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Fri Feb 23, 2007
17:41
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Until quite recently, Meyle has been a brand that I've trusted to be good
quality. Meyle was always one of those "real german parts" brands. Lately
I'm noticing a disturbing trend among Meyle parts. Several months ago I
needed to replace the plastic dipstick tube on my A2. The original tubes
seem to last 10 or more years, but all the replacements (even if they are
OEM) seem to last 2 years at the most. The tube I was replacing on my A2
was a little less than 2 years old, so I wasn't too surprised. The
replacement tube that I purchased was a Meyle brand. I bought it at
Atlantic. I went to press it onto
the metal tube attached to the engine block, and it immediately split apart
at the bottom. On top of that, the dipstick was a real sloppy fit in the
other end of the plastic tube. I returned to Atlantic with the broken part
and they gave me a replacement for free. I came back home and the replacement
part basically shattered when I tried to press it on. I gathered up all the
pieces and headed back to Atlantic, and they confirmed that it was the correct
part. I also took the A2 dipstick with me, and we found that it was a sloppy
fit in any of the Meyle brand tubes that they had in stock. This is also the
same part for the A3s, and one of the owners of Atlantic drives an A3 Jetta
and had recently installed a Meyle dipstick tube on it. We went out to take
a look at his, and it was just the same - broken at the bottom (but still
attached), and a sloppy fit around the dipstick. They had a few of the tubes
in stock that were a different brand, so I went back home with one of those.
The dipstick was a proper fit, and it pressed on just like it should.
Now, fast forward to a couple of weeks ago. Pete's inspection month was here,
and the
TDI Beetle was the first vehicle he made an appointment for. It failed for
rear brakes (no big deal), a small exhaust leak (a pain, but that's life), and
(drumroll please) ... broken sway bar end links. Okay, I'll explain how that
relates. Those sway bar end links were replaced back when we repaired the
damage from the broken timing belt, because we noticed one of them had broken.
That was only in November of last year - about 3 months ago. That is pretty
poor life by anyone's standards. Pete removed the broken end links, and I was
less than surprised to see "Meyle" stamped into them. Real nice. Behold,
the broken Meyle swaybar links:
So, there we have it. I'm not saying that all Meyle parts are junk... I'm
just saying be careful, especially if it's a plastic part. Plastic swaybar
links seem like a terrible idea to me in the first place, but whatever.
Post your comments below. Please note that your comments will not be visible until
they have been approved by a moderator (me).
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A1 parts for sale:
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Item: Intake air pre-heat hose (from exhaust manifold shroud to air box), for Scirocco 2 (1982+)
Condition: New
$12
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A2 parts for sale:
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Item: GTI dual-round grille with inner lights, bulbs, and lower trim strip
Condition: Used, lower trim strip is weathered.
$35
Item: Parcel shelf strap, 3 available
Condition: New
$3.50 ea.
Item: 8 (eight) valve guides, German, standard size, for 8 valve head
Condition: New
$24
Item: Wheel cylinder (for rear drums, obviously), 2 available.
Condition: New
$12 ea.
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A3 parts for sale:
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Item: Parcel shelf strap, 3 available
Condition: New
$3.50 ea.
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A4 parts for sale:
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Item: OEM Water pump, ALH engines
Condition: Used, 130,000 miles
$20
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