AutoNation, the country’s largest automotive retailer, will soon begin selling its own line of branded parts. At the same time, Ford has announced it will begin selling a new line of “competitively priced” auto parts under the new Omnicraft name. At this time, Ford says its Omicraft line will not extend to collision parts, and there are scant details about AutoNation’s plans.

Ford says the Omnicraft line will include 1,500 of the most commonly requested parts, including oil filters, brake pads and rotors, loaded struts, and starters and alternators. Plans are for the list of available parts to eventually grow to 10,000.

AutoNation, which sold more than 430,000 new and used vehicles last year, with total revenue of $21.6 billion, owns and operates 371 new vehicle franchises. The company, which made its announcement at the 2017 National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) conventin, says it intends to use its deep customer database to market its own brand of parts. There is no word yet the AutoNation line of parts will include collision parts.

It is interesting to see Ford, a major proponent of OEM parts, is dipping into the lower cost aftermarket in an effort to have a competitive parts price point. AutoNation, with more than 10 million vehicles sold since its founding, can market their parts to a huge database of customers.