who has 10 brain cells or more and hasn’t lived in a cave for the last 6 years can understand why the prices are going up. It’s not just BMW “being greedy.”

[freshprince2421]

Just using my 10 brain cells to correct a few things... price has increased 94.88% not 200%.

Schmiedmann.de (for German market) sells these for $185.28 Euro which equates to $215 USD or 10% higher.

Any inferences regarding tariffs (for this product) are misguided. Looks to be a combination of greed and global supply chain inflation.

https://www.schmiedmann.de/displayproductdetails.aspx?id=1973704&product=12-12-0-022-902

[discoelk]

Still wondering why folks are buying spark plugs from the dealership. The plug below is literally the same PN as FCP/Schmeidmann/ecs.

https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=70033

[Slideways]

OE NGK plugs like $10/EA on rockauto or at the local parts store.

^ This

FCP is just one vender. If you have been ordering from them for a while, you should be familiar with how they price items. If they offer the OEM part from the parts manufacturer that supplies BMW, always skip genuine and get the OEM part (ex. spark plugs, oil filters, certain gaskets, suspension components etc.). The price for the OEM parts tends to be more stable than OE BMW when ordering through FCP.

Also, M3 spark plugs are changed at 60k miles. If most of us are barely putting 5k miles a year on the car, your next change is in 12 years. I would not mind paying that bit extra the next time I need plugs, especially if I get 60k out of them. If the NGKs become discontinued or pricing becomes ridiculous, I'll use a similar high quality spark plug from another brand.

[discoelk]

If you compare the old FCP price to rockauto, they have been reduced 40%.

I'm also probably in the small minority here that doesn't think it's ridiculous that BMW quit making new tail lights for a car that's been out production for two decades. Body/trim/interior parts becoming rare and no longer OE supported is pretty standard across all makes and platforms. YMMV I guess.

[Cubieman]

If you compare the old FCP price to rockauto, they have been reduced 40%.

I'm also probably in the small minority here that doesn't think it's ridiculous that BMW quit making new tail lights for a car that's been out production for two decades. Body/trim/interior parts becoming rare and no longer OE supported is pretty standard across all makes and platforms. YMMV I guess.

This is true, sad but true.

[tnord]

If you compare the old FCP price to rockauto, they have been reduced 40%.

I'm also probably in the small minority here that doesn't think it's ridiculous that BMW quit making new tail lights for a car that's been out production for two decades. Body/trim/interior parts becoming rare and no longer OE supported is pretty standard across all makes and platforms. YMMV I guess.

how does porsche classic manage to still support much older cars that were produced in far fewer numbers?

[discoelk]

The cars are worth far more. You should price some of those parts for a 993. I don't think the average E46 owner is nearly as wealthy as the average air cooled Porsche owner. We take ourselves too seriously sometimes. Just my 2c.

Anyway, S54 spark plugs are still quire affordable IMO.