I have three Toyotas, 01 Tacoma, 07 Sienna and a 14 Corolla. All of which have tons of options for aftermarket parts which are usually very inexpensive compared to OEM. Which brands are the best? Brands like API, TRQ, Autoparts premium to name a few. Then there is Dorman, which is very expensive usually. Should I buy from online stores like Partsgeek or Rockauto, is eBay safe?? And what should I NOT buy? Thanks for your help!!
For critical parts like sensors, fuel pumps, and fuel injectors stick with OEM. You don't have to go to the dealer. If you do an online search you will find sources for Toyota OEM parts sold at a discount. You can also look at the OEM suppliers for Toyota, which will likely be companies like Denso and NTK.
Ebay (and Amazon) are the worst places to buy parts. Those places are loaded with sketchy sellers peddling cheap low-quality Chinese copies, sometimes even branded as OEM.
I order a lot from rockauto.com but you have to know what you're getting and avoid the cheapest parts.
You kinda have to know what your looking for if you’re gonna use eBay or Amazon. It’s hard for me to explain. But I use rockauto all the time and it’s never been a problem. They sometimes carry OEM parts for less than the auto parts store or dealer, even with the cost of shipping factored in. I would avoid any parts on rockauto labeled as “economy” however.
