Answer: The Delco is on the right and the 2nd to be weighed. That 0.2 oz sure comes at quite a premium, eh?
I think I've taken this about as far as I can take it. My research turned up fault with both the Hayden and the Delco. Now we know why. They are both almost certainly made by Hayden and Hayden's QC is not likely as good as Delco's was pre-bankruptcy. Since then... it appears all bets are off.
It's now luck of the draw. Some guys have many years and many thousand miles on their Haydens and some Haydens AND Delcos have crapped out after 1000 miles. And some have had to warranty their Haydens a time or two with the 3rd time a charm and many happy years following. The big-house stores like O'Reilly's offer a lifetime warranty and I found no reports of hassle when taking one back.
Unfortunately, I did see one report where the Chinese-manufactured Hayden came apart and damaged the radiator. They warranted the part, but not the radiator. But again... the market appears to be at Hayden's mercy.
Overwhelmingly, though, the reports are of failures on the road with a limp to the nearest parts store or a call to Coach-Net, AAA or Good Sam.
*EDIT* Mex points out that Delco's warranty may cover other damage a blowup might bring, where the Hayden warranty likely won't.
So if your OEM goes, you decide what to replace it with, but whatever it is, I'd buy a spare. If one goes, change 'em out, warranty the bad one and rotate it back in the spare parts box. Hope you eventually end up with the one that wasn't put together on the Monday after Super Bowl.
Cheers
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