Good question. I believe they used to be, but I really don't know. I think they got sold and now just sell aftermarket stuff.

 

Depends on the part you're talking about. If it's a battery, probably. Brake pads, probably not.

 

The short answer is: no, maybe, could be, I doubt it.

ACDelco is a brand, (they really don't make anything) but GM itself no longer makes many if any parts themselves.

Technically everything ACDelco sells is Aftermrket.

When a car is in production, its a common practice to skim a portion of the OE parts and supply the Aftermarket with those parts, but a Cobalt would be considered "past model" so all bets are off. Now it could be the ACDelco/GM Service part are the same and they are both crap, especially when a car is past model.

Do you have the Boxes the parts came in? They should have 2 part numbers a ACDelco "short" number and GM "long" number the GM long number will be 8 digits, go to a dealer ask for the OE part numbers, see if they match and/or give him your long numbers and see if it comes up in his GM Dealer pricing system.

Hope this helps!

 

Thanks, that helps explains things a bit...

They do have the AC and GM part numbers. I don't have super easy access to a dealer parts desk computer BUT I did put the numbers into gmpartsdirect.com. Both GM part numbers came up, so would this mean, that in this particular case, these AC Delco parts are indeed the same as OEM?

I'm not totally certain what "OEM" stands for but I've always thought that it refers to what the vehicle originally came with. I know that TRW sells aftermarket steering components that can be bought at Advance and that TRW is also a parts supplier to "oem's". I just didn't know if AC Delco was part of GM or what, but it sounds like they're kind of their own entity but can share some of the same streams of parts, and in this case, with the GM part numbers matching in a GM parts catalog, that these AC Delco branded ones would come in a "Genuine GM" package if I bought them at the Chevy dealer.

...is this all correct so far?

I'd say the life of the brake pads has been good. I'm tempted to complain about the tie rod end but I suppose that its lasted long enough. If it were like the lower control arm bushings I definitely would have looked for Moog or Dorman parts or just parts from someone else.

 

OEM = Original Equipment Manufacturer.

When I had some work done on the truck, they offered me the choice of OEM, AC Delco, or aftermarket. I'm not totally sure how much of a difference there is between GM and AC Delco, but I went with AC Delco. No problems so far.

 

I've always put my faith in AC Delco electrical components and they've worked out really well for me. AC Delco spark plugs, batteries, O2 sensors, etc. The highly advertised Bosch spark plugs and sensors apparently aren't as compatible, and I believe AC Delco is closest to OEM that you will get, which is why they seem to work out so well in my vehicles.

On more mechanical parts like tie rod end like you mentioned, I'd say the difference between other brands and OEM (AC Delco) is considerably less. I like Moog parts, simply because they usually allow for greasable fittings for service use.

Hmm well I just read my post and I reckon it doesn't answer the original thread question, but just putting my 2 cents in there as far as deciding what route to take on parts.

 

AC Delco can be from from two different lines, consumer and dealer. The consumer line is available to both parts stores and dealers, and the dealer's catalog typically has a line across the listing where the oem line ends and consumer begins. Thus often the parts guys refer to above the line and below the line. The dealer line is not sold through parts stores and is more often than not identical or equal to the oem parts. Usually the dealer is supposed to use only the oem line for warranty work, but may use the consumer line to be competitive with local shops. In batteries the oem line is called Professional Series, just my two cents, but the consumer line batteries seem to have less issues, like loose and leaking positive posts. On top of that they have a higher cold cranking rating.

Brake pads are a whole different cat. There's no longer a hard line between oem and consumer. Sometimes you can tell in the catalog, sometimes you can't. Sparkplugs are really all consumer, and some of the AC boxes will have NGK or Denso plugs if that was the oem equipment, but you'll find these in parts stores too. I've been away from it for two years, started driving trucks after I got tired of getting laid off, things have probably changed some. But I'll bet not much, the General doesn't like change. We used to note the country of manufacture on the boxes just for grins, oem and consumer were from all over, even north Africa. As I recall a bunch of the blower motor resistors were from Algiers. Didn't know they made anything there.

 

I actually opened the box today and took a look at the tie rod end in question. The AC Delco one looks different, has a castle nut and cotter pin, and has a grease zerk. The original does not have a zerk and just has a flanged nut.

The line is blurred further.

Slightly unrelated to the topic is the fact that the tie rod end that was diagnosed as being bad by the Buick/GMC dealer is not bad after all...I'm writing from a Bell Tire waiting room at this moment...

 

I actually opened the box today and took a look at the tie rod end in question. The AC Delco one looks different, has a castle nut and cotter pin, and has a grease zerk. The original does not have a zerk and just has a flanged nut.

The line is blurred further.

You may find that the zerk fitting may have been an update, and all 8-digit parts from your dealer may actually have the fitting. This is not certain, but just something to keep in mind considering your mother's car was produced 5 years ago.

FWIW, I use only ACDelco replacement parts when possible. I've found that of all places, Amazon has some of the best pricing.

 

Delco has blurred the line lately with the introduction of the Advantage line.

For instance, the Advantage line of tie rods, ball joints, control arms etc is made by Mevotech. Mevotech quality is virtually non-existant. I've never seen so many premature failures in my life. The advantage pads seem to be decent but they come with no clips or lube.

The durastop line is the way to go. I don't know for 100% who makes them but I have a feeling it may be Moog.

 

I'd probably just use the one with the zerk, then you won't need to throw the damn thing away again

 

FWIW the OEM sparkplugs in the 2011-2012 Cruze engines are NGK (Japan) not ACDelco as you might expect.

 

It wouldn't surprise me that if one purchased ACDelco plugs for the Cruze, they'd be NGK's in an ACD box.

 

Well I learned something. I have never heard of a Zerk until today. We just call them grease nipples. Is Zerk a brand or brand name? Are some people sensitive about calling them nipples, hence Zerk was adopted?

 

...Zerk was the inventor, Alemite was the patent assignee (Wiki is your friend)!

 

The only AC Delco product I have experience with that ISN'T unmitigated junk is their batteries. Occasionally you run across some random part that's okay - electrical stuff, I think their fuel filters are kind of highly regarded, but they could change where they source them from overnight without a word - but usually, they charge the same price for hit-or-miss stuff that you can get from high quality aftermarket sources for the same, or lower, price.

 

My mom's '07 Cobalt has a bad outer tie rod end and the brakes are pulsating so I ordered AC Delco Advantage front brake pads (will have the rotors turned and replace the pads...has almost 90k miles anyway) and a tie rod end from Rockauto.com. Tie rod end was like $25 and the pads were like $21. I can check the receipt if anyone cares to know the exact price but I thought it was pretty good compared with aftermarket parts from a typical auto parts store. But I have to ask, is AC Delco stuff the exact same stuff that the car came with, or that I would receive if I went to the parts counter at the Chevy dealer? Pads are made in India, tie rod end is from Taiwan at any rate. If AC Delco is the same I probably should have went with Moog or something considering how crappy Cobalt front end parts have turned out to be (been back to the dealer many times for front end clunks, thankfully my mom bought a GMPP, though it just expired). Thanks guys

Ok this is what I understand from having an 08 Impala. OE is original equipment and the best you can get. AC Delco Gold is the next level down close to the level of OE but not quite there, and Silver is the bargin closest to OE. With that being said is there much difference ? No not really in my opinion. If you are a hard heavy braker use OE. If you are a gentle braker go with gold cause it will last close to If not as long as OE. I wouldn't suggest Silver unless it is all you can afford.

 

10+ year old thread...think they figured it out back then...

 

Old thread, but I saw "AC Delco" so I thought I'd add this.

My 1988 Pontiac died on me one night about three years ago. Totally died on the road. It was the battery or charging system. Lights barely worked, starter didn't even crank a little. I had a two-year old Interstate battery in the car and I just made an assumption that the alternator must be shot. After jumping the car and getting back home, I ordered a new AC Delco alternator (Gold series).

Put the new alternator in and it started up, but shortly after got the same results. The battery, two years old, had gone bad (my bad for assuming a bad alternator). I decided to keep the new alternator in the car and kept the original as a reserve. Two years later, I couldn't start the car. Went under the hood and could tell that the alternator was not spinning freely. Two year old alternator from AC Delco gone bad. The original was also an AC Delco, but the 1988 one was made in the US. This one, of course, was imported from China. Pulled it out, reinstalled the original alternator, and everything has been fine since.

Doesn't give me a lot of confidence in AC Delco parts. That being said, their batteries do seem to last a long time. I've had three of them go over seven years.