Front Doors on Alibaba (1 Viewer)

[brianrb100]

I'm not sure when I'll be able to get back to China. They have very strict entry rules due to COVID. I'll be surprised if I can make it there this year.

I've been traveling to China for 10 years and there are quality goods made there. Most companies that source products want the cheapest they can get, but if you specify things correctly, you can get quality. The other important thing is that they like it when foreign businessmen visit the country rather than send emails or do things online. They want you there to eat their food and drink their drink. The food is great, the booze not so much. The CCP is sh*t, but the people are incredibly friendly.

 

[Pierps]

Looks like I’ll be buying the 43 rear half tub. They have no issue selling me a single unit for “evaluation”.
They asked if I want to order other items as I would save with shipping costs as they can stuff other items in the crate.
So I am looking to see if there’s anything else I could use. I may get rockers and a bib.

Tech question: since the rear 1/2 tub is 79 and later, what kind of fab is involved in mating it to a 77? I’m not too concerned about bolting it to the frame as I will be doing major mods there anyway.

@thecrazygreek if it will make getting your deal done easier or help you negotiate price by buying more parts, I'd love to get a pair of front doors on your order. I'll pay upfront and put no risk on you! I see you're in oregon- I'd be willing to drive down there to pick them up so you won't have to hassle with shipping. LMK if you're interested, but of course no pressure.

 

[thecrazygreek]

@thecrazygreek if it will make getting your deal done easier or help you negotiate price by buying more parts, I'd love to get a pair of front doors on your order. I'll pay upfront and put no risk on you! I see you're in oregon- I'd be willing to drive down there to pick them up so you won't have to hassle with shipping. LMK if you're interested, but of course no pressure.

I will inquire about the doors.
These people don't seem to be in a rush.

However, the 79+ half-tub is giving me pause. I'm thinking I may go 3/4 tub but the cost jumps up fairly high.

But yes, if I decide to pull the trigger I will get a set of doors added and let you know the costs etc.

 

[Racer65]

@thecrazygreek if it will make getting your deal done easier or help you negotiate price by buying more parts, I'd love to get a pair of front doors on your order. I'll pay upfront and put no risk on you! I see you're in oregon- I'd be willing to drive down there to pick them up so you won't have to hassle with shipping. LMK if you're interested, but of course no pressure.

I'll get those doors for you. They are packing up 3 sets as we speak.
It's not trivial (nor economical) for a private individual to arrange the logistics. I have a bonded Customs license for City Racer. It needs to move by ocean as an LTL shipment, and it'll take at least 2 months. Currently there's a global ship shortage so freight is very expensive, and there's a 25% tariff on Chinese goods. To sufficiently protect body parts, they need to build a crate that alone costs $100 (US).

 

[ryanwk628]

they need to build a crate that alone costs $100 (US).

That is probably a good deal considering lumber prices right now. Some of these prices do seem too good to be true. Fenders for $100? A complete tub for $3,000? 80 series ARB bumper clone for $300? You have to wonder what is sacrificed to reduce costs that much.... What I really want to know is whos going to be the first person to try the $18 distributor?

 

[Racer65]

That is probably a good deal considering lumber prices right now. Some of these prices do seem too good to be true. Fenders for $100? A complete tub for $3,000? 80 series ARB bumper clone for $300? You have to wonder what is sacrificed to reduce costs that much.... What I really want to know is whos going to be the first person to try the $18 distributor?

I think those are just placeholder numbers to satisfy required fields when they post.

Another thing to be aware of is that only certain types of wood are permitted for export. If the wrong kind is used the shipment will be intercepted by Customs.

 

[Racer65]

The dimensions match the doors on my 1980 FJ40. Given these are stamped in a real factory, the precision should be superior to the hand pounded stuff out of Colombia.

 

[Jetlander]

Oooh, this is getting interesting.

 

[ryanwk628]

I think those are just placeholder numbers to satisfy required fields when they post.

Another thing to be aware of is that only certain types of wood are permitted for export. If the wrong kind is used the shipment will be intercepted by Customs.

I was half joking about the crate. We ship internationally via sea freight all the time and have to crate and/or pallettize equipment. It often goes to the Yacht market so it has to be robust and presentable. Lumber and shipping costs are both crazy right now.

I don't know if it is the same manufacturer, but those 80 series bumpers make me cringe to see. As an engineer who has had IP I worked on ripped off by Chinese companies (at a prior job) I know it can be very frustrating to spend hundreds of hours developing something, testing, revising, etc. only to have it stolen. Even if labor and materials were equal, you are at an inherent disadvantage when your fixed costs include development and theirs don't. I imagine ARB is not happy given the resources they had to invest to design and market their parts.

That said, much of this is NLA. If they made early doors or early swing out tailgates I would be interested in a set.

 

[Racer65]

I was half joking about the crate. We ship internationally via sea freight all the time and have to crate and/or pallettize equipment. It often goes to the Yacht market so it has to be robust and presentable. Lumber and shipping costs are both crazy right now.

I don't know if it is the same manufacturer, but those 80 series bumpers make me cringe to see. As an engineer who has had IP I worked on ripped off by Chinese companies (at a prior job) I know it can be very frustrating to spend hundreds of hours developing something, testing, revising, etc. only to have it stolen. Even if labor and materials were equal, you are at an inherent disadvantage when your fixed costs include development and theirs don't. I imagine ARB is not happy given the resources they had to invest to design and market their parts.

That said, much of this is NLA. If they made early doors or early swing out tailgates I would be interested in a set.

As far as I can tell they don't make anything but body panels.

 

[Living in the Past]

I will inquire about the doors.
These people don't seem to be in a rush.

However, the 79+ half-tub is giving me pause. I'm thinking I may go 3/4 tub but the cost jumps up fairly high.

But yes, if I decide to pull the trigger I will get a set of doors added and let you know the costs etc.

How familiar are with the body change 1/79+? Personally would rather deal with a B pillar verses the A pillar. At least on the B pillar you have sides that would line up. A pillars are completely different.

 

[brianrb100]

The dimensions match the doors on my 1980 FJ40. Given these are stamped in a real factory, the precision should be superior to the hand pounded stuff out of Colombia.

View attachment 2737494View attachment 2737495

These look nice. As soon as I can return to China, I'm going to visit the factory. Please let me know how the fitment turns out.

I had more conversations with them today and one thing concerned me was that their steel thickness is 1mm (0.039"). She told me OEM is 1.5mm(0.059"). I don't know what the OEM gauge was. However, depending on the steel grade, thinner material may not necessarily be a bad thing. The steel quality today is much higher than it was 40 years ago.

 

[thecrazygreek]

How familiar are with the body change 1/79+? Personally would rather deal with a B pillar verses the A pillar. At least on the B pillar you have sides that would line up. A pillars are completely different.

I found they actually have the 78 and earlier 3/4 tubs. So I'm asking why not the same for 1/2 tubs?

Waiting for a response...

 

[Racer65]

I found they actually have the 78 and earlier 3/4 tubs. So I'm asking why not the same for 1/2 tubs?

Waiting for a response...

Ask them to send you a photo of the sample vehicle used to create the tub, then you can judge for yourself what you're getting.

 

[rickpaw]

I'll get those doors for you. They are packing up 3 sets as we speak.
It's not trivial (nor economical) for a private individual to arrange the logistics. I have a bonded Customs license for City Racer. It needs to move by ocean as an LTL shipment, and it'll take at least 2 months. Currently there's a global ship shortage so freight is very expensive, and there's a 25% tariff on Chinese goods. To sufficiently protect body parts, they need to build a crate that alone costs $100 (US).

View attachment 2737422

I’d be interested in a pair of doors as well

 

[Racer65]

I’d be interested in a pair of doors as well

Sure, I'll refer back to this thread when the shipment arrives. My quantity is fixed at this point, so if more than 3 people are interested it'll be first come first served.

Around that time I expect to take delivery of several sets of OEM fenders also.

 

[Pierps]

I will inquire about the doors.
These people don't seem to be in a rush.

However, the 79+ half-tub is giving me pause. I'm thinking I may go 3/4 tub but the cost jumps up fairly high.

But yes, if I decide to pull the trigger I will get a set of doors added and let you know the costs etc.

I'll get those doors for you. They are packing up 3 sets as we speak.
It's not trivial (nor economical) for a private individual to arrange the logistics. I have a bonded Customs license for City Racer. It needs to move by ocean as an LTL shipment, and it'll take at least 2 months. Currently there's a global ship shortage so freight is very expensive, and there's a 25% tariff on Chinese goods. To sufficiently protect body parts, they need to build a crate that alone costs $100 (US).

You guys are awesome, thank you. So gratifying to see this thread getting traction. I was just desperately looking for a set myself, but was secretly hoping a professional would run with it!!!

@Racer65 I'm in for a set!! Please let me know how much I owe you! To be sure, if they end up being crap, I accept all risk!

 

[Pierps]

PS, excuse all of the exclamation points. apparently I'm excited.

 

[Racer65]

You guys are awesome, thank you. So gratifying to see this thread getting traction. I was just desperately looking for a set myself, but was secretly hoping a professional would run with it!!!

@Racer65 I'm in for a set!! Please let me know how much I owe you! To be sure, if they end up being crap, I accept all risk!

Please don't worry about the risk. Since you're dealing with a professional City Racer will own the risk. Personally I'm quite comfortable with their product. They have a lot of respected names in their client list. This isn't a mom and pop shop.

I'm most excited about 2 aspects. One is that there'll be a clear path to building a completely new FJ40 in the future. Two is that there's finally an alternative to the poor quality stuff from Colombia. With that said, they're not there yet. I think the doors and fenders are their most mature products. My sense is that the other pieces such as the hood and windshield are not 100% at this point.

I'll have a more accurate idea of the cost after I take this shipment all the way through. Again, I assume the risk as a normal course of business. You as the customer can make the final purchase decision once the cost is communicated.

 

[JVZii]

@Racer65 put me down for a set of doors.