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My mom's 04 Civic steering rack is leaking and will need to be replaced. The problem is Honda discontinued the part. From what I was told, aftermarket parts are junk. Any help would be greatly appreciated on what I should do.

 
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My mom's 04 Civic needs a steering rack and Honda discontinued the part. I was told aftermarket parts are junk, any advice would be greatly appreciated?

 
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some said here, go to a junkyard and get as much as you can. i did it couple times because we drive old cars and struggle to get original parts..

 
Rep Power: 511

It really depends on what you're looking for.
Aftermarket OEM replacements? Lots of junk out there. Autozone (or similar) in-house brands are typically hot doodoo. Contrary to the vast majority of people out there, I had really good luck with a duralast alternator. Sure, it seized on me after 5 years, but that lifetime warranty got me another one for free that lasted to the end of my 2002 civic's life. There are a few brands or sources out there that are good. Beck arnley for motor mounts, moog for suspension parts (like ball joints, endlinks, bushings, etc), exedy for clutches (they make the OEM clutch), denso for sensors (denso are the manufacturers for most, if not all, OEM sensors -- but don't get the universal ones, get the vehicle specific ones).
Aftermarket performance? Stick to big brands. Given your post, you're not looking for aftermarket parts in this regard, however.

Like betdriver said, junkyards/pick-a-parts are great for big/discontinued things like this to squeeze some extra life out of a car. Ebay might not be a bad idea, either, just be picky as all hell. Part visual condition, mileage on said component, bonus points if they list that they bench tested it to be in good working order. I grabbed a used rear shock for my bike off of ebay (cross-model compatibility), and I probably sifted through 20-30 listings until I found one I was content with. Used to do the same thing with my 2002 Civic. Haven't really needed to do that with my 2018 yet

 
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Thanks for the information. The junkyard and Ebay sounds like a possibility.

 
Rep Power: 511

Oh, forgot to mention, lots of people have had good luck with RockAuto for parts, despite them being aftermarket (that's how I found out about beck-arnley mounts, tbh)

Here's a link to 04 civic rack and pinion assemblies. Not sure which brands they offer are better than others, but I'm sure a quick google search could yield some go/no-go opinions
https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...nd+pinion,7388

edit: I was curious so I did some quick research for you.
The 4 brands they offer at rockauto are Cardone, BBB Industries, Edelmann, and Lares

• Cardone ($165.79) and BBB industries ($207.79) had a good amount of negative reviews in the top listed search results, but there were a few that said they worked out for their applications when I dug a bit deeper. There's also a core charge associated with these, so unless you return your old stuff, you're out an extra $66.60 or $83, respectively. The other two listings have no core charge associated.
• Edelmann ($298.79) had overwhelmingly good reviews at a glance. This one also explicitly said it came with inner tie rods. The Cardone said it didn't, and not indicated for the BBB
• Lares ($314.79) was kinda 50/50, but some glowing reviews as you looked at more search results. Also didn't say if it came with inner tie rods, but it does say it comes with an inline filter, which none of the other listings state.

 
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Thanks again for the info. A junkyard by me wants $165 and they said it's a grade A, supposedly it means it's in good condition. just to give a back story. The power steering pump was leaking like crazy over the alternator so I decided to have it changed. The mechanic put a aftermarket part and I am not exactly sure the exact details but the fluid kept on leaking out all over the place. On the third pump it finally worked. I am not sure if maybe the steering rack was screwing up the pump in any way.
I ended up finding a Honda tech that works on the side and he was the one that was showing me that the steering rack was leaking. It also makes noise.