Basic Remans - Why No Core Exchange?

From the minute we started rebuilding injectors for the 6.0 and 7.3 Power Stroke Diesel Engines in 2011, we have never offered a core exchange on our “Basic Reman Injectors”.  We build injectors in two ways. For our Basic Reman Injectors, we require that the customer sends in injectors for building/modification in order to ensure that they get back the same injectors that they sent in. The second option is to build from injectors with all new parts such as our “Premium Reman Injectors”.   Why you may ask?  Would it not be much simpler to just do a core exchange?  After all, there would be a core charge, right? Well, let me explain the method behind our madness.

The difference in our Basic Reman Injectors and our Premium Reman Injectors for the 6.0 and 7.3 Power Stroke Diesel engines, simply put, is used parts vs. new parts. (I explained this in my last blog post Premium vs. Premium vs. Premium.) We are going to use the 6.0 Power Stroke injector for reference here.  When a customer sends in an injector for a “basic reman injector build” or modification, or orders them from any one of our dealers, they are modified to the desired size and SOME of the major wear items are replaced. But the majority of the parts on these Basic Reman Injectors are reused, as long as they are not broken. Some of these items are spool valves, solenoids, electrical connectors, fuel plungers, and intensifier pistons, even more items are reused with some companies. With that being said, we still replace a lot more parts on our Basic Reman Injectors than most companies do. Below is a list of what is replaced or done to Basic Reman Injectors, depending on condition, in most cases from our competitors:

-Seals

-Modification to desired size

-Springs (Only when broken or collapsed)

Holders Diesel Basic Reman Injectors list of parts that are ALWAYS replaced, regardless of condition:

-Plunger Springs

-Nozzle Springs

-Injector Nozzles

-Seals

-Refinish fuel plates

-Modification to desired size

-Polished spool valve

As you can see, we use more new parts than our competitors in our Basic Reman Injectors, however we can only replace so much for the sake of economy. We do feel that the parts we replace are absolutely necessary even for a basic remanufactured injector, but several parts mentioned above such as spool valves and solenoids can still prove to be problematic sooner or later. But hey, these Basic Reman Injectors are a cheaper option as opposed to our Premium Reman Injectors for that reason.

So, why not do a core exchange?  Because, we want you to get back what you give. With a core exchange it could turn out one of two ways, either really good for you, or really bad for you.  Let me give you an example.

You may be pulling a set of gently used, well taken care of, good working injectors with maybe 75k miles on them out of your truck, and then with a core exchange, you end up installing someone else’s worn out, 200k mile, not well taken care of injectors. They may have been cleaned up and modified and are currently passing a flow test, but you still have 200k mile spool valves, solenoids, fuel plungers etc, as opposed to getting back your low mileage, well taken care of injectors. The life expectancy will not be very good. You just “got the short end of the stick” and will likely cost yourself more money down the road. The worst part is that it is impossible to know for sure what you’re getting. Obviously, the situation could work in reverse, in your favor, but regardless someone “gets the short end of the stick”.

So how have we avoided this for years?  By not doing a core exchange!  The condition of these injector cores, in general, is only getting worse. Often times when cores are removed from a customer’s vehicle, they are not stored correctly or taken care of.  By not doing a core exchange you get back the same injectors you sent in.  You know the condition, and how those injectors were operating.  If you send in a nice set of cores to be modified, you get the same nice set back.  If you send in a set that are in really bad condition, that is also what you get back. (Provided they were able to pass a flow bench test.)  If they would not pass a flow bench test, we would contact you to go over further options.

To us, here at Holders Diesel, this is the best and only fair way to do this with these types of injector builds.  We would not want to offer a core exchange just so that we could potentially boost our sales if it is not benefiting you, the customer.  After all, the customer being happy and well taken care of is our priority and we will continue to sacrifice those few extra potential sales to ensure the customer is satisfied and treated fairly.

In short, I tell people to think of a “basic reman” injector, from any company, as more of a modification service rather than a remanufacturing of the injector. As you can see, some parts are replaced, and while some companies replace more than others, the majority of the work being done is the modification itself. Before the questions come rolling in, I typically see an overall life span of about 200,000 miles +/- for these injectors depending on how they have been taken care of and used. 

In the end, I hope this gives you an idea of whether a “basic reman” or a “premium reman” is right for you.  Do it once and do it right!

-Rykan Holder