Hotchkis 3005 not Hotchkis any more

[MObarracuda]

I purchased Hotchkis part number 3005 greasable lower a body
pivot arm and bushing from Summit Racing.

Here is the sealed box I received

I was dissapinted
to find that was I thought would be a Hotchkis product in the box it was not. It is a proforge part #120-10003.

I called Hotchkis and they sheepishly informed me they do get the pivot shaft from Proforge but they specify Delron bushings not polyurethane. The Hotchkis specified Delron Bushings are very stiff with a higher durometer than polyurethane and they have the metal sleeve pre-installed.

If Delron bushings are what you want and you want to pay more go with Hotchkis and if you want to save $50 bucks purchase Proforge and get 2 seperate poly Bushings and metal sleeves and you can get them cheaper From rockauto.

I’m disappointed as I expected more From hotchkis. As a consumer I’m willing to pay more for the premium product. Hotchkis broke the golden rule and put profit first and the customer last. In their defence they never state they make everything on their web site and they state they test everything they sell so you can “install on Saturday and drive it Sunday”. I’m not surprised by anything I see in the automotive aftermarket anymore.

 

[Fisher]

It's about maximizing your company profits and **** the quality and the customers.

 

[abodyjoe]

It’s a common practice. PST sells Some RMS parts with PST decals on them and charges more then RMS. Lol

 

[67Dart273]

...............Been going on for decades..........

"In a former life" in the 70's and 80's I worked in two different parts stores. Several times I witnessed brand changes. From Moog to TRW and back, from Standard/ Blue streak to "Piddle and Diddle" (P&D/ Bendix what **** that was!!) and so on.

They rebox what they CAN and send the rest back. So when you open that Standard box, you might be getting Delco, P&D, and 10 other brands I've forgetten in the last 40 years!!!

 

[PST]

I will be the first to admit we do not make all of our parts, the reason being realistically it would be very difficult to have all the various facsets to make all the difference parts under on roof to provide our customers the best quality in products. A key component to any good business to try to be a one stop shop for their customers. The goal is customer retention. You want the customer to come you for their wants and needs and then have the ability to buy all the products from one supplier instead of all small multiple orders. All of the companies mention above do this in one way, shape or form, from private label to branded. Our goal as is that of the other vendors is to supply our customers with the best possible products to ensure the best experience possible.

In many cases we contract to companies that specialize in manufacturing. We provide them with the blue prints and material specs and they in-turn make it for us. So over the 30 plus years in business we have built a close knit network of trusted manufacturer that hold the same regard in quality as we do. So that we can provide a lifetime limited warranty on all products that we offer in our catalog and website.

Thanks
James From
PST Marketing

 

[MObarracuda]

I will be the first to admit we do not make all of our parts, the reason being realistically it would be very difficult to have all the various facsets to make all the difference parts under on roof to provide our customers the best quality in products. A key component to any good business to try to be a one stop shop for their customers. The goal is customer retention. You want the customer to come you for their wants and needs and then have the ability to buy all the products from one supplier instead of all small multiple orders. All of the companies mention above do this in one way, shape or form, from private label to branded. Our goal as is that of the other vendors is to supply our customers with the best possible products to ensure the best experience possible.

In many cases we contract to companies that specialize in manufacturing. We provide them with the blue prints and material specs and they in-turn make it for us. So over the 30 plus years in business we have built a close knit network of trusted manufacturer that hold the same regard in quality as we do. So that we can provide a lifetime limited warranty on all products that we offer in our catalog and website.

Thanks
James From
PST Marketing

Hey James....totally understand and appreciate your point. As a supplier of goods that are made for you to redistribute you have the added responsibility to make sure your product photos and catalog discriptions match exactly what the suppliers put in the box for you. As an internet retailer you have to overcome the click and repair decision. More info is key since we can not touch, feel or measure what we are purchasing from the internet. You choose to add products from other suppliers to be the one stop shop for the Convenience of the consumer but for additional profit opportunities for you.....hold your suppliers to a higher standard for catalog images and content before posting their products for sale. You will drive customer loyalty and build trust, because of your due diligence, the purchaser will get what they expect. Limited Life Time Warranties are great but the parts have to be installed first before the warranty matters.

 

[MObarracuda]

I purchased Hotchkis part number 3005 greasable lower a body
pivot arm and bushing from Summit Racing.

View attachment 1715179246

Here is the sealed box I received

View attachment 1715179223
I was dissapinted
to find that was I thought would be a Hotchkis product in the box it was not. It is a proforge part #120-10003.
View attachment 1715179224 View attachment 1715179225

I called Hotchkis and they sheepishly informed me they do get the pivot shaft from Proforge but they specify Delron bushings not polyurethane. The Hotchkis specified Delron Bushings are very stiff with a higher durometer than polyurethane and they have the metal sleeve pre-installed.

View attachment 1715179226 View attachment 1715179227

If Delron bushings are what you want and you want to pay more go with Hotchkis and if you want to save $50 bucks purchase Proforge and get 2 seperate poly Bushings and metal sleeves and you can get them cheaper From rockauto.

View attachment 1715179244

I’m disappointed as I expected more From hotchkis. As a consumer I’m willing to pay more for the premium product. Hotchkis broke the golden rule and put profit first and the customer last. In their defence they never state they make everything on their web site and they state they test everything they sell so you can “install on Saturday and drive it Sunday”. I’m not surprised by anything I see in the automotive aftermarket anymore.

Update....i ordered the Proforged part and although their catalog discription says polyurethane bushing it was the same Delron Bushing that came in the hotchkis 3005 box. I don’t know if it isn’t me but if the catalog discription says polyurethane I expect a “Energy Suspension” like polyurethane bushing. The good thing about the Proforged part the steel cups and bushings are seperate. I didn’t press out my original cups because they were in great shape.

 

[GMachineDartGT]

Update....i orders the Proforged part and although their catalog discription says polyurethane bushing it was the same Delron Bushing that came in the hotchkis 3005 box. I don’t know if it isn’t me but if the catalog discription says polyurethane I expect a “Energy Suspension” like polyurethane bushing.

Understood with regards to description. However, Delrin is a better material for this application.

 

[RogerRamRod]

Many Hotchkiss parts are manufactured by others. At least Hotchkis took the time to specify what Mopars needed, found companies to make the parts, then brought them to market. For the most part the Mopar performance handling options were pretty nil. Sure, PST & Firm Feel had really good stock replacement and rebuild kits, but for performance, a well engineered package was nonexistent.
Watching the Hotchkiss Taxi videos gave me inspiration to make my car take corners.

 

[PST]

We have many of the same or similar designed parts as Hotchkis does front tubular arms, larger torsion bars, larger sway bars, leaf spring and adjustable strut rods to performance shocks from Viking and Bilstien. The same can be said from the guys at FFI.

But on a side note I did contact the owner of Proforged as he I have worked together in the past and the bushings in his kit are not Delrin but actually injected molded poly. So I just wanted to get that cleared up so there is no confusion.

Thanks
James From

 

[MObarracuda]

We have many of the same or similar designed parts as Hotchkis does front tubular arms, larger torsion bars, larger sway bars, leaf spring and adjustable strut rods to performance shocks from Viking and Bilstien. The same can be said from the guys at FFI.

But on a side note I did contact the owner of Proforged as he I have worked together in the past and the bushings in his kit are not Delrin but actually injected molded poly. So I just wanted to get that cleared up so there is no confusion.

Thanks
James From

James...thanks for the follow up and going the extra mile. Impressive.

 

[RogerRamRod]

I wasn’t saying that you don’t have performance parts or even kits now, and even a few upgrades back then. At that time, (years ago) a complete sports handling package (except for XV’s B and E body stuff) was not to be found.
At least to my recollection,... I could be wrong though.
Sorry, I thought all the past tense terms would have indicated I was talking about the past.

 

[MObarracuda]

I purchased Hotchkis part number 3005 greasable lower a body
pivot arm and bushing from Summit Racing.

View attachment 1715179246

Here is the sealed box I received

View attachment 1715179223
I was dissapinted
to find that was I thought would be a Hotchkis product in the box it was not. It is a proforge part #120-10003.
View attachment 1715179224 View attachment 1715179225

I called Hotchkis and they sheepishly informed me they do get the pivot shaft from Proforge but they specify Delron bushings not polyurethane. The Hotchkis specified Delron Bushings are very stiff with a higher durometer than polyurethane and they have the metal sleeve pre-installed.

View attachment 1715179226 View attachment 1715179227

If Delron bushings are what you want and you want to pay more go with Hotchkis and if you want to save $50 bucks purchase Proforge and get 2 seperate poly Bushings and metal sleeves and you can get them cheaper From rockauto.

View attachment 1715179244

I’m disappointed as I expected more From hotchkis. As a consumer I’m willing to pay more for the premium product. Hotchkis broke the golden rule and put profit first and the customer last. In their defence they never state they make everything on their web site and they state they test everything they sell so you can “install on Saturday and drive it Sunday”. I’m not surprised by anything I see in the automotive aftermarket anymore.

There is a correction I’d like to post. James from PST in a thread attached called Proforged and confirmed the bushings are injected molded poly not Delron. It was my observation that the hotchkis and Proforged had the same bushing included with both offerings. The bushing is very firm with little deflection. It should improve handling accuracy but it has the potential to transmit more vibration from the wheels to the chassis in my opinion.

 

[oi81b4uu812b4]

Proforged makes great products! I wouldn't complain unless Hotchkis was charging more than Proforged for the same part.

 

[MObarracuda]

Proforged makes great products! I wouldn't complain unless Hotchkis was charging more than Proforged for the same part.

They do by $52 dollars.

 

[72bluNblu]

We have many of the same or similar designed parts as Hotchkis does front tubular arms, larger torsion bars, larger sway bars, leaf spring and adjustable strut rods to performance shocks from Viking and Bilstien. The same can be said from the guys at FFI.

But on a side note I did contact the owner of Proforged as he I have worked together in the past and the bushings in his kit are not Delrin but actually injected molded poly. So I just wanted to get that cleared up so there is no confusion.

Thanks
James From

There is a correction I’d like to post. James from PST in a thread attached called Proforged and confirmed the bushings are injected molded poly not Delron. It was my observation that the hotchkis and Proforged had the same bushing included with both offerings. The bushing is very firm with little deflection. It should improve handling accuracy but it has the potential to transmit more vibration from the wheels to the chassis in my opinion.

I bought a set of the Proforged bushings awhile back because I wanted to see the metal shells that are part of those bushings. One of the issues with the poly LCA bushings that come without the outer shells is that they don’t always fit tightly enough in the old outer shells because of wear or the large tolerances on the shells. So it was great to see Proforged address that issue by making their own outer shells so there was no need to reuse the old ones. The Proforged bushings look great, although I can’t say I’m a big fan of Hotchkis slapping their part number on them and not advertising that they’re actually selling Proforged parts.

Delrin LCA bushings are a completely different ball game. There’s no mistaking polyurethane for Delrin if you’ve seen the Delrin bushings. The Delrin is much harder than polyurethane. It’s tough enough that no outer shells are even needed. The Bergman AutoCraft LCA bushings made from Delrin are designed so that you don’t use outer shells. The bushing is pressed directly into the LCA cup after the old outer bushing shell is removed. And if you buy new pivot pins, you can get a set intended for poly bushings and eliminate the inner shell too.