Paid Engine builder and 1 year later not done.
09-07-18, 10:04 AM
#26
The Ancient
I am so sorry you went through this. I think most or many of us have been through the same thing or something similar. Maybe its a rite of passage thing. You need to resolve this. You need to inspect your car. People like this will cobble parts from your car to fix another car. They have already completely lost all trustworthiness. In most ways, I agree with those who say get your car and take them to small claims court. In Minnesota, the maximum small claims size is $15,000, which could well be enough to get back all your money.
09-11-18, 12:34 PM
#32
Thanks for all the words and support everyone. The shop got back to me once and went radio silent again. I've drafted up a summons today. All I asked for is a date they can stick to to get it done or to tell me if they can't complete it and we can then come pick up the car. The shop can still come out good on this and no hard feelings by just committing to a date and sticking to it. However, I am not going to sit here and be stung along. I'll update as it goes.
09-11-18, 12:52 PM
#33
I was feeling the same way not long ago. I tried to pick a builder with a good rep because I wanted to avoid this crap, but no such luck.
The rarer these cars get, the less sense it makes to work on them for a living, the less trustworthy shops bother to worry about our dinosaurs, the more we get burned by shops that would have been out of business by now in the '90s.when there was some competition.
We're playing rotary monopoly and 2 or 3 shops have all the hotels.
The rarer these cars get, the less sense it makes to work on them for a living, the less trustworthy shops bother to worry about our dinosaurs, the more we get burned by shops that would have been out of business by now in the '90s.when there was some competition.
We're playing rotary monopoly and 2 or 3 shops have all the hotels.
09-11-18, 01:25 PM
#34
I was feeling the same way not long ago. I tried to pick a builder with a good rep because I wanted to avoid this crap, but no such luck.
The rarer these cars get, the less sense it makes to work on them for a living, the less trustworthy shops bother to worry about our dinosaurs, the more we get burned by shops that would have been out of business by now in the '90s. when there was some competition.
We're playing rotary monopoly and 2 or 3 shops have all the hotels.
The rarer these cars get, the less sense it makes to work on them for a living, the less trustworthy shops bother to worry about our dinosaurs, the more we get burned by shops that would have been out of business by now in the '90s. when there was some competition.
We're playing rotary monopoly and 2 or 3 shops have all the hotels.
09-11-18, 03:17 PM
#36
Penis Healthy
iTrader: (5)
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: █▬█ █▄█ █▬█ █▄██▬█ █▄█ █▬█ █▄█
Posts: 2,595
Received 780 Likes
on
447 Posts
Sure looks Montego Blue to me.
Also you're owed AT LEAST a full refund. Is he trying to pretend that he already started the rebuild and now stopping? What a farce. Nobody stretches a full rebuild over a year.
Also you're owed AT LEAST a full refund. Is he trying to pretend that he already started the rebuild and now stopping? What a farce. Nobody stretches a full rebuild over a year.
Last edited by FührerTüner; 09-11-18 at 03:22 PM.
09-11-18, 03:46 PM
#37
I do know he had plucked the engine and cracked it open to find a chipped apex seal. almost right after I dropped the car off, that step was done within a week or two. then nothing for months, granted I said "no rush" at that time, but I didn't mean no rush for infinity. I asked to have it done by May, so I could catch most of the MN driving season. I still can't get a completion date estimate either. I've been told many times "next week". I'll wait to hear back and hopefully get a response with a date to stick by. That's pretty reasonable to request a date and time that they can commit to have it done by for me to pick up the FD and pay for the completion of the work. I'll have an update this week as I am taking the next step tomorrow after work.
09-11-18, 04:16 PM
#38
I would have to say that Enthu is one of the most reasonable people I've ever worked with! I originally worked on the car a few times to get it squared up when he needed it. Unfortunately, when he brought it to me the last time, I figured it had a cracked apex seal and I just graduated college, got a job 800 miles away, and had to do a rebuild on the engine in my truck, so I wasn't able to the rebuild on it.. I would have figured this would have been a gravy rebuild since all the major components were in good shape so it was a bit of cleaning and some new seals and springs and back in it goes.
I have also heard form others in the area about his miserable rate of progress and pricing on his work. If you get it back in pieces you know I got your back and will put it back to better than before for you.
I have also heard form others in the area about his miserable rate of progress and pricing on his work. If you get it back in pieces you know I got your back and will put it back to better than before for you.
The following users liked this post:
Enthu (09-11-18)
09-11-18, 05:41 PM
#39
I get pissed when I read this, cause brings bad memories lol. Why I keep ready,? Just to know that you've got your car back.
don't wait any longer, go and get your car. Don't hope for the best, it's already too late and you have been too nice and patient about it.
I was told same story and one day I went to the shop( different shop) and sure my car was dusty and missing parts,.
don't hope and sit waiting , it's your car and the sooner you deal with it the best for you.
don't wait any longer, go and get your car. Don't hope for the best, it's already too late and you have been too nice and patient about it.
I was told same story and one day I went to the shop( different shop) and sure my car was dusty and missing parts,.
don't hope and sit waiting , it's your car and the sooner you deal with it the best for you.
09-11-18, 07:12 PM
#40
(Three posts in a row praising these guy...lol, I have no affiliation with them, I'm just a happy customer.)
Not sure how out of resources you are, but the guys at SakeBomb Garage are the ones who finally got my car back on the road. If you have no other leads, there is at least one shop who's trustworthy, does good work, keeps in touch with you and seems to have some pride in their work. I don't think they'll rebuild the engine, but they can definitely sort your FD out once it's back in your possession.
Good luck with the rebuild and good on ya for keeping the rotary!
I sometimes wish I would have LS'd mine....400lbs of smog legal torque is hard to ignore..., but then I'll start my car up and hear that growl that no other car makes. Keep the faith, young Jedi.
Not sure how out of resources you are, but the guys at SakeBomb Garage are the ones who finally got my car back on the road. If you have no other leads, there is at least one shop who's trustworthy, does good work, keeps in touch with you and seems to have some pride in their work. I don't think they'll rebuild the engine, but they can definitely sort your FD out once it's back in your possession.
Good luck with the rebuild and good on ya for keeping the rotary!
I sometimes wish I would have LS'd mine....400lbs of smog legal torque is hard to ignore..., but then I'll start my car up and hear that growl that no other car makes. Keep the faith, young Jedi.
The following users liked this post:
Enthu (09-12-18)
09-12-18, 10:26 AM
#41
I heard back from the builder today. I was given a time frame but no specific date and time. As my wife and I prepared the summons last night during the documentation of communications I had asked for a completion date upwards of 10 times. I've been strung along. So, I will proceed with the summons, at which point in MN they have 20 days to answer. I've no interest in anything but coming out with my car running. in fact, I'll still pay if the work is completed. A this point I think it's important to make it clear that the work needs to be done and a clear time commitment is given. I get it that the builder is running a shop and is choosing to stop building engines, but this last job needs to be finished. There's really 3 outcomes here. Either they finish the build adhering to an agreed upon specific time and date, they return the car incomplete with all parts / pieces or the car is reported stolen because if neither of the two aforementioned outcomes occur I have no car.
09-12-18, 12:36 PM
#42
Dude. Just get your car (including all pieces) and money back.
After all this and you are forced to sue them to make it right, you have no idea what they'll put inside your engine. You could end up with parts that show fine compression at first but are out of spec due to wear and have the engine degrade or not perform well.
Get your stuff and money and send it elsewhere. You can't trust someone that has shown this type of behavior.
After all this and you are forced to sue them to make it right, you have no idea what they'll put inside your engine. You could end up with parts that show fine compression at first but are out of spec due to wear and have the engine degrade or not perform well.
Get your stuff and money and send it elsewhere. You can't trust someone that has shown this type of behavior.
09-12-18, 01:23 PM
#43
Ban Peak
iTrader: (49)
Dude. Just get your car (including all pieces) and money back.
After all this and you are forced to sue them to make it right, you have no idea what they'll put inside your engine. You could end up with parts that show fine compression at first but are out of spec due to wear and have the engine degrade or not perform well.
Get your stuff and money and send it elsewhere. You can't trust someone that has shown this type of behavior.
After all this and you are forced to sue them to make it right, you have no idea what they'll put inside your engine. You could end up with parts that show fine compression at first but are out of spec due to wear and have the engine degrade or not perform well.
Get your stuff and money and send it elsewhere. You can't trust someone that has shown this type of behavior.
You don't want your car branded with a "stolen" history and you don't want their quick stacked "get him out the door" engine. You have been patient for over a year, they have taken advantage of you.
09-12-18, 04:26 PM
#44
Hi guys, this is Elliot now. To be clear Shawn sometimes logs into my name to catch up on messages etc. I do pay Shawn as an employee here to interact with customers as I am just usually too busy. Shawn for example answers the phones here. Shawn has always responded almost instantaneously to the OP BTW.
I am not holding anyone's cars, or money hostage here. Anyone is free at any time to pickup their car, etc. Unfortunately we do get pulled in too many directions too many times, and this one is way over due. I am at the moment almost done with the shortblock. We are at this moment in time not accepting any new engine builds, and have the intention of phasing out cars completely by winter time. We usually only do 3-4 a year anyhow, and those are usually all out builds, with no time frames, and blank checks.
Jeremy I spoke to you on FB on August the 7th, 30th, and this morning. So to be clear you have been in contact with, and to be honest if this was as big of a deal as you make it out to be, why haven't you driven over here? I only took this job on because I felt bad seeing a customer blow their engine, all of the money you have given us has been used on parts, we have seen zero profit. Again I am sorry this has taken this long, it was not my intention.
I am not holding anyone's cars, or money hostage here. Anyone is free at any time to pickup their car, etc. Unfortunately we do get pulled in too many directions too many times, and this one is way over due. I am at the moment almost done with the shortblock. We are at this moment in time not accepting any new engine builds, and have the intention of phasing out cars completely by winter time. We usually only do 3-4 a year anyhow, and those are usually all out builds, with no time frames, and blank checks.
Jeremy I spoke to you on FB on August the 7th, 30th, and this morning. So to be clear you have been in contact with, and to be honest if this was as big of a deal as you make it out to be, why haven't you driven over here? I only took this job on because I felt bad seeing a customer blow their engine, all of the money you have given us has been used on parts, we have seen zero profit. Again I am sorry this has taken this long, it was not my intention.
09-12-18, 05:23 PM
#45
Jeremy I spoke to you on FB on August the 7th, 30th, and this morning. So to be clear you have been in contact with, and to be honest if this was as big of a deal as you make it out to be, why haven't you driven over here? I only took this job on because I felt bad seeing a customer blow their engine, all of the money you have given us has been used on parts, we have seen zero profit. Again I am sorry this has taken this long, it was not my intention.
09-12-18, 06:10 PM
#46
Jeremy I spoke to you on FB on August the 7th, 30th, and this morning. So to be clear you have been in contact with, and to be honest if this was as big of a deal as you make it out to be, why haven't you driven over here? I only took this job on because I felt bad seeing a customer blow their engine, all of the money you have given us has been used on parts, we have seen zero profit. Again I am sorry this has taken this long, it was not my intention.
And really, that bold line from your response is victim blaming b/s. Jeremy held up his end of the bargain and has no responsibility to apply pressure on you. You weren't doing him a favor; you were contracting a business transaction between service-provider and customer. Seeing his car (someone else's property) every day when you go into work should feel the same as though he were there, personally. It may not have been your intention to ignore this as long as you did but that's what happened and you're responsible. The least you could do is own that responsibility by apologizing for how you mishandled this without attempting to share the blame with the person who is suffering as a result.
09-13-18, 11:04 AM
#47
Hi guys, this is Elliot now. To be clear Shawn sometimes logs into my name to catch up on messages etc. I do pay Shawn as an employee here to interact with customers as I am just usually too busy. Shawn for example answers the phones here. Shawn has always responded almost instantaneously to the OP BTW.
I am not holding anyone's cars, or money hostage here. Anyone is free at any time to pickup their car, etc. Unfortunately we do get pulled in too many directions too many times, and this one is way over due. I am at the moment almost done with the shortblock. We are at this moment in time not accepting any new engine builds, and have the intention of phasing out cars completely by winter time. We usually only do 3-4 a year anyhow, and those are usually all out builds, with no time frames, and blank checks.
Jeremy I spoke to you on FB on August the 7th, 30th, and this morning. So to be clear you have been in contact with, and to be honest if this was as big of a deal as you make it out to be, why haven't you driven over here? I only took this job on because I felt bad seeing a customer blow their engine, all of the money you have given us has been used on parts, we have seen zero profit. Again I am sorry this has taken this long, it was not my intention.
I am not holding anyone's cars, or money hostage here. Anyone is free at any time to pickup their car, etc. Unfortunately we do get pulled in too many directions too many times, and this one is way over due. I am at the moment almost done with the shortblock. We are at this moment in time not accepting any new engine builds, and have the intention of phasing out cars completely by winter time. We usually only do 3-4 a year anyhow, and those are usually all out builds, with no time frames, and blank checks.
Jeremy I spoke to you on FB on August the 7th, 30th, and this morning. So to be clear you have been in contact with, and to be honest if this was as big of a deal as you make it out to be, why haven't you driven over here? I only took this job on because I felt bad seeing a customer blow their engine, all of the money you have given us has been used on parts, we have seen zero profit. Again I am sorry this has taken this long, it was not my intention.
Elliot, thank you for responding. I do believe you that this was not the intention, but as the aphorism goes, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. The reality is the car is still unfinished. There have been many opportunities to placate me by saying this would take a year or more or to simply set a concrete completion date that you could adhere to. I have repeatedly requested this asking you to set an expectation. I do respect that you are ceasing engine builds. If it's a service you find doesn't fit your current business it's a good choice so things like this are completely avoided in the future.
Do I believe that this ordeal reflects the level of service for parts or tuning received? No, I don't. it's possible you are world class with other aspects. The previous services I had received from you are why I elected to have you do the build to begin with. It remains though, this job needs to be finished with an expectation set or the job should be aborted. I even opted to buy additional parts beyond just the rebuild as I trust you in this regard. There is still plenty of opportunity to complete this and everything goes great for us both. We can even do business in the future as my build will be far from over once I get the car back running.This thread can end with me saying I got the car back and you did great work. Please feel to call me or email me.
09-14-18, 08:17 AM
#48
We have a strict first in/first out policy to prevent this from happening in our shop, unless the customer specifically requests that we push their project out for some reason (usually financial). Whoever pays their deposit first has their car worked on, it does not matter if it is a first time customer or someone we have been dealing with for 20 years. We build every customer a project website showing their build and give weekly updates via email as well as having Elaine at the end of the phone during normal business hours for any questions. Good luck getting this sorted out.
09-15-18, 08:47 PM
#50
Hi guys, this is Elliot now. To be clear Shawn sometimes logs into my name to catch up on messages etc. I do pay Shawn as an employee here to interact with customers as I am just usually too busy. Shawn for example answers the phones here. Shawn has always responded almost instantaneously to the OP BTW.
I am not holding anyone's cars, or money hostage here. Anyone is free at any time to pickup their car, etc. Unfortunately we do get pulled in too many directions too many times, and this one is way over due. I am at the moment almost done with the shortblock. We are at this moment in time not accepting any new engine builds, and have the intention of phasing out cars completely by winter time. We usually only do 3-4 a year anyhow, and those are usually all out builds, with no time frames, and blank checks.
Jeremy I spoke to you on FB on August the 7th, 30th, and this morning. So to be clear you have been in contact with, and to be honest if this was as big of a deal as you make it out to be, why haven't you driven over here? I only took this job on because I felt bad seeing a customer blow their engine, all of the money you have given us has been used on parts, we have seen zero profit. Again I am sorry this has taken this long, it was not my intention.
I am not holding anyone's cars, or money hostage here. Anyone is free at any time to pickup their car, etc. Unfortunately we do get pulled in too many directions too many times, and this one is way over due. I am at the moment almost done with the shortblock. We are at this moment in time not accepting any new engine builds, and have the intention of phasing out cars completely by winter time. We usually only do 3-4 a year anyhow, and those are usually all out builds, with no time frames, and blank checks.
Jeremy I spoke to you on FB on August the 7th, 30th, and this morning. So to be clear you have been in contact with, and to be honest if this was as big of a deal as you make it out to be, why haven't you driven over here? I only took this job on because I felt bad seeing a customer blow their engine, all of the money you have given us has been used on parts, we have seen zero profit. Again I am sorry this has taken this long, it was not my intention.
On another note how are you almost done with the short block? This isn't a 350 where you can just walk away from fitting rings and get back to it tomorrow. I hope Jeremy is getting a better than average warranty with this thing since the last excuses I heard you had for the delay was you were waiting on a bearing press tool. Who takes on an engine job without the simple tools for the job? If you needed one I could have borrowed you mine, assuming I'd get it back.