Mazda OEM Parts OES Supplier?

[George___42]

Hello!

Does anyone know who makes many of the parts for Mazda OEM?
Are they manufactured in house by Mazda Factories, or supplied by OES Companies like Denso, CTR, Delphi etc?

I am asking as I am looking to replace the balljoints and tie rods on my 2013 Mazda, and the local Dealerships in Calgary, Canada have exuberant prices for OEM Parts.

I am used to Toyota and their network of owned companies and suppliers where you can buy the exact same part without the Toyota Tax, like Denso Alternators, NGK/NSK O2 Sensors, 555 Suspension equipment etc. I do know the belt tensioner on the Mazda was made by INA as it was clearly stamped on the original part I replaced.

Any idea what they might be for the Ball Joints and Tie Rod Ends?

Thanks!

 

[misnblu]

Have you tried RockAuto.com or are you specifically wanting OEM?

 

[George___42]

Have you tried RockAuto.com or are you specifically wanting OEM?

I often do use Rockauto, but what I was hoping for was to find the brand that mazda uses in their OEM Box Parts.

Like the Serpentine Belt Tensioner for Example. If you buy OEM From mazda, its actually a INA unit in a Mazda Box. You can get it from INA itself on rockauto for alot less.

Likewise, I was hoping to find who was the manufacture for the balljoins and tie rods for Mazda, to buy them for less.

Toyota which was what I mainly own has been pretty proliffic about this. Means you can often buy OEM Parts for alot less if you know what to look for.
Spark Plugs, Alternators, Oil and Air Filters amongst others are typically Denso.
Coil Packs, Wiring, and sensors are Split between NGK,NSK,Delphi and the likes
Suspension has been weaning, as lots are made in house these days, but it used to be 555, CTR often made Suspension Equipment for Toyota as a Supplier.

Like I recently replaced my Thermostat on my Lexus for a Denso Unit. It was the exact same, just with the toyota stamp very clearly grinded off. Not to mention, alot less.

 

[yieldchase]

I haven't been able to find an answer. And if I did, the forums posts were old and outdated. What helps is searching the part number + manufacturers and reading reviews.

I try to go OEM. I cross reference mazda partnumber with partsouq, amazon, rock auto, mazda Canada, and mazda USA. Then I go from there.

If I go non-OEM I try to see what warranty the part has if any.

Sometimes there is only 1 part available.

I find warranty easier to do with OEM Parts bought from Mazda.
Partsouq is cheaper but no warranty.
Amazon warranty was nightmare but parts came quick.
Rockauto is solid.

As for tie rods and ball joints ...
For inner tie rods I'm running OEM.
For outer tie rods I'm running Moog to try out and they are greasable.

The balljoint is sold as complete part of control arm. I'm on my second set of Beck/Arnley control arms in the front within 2 years. I would not recommend Beck/Arnley if I was buying again... but I drive on really gnarly roads. I haven't tried buying the individual balljoints that you press in.

 

[leeharvey418]

OES

I think the term you want is "Tier 1".

 

[N7turbo]

Denso, NGK, Akebono, KYB are a few that come to mind.

The big stuff is made in-house: engine, transmission.

Not sure about tie rods.

 

[George___42]

Denso, NGK, Akebono, KYB are a few that come to mind.

The big stuff is made in-house: engine, transmission.

Not sure about tie rods.

Yeah I figured as much that the suppliers would be the Japanese usual.

Was just hoping to find someone who knew who made the tie rods specifically

 

[George___42]

I think the term you want is "Tier 1".

Yup, that's a better word for what I'm looking for.

Ws hoping to find the tier 1 responsible for making the OEM tie rod so I could buy it from them instead.

Kinda like buying Denso alternators instead of buying them from Toyota for double the price. Sorry for the Toyota analogy, just what I'm familiar with.

 

[George___42]

I haven't been able to find an answer. And if I did, the forums posts were old and outdated. What helps is searching the part number + manufacturers and reading reviews.

I try to go OEM. I cross reference mazda partnumber with partsouq, amazon, rock auto, mazda Canada, and mazda USA. Then I go from there.

If I go non-OEM I try to see what warranty the part has if any.

Sometimes there is only 1 part available.

I find warranty easier to do with OEM Parts bought from Mazda.
Partsouq is cheaper but no warranty.
Amazon warranty was nightmare but parts came quick.
Rockauto is solid.

As for tie rods and ball joints ...
For inner tie rods I'm running OEM.
For outer tie rods I'm running Moog to try out and they are greasable.

The balljoint is sold as complete part of control arm. I'm on my second set of Beck/Arnley control arms in the front within 2 years. I would not recommend Beck/Arnley if I was buying again... but I drive on really gnarly roads. I haven't tried buying the individual balljoints that you press in.

I did actually press in Mevotech Supreme Ball Joints, and so far so good. Which surprised me since they have traditionally been so-so with QA.

But I think I'm this application they were fine, and the ability to grease them and push dirt out is appreciated.

Would like to stick to OEM for this however.

 

[leeharvey418]

Ws hoping to find the tier 1 responsible for making the OEM tie rod so I could buy it from them instead.

It’s most likely a company you’ve never heard of, and even if you had, I can all but guarantee you they don’t sell direct to consumers. I used to work for a company called Aludyne - they make all sorts of suspension components. They may very well make the OE control arms for Mazda. I can say for certain that if you called their US sales office in Southfield Michigan and asked to purchase a replacement component, you’d end up being the butt of a few jokes in the office.

 

[George___42]

It’s most likely a company you’ve never heard of, and even if you had, I can all but guarantee you they don’t sell direct to consumers. I used to work for a company called Aludyne - they make all sorts of suspension components. They may very well make the OE control arms for Mazda. I can say for certain that if you called their US sales office in Southfield Michigan and asked to purchase a replacement component, you’d end up being the butt of a few jokes in the office.

Lmfao fair enough.

Figured there was 10 companies that only sold B2B for every 1 that repackaged for consumer use. Seems like money left on the table, but with the logistics of it, hard to say.

Was worth a shot considering plenty of them do sell direct.

I was able to get a INA Serpentine Tensioner, which is the one supplied in the Mazda Branded box. It literally had the Mazda logo just shaved off. Similarly I was able to get a Denso Thermostat that clearly had the Toyota Logo just dremelled out. I've had similar luck with CTR, ZF, TRW, Delphi, 555 and a few others.

But yeah it seems far fewer and in between with Mazda anyway.

Thanks for your reply!

If you don't mind me asking, what did you do at Aludyne? I'm studying mechanical engineering and I'm hoping to get a internship in the automotive industry within the next year or two. Would be cool to learn about your experiences in it.

Thank you!

 

[leeharvey418]

I was a product engineer at a string of Tier 1 suppliers. The job is a lot of data and change management, and serving as a liaison between the (usually OEM) customer and the various internal technical and manufacturing groups. It was interesting work, but it’s pretty rare to keep the right fit at a job for more than a few years, thus my bouncing around. If you’re looking for long-term stability, the automotive industry probably isn’t for you. I’d probably still be at Aludyne if my wife hadn’t found her current job in Virginia, but I’m pretty happy to be in a more stable industry now.

 

[Jmaz]

I don't know the OEM suppliers for Mazda. But after replacing the lower control arms with OEM Mazda I went aftermarket with Sankei555 for the tie rod ends and radiator cap and CTR for front stabilizer bar bushings (which had the Mazda p/n and latest revision molded right in--- makes ya wonder) and rear stabilizer bar links. Also used Sunsong for brake hoses. The vendor "partsgeek" carries some CTR and Sankei. I'd use CTR control arms if they needed replacing again. Here's "partsgeek" for our ( mine's a 2014) cars (may need to scroll way down or do direct search). At $142-144 each it's reasonable after reading about poor fitment or reliability of other brands, Moog included.

https://www.partsgeek.com/catalog/2013/mazda/cx5/suspension/control_arm.html