I have an old HEI from *** only knows what vehicle with who knows how many million miles on it. Mechanically very sound, but the coil and module have, well, been around the block a few times.

In the near future I am going to switch to an MSD system, but need to save my pennies. So I figured why spend $150.00 on my current system....I'll just buy the "Cheapies" at Autozone and go with it for a while.

The car would not pull under a load at all. Under 2500 rpm or so, it was OK, but still noticably less than before. Put your foot in it and you can just feel the wind go out of your sails...

To see if I had a faulty component, I swapped and matched.....the new stuff was pure crap in any combination.

BUYER BEWARE!!!!!!!!!!!

 

You can get an accel or MSD HEI coil from jegs or summit and they're not that expensive. They are direct stock replacements. I got a set of Accell 8MM super stock wires from O'reilly's and they work great. They ar emuch better quality than the cheap junk autozone has.

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1983 Firebird
TH700R4 Auto
Small Block 400
LG4 ECM, Intake, Carb, Distributor, etc.
Soon to be non-computer.
Clarion Head Unit 45X4
2 Pioneer 400W 12" Subs
Third Gen Performance
"A four cylinder is half an engine."
"Ponies can run, but birds can fly..."

 

this is a rather dumb statement. does the box you took the part out of say autozone on it??? the part was probably a wells and that would be the fault of the manufacturer, not the store you bought it from. if you bought one from summit and it had a problem, it wouldn't be their fault either, they didn't make it they just sold it to you. i don't work for autozone or have a reason to defend them, but this is non tech as it is being a complaint about your parts and to blame the store is even worse.

 

Zippy, You're full of it. A store is responsible to carry a certain level of quality....so, I can understand your point, but I don't agree with it entirely.

Let me put it to you like this...if McDonald's starts serving stale bread and cold soggy french fries, they would lose alot of customers.

If you went to a clothing store that specialized in a brand of clothes that looked like a decent quality, but fell apart the first time you washed them, would you hold the store responsible?

You see, as consumers, we don't always have the luxury of purchasing things from the manufacturer. We have to trust distributors to be honest and watch the quality of the manufacturer's product.

I feel it is important for other people to know that the crap the sell at Autozone is just that crap....and it is their fault. I purchased it from Autozone, not Wells.

 

Did you take the suspected bad parts back to Az for exchange?

I've used Wells modules before, with no ill effects.

 

very poor way of making your point. if i bought a nike shirt from where ever and it fell apart the first time i washed it i'd just take it back and certainly wouldn't blame the store for a product they didn't make. they do have to keep a certain quality issue up and that's why they have a warrenty on the parts you bought at autozone. if it does happen to fail, just bring them back. i think that's standing pretty decent. it's your fault for buying the cheap parts in the first place. if you wanted perfection, buying wells brand sure isn't the way to go. they are ok, but deffinitly not top of the line.

 

I thought we had a specific board for this?

 

zippy, i think you're kind of missing the analogy here. If he had bought some name brand parts, like accel wires and stuff from autozone then he would blame the part manufacturer by name. But since it was the generic autozone brand, he is making the statement that the az parts suck. Yes, it would be more correct to still cite the manufacturer of teh generic part, but no one would have heard of, nor remember that generic name. So he warns us that the az generic is junk.
A similar example is all pep boys reman alternators and starters. They have alifetime warranty cuz you will swap them twice a year. I don't know what brand they are offhand, but i know i don't go to pep boys to get a starter. Now if they stocked AC Deelco brand new ones, i would go there and buy one. And if i got a crap AC alternator i'd be bummed about it cuz they are supposed to be good, and i'd complain against the brand.

Some of us understood him anyway...

 

Ed, as always, very well put.

I did take the parts back and received a full refund....anything less would have been robbery.

I just wanted something to get me over for a few weeks or a month, and had figured that the AZ stuff would work.....it doesn't.

I did purchase an Accel HEI coil, and I am pleasantly surprised. It works very well.

 

For the record. I have replaced the pick-up coil, and module, etc with autozone parts. Runs fine.

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89 IROC-Z 350 TPI

-Flowmaster Catback
-Performance Resource Chip
-700R4 (Rebuilt) Too much done to actually list
-K&N Airfilters
-Ported Plenum
-2.77 Gears (not much to brag about but eh, its there)
-MSD 8.5 mm plug wires
-Gutted cat
-!AIR
-Gutted Air Boxes

 

It is always possible to get a dud no matter the reputation of the distributer or manufacturer. Quality control can only go so far. If every part was defective then the company(s) would not be in business.

For the record, most of the things I have fixed on my car came from AutoZone with no problems. Brakes, bearings, rotors, seals, cap/rotor, exhaust, and more...

Dale

 

wells is not an autozone brand. the only thing that says autozone when you buy it is the store you just went in, the bag you put it in, and your receipt. wells is a brand available from napa, car quest, avanced auto, etc. most every parts store carries something from wells. it's not an autozone brand. you are the one that didn't understand. any place you go to has a chance of a bad part. many on here have had a problem at one time or another with accel, msd, hypertech, etc. all big names but still not perfect.

 

Doesn't Autozone carry Accel and MSD? What was the brand name, and do you have a high output engine? I need to do the same thing and was going to buy Accel parts in stock at Autozone.

I suspect that this post will, indeed, eventually be moved to the Aftermarket Vendor board.

 

Phantom,

Yes I have a moderately modified engine. 12-238-2 Comp Xtreme cam, Weiand Stealth intake and Edelbrock 650 carb....no emissions, no computer....

The az here does NOT sell Accel, I would have picked it up if they had. The accel stuff I just put in and WOW, it really helped wake everything up.

 

Alot of the parts you buy at that auto zone place is crap. I would rather pay a little more money for a quality part that have to replace that part 2 to 3 times a year.

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383 86 Camaro Z28 ---1/4 mile e.t>12.89@108.8mph,,
10.5:1compression Dart Pro 1 Aluminum heads 215cc>2.05/1.60 valves,400 steel crank,cam specs:224/234 at 050 525/525 lift,3500 stall converter,shift kit,4.10 gears,770 Holley Avenger,Victor Jr. Intake,true dual exh,Hooker headers with 40 series Flowmasters,MSD Coil and Module.ALSO SECOND GEN Z28---mods:454 BBC,.546 max lift(doug herbert cam ) 750 Holley vac sec. ,Edelbrock Performer manifold,Holley electric fuel pump,Hooker headers,Flowmaster mufflers,beefed up 700r4 tranny, 3.90 gears, powertrax unit, B&M console shifter.

 

I'm glad you got your car running right. I thought you might have a modified engine that reacts badly to stock replacement parts. The same thing happened to me on an old 77 Trans-Am I had.