What throttle actuators are people going with?

[2013E92M3ZCP]

As the title suggests, what route are most people taking these days? Mine aren't acting up but considering going ahead preventatively. OEM or equivalent or something with better build quality that may last longer? I've seen older threads but looking for what everyone suggests currently.

[F4rmost]

I luckily have not had to purchase any yet as mine have been replaced once, but when/if I do I will be going with Euro Power Motorsports.

[Johnny E92]

Originally Posted by F4rmost

I luckily have not had to purchase any yet as mine have been replaced once, but when/if I do I will be going with Euro Power Motorsports.

I went with UK Rebuild ones of which Euro Power Motorsport are the US ‘arm’ for them, to put it that way.

I only went to the UK for them as I’m in Australia and the postage costs were better at the time, both ways as you have to return your old cores.

Nil issues, so recommended.

[Helmsman]

UK Rebuild (direct from the UK). Next day delivery, low cost (very much so vs OE) and works with no issues since 6 years.

[Redd]

+1 on UK Rebuild TAs. Mine are 8+ yrs old now.

[KawBoy]

I am still fine at 56k miles, but when and if the time comes, OEM it will be.

[M3JayM]

Continental VDO (OEM)

[Thumbie]

I also went Euro Power.

Plus cheaper than new OEM. We will see if they ever fail again....

If yours start acting up, they will usually throw a code to give you some warning before they fail. I kept clearing the code until after a few months it finally went into limp mode lol.

[BenFenner]

I can't justify sending money to Euro Power Motorsports, nor to wherever they source their throttle body actuators from. Not sure why anyone would support them when they don't support the right to repair.

Imagine BMW voiding your warranty if you opened the hood.

[Thumbie]

Care to elaborate?

You are saying the company that makes car parts doesn't support the right to install them?

[BenFenner]

I'm saying that anyone slapping "WARRANTY VOID IF REMOVED" or "WARRANTY VOID IF OPENED" or "SECURITY SEALED" stickers (or whatever they put on them) is antithetical to the right to repair. This nonsense was made illegal* (in the USA) in 1975 by the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act.

The FTC has had to warn companies over and over and over and over (mostly PC retailers in the 1990s) that this nonsense is against the law. Here is a recent round of warnings by the FTC in 2024:

FTC Warns Companies to Stop Warranty Practices That Harm Consumers’ Right to Repair

Letters to eight companies warn about tying warranty to use of branded parts and affixing “warranty void if removed” stickers to their products.

Originally Posted by Thumbie

You are saying the company that makes car parts doesn't support the right to install them?

No, you've completely misunderstood me. I am saying the company that makes these car parts is telling you to open your hood and install them, but fuck you if you open their "hood" for any reason.

It is comical coming from a company that makes and sells car parts to consumers. Their entire business model is dependent on the auto manufacturers not putting these stickers on the seams of their hoods, under-body panels, etc.

Sometimes it really feels like I'm the only one paying any attention to these things in the automotive enthusiast community. It blows my mind that anyone puts up with this and/or supports businesses like this.




*There are legal exceptions, but it changes nothing about the spirit.

[crowtrobot]

Originally Posted by BenFenner

I'm saying that anyone slapping "WARRANTY VOID IF REMOVED" or "WARRANTY VOID IF OPENED" or "SECURITY SEALED" stickers (or whatever they put on them) is antithetical to the right to repair. This nonsense was made illegal* (in the USA) in 1975 by the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act.

The FTC has had to warn companies over and over and over and over (mostly PC retailers in the 1990s) that this nonsense is against the law. Here is a recent round of warnings by the FTC in 2024:

No, you've completely misunderstood me. I am saying the company that makes these car parts is telling you to open your hood and install them, but fuck you if you open their "hood" to install something.

It is comical coming from a company that makes and sells car parts to consumers. Their entire business model is dependent on the auto manufacturers not putting these stickers on the seams of their hoods, under-body panels, etc.

Sometimes it really feels like I'm the only one paying any attention to these things in the automotive enthusiast community. It blows my mind that anyone puts up with this and/or supports businesses like this.

*There are legal exceptions, but it changes nothing about the spirit.

I work integration/support for a company manufacturing research equipment, and all of our products come with one of these stickers. We, like EAE, offer a solid warranty, and it makes things far more difficult to assist customers and keep track of potential issues when they've been trying to take things apart and diagnose things themselves. We know it's unenforceable, but it is something simple that helps to deter people from making things more complicated. I can totally see why they'd slap those stickers on when they're offering a lifetime warranty.

There may be other reasons to not order from EAE, but I think this might be a little misdirected.

More on-topic: I installed EAE TA's in my car preventatively at ~60k mi. There were a ton of delays in the shipping and in the core-return process, which was a little off-putting. They did make everything right in the end, but the overall experience was a little sloppy and slow, so I'm hoping I never have to deal with a warranty case. The TA's are still working fine after 20k mi and plenty of track time.

[Thumbie]

I don't know why I would want to open them up if there's a lifetime warranty...

And if I made a product with a lifetime warranty, I'd probably not want anyone messing with it either.

[BenFenner]

Yah, fuck the right to repair, amirite?

I feel like I'm taking crazy pills.

[Thumbie]

I'm not disagreeing with your overall argument. I fully agree with you on cars as a whole. I just don't think it really applies to this particular part.

You can buy a new OEM one which is still prone to failure, but is rebuildable/repairable yourself. OR you can buy a cheaper one that claims to have fixed the issue, and comes with a lifetime warranty as long as you don't open it up. But, you literally can still open it up and repair it if you wanted to, it would just cost you more money than sending it back unopened.

Plus, it's made by a small performance/engineering company designing and manufacturing new and improved parts for our enthusiast-level cars, something that not a lot of companies seem to do much anymore. The company is small and not perfect, but I'd rather them have my money than send more to BMW.

[Abdul]

My friend, we’ve spoken privately about this issue but since you posted about it here. I’ll state my point clearly here.

I’ve already spoken to multiple attorneys about this, and I’m going to rely on their legal advice rather than opinions on a forum. Here’s the exact legal guidance I received, with the relevant language from the statutes and FTC policies themselves:

• Magnuson–Moss Warranty Act (15 U.S.C. § 2301–2312) applies only to new consumer products.The key line is:

“A written warranty means any written affirmation… made in connection with the sale of a new consumer product.”

Rebuilt parts are not “new consumer products,” so these restrictions do not apply.

• Federal Regulation 16 C.F.R. § 700.11 (rebuilt/refurbished goods) states:

“A supplier is not required to provide a written warranty… and if a warranty is given, the warrantor may specify the conditions under which it is applicable.”

Meaning: a rebuilder is legally allowed to condition a warranty on a tamper-evident seal.

• FTC Businessperson’s Guide to Federal Warranty Law explicitly says:

“If you sell a repaired or refurbished item, you may define the terms and conditions of your own warranty.”

This is exactly the situation here with our units.

• The FTC’s restrictions on “warranty void if removed” stickers apply only to OEM manufacturers of NEW goods who attempt to restrict independent repair. They do not apply to independent rebuilders offering a workmanship guarantee.

• And to be clear, every major remanufacturer, Cardone, Bosch, ACDelco, Garrett, Dorman, uses the exact same tamper-evident seals and ties their warranty to the integrity of that seal. So based directly on federal statutes, FTC guidance, and accepted industry standards, the attorneys I consulted were very clear: This practice is legal, appropriate, and standard for rebuilt components.

Let’s not stretch this any further than it needs to. The matter is settled on my end, and I’m proceeding according to actual legal counsel. And to be honest, I think 99% of customers here already understand this as well. We offer an unlimited-miles, transferable lifetime warranty for a reason. If any of our units ever fail due to workmanship, we replace it. That speaks for itself.

Abdul

[BenFenner]

Originally Posted by Abdul

This practice is legal

I am aware.

As I already mentioned:

Originally Posted by BenFenner

*There are legal exceptions, but it changes nothing about the spirit.

Did you catch that part? It changes nothing about the spirit.
You're sliding through a razor thin loophole in the otherwise completely mediocre stance that US law takes on pro-consumer advocacy and the right to repair. Do you want applause for that?

You clearly still seem to have no idea what the right to repair is about. I urge you for the 5th time in as many years to get educated on the topic. Or just own your ignorance. Whatever.

[2013E92M3ZCP]

As the OP, I ended up buying from Europower and had them installed on Monday. So far so good. They were delayed in getting shipped by a few days but the communication was decent. I just sent back the cores so hoping I'll get the credit back after the holiday. I also should mention that I bought a couple days before the BF sale and contacted them and they credited by credit card with only an e-mail on my end asking them for the discount.

Now, as far as the warranty and the sticker, the only reason I'd want to open it is to verify that they actually upgraded the internals and compare it to stock. I believe based on the many recommendations in the past that they have done what they say and have little reason to doubt it. If anyone has reason to doubt it they can always buy one and forfeit the warranty to inspect it. I didn't feel the need nor do I now.

[Thumbie]

Nice, good choice.

One less thing to worry about on your car lol.

[KawBoy]

These guys here, but not necessarily from here:

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-assemble...13627838085kt/

[Thumbie]

Originally Posted by KawBoy

These guys here, but not necessarily from here:

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-assemble...13627838085kt/

These appear to be OE replacements. But ECS does offer lifetime warranty in case they fail again.

I see also ECS offers upgraded TA units with Teflon gears. Interesting. Steep price tho lol.

[dakine]

I've had my rebuilt TBAs from //M power motorsports (which I think got renamed to Euro Power Motorsports) installed since 2021 and haven't been happier. I originally went from once in a while limp mode, to every couple months, to every other week to every day limp mode with the stock TBAs until I had these installed. The whole transaction was quick and smooth to include the old core return process. If nothings changed other than the company name, I would highly recommend.