Resources » 5 Things To Know Before You Buy Replacement Diesel Engine Injectors

5 Things To Know Before You Buy Replacement Diesel Engine Injectors

Replacing diesel engine injectors is expensive and it's tempting to go for the cheapest replacement. Sometimes buying cheap means buying twice. We've put together a buying guide to understand the difference in the condition and quality of the injectors. The list below should allow you to purchase the right injectors at the right price.

Different Conditions and Price Points:

  • New OEM Injectors Injectors manufactured by the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM). These will be exact replacements of what your engine was original manufactured with.
  • New Aftermarket Injectors Injectors manufactured by an aftermarket manufacturing company, typically to original equipment specifications.
  • Rebuilt OEM Injectors (Rebuilt by original manufacturer or authorized dealer with equipment and training by the OEM) Injectors rebuilt by the manufacturer like BOSCH using brand new original components (nozzles, control valves, solenoids, etc.) and using specialized equipment to guarantee a precision remanufactured injector. These are GENUINE remanufactured injectors that are effectively rebuilt to a new condition.
  • Remanufactured or Rebuilt Injectors with new components Injectors rebuilt using brand new components (nozzles, control valves, solenoids, etc.). These injectors can vary in quality depending on the equipment and parts used to remanufacture the injectors. Rebuilt injectors from an authorized dealer typically are safer to purchase than from a company that is merely a seller of diesel parts. Authorized dealers have experience and knowledge to properly rebuild an injector.
  • Refurbished/Used Injectors Refurbished injectors are typically used injectors that have removed from a running engine or sent in as core replacements. These are cleaned externally in an ultrasonic tank; the tips are then polished (not replaced). Some companies test these injectors on a test stand to ensure that they meet OEM specifications. Please Note: Many of these injectors are being sold as rebuilt injectors. These are used injectors and may have done 100,000 miles but are still within OEM specifications. You may get these injectors at half price, but you are taking a risk that these replacements will be no better than the ones you are replacing. [See Buying Cheap Story Below]

What happens when you buy cheap?

8 injectors / running worse

Got a 2001 F550 truck with 235,000 miles on original injectors. Motor has had that "whipped" feeling too it for a while and this winter has began to start hard. Took it too my diesel mechanic (he works on 7.3's and 6.0's all day long in ambulance's) and he said 2 or 3 injectors at cold start up were not firing when cold and we decided it was best to change out everything. Reman injectors, new oem glow plugs, new wiring harness and gasket.

I did not tell him where i was going to buy the reman injectors. I ended up buying them from in Florida for around $989. Got the injectors and gave them to my mechanic to install. He had the truck for two days. Called me back and said it was done and to come pick it up.

When I went to get the truck it was warm outside. Started it and was not to impressed. Didn't seem to act any better. Still had the "whipped" feeling to it. Started driving it down the road and it seemed the same as before. Except now it was acting like it had less power than before and had an occasional "surge" in power.

Drove the truck all day. Came home, parked it and decided i would try it in the morning. When morning came it was 18 degrees outside. Went out to start and turned over and sounded like it was fireing so i quit cranking and it died. Tried a couple more times and would not stay running. So i held the pedal to the floor and cranked. Now it was running and sputtering around and i slowly let off of the throttle and it barely stayed running by itself. Then it starts rolling out white smoke like a freight train and fills up the driveway.I let it warm up for 15 minutes and go to move it and when i put it in gear it almost dies, then it surges and takes off.

Drove it all day and it did an occasional surge here and there. Felt like it was running worse than before. Went back and told the mechanic and he said it sounds like ****ty injectors. I trust his work as he has a very good reputation. So I started doing some searching on google and I type in " " and google fills in the rest by itself, " Problems" This has led me to this site and I think I have made a terrible mistake by choosing their rebuilds. Truck is def running worse than before the injector swap.

I started reading on here about their terrible return policy and decided that I was not going to send my cores back into them just yet until I see how they handle this situation.

So now I have two sets of whipped injectors and about $2000 invested in a truck that runs worse than before.

Was thinking of buying all brand new injectors for $1900 and re-paying my mechanic to install them and then calling and inform them of how their injectors performed against brand spanking new ones.

By this time I'm going to have about $4500 in this...