What the parts are made of
Material is stated for 174 of the 210 parts in the range. It is the single fact that predicts how a part ages, so it sits on the card, on the page and in the table below.
Aluminium alloy
Turned and anodised rather than painted. Anodising is part of the surface rather than a layer on top of it, so a valve tool or a socket does not take a chip out of it. Aluminium is also light enough that a set of caps changes nothing about wheel balance.
Silicone
Used where a part is handled, squeezed or washed. Silicone keeps its softness from a freezing morning to a dashboard in August, which is the range an interior part actually lives in. It also comes out of a console for cleaning without tearing.
Rubber
Used for seals, edge guards and the parts that have to grip. Rubber costs less than silicone and handles abrasion better, at the price of going harder in a cold snap.
Stainless steel
Where a part is exposed to salt and water: hitch pins, wheel fittings, exterior fixings. Stainless is not maintenance free, but it is the difference between a part that stains and a part that seizes.
Copper
Battery terminals and cable ends. Copper carries current with less resistance than plated steel and stays clean under a clamp rather than growing a crust.
Leather and fabric
Visor pockets, key cases and sleeves, where a hard part would rattle or mark the trim it sits against.
ABS and PP plastics
Housings and mounts, where a part needs a precise shape and no weight. Plastic is honest about its job: it holds a shape, it does not take a load.
How often each one appears
| Material | Parts | Where it turns up |
|---|---|---|
| Aluminium alloy | 58 | Turned and anodised rather than painted. |
| Silicone | 15 | Used where a part is handled, squeezed or washed. |
| Rubber | 62 | Used for seals, edge guards and the parts that have to grip. |
| Stainless steel | 5 | Where a part is exposed to salt and water: hitch pins, wheel fittings, exterior fixings. |
| Copper | 6 | Battery terminals and cable ends. |
| Leather and fabric | 35 | Visor pockets, key cases and sleeves, where a hard part would rattle or mark the trim it sits against.. |
| ABS and PP plastics | 0 | Housings and mounts, where a part needs a precise shape and no weight. |
Counted from the parts on this site. Where a part does not state a material, it is not counted rather than guessed at.