> One last question about master cylinders, and then I will
> attempt to put it to rest. There's about a $50-$60 between
> aftermarket (Bietrix and OEM-- ATE). Is there a real
> significant difference here, or should I just go with the
> cheaper brand?

The question about Bietrix versus European master cylinders recently came up
on The Samba, so I'll be lazy and regurgitate what I posted there:

Bietrix was a low-end brand, generally Indian made, marketed by a New Jersey
based company called Brake Headquarters which went bankrupt a few years ago.
I haven't noticed any new Bietrix product in the pipeline since then, so
those floating around may be old stock. My beef with Bietrix was that their
packaging was somewhat misleading. The box looked like an ATE box, and the
logo was stylized such that it could easily be mistaken for "Bendix" from a
distance. If you didn't look closely, you could easily mistake it for a
name-brand box rather than a low-end knockoff. As for quality, it was no
better or worse than other Indian made brake hydraulics, which is to say
halfway decent but not exceptional.

All of the ones I carry are European made, not Indian or Chinese. We have
two options. Our cheaper one ($64.95) is actually built by the Italian
hydraulics firm Metelli, whose principal business is as an OEM supplier to a
number of European auto makers. Our $99.95 one is German branded (variously
ATE, FTE, or PEX depending on who has the better deal at the time). I say
German branded rather than German made, as all of the German companies
source from various European countries these days. Despite the fact that
some websites list them as German made, I have variously seen them come from
Germany, England, and Italy, even if in "German" boxes. It wouldn't shock me
if some were actually from Metelli. That said, the quality is quite good,
and I have noticed no difference in return rate between any of these brands
regardless of which EEC factory produced them.

Link:

http://busdepot.com/view.jsp?model=58&category=5&group=56&prodgroup=463

- Ron Salmon
  The Bus Depot, Inc.
  www.busdepot.com
  (215)  234-VWVW

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