I am purchasing a 1993 940 Turbo Wagon with 150k miles on it. Seems to have been pretty well cared for, but I want to get on top of potential problems that I have read about on the boards (like the heater control valve).

Unfortunately, I'm at a loss as to which supplier to buy parts from. FCP Groton and IPD both have a lot of useful info on their websites, and it's pretty easy to be sure the parts I am buying will fit my car. Unfortunately, both have received criticism in the forums that make me wary. Sometimes it's related to a particular line of parts, and then there are people who say that a given company sells nothing but crap. Same applies to some of the other suppliers.

I've been dealing with older cars and participating on auto forums for many years, so I know that some people make blanket statements that don't hold water. Other people simply have favorites or prejudices. Some people will never allow anything but Volvo factory parts on their cars and argue that a Continental belt with the identical part number to the one that came on the car from the factory isn't made to the same specs as the Continental belt Volvo sells.

Personally, I feel that a Goodyear or Gates alternator belt should be pretty reliable. Maybe an aftermarket timing belt tensioner might be a bad investment. Mostly, I worry about really cheap auto parts from China because while a non-OEM part from the USA or Germany might not be top quality, it probably won't be junk. I have bought cheap Chinese brake rotors that turned out to have hard spots in the metal that caused them to wear unevenly. My point is that I don't need to have all of my parts be gold-plated premium parts, but I expect them to fit like OEM parts and last a reasonable number of miles.

With all that in mind, I have a question and a request:

Question - Are these URO part made by APA worth spending money on? I've read bad things about the on Volvo forums and other forums, as well.

Request - Could I have some reasonable and objective advice concerning the main suppliers of Volvo parts, both OEM and aftermarket? One bad experience doesn't make for a bad part supplier. Excellent customer service is of no value to me if the parts a company supplies are of really bad quality.

I'd appreciate any feedback you can offer. I know this can be a touchy subject.

Glen