Sierra vs Mercruiser parts

BoatAway

In the impeller thread, Al mentioned that the Sierra impeller is comparable to the Merc. Does this hold true for most things? As I head towards replacing my own impeller, thermostat, etc.. I wanted to get some feedback on how the quality of Sierra holds up to Merc.

FYI.. On my autos, I OEM wherever I can. I find the aftermarket stuff to be junk.

TikiHut2

I agree with you on most of my auto parts being OEM if possible and all I can do is apply that logic to my Merc parts when I can. The impeller issue/recall was a major PIA for me but I think it was an isolated case and they really seem to be working hard to investigate and correct the problem and even went the extra mile by supplying a new pump gratis. All that said, I'd go with a Sierra impeller until the shrunken impeller issue is completely resolved.

If Al is using selected sierra parts successfully then I'd have to say that'd be good enough for me. Risers and manifolds, alternators, etc I'd probably stick with OEM. There's a lot of odd aftermarket stuff out there and it seems like a roll of the dice to go out in the OEM market too far beyond Sierra (if it makes any diff).

Good luck with that impeller. I'm SURE it will go better than mine did.  #:-S  On the other hand I'm like a Nascar tire changer on seawater pumps now.
Mike

l-skynyrd

I bought Sierra ignition parts and had my mechanic install. He called them junk. Boat has been running fine for 4 years.

BoatAway

Great input, Al. I had come across the Mallory name and wasn't sure of its roots. Thanks to you, now I know!

Great to know the point of view of an expert...

I've seen some YouTube videos comparring manifolds and I see your point.. the OEM stuff looks more robust than the others...