Fake Plugs Can Cause No End of Problems
There is a wide range of industries the old ironside fake id website plugs have found their way into, some legitimately but most bought inadvertently by customers lured by their cheaper prices. The problem with fake plugs, especially in industries such as the automotive industry, is that these fake plugs can often cause damage to your engine. Whilst one way to ensure you are not hoodwinked into purchasing fake plugs is to check that the brand name you thought you were buying, such as NGK, really are that specific brand and not fake plugs masquerading as NGK or one of the other legitimate makes.
Counterfeiters’ Goods Successfully Confiscated
Counterfeiters’ fake plugs are generally particularly difficult to detect, a fact universally noted by authorities doing their best to infiltrate these criminals’ operations. General Motors and the Department of Ports & Customs, in conjunction with Dubai Municipality successfully located and destroyed up to $1 million USD worth of fake plugs that had entered the company illegally after being manufactured in China. The main problem with these fake plugs is that they could actually be putting customers’ lives at risk if they use these fake plugs instead of the genuine parts, as well as affecting the local economy.
Difficult to tell the Difference
Fake plugs generally tend to be manufactured from substandard materials that can contribute towards systems’ breakdowns. You may have to pay a bit more, but the best way to avoid fake plugs is to purchase your parts from legitimate sources. The problem with counterfeiters is that they deliberately set out to dupe their customers, with the intention of putting their product across as the genuine article. These counterfeit goods are so faithfully reproduced that it is practically impossible for the customer to notice anything amiss: even the trademark gets carefully copied – or even reproduced without the genuine owner’s permission.
Invariably, these plugs are not as meticulously manufactured to the high specifications that genuine parts are, resulting in a shorter life and often damage to surrounding mechanical parts. So, you may have bought these plugs in the hope of saving money but, in the long run, you are going to end up spending more money just to put any damage right. It is not just fake plugs that are counterfeit. Imitations automotive parts tend to be distributor caps, valves, gasoline filters, oxygen sensors, shock absorbers: in fact, any parts that tend to need replacing during general wear and tear of your vehicle provides a lucrative market for counterfeiters.
How Can You Be Sure you have a Genuine Part?
Counterfeiters are extremely good at what they do and, as their business is providing fake parts, they are going to make it particularly difficult for you to spot whether you have the real thing or not. This is certainly a growing epidemic, fuelled by customers wanting lower and lower prices. Try to check the packaging yourself and see whether it feels like it contains a quality product. Look to see whether there is a logo on the packaging, whether the genuine manufacturer’s name has been very slightly altered, or whether their graphics have had any mild changes.
Most of the time it is going to be very difficult indeed to spot the difference: however, if there is a wide gap in the price between the genuine article sold by the genuine manufacturer and the price you have been offered, you should seriously think twice about buying the cheaper item. The saying goes ‘there is no such thing as a free lunch’ and, if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is!
