When it comes to finding aftermarket car parts in Australia, people are quick to assume that a lot of those parts are sourced from suppliers overseas. In some cases, they'd be right. For specific car models, parts can only be accessed from exclusive suppliers on the other side of the world like Europe. In this day and age, many parts come from China, where it's much more cost-effective for companies to manufacture components.

You may be surprised to know that Australia has a growing list of companies manufacturing aftermarket car parts locally. There are at least 300 of them in Australia, 40 more than the 260 that existed just five years ago. While these companies cater mainly to Australians as their primary customer base, they also ship parts to countries all over the world. Today, Australian parts manufacturers export to New Zealand, countries in Europe, and even countries in the Middle East!

The outlook for the Aussie automotive industry has been a little depressing lately. This is partially thanks to how major car manufacturers have been leaving Australia in recent years. However, we have a reason to be optimistic. It seems that the aftermarket car parts sector, at least, will continue growing well into the short- and medium-term future.

As mentioned before, there are now 300 or so aftermarket car parts producers in Australia. In this article, we're going to take a quick look at a few big names that are producing quality parts in Australia, for Australians.

Dorman Australasia

Dorman Australasia considers itself to be a world leader in supplying quality aftermarket spare parts. They produce a wide range of components that serve passenger cars, diesel vehicles and even those of the heavy-duty kind. Dorman typically supplies substitutes for car parts that are usually only available to dealers. This, of course, makes life a lot easier for parts installers and the customers they serve. 

Just recently in April of 2020, Dorman announced that they're releasing more than 250 new aftermarket car parts. The most notable among them is a new OE fix-intake manifold and valve cover kit, which fixes a fault that's present in quite a few Chevrolets and Buicks.

Owners of these mentioned cars will be delighted without doubt that a locally-made solution to their problems is on the way!

Harrop Engineering

Harrop Engineering is another notable Aussie aftermarket parts supplier. This one's based in Preston, northeast Melbourne. Harrop is known for producing high-quality performance upgrades for a wide range of vehicles on the Australian market. 

Harrop produces everything from superchargers used by auto OEMs to heavy-duty mining brake components used in industrial vehicles. On top of that, Harrop also specialises in producing engine and driveline enhancers, braking systems, and cooling systems. Of course, all of these are proudly made in Australia. 

Bosch Australia

Bosch is originally a German multinational company that specialises in many things, from household fridges to power tools. However, through Bosch Australia's automotive division, the company also manufactures aftermarket car parts that are quite easy to find all across Australia.

Bosch Australia produces some of the more basic spare parts like car batteries, wiper blades, car brakes, as well as spark plugs. These might not seem like the most exciting car parts to most people. But when it carries the Bosch name, you can bet that it's of the highest quality.

Milford Industries

Milford Industries is another proud Australian company based in Camden Park in Adelaide. This award-winning manufacturer specialises in producing load restraint devices for vehicles. These devices include things like tow bars, roof racks, cargo barriers and more; all of which Milford has won design awards for! These devices are designed to fit almost any vehicle you can imagine; from passenger cars to light commercials, four-wheel drives and even SUVs.

Milford Industries is a family-run business founded about 50 years ago. Today, they've got over 70 employees that handle everything from design, testing, manufacturing, as well as sales & marketing all in-house.

Of all their products, they're known all around the world for their Milford Cargo Barrier. This product protects occupants in the passenger cabin from any impact taking place in the cargo area of the vehicle.

These names are just a few of the successful aftermarket car parts producers in Australia, and there are many more. If you're in Australia or New Zealand, you don't need to look too far to find the parts you need for your vehicle.

By Ray Hasbollah