Opinion on aftermarket "Uro" brand M103 fan clutch bracket?
 

does anyone have any opinions on the aftermarket part for the fan clutch bearing bracket? I am asking specifically about the Uro part that retails for around $100 online.

I'd stay far away from URo parts personally..


Febi/Bilstein is marketed as OEM quality. I don't like doing jobs twice!


Michael

URO-China=junk!

i should have heeded the warnings and paid the extra $100 to get the proper part for the febi version of 104 200 0528. the Uro part is absolute junk.

#1 the aluminum feels very cheap

#2 the hole for the tapered 13mm Y-bracket/oil bolt is too small. This caused me to knocked the small o ring out of place and I ended up dropping it into my timing case. luckily I could fish it out with a wire hanger.

I ended up having to take my drill out and widening the hole to fit the tapered bolt body.

#3 the hub for the pulley was too large. being out of spec, it was almost impossible to fit the clutch fan pulley. I had to do find extra bolts that were longer and used them to bring the pulley in.

#4 the hole for threading the upper smog pump bolt is not even close to alignment. when looking at it straight on, you can definitely see the misalignment which will require me to do more drilling to accomdate the smog pump.

i am stuck at #4 so far, but if I can get the smog pump in, I will post more failures with this part.

Hi John,

My name is Daniel Seeman from URO Parts and I'd love to get some additional information about your difficulties so we can find out what is going on. Our Quality Control team inspected the part you purchased against a Genuine Mercedes fan bearing bracket and here's what we found.

#1 the aluminum feels very cheap
The die cast material used to fabricate is ADC12 a very common material used for automotive parts, similar to A383 material. I also weighed the Genuine part and ours and they both weigh exactly 1.8 lbs.

#2 the hole for the tapered 13mm Y-bracket/oil bolt is too small. This caused me to knocked the small o ring out of place and I ended up dropping it into my timing case. luckily I could fish it out with a wire hanger.
I ended up having to take my drill out and widening the hole to fit the tapered bolt body.
All the tapped holes match the Genuine sample *(M6-1.0, M8-1.25,M10-1.5). However, we did find that one of the screw through holes is off by 0.8mm, which we are fixing as we speak. Please see image below.


http://www.uroparts.com/uro/pictures...1042000528.JPG

#3 the hub for the pulley was too large. being out of spec, it was almost impossible to fit the clutch fan pulley. I had to do find extra bolts that were longer and used them to bring the pulley in.
Our hub measures exactly as the Genuine, M35.02dia. (1.378”)

#4 the hole for threading the upper smog pump bolt is not even close to alignment. when looking at it straight on, you can definitely see the misalignment which will require me to do more drilling to accomdate the smog pump.
The through holes chord distance positions are within 0.25mm which probably is accounted for by the smaller hole diameter.
Not sure what he is referring to. Need additional information.

Thanks to your post we did find one hole that was off by 0.8mm, but couldn't verify the other issues you mentioned. We'd love to get item back that you received to do further analysis and make sure it is ours. Please email or PM if you'd like to get a replacement.

Best regards,
Daniel Seeman
daniel@apaindustries.com

i would like to send you the part, but i've already drilled out the other smog pump hole to make it fit and I don't feel like disassembling the front of my engine to retrieve the part right now.

the second hole in question is the one for the smog pump which is the lower left hole in that picture. it does not align with the smog pump when the lower bolt of the smog pump is installed and the smog pump unit is rotated up. I had to drill the hole upwards in order for the bolt to slide through.

I also bought the same part....similar to john's experience there was no way to fit the air pump... the area where the pump fits (m9.0 in picture) was thicker than the original mb part. when attempting to file it a bit and force the pump in, the part broke in half like a piece of plastic....i was still able to use the pulley, but had to bypass the air pump...your measurements are off....

Sorry for the delayed response, but I didn't want to respond hastily. We've now compared ours to a Febi and a Genuine and after extensive analysis cannot find a single thing different besides what was mentioned earlier. See images below.

http://www.uroparts.com/uro/pictures...e/DSCN0025.JPG
http://www.uroparts.com/uro/pictures...e/DSCN0019.JPG
http://www.uroparts.com/uro/pictures...e/DSCN0026.JPG
http://www.uroparts.com/uro/pictures...e/DSCN0027.JPG
http://www.uroparts.com/uro/pictures...e/DSCN0028.JPG

I would also like to mention that I looked up our warranty rate for our entire line of fan bearing brackets and found that our warranty rate is 0.2%. I can't imagine everybody out there is willing to re-work the part if it doesn't fit.

Without getting your part back there's no way to know it's even our part in question. We're a very easy company to deal with and had one of our distributors called with this problem we would have gotten the part back and a replacement would have been issued. If there's anything else we can do or you want to send the part back to us for a replacement, please let me know.

Daniel Seeman

Awhile ago I replace the fan bracket on my 190 2.6 with I beleive a Febi or OEM part, I did not have any issues with the repair or the Part that I bought. I do not have any experience with URO fan Brackets, but I must say that I am impressed that a factory rep would come out here to defend his parts.

Perhaps URO does have a QC issue with some of their parts, or perhaps there are counterfeit parts coming into the country. I believe that it is impressive to see that URO is taking a hands on approach to parts quality.

I am also impressed by the response, but I personally have had bad experience with their idle air hoses. Mine was rock solid in less than 4months and it cracked leaving me stranded as the car wouldn't start. I bought OE and it has not turned anywhere near as hard.

That exhibition is only to sell parts.......

The truth is they are knock-offs made in China & the quality is still questionable at best.

Aligning them with a screwdriver doesn't mean they will fit properly & that the bearing will last at all as well!

not to fan any flames or anything... but i agree, aligning it with a single STEEL screwdriver and 3 plastic pens proves nothing... the least they could've done to prove alignment was to get or fabricate long bolts and thread them all the way through the 3 parts. IMHO

I just bought a URO part and regret it. I also had to drill and enlarge one of the holes to accommodate the bolt, because it was too small. I'm not done with the installion yet, but mine did line up correctly with the smog pump. I'm waiting shipment of the pulley and the fan clutch, I hope they line up, as these are genuine parts. URO also makes the fan clutch but I didn't want to gamble with the cooling system. If I have any problems, I'm returning the fan bracket and getting a mercedes genuine part. Mercedes doesn't make new ones anymore, they only reburbish them.

I spent $25 in postage last month sending a Uro blower motor back. That will be the first and last time I consider this brand.

Two or three years ago I had never heard of URO parts. None my parts suppliers carried their parts. Now it seems there is a lot of this URO crap everywhere. As if they are mass manufacturing the W124 catalog now. I recall going through a few fan bearing brackets in 08/09 and I was getting Febi/Bilstein for ~$109. Now I can only get a URO bracket for $90. :(

Even a few years ago, I was hearing about the chinese outsourcing of Febi/Bilstein/Meyle and questionable QC. URO is definitely a step below Febi/Bilstein/Meyle while their pricing is nearly identical, and nowhere even close to dealership OEM parts.

Have you ever had problems with a Febi fan bearing bracket on an M103? I purchased one to install that was supposedly manufactured in Germany. I read somewhere that Febi was an OE supplier for the bracket to Mercedes, but I don't know if that's true.

Does anyone know who the OEM for the M103 fan bearing bracket was? Has anyone had any problems with a Febi/Bilstein fan bearing bracket they installed new in an M103?

I had one Febi straight out of the box where the flange was pushed way back allowing the pulley to rub badly on the front of the engine. The replacement Febi has been fine so far, 50,000 miles/2 years or so.

I generally don't have many issues at all with Febi/Bilstein/Meyle stuff.

Thanks for the response.

That bearing bracket replacement is not something I want to do twice because of a defective and/or poor quality bracket. I normally bite the bullet and purchase OE Mercedes parts in cases like this. However, even my cost is $260 for an OE one from the dealer. The Febi bracket that I purchased cost half of that.

Has anyone else had any experience with the Febi bracket?

I've had it in my 260E for about a year now, smooth, quiet no issues.

I've had good experience with Febi/Bilstein products so far.

I bought an APA (Chinese manufactured) water pump for one of my M103's. It doesn't seem tp pump enough water around at idle speeds - higher operating speeds is O.K. If changing the water pump wasn't such a P.I.T.A. I would be changing it out for a better brand.

I thought Bilstein was an OE manufacturer for MB? I think a few of my parts that are original say Bilstein on it, I've also seen Veritas. As for the Febi brand...are they merged or a subsidiary of Bilstein? I remember getting a part (can't remeber what), but it was yellow and red and it said "Febi/Bilstein" on it. I think a belt tensioner, but I'm not sure.


Also, I've had a few parts that I used from Uro parts, but no complaints yet. I'll keep you all posted.

i tried to go back through my records and see if i had any uro parts..... i couldn't determine.... but i know i have avoided uro rubber parts...and i think my fan bracket is febi.. i know that is not uro... i bought the fan bracket about four years ago...

i know i have uro something..... but it wasn't for a critical part.....

the only "part" problem i had was that someone once sent me a fan clutch that was the wrong part..... they replaced it with the correct one.....other than that.... my replacement parts from various sources over the last 7 years have been very reliable....

i have never replaced a "replacement" part..... at least not yet.....

Hey Lee: Thanks for your post.

Do you know who manufactured the original fan bearing bracket that you replaced?

hope , don't know it..... i am sure it was original to the car... it was for the 1989 300ce

FYI
 

Here is the direct contact data for URO.

APA Industries, Inc.

2130 Ward Ave
Simi Valley CA, 93065
Phone: (805) 955-9699
Fax: (805) 955-9692
http://www.apaindustries.com/uro/

From the front page of that website. OH GOD.

this thread seems to have gotten attention lately.

after modifying the uro part to fit, I haven't had any problems with the bearing itself. But then again, it's only been about 7000 miles.

I still wouldn't buy it again though after the crazy fitment problems.

As you stated, seven thousand miles is obviously not much. If it were 70,000 miles that would be a different story. However, I still wouldn't do such a labor intensive job like that and install a URO part.

I'm concerned about installing a Febi part and I probably have no reason to be. My car only has 75k on the clock right now and the fan bearing bracket has given no symptoms of being near failing. I just like to do a lot of preventative maintenance, especially on parts that could leave me stranded and/or cause major damage.

I received my new Febi fan bearing bracket today. The casting has nothing embossed in it at all. It just has "Febi Germany 11949" lasered into the top of it. I thought it was just stamped there, but the rep I talked to today said it was applied with a laser.

I called Febi because the part just seemed suspiciously devoid of any markings that would have been applied during the casting process. All other cast parts that I have seen have been embossed with the manufacturer and usually the country of manufacture.

The Febi rep told me they did not have their own foundry and sourced the cast part from another company. He said they then put the assembly together at their facility. In this case he said that facility was in Germany.

I asked him why the box and/or the part didn't mention the country of manufacture. Their boxes just read "Febi Germany." I have a number of their parts and none of the boxes say the country of manufacture. He stated that according to U.S. law there's supposed to be a label on the box which states "made in____." Well, just from my experience I can see someone is not following the law.

I also asked him about counterfeit Febi parts. He stated he has not had any problems at all with counterfeit parts here in the U.S.

US law states that the country of manufacture must be marked on the package or on the product (visible when purchased) so that the "ultimate consumer" knows where its from. The country of manufacture is where most of the cost is added, in this case "Febi Germany". It's not where all the components come from. I'd suspect the casting itself costs well under a dollar.

Anyone seeing this thread would best avoid URO at ALL COSTS!
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/off-topic-discussion/295958-dang-you-uro.html?highlight=uro

I agree. People often mistake "febi bilstein Germany" for the company and country of manufacture. All of the red and white Febi packages I have seen in the last year have "febi bilstein Germany" printed on them. To me that's very misleading.

I failed to ask the rep exactly where and by whom the casting was manufactured. I got sidetracked during the converstaion and forgot about it. I'll try to get him to divulge that information tomorrow.

I called the Febi sales rep again today. I asked him where the casting for the M103 fan bearing bracket was manufactured. He couldn't tell me. He said that he was in sales and manufacturing had that info. He also stated that they don't share that info because of "industrial espionage." I would think that if it were manufactured in Germany they would readily state the same. He also couldn't tell me who manufactured the bearing portion of the fan bearing bracket. All he told me yesterday was that the individual components which make up the fan bearing bracket were sourced somewhere and collectively assembled into the fan bearing bracket assembly in Germany.

I pulled out two other Febi parts I had on my shelves for my W126. One is an M103 thermostat housing. There is no "made in..." sticker on that box. Oh, and there are absolutely NO marks on the housing itself. There's nothing embossed or stamped on the housing. I mean nothing. He couldn't tell me who manufactured that either.

It's becoming clear to me that Febi is little more than a re-boxer. The sales rep told me "we're not a foundry, we're not an electronics company and we're not a plastics company. So, exactly what do THEY manufacture and where? I haven't been able to ascertain that.

Now, they may very well source some good parts. However, the fact that I don't know who actually manufacturers many of them, and they won't tell me, is suspect. When I purchase Lemforder parts I know what I'm getting. EVERY Mercedes part that I have ever purchased has had the country of manufacture clearly printed on the box and very frequently embossed in the part itself. All of the Bosch parts that I've purchased have clearly had the country of manufacture printed on the box and/or on the part itself. I won't continue buying Febi parts unless I know where they were manufactured.

Interesting stuff, Franco. In the globalized economy, who knows anymore? The important thing may be to only buy original MB "Geprüfte Qualität" parts. That way, no matter where in the world it was produced, it had to meet MB specs for quality and function.

Yes, it's true that purchasing OE Mercedes parts is one of the only ways of assuring the quality of any given part. However, purchasing parts from companies that are know OEM for Mercedes is another.

Lemforder is one of the best examples which comes to mind. Just this week I purchased some suspension bushings for my W126. One of the boxes is OE Mercedes and the parts have the Mercedes star and part number embossed in them. The other box is from Lemforder. The parts are absolutely identical with the exception of the Mercedes star being absent from the Lemforder parts.

I have many parts which have had the Mercedes star ground out of them. Those parts were obviously manufactured for Mercedes, but sold on the open market where they cannot use the Mercedes star. Again, they are absolutely identical to the OE Mercedes parts, but minus the star. Many electrical parts I have are like that.

Now, I have taken mostly all OE Mercedes parts off of my 1990 300SE which had only 62k on the clock when I purchased it from the original owner nearly a year ago. Not one of those parts has been Febi. The 4 original suspension shocks I changed were Bilsteins. The belt tensioner shock and the two engine shocks were all Stabilus.

If I find a part with "Febi" and the Mercedes star embossed in it I will report back.

Answer
 

Mythology: #6.
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/323136-automotive-mythology-101-a.html

Parts with the MB star ground off are typically OE rejects that failed lot testing at 85% (or lower) of OE minimum specification.


.

Why is the star ground off I never seen it my self but I have been told that is common both in Europe and USA. There most be a reason for that why make a Mercedes logo and then ground it off.

Last time I bought something from a MB dealer in Europe it was a maintenance part maybe a filter the part was manufactured in South Africa! anyone in US have that experience. By the way I agree no China part in a Mercedes if you can't afford quality buy a Chinese car.:rolleyes:

Unfortunately more and more "official" (real) MB parts in real MB boxes are actually being made in China these days. That's the honest truth.

For oil filters, there is a manufacturer called GUD that is based in South Africa. They make EXCELLENT quality oil and air filter products but they are very difficult to get here in the US. They may well have been the OEM, even for an MB part.

GUD was the brand I was first confused Africa parts in a Mercedes. Yes many parts is manufactured in China but the well-now brands have a quality control they do not won't to destroy a brand name worth millions in the market selling crap.

M.B. Has an assembly planet in South Africa.
C classes for Australasia are made there.

bump
 

for customer

Whenever I get around to buying another used Mercedes I am going to want a written certification from the owners that they are not aware of any URO parts being installed on the car. Such a car is simply not worth as much.

Why would anyone knowingly install that cancer on their car??????????

Best quote I've seen in a long time. Amen.

More to the point, why would Ma Benz knowingly install it in her cars?

A.P.A. Industries is pleased to announce the completion of our first OE project for Mercedes-Benz.

Great...now even "Genuine" is going to be a gamble.

Coffee spray
 

If URO parts are installed in new MB.

I would rather buy a USED 1985 YUGO. :eek: :eek:


.

? about Meyle ?
 

Sorry do not want to get off topic but a few years ago a purchased a set of front rotors new in the box from a guy who was just cleaning his garage out ( he no longer had his Benz ) They are still in sealed plastic and in the box. The box is from Meyle, says OEM etc. However it says in smaller print made in China. Now they look fine, I put a micrometer on the and they are correct. So I remember from my BMW days that I had an issue with Rotors made in Brazil that warped qucikly supposedly because they used a different quality/ blend of metals in the manufacture. Has anyone had an issue with theses "Meyle " rotors. I am doing an install as well as front wheel bearing replacement this Friday. Good Bad ?
Thanks

Answer
 

I have "Meyle" rotors on the 300SD, eight years, and 125,000 miles.

If the calipers don't have or develop issues, there is no reason to replace a rotor before it warps.

.