Folks Of Interest Fram & Autolite belly up?

I have a couple of new Carter 6v fuel pumps I’ve gotten over the past year from Speedway and haven’t installed them but hope they work like they’re supposed to.

 

Sadly our back are getting awfully close the the wall on parts. I buy used old quality USA parts and rebuild them a lot (brake parts, fuel pumps....) and it's getting really hard to find rebuild kits for things. A lot of the rebuild kits like for fuel pumps come from small independent shops that close down for various reasons (age and no one to take over, finding quality materials.....).

 

But old NOS parts and rebuild kits ain’t E 10 proof ???

 

NOS no, but you can find kits that are still hopefully.

 

Back when I was a dumb kid back in the mid seventies I used Fram oil filters on my W Fords. I was complaining to a guy at the counter at the parts store about how my 289 rattled after starting and he told me to get a Motorcraft oil filter so I did and I haven’t bought a Fram since. I don’t know if the new Frams are better or worse than they were fifty years ago but once you think a product is junk you never really ever give it a chance again, at least I don’t.

 

I hope this doesn't affect Callahan Auto Parts.

 

Hope Centric hangs on

 

Looks like MORE than just a bankruptcy...looks like it may be a major fraud case, and many of those products that we've used for years may be gone for good.
Billions “vanish” in First Brands bankruptcy as creditors demand independent probe – NaturalNews.com

 

A lot of these companies were owned by the manufactures to make parts for new cars and supply the service market. In the 80s they were spun off so they could break the UAW contracts (Ford spun off the Rouge steel plant as Rouge Steel in 1989 and sold it to the Russians 5 years later - the spin off probably had a 5 year protection guarantee for the employees where they could go to other Ford facilities - at the end of 5 years they could all be laid off when it was sold). They have been traded around for years and someone has always made money. Under BK everything gets negotiated - health care, retirement, etc.

BTW: The ChiComs are experts at buying up old trademarks and using them on their products.

 

I know a guy who's job it is to find companies and "part them out" while tossing the employees into the*****ter. he's a friend of a friend and my friend told me about what he does for a living when Kragen, O'Reilly's, Schucks, Checker bought Grand Auto and liquidated/absorbed the company and tossed me and 150 Union Warehouse people to the curb. that was a good paying job considering what we did every day. that job ended 25 years ago and I bet warehouse people today do not get paid what we did.
it started when Paccar bought the company not to make money in the auto parts business but as we found out to make money selling the company after a few years.
it's the American way. employees mean nothing now.

 

Dang, never even knew that movies based on real life, or****ociated with O’Rielly’s

 

Brands that were offshored and turned to complete garbage a decade+ ago. Not surprised one bit. Imported parts all*****. Sad when there is no alternative.

 

It was their April fools prank this year, for the 30th anniversary of Tommy Boy. They have some good ones every once in while. I thought it was funny.

 

Your post of it got me!

 

This is Delco solenoid switch I bought yesterday. Note that it tells you in Spanish that it was made in South Korea and to top it all off California warns you that if you take it out of the box and touch the part your nuts will fall off.

 

Sometimes a guy just has to take a chance

 

It's truly sad when the lust for money destroys once proud companies, steals employees livelihoods and wrecks families. Somewhere this world took a wrong turn.

 

It wasn't just small blocks, but any Ford with an angled filter, and caused by defective or missing oil drain-back valves.. I went through several PH8As before abandoning Fram oil filters in the '70s even when Bendix (my employer) owned Fram.

 

They have good sense of humor. The catalog has the part# 121g Flux capacitor and then there is the 121GMF Mr Fusion upgrade, as well.
orielly auto parts 121g - Search
orielly auto parts 121gmf - Search Images
Both from EB Enterprises (Doc Emmit Brown lol)


-rick

 

As is often the case of conglomerates who fail, I'd expect some of the individual brand companies to return under new ownership later. They'll sell in bankruptcy court auctions, and hopefully many of them will return. Better for the companies to be more independent and not get dragged down by a monster corporation that fails.

 

Yes hopefully someone buys these companies. A stand alone company with owners and employees with a passion for the product will produce a very good product. The cost of the product may be a little more as smaller companies don’t have resources to leverage purchases of raw materials like large conglomerates do. I am sure many of these brands will be purchased.
Dan

 

I hope you are going to put it on a shelf to look at and not use it!

 

Perhaps its another example of corporate stupidity/greed building houses on quicksand. I would of hoped they broke the mould by now.

 

No I actually use them, I actually crushed the last Mobil one filter I used I crushed it removing by hand. I didn’t even eat my wheaties that morning.
The Ultra guards seam to be built as good as anything out there. I’ve been running mostly Fram for quite a few years. Two of my vehicles had 300+ k and three had 250k+ on them when I got rid of em. A truck I sold my brother is still going strong at over 250. Wix filters can be made anywhere. The Frams I run are American made. I hope they continue.
Dan

 

I to have never had a problem with Fram filters over 40 years and have been more than happy to buy them when the choice came up.

 

I have used fram oil filters on all of the cars that i have owned, that is a lot, i am 90 years old.

 

the guy who built the 289 in my unmentionable 65 Ford saw the Fram Filter on it after I drove by his shop and scolded me. up until then I used them on everything. told me to use WIX. this was 20 years ago, has WIX turned to***** due to corporate greed yet?

 

Often times when you come across a product that says not available in CA it is due to it lacking the Prop 65 sticker. If they would be bothered to put the sticker on it would meet CA requirements.

So true. Then it becomes successful and the big corporation offers the guy a retirement level buyout for his corporation and he sells. The big corp figures out how to make it cheaper and trades on the original companies good name for a few years - until word gets out the stuff is now junk. Then it gets sold again and the new buyer advertises it as either under new management or new and improved trying to get the original good rep back.

 

Did you ever have engine failure as a result of using a Fram filter?
I don't know what state the WIX company is in. Just because it exists doesn't mean its doing well.