If you're buying starters/alternators/etc. by "application" you're most often getting taken to the cleaners. If you're shopping for parts like that at the equipment dealer, you're often
really getting taken to the cleaners.
Google the numbers on the unit you're replacing. Equipment manufacturers will often spec things, but they very rarely make any of these components themselves. If you have a Bosch, Valeo. Paris Rhone, Magneti Marelli, Nippodenso, etc. there's no reason whatsoever to replace it with something from the closet tractor dealer. That part you're replacing is very likely used on a huge variety of machinery. Buying it at your local dealer means they're adding a premium because you're paying for some imaginary exclusivity....like it was designed and built to fit and operate on *this* model machine.
You can buy a brand-new OEM part online for less than what a rebuilt unit will cost you in town. And since you're buying brand-new, you get to keep your core which can be often repaired easily for a few dollars.
One caveat to online shopping is the knock-offs that are everywhere nowadays. When you Google your part's ID numbers, all sorts of places will pop up with offerings at really low prices. They'll work, but they're not OEM quality. The "trick" they use most often is that they insert "replaces" in their description. If you type in a Bosch number, their part will pop up with the description "replaces Bosch". That's how they get away with it. Yes, their part is "replacing" a Bosch, but they're not replacing Bosch
with Bosch.
