Low Life Kustomz WTF?!?!

[s14_sport]

Ok, I've held my tongue on this for long enough.

I did the RB25 swap into my S14 myself and I was having issues with my water temp getting really high, a slight misfiring, high knock level readings on my Apexi PowerFC and then wanted a tune and some things cleaned up in my engine bay. So I took my car to this shop back in early October.

So me and the owner decided on doing some more things to it while it was there. My coilpacks were old and cracking so he wanted to replace it with a wasted spark ignition system. He said I needed a shroud around the fan and radiator to keep air flowing where it was supposed to. So we decided on a custom welded fan shroud in aluminum all around the radiator. I had the oem 3 gauge pod in my dash and wanted them hooked up. A new clean looking DIF fan controller put in. Some wires that I had laying across the engine bay extended and tucked. A battery box installed in the trunk where I had relocated the battery. A ground kit installed. Then he said where I had cut holes for the intercooler piping he would put a nice aluminum cover plate over both holes to make it look nice and clean. Also there was a boost leak near the intake manifold and he was going to fix that as well...

he gave me an $1800 estimate and I thought it was alittle high, but, I told him to go ahead with the work.

I don't normally bring my cars to shops, but, when I do I usually get an estimate and if I approve they begin work and call me when its done. Not the case here. I called him week after week to find out when he was going to get started. He hardly picked up the phone, so I had to leave messages. Sometimes he would call me back and feed me some BS about starting the next week. Which never happened. I had alot going on with some family issues and didn't have much time to stay on top of his *** all the time, but, late November I got fed up and found another tuner and told him I needed my car done in two weeks to get it to that tuner who was leaving the country soon. So I guess that must have been when he started the work. He must have been frantically ordering all my parts and everything then because when I went to the shop to pick up my car two weeks later...some of the parts he ordered had still not gotten there yet. So, finally two weeks before Christmas I went to pick up my car.

He had the car outside and it was night, so I took the car on a test drive and then wanted to pull the car inside the shop to actually see my car. The test drive went ok...the water temp didnt rise to much higher then 80C which I was pleased with. But when I started looking around and I wasn't pleased at all. All the things I expected to be done weren't done. No, custom fan shroud, no 3 gauge setup, no aluminum cover plates around the intercooler piping. No ground wire kit. He used a flex-a-lite looking fan controller which I hated and was the reason I got the DIF fan controller in the first place. He said the DIF controller was missing a sensor. Which is BS because its supposed to wire up to the stock sensor anyway. The engine bay was dirty as hell. I sure as hell didnt leave it there like that. He had excuses for everything though. "DHL shipping sucks" Told me to wire the 3 gauge setup it would take like 8 hours to do so he was sure I wouldnt want to pay for 8 addt'l hours so he didn’t do the gauges. So anyway I was just fed up and wanted to take my car out of there. I asked him how much the total was…and it was $2000!!! I asked him why and he broke it down…well this was done and this takes alittle more time blah blah blah blah blah…that’s all I heard “blah blah blah” I’m an I.T. guy and I did some website work for him a month or two earlier which cost him $800 so we subtracted the $800 and I paid him $1200 or something for the work and left there…

So I get the car home and inspect my car even more and find out that he broke my A/C trim panel. Lost my wheel lock for my Rays lug nuts. Knock level readings on the PFC were high still. AND I examined the receipt and he charged me for parts that I never even got and his math was wrong and I was overcharged by a couple hundred dollars. Some parts that he took off my car and I still needed are at his shop. A single 12” fan that I paid $60 for. My DIF fan controller that I paid over $120 for.

Now over the few months that my car was there people were talking crap about his shop and parts he sells in this forum. I even stood up for this guy and said he was reputable. Now I feel like an ***. I even had a lot of work for him to do if he did my work right. A few of my friends were interested in doing RB26 swaps with him. But, there is no way in hell I would refer even an enemy to him now….

Oh I also forgot one tiny little thing. My turbo was spitting out all kinds of oil into the intercooler and out of my BOV. Lots of it. Its been doing this ever since I first started my swap. My turbo is blown and has been blown ever since I got the engine and they never once told me anything about it. How does a shop who I give my car to for troubleshooting my engine problems OVERLOOK a blown turbo?!?!?!?!

I have called him a few times and told him how displeased I was with his work. He said he would refund back the money he owed me and send me the parts he still has of mine. That was over a month and a half ago and I even emailed him.

The only reason I’m even posting this now is for other members’ sake. I got screwed for all of you to learn a lesson…lol I always do my own work and because of issues in my life at that time I didn’t have the time nor desire to work on my car. But, from now on I will always do my own work. That’s the lesson I learned.
Modified by s14_sport at 4:28 PM 2/13/2008

[Joe]

i hate it when im right sometimes...

[Yellow4g63]

Damn that really sucks sorry to hear about that.

[BoostFab]

i hate it when im right sometimes...

ditto that. as i said before they were not legitimate up front from another post a while back.

you are too nice, nice people let these shady shops prey on push-over like you. he probably look on this forum for the wastespark setup howto we posted on here, which was $40 to do. and flex-a-lite controller, that's is $20. i wouldn't pay crap unless they itemize all the cost. dude, you just got ripppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppped. everything you mentioned + labor maybe $150

btw! i hope you learn an expensive lesson.... do me a favor, freaking research, you're an I.T. guy you should know Google very well, wiring should be cake walk.

"Low Life" - give away.

[Cameron]

i hope my turbo that i sold you wasnt the bad one you are talking about...

[s14_sport]

ZenkiCam >> No. Your turbo is golden. All this is what lead me to buy your turbo...

BoostsFed >> Yeah, I know I got ripped. I wasn't even the right mindset when all this happened. My dad got very sick and went to the hospital AFTER I had already sent my car to his shop. So I let him get away with murder...

[Cameron]

Thanks Man!! that is exactly what i wanted to hear!

so you thought it was as clean as I did?

[d356bud]

this brings back old memories

[Shocker]

Name says it all......

[s14 2510's]

If your getting screw from places just report them to better buisness buero. Threaten the place about it first. Trust me you dont want them on your a$$ when your running a buisness. He will go down fast if they see him running a shop like that HEHEHEH......Trust me well worth it.70% of all the complaints filed are resolved. They realy get on him if he ignores all there letters/emails

http://welcome.bbb.org/

Modified by s14 2510's at 6:45 AM 2/14/2008
Modified by s14 2510's at 6:53 AM 2/14/2008

[StricNyne]

man this sucks, cuz small shops like his make people want to stick to the big name shops, espically in a niche market like RBs, i was hoping it was just my experience that was bad but damn

[s14 2510's]

He thinks hes playing low down dirty games with you. Time you show him hes messing with the wrong people. The few local buisness who I have threatend with it were just like bam and they made the deal right. Most places dont want you to file.

[Red93coupe]

A little off topic but s14 2510's are you on D-town or mnnissan? Just wondering, and s14_sport yeah I'm sorry to hear that you got screwed, it sucks that there aren't any real honest mom and pop type shops around to have them look at our cars, bumber for us, that means I need a bigger garage then!!

[s14 2510's]

Im on d-town almost as much as here. I just serf the 2 fourms. Been doing it for years if you cant tell. I bet i have read just about every thing posted on d-town/nico rb section. I just like d-town because they head to drift events as groops. TMF OPOSITION for the win. They hit events hard if you cant handle them its your own fault. Good fourm for local drift/race parts.Hes not going to get screwed if he goes about it the right way. Call him figure out his shop rate. Make your own version of a bill. Add up everthing I mean everthing he could have touched. Subtract like a used price for all the parts he kept. Take your bill you made to him and tell him if he dont work something out in person. Your filing a complaint thought the BBB and they will help you work though you despute. Trust me he will make it right. But if he dont care about his buisness he probly will let it get black flaged.
Modified by s14 2510's at 11:56 AM 2/14/2008

[240luvr]

Don't even waste your time w/ talking to him, that guy can talk his way out of a zip-tied plastic bag... He's not even a real business, he's renting the garage and was denied the permit to run a business... Thus, the BBB could really mess w/ him, because he's running an illegal business...

p.s..... I know from experience... enough said...

When you were there were there still 2 kids sleeping in the office? Last time I checked there are laws against sleeping in a shop... especialy when the kids sleep on the floor.... that's a problem....

[s14_sport]

240luvr >> yeah, this dude has the gift of making excuses...lol He had one for everything.

Anyway there were no little kids sleeping in the shop as far as I could see...

BBB for his ***...

[Urnext]

wow this def brings back memories and since I got involed in that last post and got chewed out by the owner I'm gunna keep this simple I work at Import Intelligence now and I have never met a guy before that will do anything he can for a customer and every swap comes out clean and finished thats where our pride is at.

[Booztd 3]

I knew these guys were bunk when I called them asking about a price on an RB26 motor set and they told me 7k. I laffed and hung up....

[s14_sport]

just filed a complaint with the BBB last week. We'll see how it goes...

[240luvr]

Awesome.... hope all goes well, for you, and horrible for him haha.

[240luvr]

Hey bro wanted to give you a heads up that word around here is that Erik's moving his shop back to Quakertown. When you had your car there he was in Allentown, but he's moving, probably trying to dodge the BBB... so keep on him.

[s13point5]

god i remember emailing low life about getting a driveshaft. they emailed back with a price that i thought i couldnt pass up. then i came on here before replying and thank god i did. i think i dodged a bullet that day.

[OKRB20DET]

NEVER take your car to anyone or shop, or even join a club....if their name has a "creative" spelling...

[s14_sport]

240luver << thanks for the heads up on him moving his shop....keep me posted on this! thanks!

[themadscientist]

the name says it all. I brought it up the last time.

[lilskyline240]

this guy is worthless. there are a couple threads about them awhile back where he was selling mounts to ppl but not having them even made yet. I emailed him secretly asking if i bought the mounts today when he would ship them out and he said next day. but that same day he emailed anothe nico member saying they are backordered. This guy is trying to get business no matter what the cost

[s14_sport]

i have to call the BBB tomorrow to find out whats happened so far...
Modified by s14_sport at 11:17 PM 4/29/2008

[Enlefo]

Lame dude, I hope you get some justice.

[S13 240SX]

i have to call the BBB tomorrow to find out whats happened so far...hopefully i can find out his new location soon and tell them where he is.

wait i know this guy..

he sold me a crossmember.

where did he move to? i live just 35 minutes from the shop address i have now

he moved?

[s14_sport]