is it to add to the profits of service jobs? When a customer brings in a bike/car and it needs parts, are inflated part prices just to ballon the bill that much higher?
The dealership will tell you that OEM parts come with a guarantee or limited warranty. And that is true. But it's a "feel good" sense they're selling to you. Modern parts rarely fail and there's the hitch for the dealer. If your one of the unlucky ones who needs an uncommon fail component or a proprietary component (ECU) then you pay out of your grandchildren's savings. Maintenance parts are not as expensive nowadays because people can compare price on line.
Here's what will happen: You can buy OEM parts on line cheaper, then take them to the branded dealer and request to have them installed and they will say "no".
Like I said before, service departments carry a dealership. Why don't places like Midas, Instant oil change, NTB sell cars? because that isn't where the money is.
So this brings me back to the point of low paid techs. The people who build auto-machines make more money than the people who keep the brand on the road. Why is that? The people who engineer the mistakes in vehicles make more than the people who figure it out and fix it. Why is that? Build and replace when broken. Nobody wants to pay the labor costs to repair. So if you can't afford a new vehicle and your older vehicle breaks down where does that leave you. Probably financing a new car or a used one at much higher interest rates.
It all points to the money grab going on. The wealthy want one more dollar.
Have an accident in your car and the insurance company doesn't want to buy OEM parts or have it repaired at the dealership. They have people that they "rely on" to do their work.
As a consumer you only matter when making the original purchase. After you leave with the product you drop to the bottom of the list. And the lower your economic status the lower you are on the list. Greed isn't good
