Re: [Chrysler300] Advice on engine repair

["Shannon LabLoverDC@xxxxxxx [Chrysler300]" <Chrysler300-noreply@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

This is what he was supposed to do for the $3500 plus parts.  I'm not sure yet how much sourcing of parts might have been done.


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In fairness to him, we don't know yet how all of this is going to work out.  Maybe he will agree to an adjustment--I don't know.  Or maybe the parts were far more than what we were expecting.  He had mentioned when we first started probably about $1,000 in parts, so that's what we were thinking, but they could have been much more.  

I think our plan at this point is to try to present a reasonable case, pay his price for the parts (even if they are more than anticipated), and ask for a compromise on labor over the $3500.  I don't want to threaten legal or other action, or get into a big argument, as the bottom line is that he has my engine, and I need it back, intact, so I think we're stuck with paying his price.  Hopefully we will be pleased with the quality of his work, which of course is an unknown at this point.  If the engine performs beautifully, then overall I will be happy--still upset at being taken advantage of and perhaps paying a lot more than I was quoted or what the job should have cost, but having the car run well is still what matters most to me.

I appreciate everyone's opinion on this.

Shannon

PS. Not sure if the server will remove the flyer I tried to insert to show what he was supposed to do.

> On Mar 8, 2016, at 4:06 PM, John Grady <jkg@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> 
> Hi Shannon, 
> 
> A lot depends on exactly what he did, especially if sourcing F specific
> parts...--which really is not in your e mail,  ---but seems 2x to me, B
> blocks are not that hard, non F hard parts that wear in them are common to
> many engines. Did he have to buy many new specific to 300F parts? A list of
> those? Who paid for the 2nd  letter car engine? And how much? 
> 
> Balancing? That goes all over the place,  1000 even.
> 
> I had to pay 8500 for a "rebuilt" 300D California "pig in a poke" 392 long
> block w carbs a few years back...I knew it was a rip off... whole brand new
> 500HP B blocks or A blocks run on a dyno from Indy engines are less than
> that, ---but --how many real 300D engines are out there..?? My 300C had no
> engine at all. To add insult to injury, while machining on mine was very
> good, ( we took it down to check it) and it was painted up pretty,  he had
> hydraulic lifters on the D cam, wrong diameter pushrod ends, some non D WCFB
> carbs from a marine app, no pulleys, no starter  etc etc . Built by a good
> BBC Chevy marine engine guy, good machinist probably, who apparently knew
> nothing about 300D engine specifics. It came out of a long abandoned in a
> shed Hemi ski boat.
> 
> I got in his face about wrong carbs and pushrods etc , wanted 1000 back, got
> no where. In retrospect I turned his very real and obvious ethics problem
> into my own personally irritating problem for an extended time, raised BP
> for nothing gained at all .  . It is better for your head to walk away, but
> put up a sign for others. Maybe a cheap lesson--- to walk away personally
> intact with a good engine. Get it in writing, obviously, is one take away.
> Or even better,  a person you can really trust, too.
> 
> Now that 8500 above is not a  rebuild, that is a rebuild and an engine....a
> hemi engine.
> 
> It also cost me really a lot to get a good high end rebuild on our special
> ram carbs. Can get near 1000$. Scary, --I will think twice maybe next time
> on that ..But job Was perfectly done, no complaints, praise even, beautiful
> work...I knew the number going in, just a question of real value received.
> No ---maybe that is not even the right way to say it. Guy did ~900 worth of
> work, did I need that much work on a carburetor pair??. Probably not. I paid
> because he did do it. Again --if as good as brand new ones, they  are
> comparable to today's new  500$ big AFB, so from that view I guess OK , if
> as good as new. They appear brand new. The old screwed up ones with bad
> needle seats and loose shafts are not worth much. ---We might think they
> are, but not really. They are cores, like the engine going in, to some
> degree.
> 
> None of this is an explicit answer, but if you ended up with a perfect new
> overbored 300F engine, and it performs perfectly, has a warrantee, ---and
> you had to buy that,--- that is where it probably is , $ wise--nothing to do
> with sad $ path to it ; hope that makes both of us feel a bit better.. But
> not by much. And you kicked in at least one engine core. 
> 
> Post the guy's name. That is how you fix this. 300F rebuilds at this guy are
> 10k, lots of tear jerking story goes with it.. approximately 5 k worth. 
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:Chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
> Behalf Of Shannon LabLoverDC@xxxxxxx [Chrysler300]
> Sent: Tuesday, March 08, 2016 1:22 PM
> To: Chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [Chrysler300] Advice on engine repair
> 
> I'm afraid I already know the answer here, but I'm going to ask the group
> for any opinions which might help.
> 
> Quite some time ago, we took our motor to a reputed old Mopar engine
> rebuilding specialist/machine shop for a complete and thorough rebuild.
> From what we could tell at the time, he had excellent credentials, was
> reputable, and knew what he was doing.  The project was delayed initially
> when we discovered the engine which came with the car (300F) was not the
> correct year, but with kind help from Scott Tozzi and Don Verity, we managed
> to secure a proper, date correct engine.  Now, finally, the motor is
> supposed to be finished, and ready to pick up.
> 
> The problem we are having is with the bill (although we don't know how the
> engine runs yet).  We were initially quoted $3500 plus parts for a very
> thorough rebuild.  Unfortunately, we did not get a written estimate per se,
> but instead he gave us a printed flyer he had which described his process
> and the price in great detail.  It was one and a half full pages, single
> spaced, VERY detailed, described the whole procedure, and even discussed
> tolerances, etc..  Basically, it's about all you can do to a normal engine,
> at least from my knowledge.  We didn't want any high performance mods--just
> a stock, very reliable motor.  We did say we were OK with minor
> modifications to enable running on unleaded gas or to create significant
> improvements in reliability.
> 
> So far, we've given him $4500, and thought we were nearly paid up, but today
> he said the motor is ready for pickup, and he wants another $5000!  We
> haven't seen the parts bill (I know he put in pistons, and maybe a cam,
> which we didn't want), but we were floored.  The initial discussion started
> to go south over the phone, so we thought it better to go there in person to
> deal with it, which we plan to do on Friday.  His explanation so far is that
> the $3500 was a special he was running at the time, but it took a lot longer
> than what he thought, so this is his bill.
> 
> My belief at this point is that we are getting totally ripped off, but I
> don't see any other choice but to pay his price and get our motor back.  I
> suppose we would have a weak case in small claims court for the overage (I'm
> guessing about $3500-4000, depending on the parts cost), but otherwise I'm
> at a loss.  
> 
> Does anyone have any better ideas than paying the "ransom?"
> 
> As an aside, can anyone tell me what a complete rebuild on a 413 from a 300F
> should cost?  I guess if the going rate was about $9K, I wouldn't feel as
> bad, but that seems awfully high to me for a normal performance motor.
> 
> Any advice or thoughts would be appreciated.
> 
> Shannon
> 300F convertible
> 
> ------------------------------------
> Posted by: Shannon <labloverdc@xxxxxxx>
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



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Posted by: Shannon <labloverdc@xxxxxxx>
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