Part number madness, need some clarification from the swap guru's Options

[enderswift]

hey everyone,

I'm hoping you guys can help me out with some part number research. I managed to get my hands on a copy of Toyota's EPC and its been a great asset in collecting parts Only problem is, I'm seeing some part number contradictions between whats posted on 6gc and other sites, and whats listed on the EPC catalog. Basically the epc lists part numbers piece meal whereas 6gc has part number for kits. Heres an example:

the EPC shows a 3sgte oil pump assembly to have a part number of 15100 (and gives separate part number for the associated gaskets and seals)
The stickies in 6gc give a oil pump assembly number of 15100-88460

I'm not exactly sure what those 5 extra numbers represent.

is the 6gc number a kit number? (meaning it comes with all gaskets and seals?)

[lagos]

The first 5 numbers are called the PNC. The PNC is just a general code we use to classify a part. So in this case, 15100 just means oil pump. The other 5 numbers (88460) determine what vehicle the oil pump is for. So basically 15100 alone is useless, you need the full 15100-88460 part number to order the correct oil pump.

Another thing to keep in mind is that over time, part numbers change due to supersessions. In this case, if I look up an oil pump for a 90 st185 3sgte, the parts catalog gives me 15100-88381 for the entire assembly. This is probably just due to a part number change, and normally if we try to order a part using an old part number, it will automatically update to the correct new part number.

And for a fun fact... the parts catalog that is floating around the net is VERY old. These days we don't even call it an EPC. We use Microcat for looking up part numbers. http://www.microcat.ifmsystems.com/

This post has been edited by lagos: Jul 4, 2011 - 10:51 PM

[enderswift]

Thanks a bunch man! very informative. And yea I figured the epc was old, especially when i had to run an xp virtual machine in win 7 to get it to start. Well, I guess I have more work to do. Do you have any more details on microcat? It doesn't seem like they sell to the public, which makes sense considering Toyota no doubt wants to make cash on maintenance. What would you say is the best way to go about getting a comprehensive source for part numbers? ToyoDIY no longer has diagrams, my EPC is outdated, all the sites have numbers for different gens or contradicting numbers, and I really don't want to just walk into a dealer and piss off the parts counter guy with 45 min of part searching haha

[lagos]

Microcat is not sold to the public, but is also not made by Toyota as people seem to think. Microcat is its own company. I'm sure they partner with Toyota and other manufactures to get the diagrams, but they do their updating and support. Its probably because this would be too big of a job for Toyota to do, especially since the catalog is updated on a monthly basis.

The reason why its not free to the public is because they would loose a lot of money from dealerships, mechanics, and body shops that would just use the free version instead of paying the licensing fees.

Your best bet is to use Toyodiy and the posted part numbers on here. For the most part they are correct, and if there is something you want to order, just do it through Partznet. You can give us the part number and also specify what it is (like 1990, Celica All-trac, waterpump) and mention that you are not sure about the part number. We always double check them before sending orders out.