For many home mechanics, this can be a real nuisance. You take out your original part, do your research and make sure you get the “OEM” Original equipment replacement part from the parts store. However, when you open the box, it looks nothing like the original. You immediately think the parts store is pulling a fast one on you.

The truth is, OEM car parts over time improve in design. OEM number changes commonly occur in car steering racks, ac compressors and fuel pumps. This is especially true if your car is at least 5-10 years old. I found such an issue with a client who thought he had purchased the wrong fuel pump. The one in particular was a Delphi fuel pump. Manufacturers often make adjustments to assure higher efficiency and better overall operation.

I have included pictures of the Original Fuel Pump and the Improved design. In this particular case, the original fuel pump had the fuel strainer on the outside of the physical pump whereas in the new design the fuel pump has the strainer built inside the body of the pump itself. This change, along with the new locking ring, improved RFI noise filtering and reduced amperage. Tons of changes, but the part number stays the same.

OEM number changes occur and it is a natural part of the car parts industry. Instead of immediately questioning the parts store, question the part itself and look for any OEM changes when in doubt.

I’ve been talking about diesel engines and will get into more on them. I wanted your option first, please answer the poll.

I’ll get into bio-diesel vehicles later on. We’ll also look at working on bio-diesels.

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I’d like to welcome in the newest sponsor to the site, Diesel Parts Pro. They are a full service line of Diesel parts and can be found at www.DieselPartsPros.com

Having a discussion with them on a Diesel fuel injector, it became clear to me that I don’t know a whole lot about diesel engines. There is alot more things to consider when dealing with a diesel engine. They gave me a little help on this and some things to think about.

My main question was about the fuel system and the diesel turbocharger. Can these be upgraded? How do you improve performance. The answer is yes they can. There are high performance turbochargers available and they can get them for you. You should probably match these with a high output diesel fuel pump for optimum performance.

I promise to harass them some more into giving us some more info on diesels, so stay stuned. If you have any questions about this, please let me know those as well. I look into them.