OMONLA Posted April 29, 2003 Share Posted April 29, 2003 Out of sheer coincidence i happened to come scotts essay on my situation with my mechanic who also happens to be his as well as his friend and needless to say i just couldn't walk away from that post without some sort of a response: "A guy out on the web found me and my car. He came to several Z websites looking for info, and I directed him to my mechanic because he was a local as well. Nice guy mind you, I'm not bashing him. But man is he niave. This guy bought a used l28 turbo engine/harness/ecu/afm etc.. fairly complete. except the oil feed line was disonected and the turbo was bad (broken shaft) it did have decent compression... prime candidate for a rebuild.. this guy wants to stuff it in as is... he also had a GNZ i/c that he wanted installed, and a SS muffler that had a big hole in it. (he wanted it patched up and installed) He also had a bad tranny and needed a new one. (72 240 with auto tranny)" Chosing to call me names is ok but i need to clarify that i found that mechanic on my own,through my own research and not through any help of yours. again if you want that credit sure you can have it. "He got a quote for 700.00 to install the engine and get it to fire. (no i/c) My mechanic is tooo nice, and now it starts The guy comes back a week later expecting to have a running car! he didn't have a fuel pump or proper gas tank, the ign coil for the turbo, and he actually thought that 1 week was too long. even the turbo was broken and had to be replaced! To make a huge dumb story short, its been almost 2 months (waiting for the guy to buy parts, bring money etc etc), the engine starts and runs has a new (used) turbo, a new (used tranny) a fuel pump, and my mechanic modified the fuel tank to work with FI (guy had no money for a new tank") Did he (your friend/the mechanic) ever tell you that i paid him upfront for the complete job before he even picked up his tool 'cos he was getting married and "needed the extra cash" obviously after the wedding he was going away on his honeymoon as expected so i never showed up at his garage until after 2 weeks after he got back from his honeymoon which was approximately 1 month and no scott i never expected the car to be done.however i did expect him to be working on it though and when i passed by his shop and saw my z outside being killed by the weather i was furious considering i had paid for the install upfront! (readers what would you do if it was you?) when i went into the shop thats when he told me that he wanted more money because certain things came up and yes i hit the roof,first of all nothing was done secondly you want more money(again guys weigh-in on this one) again did your friend the mechanic ever tell you that he offered to sell me a tranny from his stock pile only when he found out that i was going to be buying one from our local z parts supplier in your neck of the woods? 'cos he need the money for his wedding turns out the tranny he sells me wont work with my driveline so we have to buy another shaft and have that modified to fit, again i'm paying for that too! and scott how did you know that i never had the money for a new gas tank? did "your friend" mention that to you or did you and i discuss my finances? ? "His bill is at 700.00 and the guy is crying (literally once) that he's being ripped off. and thought that he was going to end up with a 300hp l28 turbo with intercooler, and detailed motor and engine bay like mine!!!!... LIKE MINE???!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This guy knows my car, and I told him long before he even found a turbo engine what a swap would cost..(2-3K to start if someone else installs it) even told him what MINE cost Anyways.. he paid his bill minus some of the parts, and has refused to call the shop to inquire further even after repeated phone calls. He is going to get 1 months notice from this week (i/c install work is halted untill the bill is paid up to current status) after which it will be put into an impound yard and be billed what the yard is owed as well. Still no word from the guy". Crying scott!!! that was laughable to say the least,were you there to console me? never once did i ever compare what i was getting to what you have/had and if you ask you "friend" he'll tell you that i was the one who kept telling him that you and i were not to be compared, ('cos he kept trying to) and that our situation both financially or otherwise was worlds apart afterall scott you do know that i unlike you dont have the luxury of being a grown-up living at home,having a good job ,no girlfriend basically no social life other that your car which affords you the oppurtunity to have an open checkbook policy when it comes to your z. as far as a discussion on what a swap would cost scott when did you have that talk with me? 'cos remember i'm so naive i probably forgot again whomever told you that i refused to call the shop clearly forgot that not only did i call once a week but also stopped by from time to time,and one months notice scott ! who is your source? i wanted that car pulled out of there so many times "your friend" kept telling me it will soon be completed but as of today he is being kicked out of his unit due to some financial dispute with his landlord (again he never told me this) i found out myself while browsing for some other info on the web,we have since talked and i was by the shop today as all his parts and tools were being hauled out again he told me not to worry that he will get my car going by next week tops.(my z has been at this shop since the 1st or 2nd week of 2003 folks). "What do you think? My mechanic feels terrible about the situation, but what do you do with a guy like this? We found out after from his many other connections with speed shops in the Toronto area that this guy has been kicked out of all of them for being so stupid. most said to get that piece of dodo out of there unless you got $5K up front to get started. (the rest of the car is in reasonable shape, but you all know, that highperformance motors require highperformance suspension/brakes, chassis, etc...) Heck he even went to another Z speed shop and was told $10k min to do it right. (they do high end stuff ie twin supercharged viper, but the guy has a passion for modding Z's) I'm not really looking for answers, i'm just ranting a bit. I just can't believe some people... and I sent him to my mechanic... My mechanis is a stand up guy, honest, will go out of his way to help you. We are friends as well, but I can call him anytime, and he will try and fit me in when I really need something". Of course your mechanic feels bad about the situation. my car has been sitting at his shop for just about 4 months and as far as the "other chatter" with rergards to the other shops and my history with them your mechanic is the only one i dealt with because I CHOOSE TO! NOT BECAUSE SOMESHOP SAID GET THAT PIECE OF DODO OUT OF THERE! i basically felt like i can go there on my off days and sit with him while my car is being fixed. there are 3 main z tuners in town one of which you scott wont even visit 'cos him and "your friend" are rivals and according to "chatter" that i picked up when "your friend" bungled a fellow club members motor in the past this "other shop" apparently rectified that problem. the other shop is the one that apparently wanted your so called 10K to finish the job and i simply refuse to visit 'cos of the mans attitude and even YOU wont go there either,then there's "your friend" who apparently is the cheapest z tuner in town which is probably why the mans your friend anyways after all what other tie binds?(dont care to know if any!) I think i have done my best to help clarify things to you and those who didn't get the other side of the story, now i have one question for you scott....WHAT IS THIS BAD BLOOD REALLY ABOUT? you call me a nice guy and state that you counselled me in the past but still couldn't call on me personally instead you felt the best thing to do is to ass me out on the forum! I looked up to you as A MAN scott! not someone who would jump to conclusions without hearing from both sides, i stand corrected. Finally scott before i rest my case i want YOU to remember that long before i came around in my z you guys had a bit of history/issues and all kinds of axe grinding going on in the club,plus those who have bad experiences/issues with "your friend" and when people decided to talk to me about them, they sought me out i never sought no one out to "RANT" to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest tt350 Posted April 29, 2003 Share Posted April 29, 2003 Ill stay out of this. What are we supposed to say? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ProfessorRog Posted April 29, 2003 Share Posted April 29, 2003 call me silly but I sense a disagreement somewhere . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted April 29, 2003 Share Posted April 29, 2003 Whatever man. I never once mentioned who you were. I was there, I know your situation, cause YOU told me all about it. YOU emailed me for his #. I came by the shop, and told him you contacted me on the net, and said you sounded like a real z enthusiast. I stopped by and showed you my car, took you for a spin, and gave you every bit of info that I could...including $ firgures on doing this swap, as well as your canceled mopar V8 swap, and your thougts on a nissan V8 swap, And yes I talk to a lot of shop owners and Z guys, and Supra guys. I have been dealing with my mechanic, and Z's for more than 14 years now. I know most of the Z tuners, and many supra tuners as well. I know what I'm talking about. I have always tried to help out Z'rs in anyway I can, and you took advantage of that. And your right about my mechanic. He isn't in the best shape right now. It doesn't take too many guys to not pay, or just leave and never show up again to hurt business. You went to him to save money as well. Your swap is a 5k swap, at any downtown shop, and I think you know it. I got off lucky, as he is one hell of an honest guy. My swap at anyother tuner shop would be double, and I know that for a fact!! And as far as parts and money go, I told you as well what you needed. Long before you bought that engine. If you don't bring the parts, nothing is going to happen to your car. I am at that shop twice a week, and I have not seen you, or any new/used parts..after your reactions, and inactions..no doubt he was not going to go out of pocket on parts for you.that is the quickest death for a mechanic...and on the gas tank..did you ever bring one yet?..I thought so. NO worries mate. I have met thousands of Z owners over the years now, and many more import/domestic car nuts. I've met all kinds. Just finish your project...and take my advice and make sure you build the rest of the car to support that turbo engine, and take care of that 240. This topic is done and dead. Period. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike kZ Posted April 29, 2003 Share Posted April 29, 2003 Very good response Scott!! Lets not hash this anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPMS Posted April 30, 2003 Share Posted April 30, 2003 Isn't it nice when the group moderates itself? Thanks guys, for both being mature about this. Makes this forum a nice place to spend time. Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavyZ Posted April 30, 2003 Share Posted April 30, 2003 As a moderator I am glad this turned out civil, although I'm very surprised that it made it out here in public---I believe this should have been kept offline first since real names or screen names were never mentioned. I was going to lock this thread and will still do so at the request of either party OR it can just die as I think it should. Everyone not directly involved, please stay out to avoid bumping this topic up. Thanks, Davy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts