My son and I have begun working on his vehicle (Jeep Wrangler) We need to replace the thermostat, water pump, etc.

How big of a deal is it to use OEM parts vs parts from Autozone, O'Reilly?

It's seems to make a decent cost difference, but not sure what I don't know.

Thanks!

I would say it may depend on the car, the part, and personal preference and also warranty depending on the part.

Also the manufacturer of the part.

so no clear answer IMO.

Thermostat - as long as it's rated the same no need for OEM IMO but also depends on how big a PIA it is to replace again

Warranty's are great but who wants to replace a part over and over again just because of the warranty.

I had an oil pressure sending unit on an Exploder -
first time got from dealer - lasted 2 months
2nd time got from Autozone aftermarket - lasted 1 year
3rd time got from dealer again - its been on for 3 years

Sometimes its just a crap shoot

Price and part number match through RockAuto.

There are good aftermarket suppliers, especially for legacy parts, Gates for instance for the water pump.

MOPAR parts for those older vehicles will likely be quite expensive nowadays.

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Warranty's are great but who wants to replace a part over and over again just because of the warranty.

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Your auto manufacturer does not make most of the parts you are asking about. They make the vehicle. They are an assembler. As such, jeep isn't making your water pump. Stellantis, Fiat, Chrysler, Dodge, or whoever owns them now pays the lowest bidder to make them and cast a brand in it. Bosch contracted with Ford to make my ignition coils. So I can pay 70 a piece for Motorcraft, or get the Bosch for 30. Ironically, I rolled the dice on my ignition coils and bought EIGHT of them for less than the cost of 3 of the above brands and they have outlasted both the OEM and quality aftermarket versions. So, YMMV.

I still prefer OEM or the parent manufacturer if I can determine who that is, and the difficulty of the repair has a huge impact on my decision.

For Thermostats, I liked Robertshaw or OEM. But, I've never had problems with Stant or any other brands either.

For water pumps, I prefer OEM, but I've installed Oreilly lifetime OEM rebuilds and they have lasted hundreds of thousands of miles....literally.