First of all I want to say that I completely agree with you that cheap parts equals poor quality, I don't think there is anyone who has visited any of the forums who can be left in any doubt about the poor quality of the cheaper parts suppliers.
I'm not sure that it follows that the cheaper parts were "demanded" by the consumer though. I think it's a bit of a chicken and egg situation - people bought the cheaper parts because they were available thereby encouraging the suppliers to supply more cheap parts. Blaming the consumer for wanting cheaper parts is blaming people for being human - of course everyone wants cheaper parts! When I'm hungry I want to eat - it's what makes us human! Now - if you took a poll of people and asked them whether they didn't mind sacrificing quality for cheaper prices you would possibly receive quite a varied response. Some people might decide that a poor quality part would be fine because they only ever use their Land Rover once a month so why pay for a decent quality part that will last many years when it wouldn't need that kind of longevity. Others may say that some non-critical cheap parts were fine but that when it came to brakes or clutches they would buy the more expensive ones because they didn't want to compromise on those bits that took a lot of time or were safety critical. Others may explain that they always bought genuine parts because they were aware that the genuine parts were better and they had the money to be able to afford them. The responses would possibly be a reflection of the different ways in which people use their Land Rovers, but it would also probably reflect how much money people had available to spend on Land Rover parts.
I think It is this disparity in people's attitudes towards, and use of their Land Rovers (particularly Series) that is the cause of the frequent spats on so many threads between the people who have the motivation and money to "do the job properly" and the people who want to do the job as cheaply as possible so that they can get back on the road. The predictability of the arguments over which welder to buy, whether to invest in a compressor etc etc is one of the things that I find incredibly unhelpful about these forums as there are always people who will advocate what has worked for them and it will always be the exact polar opposite of what has worked for someone else. This, in itself wouldn't be such a bad thing, if you didn't end up with the impression that each of the parties thought the other shouldn't really have a Land Rover because either they were too rich and didn't appreciate the "true spirit" of the Land Rover bodger or they were too poor to "do it properly" and therefore shouldn't be entitled to drive a Land Rover until they could afford their own fully equipped workshop and a stock of fifteen Sorned Land Rovers "for parts".
On the other hand, it is this disparity between people's attitude towards, and use of their Land Rovers that has resulted in there being so many of them still on the road. One thing that I am absolutely certain of is that there wouldn't be a fraction of the Land Rovers still on the road without the availability of the cheaper parts. I dont know whether that's a good thing or a bad thing. The elitists would probably argue bad while the bodgers would probably argue good?
I suppose I would like to buy a reasonable product for a reasonable price. I don't want complete rubbish, but I cant afford genuine parts all the time - a nice middle ground would be right up my street. That just doesn't seem to be an option for most things though. There will always be a place for cheap parts as there will also always be a place for more expensive quality parts. I don't think the consumer can be blamed for that though. It is basically down to the business people who want to sell things to source the products that they sell, the choice for the consumer is pretty limited.
I don't find it distasteful that companies make a profit. What I find distasteful is the inflated value many business people put on their time / products. Having spent a few years living in a very isolated spot I found it quite educational to see how the local businesses worked. If the local plumber put his hourly rate up to £45 per hour, the electrician, motor mechanic, night club DJ et al would follow suit. The price of everything was dictated by how much the business people thought they could get away with charging and one or other of them would put up their prices at least twice a year! Of course, when the local adult education centre ran courses on plumbing or DIY or motor mechanics the courses were fully booked within hours! The consequence of that was that the local businesses got fewer and fewer customers - but they still wanted to earn the same large profits - so they put the prices up even more! No one was happy - the business people were constantly complaining that local people didn't support the local businesses and the local people were constantly complaining that the local businesses were ripping them off because they couldn't take their custom elsewhere.
I'm sure it wasn't too long ago that many business people (possibly mainly small local businesses) were seen as having integrity, honesty and good value at their very core but those days have now long gone. Rather than being satisfied with doing a good job and getting a reasonable reward it seems that the vast majority of businesses are now obsessed with maximising profits, cost effectiveness, expansion and pricing "strategies". It is now such a rare occurrence that I find a decent, honest, reliable non-greedy firm that when I do I always try to let as many people know about it as possible (the last one was our carpet fitter - I asked him whether I could write him a testimonial).
I think there would be a lot of customers for a business that wasn't too greedy, treated people well, produced / sold decent quality products at reasonable prices. But that doesn't seem to be the way most businesses work these days so we are stuck with the choice of "stack em high sell em cheap" or "sell a few but sell em for as much as we can" types. Both these types will get business because that's pretty much all there is but I would really love to see something different / better come along.
i'm not on holiday so felt like a rant
You demanded cheap. You got cheap and have to live with it. If you demand quality and accept the increase in cost you can have parts which are fit for purpose. The law now prevents businesses from speaking to each other about pricing. Just imagine if company A spoke to company B and said " why don't we both raise our game and offer better quality at a fair price. Our customers will benefit as they will get better product and we will benefit from a greater level of profit". Swiftly followed by prosecution for price fixing/ running a cartel.
Distasteful as it may be to some, businesses have to make a profit, partly to reward those who have invested in the first place and partly to provide the funds to make the business grow, be stable and prosper.
I'm on holiday, too chilled to rant so this is just a view of the world as I see it.
