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Spark-Surplus on eBay: large variety of NOS parts

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    #1

    Spark-Surplus on eBay: large variety of NOS parts

    We've discussed this seller before, in passing, but I wanted to get their name out there again.

    Spark-Surplus on eBay, based in Texas, USA, has a massive assortment of NOS (mixture of with and without box) parts, with a heavy bias towards Ford parts, and a number of those parts being applicable to pre-whale Panthers of various configurations. I have bought from this seller in the past and been pleased with my items. Prices are not ludicrously cheap, but are beyond fair for the items in question most of the time.

    https://www.ebay.com/str/sparksurplus

    Some select examples:
    80-87 LTDCV right front corner lens https://www.ebay.com/itm/184539129233
    CFI-era EVP sensor (Standard brand but I believe this is the actual OEM part) https://www.ebay.com/itm/185425186167
    Pantograph driver wiper arm https://www.ebay.com/itm/182455537922
    CFI-era (but not 1985 due to 1-year-only pigtail) TPS https://www.ebay.com/itm/183328782426

    There truly is a lot of stuff; at present, 110k listings, and many of them having multiple quantity available. Some of it is to be disregarded; for example I wouldn't run a NOS timing belt unless it was an application that new ones aren't made for. But there's a lot of value hiding here.

    Current driver: wagon
    Panthers: 83 GM 2dr | 84 TC | 85 CS     | 88 TC | 91 GM
    Not Panthers: 85 Ranger | Ranger trailer | 91 Acclaim | 05 Focus
    Gone: 97 CV | 83 TC | 04 Focus | 86 GM    ​ |​ Junkyards
    Tags: None
    #2
    I've had both positive and negative issues with this Seller. Once, I saw an ad for the ICV for a '88 Tempo. The photo showed a Ford part along with the ad stating it was an OEM part (Ford Part Number and all). Even the body of the ad stated it was OEM. I ordered it and it was a Carter part. Not saying Carter is bad but NOT what the ad proffered. Emailed him and he was VERY rude, telling me Carter made the parts for Ford. I responded, I don't care who they made them for - you advertised an OEM part! He offered to accept a return - for the price (and I had to pay return postage, which was not acceptable in this case) I just kept it. Have ordered a few other parts from him (just to see if that was an aberration) and there were no negative issues. Bottom line: We may be talking about a "crap shoot" here but I can't give a 100% endorsement for the reason stated.
    What I Own: 1993 Mercury Grand Marquis GS
    What I Help Maintain: 1996 CV / 1988 CV / 1988 Tempo

    Comment

      #3
      Originally posted by friskyfrankie View Post
      I've had both positive and negative issues with this Seller. Once, I saw an ad for the ICV for a '88 Tempo. The photo showed a Ford part along with the ad stating it was an OEM part (Ford Part Number and all). Even the body of the ad stated it was OEM. I ordered it and it was a Carter part. Not saying Carter is bad but NOT what the ad proffered. Emailed him and he was VERY rude, telling me Carter made the parts for Ford. I responded, I don't care who they made them for - you advertised an OEM part! He offered to accept a return - for the price (and I had to pay return postage, which was not acceptable in this case) I just kept it. Have ordered a few other parts from him (just to see if that was an aberration) and there were no negative issues. Bottom line: We may be talking about a "crap shoot" here but I can't give a 100% endorsement for the reason stated.
      Well...they weren't actually wrong. Particularly with idle speed control motors (not so sure about IACVs), Carter was the OEM for Ford. Buying a Ford-labeled package may very well have got you a Carter-labeled part, even from the dealer. Let's not forget that Ford does not make car parts, and neither does Motorcraft. They both buy parts from suppliers and put them in their own boxes.

      It is also possible that interactions such as yours are part of why Spark-Surplus elected to "rebrand" products as their "house brand name" rather than saying the brand, when it is ambiguous.

      At this point in this particular game, NOS parts for older cars regardless of brand is looking like a safer bet (or even simply more available) than new production regardless of brand.

      Current driver: wagon
      Panthers: 83 GM 2dr | 84 TC | 85 CS       | 88 TC | 91 GM
      Not Panthers: 85 Ranger | Ranger trailer | 91 Acclaim | 05 Focus
      Gone: 97 CV | 83 TC | 04 Focus | 86 GM      ​ |​ Junkyards

      Comment

        #4
        Agreed but the photos showed actual Ford parts. The one I received was actually labeled Carter and they did not look alike at all. That is where I had the issue as opposed to one part being better than the other. That is outright deception and that was the issue.
        What I Own: 1993 Mercury Grand Marquis GS
        What I Help Maintain: 1996 CV / 1988 CV / 1988 Tempo

        Comment

          #5
          I've gotten stuff from them before, not sure if that was where I got the NOS AC drier for the Continental, or if thats where the NOS coolant expansion tank came from. Possibly both, I honestly dont remember. I've bought so many random things from people at this point I don't know what came from where. Parts for that car specifically are so difficult to find that I pretty much scoop up whatever I find for reasonable money even if I don't need it right this minute.
          86 Lincoln Town Car (Galactica).
          5.0 HO, CompCams XE258,Scorpion 1.72 roller rockers, 3.55 K code rear, tow package, BHPerformance ported E7 heads, Tmoss Explorer intake, 65mm throttle body, Hedman 1 5/8" headers, 2.5" dual exhaust, ASP underdrive pulley

          91 Lincoln Mark VII LSC grandpa spec white and cranberry

          1984 Lincoln Continental TurboDiesel - rolls coal

          Originally posted by phayzer5
          I drive a Lincoln. I can't be bothered to shift like the peasants and rabble rousers

          Comment

            #6
            If they had both tail lights for an early aero, I might buy them, but driver side seems to only have used available so I can get those from yard. I may just mod mine some more. Replace the sequential amber with a big bright amber if I can find one.

            Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former. -- Albert Einstein
            rides: 93 Crown Vic LX (The Red Velvet Cake), 2000 Crown Vic base model (Sandy), 2003 Expedition (the vacation beast)
            Originally posted by gadget73
            ... and it should all work like magic and unicorns and stuff.
            Originally posted by dmccaig
            Overhead, some poor bastards are flying in airplanes.

            Comment

              #7
              spark-surplus has 15 new (seemingly new-new) 3G alternators, of the mid-90s Taurus variety, for 50 bucks a pop, shipped: https://www.ebay.com/itm/185311468024
              This is maybe not the 'best' 3G donor application for our boxes due to clocking and stuff, but it is one of the options that does work.

              My experience with this seller is that adding an item to your watch list will result in a 10% discount offer being received approximately 1-2 days later.


              also, Motorcraft 2150 carb kits which are getting harder to come by:
              https://www.ebay.com/itm/184907305206

              and quantity 81 (!!!) of the box Grand Marquis driver side headlamp bezel, NOS, but only that side:
              https://www.ebay.com/itm/184636742456
              Last edited by kishy; 03-15-2024, 04:12 PM.

              Current driver: wagon
              Panthers: 83 GM 2dr | 84 TC | 85 CS               | 88 TC | 91 GM
              Not Panthers: 85 Ranger | Ranger trailer | 91 Acclaim | 05 Focus
              Gone: 97 CV | 83 TC | 04 Focus | 86 GM              ​ |​ Junkyards
              • Likes 1

              Comment

                #8
                Not hard to re-clock one if you want to, just remove the three bolts, give it a little tap to split the cases and spin them. They do actually fit without it though, the voltage reg plug sticks out the side instead of the top but not the end of the world.
                86 Lincoln Town Car (Galactica).
                5.0 HO, CompCams XE258,Scorpion 1.72 roller rockers, 3.55 K code rear, tow package, BHPerformance ported E7 heads, Tmoss Explorer intake, 65mm throttle body, Hedman 1 5/8" headers, 2.5" dual exhaust, ASP underdrive pulley

                91 Lincoln Mark VII LSC grandpa spec white and cranberry

                1984 Lincoln Continental TurboDiesel - rolls coal

                Originally posted by phayzer5
                I drive a Lincoln. I can't be bothered to shift like the peasants and rabble rousers

                Comment

                  #9
                  Originally posted by gadget73 View Post
                  Not hard to re-clock one if you want to, just remove the three bolts, give it a little tap to split the cases and spin them. They do actually fit without it though, the voltage reg plug sticks out the side instead of the top but not the end of the world.
                  Yep, I've installed the Taurus one as-is before, and I've also experimented with reclocking them. I think I had determined that a certain configuration of MN12 T-bird gave a better clocked one to start with, but it's the same thing inside.
                  There was some discussion that some vehicles came with a 'softer' regulator, probably to combat belt squeal, I don't remember at the moment which application that may have been.

                  I put a few items from spark-surplus in my watch list a few days ago - these alternators included - and as I'd hoped, I received seller offers for each. I combined those with the current 15% off coupon code for auto parts and made out like a bandit (well, relatively).
                  item price as listed what I paid
                  130A 3G alternator 49.95 40.33
                  2150 choke pull-off 14.95 11.43
                  2150 carb kit 14.99 11.46
                  window motor 29.99 22.94
                  It's not clear to me that eBay intended for you to be able to do this the way I did it, but I found a workflow that lets you combine multiple seller offer items into one transaction. Accept the offer, but do not pay, just navigate back out to the homepage and repeat for the other items until they're all accepted. Then, when you go to checkout, it will force you to pay for all seller offer items together because you've "committed to buy", which allows you to apply a coupon code to the lot of them together.

                  On top of that, with my recent issue with the power antenna I bought from them, they did agree to a partial refund and letting me keep the antenna. It was around 40% back, which I felt was a bit of a lowball on their part, but I had already gutted it for parts so I wasn't in a position to go back and forth to have them corner me into sending it back. They were quick on the replies, seemed to actually read what I had written, and wrote coherent meaningful replies that were more than just a couple words each.
                  Last edited by kishy; 03-17-2024, 12:28 PM.

                  Current driver: wagon
                  Panthers: 83 GM 2dr | 84 TC | 85 CS                   | 88 TC | 91 GM
                  Not Panthers: 85 Ranger | Ranger trailer | 91 Acclaim | 05 Focus
                  Gone: 97 CV | 83 TC | 04 Focus | 86 GM                  ​ |​ Junkyards

                  Comment

                    #10
                    I just bought one of the alternators, didn't do the watch list thing but I've done that plenty in the past. I grabbed a pair of the oval rear lower control arms that the Mark VII and Continental use too.
                    86 Lincoln Town Car (Galactica).
                    5.0 HO, CompCams XE258,Scorpion 1.72 roller rockers, 3.55 K code rear, tow package, BHPerformance ported E7 heads, Tmoss Explorer intake, 65mm throttle body, Hedman 1 5/8" headers, 2.5" dual exhaust, ASP underdrive pulley

                    91 Lincoln Mark VII LSC grandpa spec white and cranberry

                    1984 Lincoln Continental TurboDiesel - rolls coal

                    Originally posted by phayzer5
                    I drive a Lincoln. I can't be bothered to shift like the peasants and rabble rousers

                    Comment

                      #11
                      Are you guys sure that is the 130A alternator and not the 110A? That number doesn't seem to come back to anything, the listing doesn't specify, and on rockauto the 110 and 130 for (like a '98 taurus 3.0 OHV) look identical. It has some possible interchange numbers, but I didn't look into them as much.

                      Wouldn't mind picking up a spare myself, I just couldn't convince myself it really was a 130A. Is there some dead give-away I forgot about?


                      1984 Grand Marquis GS - CFI-SEFI conversion, Explorer 302, GT40 intakes, GT40P heads, 1.7 roller rockers, HO Cam, ASP Underdrive Pulley, 2.5" Dual exhaust, Flowmaster Delta 50 mufflers, 3.55 Trac-Lock, Rear disk's, Moog cargo coils, ES rear poly bushings, PI front and rear sway bars, 3G alt., Mark VIII fan, custom Auto-meter dash
                      1990 Crown Victoria Country Squire - Explorer 302, HO cam, dual exhaust, 3.55 Trac-Lock, PI rear sway bar (SOLD)
                      1982 LTD Wagon (R.I.P.) -|-1984 Grand Marquis LS(R.I.P.)

                      Comment

                        #12
                        good question honestly and I don't know the answer. Even if it is a 110 I'm fine with it as a spare for that price. Considering the stock is 65 its still an upgrade.
                        86 Lincoln Town Car (Galactica).
                        5.0 HO, CompCams XE258,Scorpion 1.72 roller rockers, 3.55 K code rear, tow package, BHPerformance ported E7 heads, Tmoss Explorer intake, 65mm throttle body, Hedman 1 5/8" headers, 2.5" dual exhaust, ASP underdrive pulley

                        91 Lincoln Mark VII LSC grandpa spec white and cranberry

                        1984 Lincoln Continental TurboDiesel - rolls coal

                        Originally posted by phayzer5
                        I drive a Lincoln. I can't be bothered to shift like the peasants and rabble rousers
                        • Likes 2

                        Comment

                          #13
                          There seems to be some talk of 110 and 130 being discernible by the number of holes on certain spots on the pulley side of the alternator case. But the photos on rockauto and auto parts sites doesn't seem to support that at all. From what I can tell, no way to tell the difference between the two. I'm mostly just surprised I had never noticed this before.

                          All my doubts aside, I bought one myself. Can't beat the price, and honestly I don't even need the 110 let alone 130A. Great price to have a spare on hand, as my current one was my old spare.

                          Got for $42 plus tax after letting it sit in my cart for a day.

                          Thanks for the notice kishy


                          1984 Grand Marquis GS - CFI-SEFI conversion, Explorer 302, GT40 intakes, GT40P heads, 1.7 roller rockers, HO Cam, ASP Underdrive Pulley, 2.5" Dual exhaust, Flowmaster Delta 50 mufflers, 3.55 Trac-Lock, Rear disk's, Moog cargo coils, ES rear poly bushings, PI front and rear sway bars, 3G alt., Mark VIII fan, custom Auto-meter dash
                          1990 Crown Victoria Country Squire - Explorer 302, HO cam, dual exhaust, 3.55 Trac-Lock, PI rear sway bar (SOLD)
                          1982 LTD Wagon (R.I.P.) -|-1984 Grand Marquis LS(R.I.P.)

                          Comment

                            #14
                            Honestly I didn't know there was a 110, I only knew of the 90 and 130, but I think the 90 is supposed to have less holes. Still better than the old 2g turds most of our cars got. The 1g is also a turd, but at least its not a flaming turd. my Fox Lincolns each run one, the Conti actually has a 70 amp on it, but its supposed to have a 100. The Mark VII has the correct 100. I've got a spare reman 100 amp that will fit on either, just needs a pulley change. Whats on it now is wrong for both cars. I got it from the Uhaul surplus store a few years ago, I think its for like an '88 E350 with a 6.9 IDI or something equally goofy.
                            Last edited by gadget73; 03-20-2024, 05:24 PM.
                            86 Lincoln Town Car (Galactica).
                            5.0 HO, CompCams XE258,Scorpion 1.72 roller rockers, 3.55 K code rear, tow package, BHPerformance ported E7 heads, Tmoss Explorer intake, 65mm throttle body, Hedman 1 5/8" headers, 2.5" dual exhaust, ASP underdrive pulley

                            91 Lincoln Mark VII LSC grandpa spec white and cranberry

                            1984 Lincoln Continental TurboDiesel - rolls coal

                            Originally posted by phayzer5
                            I drive a Lincoln. I can't be bothered to shift like the peasants and rabble rousers

                            Comment

                              #15
                              +1 didn't know of the 110A version. Derated 130 maybe?

                              Anyhoo... Identifying 3G alts and swap info: http://www.grandmarq.net/vb/forum/te...upgrade-readme

                              Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former. -- Albert Einstein
                              rides: 93 Crown Vic LX (The Red Velvet Cake), 2000 Crown Vic base model (Sandy), 2003 Expedition (the vacation beast)
                              Originally posted by gadget73
                              ... and it should all work like magic and unicorns and stuff.
                              Originally posted by dmccaig
                              Overhead, some poor bastards are flying in airplanes.

                              Comment

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