Used Parts Guide - Ten Parts You Should Never Buy Used

In the increasing effort to save money, many race teams attend auctions or visit a used parts dealer to purchase parts. The most common phrase at an auction is, "It was such a great price I couldn't turn it down!" But be careful not to fall into this trap because there is a reason why no one is bidding on a part.

It is a very delicate balance, because at auctions or used parts stores, the condition of the parts is generally not known. Unless you know the seller and can trust him with the safety of your driver, you should be very skeptical of the part he is trying to sell you.

I could sand down a four-year-old chassis, powder coat it, and make it look brand new, when, in reality, the chassis has been through three full seasons, the rear clip is tweaked by half an inch, and the right-side framerail has 50 pounds of lead stuck inside and it will not budge.

Make no mistake, you can save a lot of money by purchasing certain parts used. However, there are some items that you should never buy used. There is always an exception to the rule, but racers should steer clear of the 10 items listed here.

There is much on a chassis that can't be seen by the naked eye. For example, this past year I was involved in an accident where all four wheels came off the ground and the car came crashing down on the left front tire. When we unloaded the car and pulled the motor, we took a long look at the chassis and thought that we might be okay with the front clip. But so we could know for sure, we took it to our manufacturer and the measurement was fine on the front clip. But when measured from spring bucket to spring bucket, the middle of the front clip was pushed in a full inch, something we could never see with the naked eye.

Brakes and rotors should never be bought used. I would like to say that there is an exception to the rule, but there isn't. This is especially true with rotors-having a warped rotor will make your driver extremely uncomfortable and will more than likely shake the wheel right out of his hands. It causes a major vibration in the steering wheel and brake pedal. The same thing applies with brakes.

Buying used rims is simply never a good idea. This is where a lot of readers will probably disagree. But again, you don't know the condition of the rim. If you have ever seen a wheel come apart, you know it's not a pretty sight. Immediately, the car becomes a handful to drive, and often when the wheel comes apart, it will break around the studs that hold the tire on the car. Almost every one of them I have seen has ended up with the car in the wall. So ask yourself this before purchasing used rims: Is the money saved worth the loss of my car?

If you run an external oil pump, make sure that you never purchase a used oil pump belt. There is just no reason to do this because an oil belt isn't that expensive in the first place. But in reality, you should never purchase any used belts for your motor. There is just too much riding on these belts, and it's not worth the $20 you'll save.

Driveshafts are commonly found in used parts stores, and running a used one can end up creating a dangerous situation. Driveshafts will spin as much as 7,000-8,000 rpms, and anyone who has ever been inside of the car and experienced a steel or aluminum driveshaft coming apart understands how dangerous it can be to buy one from anywhere other than the manufacturer. Stories have been told of people walking away with broken legs, knees and sometimes worse. After a driveshaft has been through a crash, some teams will sand it down, repaint it, and then sell it at what appears to be a bargain. When a driveshaft is out of balance it will cause a violent shake that will only get worse the faster it spins. And when it finally does come apart, it can desolate the rear end of a car, depending on where it separates.

Racecars today have a lot that goes on in the front suspension geometry. You have to battle with camber, caster, bumpsteer and a ton of other factors. Because of this, I try to stay away from buying used front suspension parts such as upper control arms, lower control arms, shocks, and springs, to name a few. You could make a case to buy some of those parts used, but you should never buy a used center linkage or tie rods. Anytime the front wheels make hard contact with the wall, it shoves the tie rod into the center linkage with a ton of force. It will not only bend the center linkage, but also the tie rod ends and ball joints. If you're involved in an accident where the tie rod is broken, you can count on having to get a new center linkage.