I'm searched the forums already but just want to make sure I have the most current information.

I'm gathering the parts for the major service on my Magna (6G72 engine).

Where do you source your parts, fluids etc?

I'm guessing that calling up Mitsubishi will mean just handing over the black Amex?

What about Repco, Supercheaauto, Ebay etc?

How do you know they will give you the right parts? Do you need to provide a part number and if so, how do you find that out?

Do you have any hints, tips or gems on where to get quality parts at a reasonable price?

I'm in Sydney BTW.

The dealer prices for genuine filters are not much more than aftermarket. Genuine auto trans oil is cheaper than aftermarket and also the correct stuff. All the other stuff you can get anywhere (engine oil, sparkplugs, timing belt/waterpump etc). I like to use the genuine coolant even though most people on here will tell you its a waste of money.

I get my oil from Repco or Supercheap. Repco has a 10%(?) discount for automotive association club card holders (RACQ, etc.) and has 20-25% weekend sales for the same cardholders occasionally; and Supercheap sometimes has some good specials (recently had 25% off Penrite oils where I bought 10L of HPR10 for about $67).
Most service items I buy from the dealer (sometimes Holden, where they sell their ACDelco oil filters for a decent price - which also covers Mitsubishi applications; and genuine Mitsubishi for air/fuel filters, coolant, hoses, gaskets, etc ).
I buy my spark plugs online (ebay, or similar)
Most of the brick and mortar retailers you visit will have catalogues they refer to for part numbers/applications, so more likely than not they will be able to source the correct part for you.

I call up Mal.

Or txt him.

Or drop in unannounced.

Or txt his other phone.

Or leave car at his house.

Or call his fax machine.

Just call Mal.

...hmmm he must really hate me... :D

I've now done a lot of research on where to get Magna parts.

Hopefully my research will help other members save time and money when looking for parts.

Except for Rockauto, I emailed each of the below, stating my make, model, year, engine and the parts I wanted:

www.sparespro.com.au - sales@sparespro.com.au
www.eziautoparts.com.au - sales@eziautoparts.com.au
www.ultracheapauto.com.au - sales@ultracheapauto.com.au
www.onlineautoparts.com.au - sales@onlineautoparts.com.au
www.precisionintl.com.au - nswtrade@precisionintl.com

They all responded within 1 day with pricing.

Then I went on www.rockauto.com

You select the "part number search" tab and then put in the OEM or aftermarket part number. It will then come up with a list of parts that correspond or are interchangeable.

Rockauto sources the parts from various locations. The trick to save on shipping is to select every single part that matches your part number.

Then in your cart, it will show you the location of where each of your parts will come from eg. location A, B, C, D etc

Simply delete all the duplicated parts until you can get as many of your final parts as possible from the one location.

Below is a cost breakdown comparison:

http://i665.photobucket.com/albums/vv19/cyber_scriber/Costcomparison.png

As you can see, even with the higher shipping, Rockauto was by far the cheapest.

If you bought nothing more than just the the 6 spark plugs, you would still end up miles ahead with Rockauto, even despite the higher shipping.

When you start buying more items from Rockauto, the savings become substantial, often being less than half or even 1/3 the price of anywhere else in Australia, shipping included.

I hope all my work has been helpful so you don't have to go through all the hurt I did when looking for parts!

Good work and very nice chart.
I bought many parts from RockAuto for my 380, and now the same for the Jag
Much the same with tyres from Tire Rack in the US, helluva lot cheaper than the same tyres in Oz, as long as you are buying relatively highly end tyres where the saving offsets the postage cost.
I'm not sure how these Yank suppliers can sell the same parts at 1/2 to 1/3 the price of the Oz suppliers, but I suspect economy of scale is the biggest factor.

For the bi annual service I wait for Repco to have an oil and free filter sale and buy two bottles which is maggie done for the year. Other parts such as brake pads and headlight globes I always buy online, usually Ebay. H7 headlight globes for example are such a ripoff in auto stores.

I normally get replacement parts, air filters, coolant etc from Burson's, I normally get my HPR10 oil and filter from the same place which last time was Repco, time before was Autobarn, brake pads I normally use Sprints or Bursons, I try to avoid the internet and buying from someone who is not local as much as I can.

genuine for me. i have access to good prices and works out better for me.last fuel/air filter change i used mitsu's value parts range which is the same part in cheaper packaging(from what i can see).oil i let my mechanic choose and tyres i get off a local supplier who gives me a good price/service.last time i needed brake pads i waited for one of supercheap's "buy one get one free" sale, but will be going to brakesdirect.com.au for my next set of pads and rotors.

Supercheap for almost everything for me. I live directly across the road, so quite often it's just a matter of "might do that today" and running across the highway.

Large, bulky stuff like oils I get locally. Same for disc pads.
Filters Ryco Z411, Z456 - lots of 6 from interstate, at $11 each instead of $16 from Supercheap.
Small, light or expensive stuff like air filters, cam belt kits, plugs, etc - Rockauto. Parts are about a quarter of the price of local parts, shipping with FedEx doubles that but you are still looking at half the local price. FedEx to my front door takes about 1 week, with accurate tracking.
As above, with Rockauto select parts from the one source otherwise shipping goes up a lot.

I've done cam belt swaps on two Lancers, using belts from Rockauto, at a cost of about $50 per car. DIY motoring on the cheap. lol
Rockauto parts for my TJ & TL - I select 2001 Diamante. Lancer - I select the correct engine size. Haven't received any parts that were the wrong ones yet.

EDIT: Nice comparative shopping there, Magna Carta!