DEARBORN, MI - Ford Motor Co. has posted a new video on YouTube aimed at illustrating what the automaker believes are major safety differences between aftermarket crash parts and OEM replacement parts.

The issue of aftermarket crash parts use in the collision repair industry continues to stir major controversy.

To view the Ford video, click here.

The video includes footage of Gerry Bonanni, Ford senior engineer of paint and body repair, conducting destruction tests on two 2008 Focus bumper beams -- one OEM and the other an aftermarket offering. Another test compares aftermarket and OEM radiator supports made for the MY 2004-2008 F-150. In the tests, the OEM parts fare dramtically better than the aftermarket parts.

The Automotive Body Parts Association (ABPA), in response to the video, issued a statement alleging that the tests shown in the video are "unscientific" and are intended to "squelch competition," CollisionWeek reported. The association said that vehicles repaired with aftermarket parts are just as safe as vehicles repaired with OEM parts.  

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