Issues Getting Car Fixed

[thewhite87ttype]

Its great somebody gets to race bc several weeks and several thousands of dollars and i still cant. Ive been waiting for round two since may 11th. Call me crazy but pay a guy to install and tune a new motor over the winter and follow and pay and do everything he recommended and to only get 1 night with the car(3passes) is wrong. The previous post called him a master tuner and maybe he is but god forbid he change a flat tire(he knows what im talking about) or stand behind his work. So to get my vote in. I vote that the guy is an ass!
Tom with the white ttype.

 

[bison]

Its great somebody gets to race bc several weeks and several thousands of dollars and i still cant. Ive been waiting for round two since may 11th. Call me crazy but pay a guy to install and tune a new motor over the winter and follow and pay and do everything he recommended and to only get 1 night with the car(3passes) is wrong. The previous post called him a master tuner and maybe he is but god forbid he change a flat tire(he knows what im talking about) or stand behind his work. So to get my vote in. I vote that the guy is an ass!
Tom with the white ttype.

Nice post Tom. For those wondering this post is directed at me. This is a great way for me to get me to work on your car. First of all i work a day time job and work beyond that at my leisure. For anyone wondering the car that I was working on instead of Tom's was my black car that hasn't ran since last September. At anytime did i tell Tom i wouldn't stand behind my work or refuse to work on his car. Maybe it's not understood that I work on things at my convenience. I don't always jump when asked to. If I did I'd be dead. This is the same guy that wanted me to call out of work to fix his car so he could race the next guy. The same guy who has offered large amounts of $ to work on his car at very short notice. I am in no way in it for the $. There were many issues with this car from day one. A lot of hands were/are in it. The last time I had this car I had it for about 2 weeks. The double pumper hanger was no good and instead of telling him to get a new one I sourced a used one which took a week to get here. In between this time I took one of good single hangers and used it to make the car mobile. The car had other things that needs to be looked at so I got it going invent single setup which is mire than enough for the combo with alky. So I got it going and immediately found a big issue. The power wire for the alky trigger was not getting power because it was pulled out of the fuse panel. How it got that way no one knows. At this point it doesn't matter because the car didn't show any evidence if lean out. So I got that squared away and tried to add some boost but had a hard time getting more. Put it on the dyno and noticed it dropped boost/power badly at around 5400rpm. A few months earlier the engine did this a little around 5700. It wasnt pronounced though and the car made 601whp@26-27psi. At this point the decision to check the valve springs was made. Most were around 115lbs on the seat. Not enough for combo with a roller cam and 25+psi. The used double pumper hanger came but had no fuel level sender. So i had one tack welded on but couldn't get the assembly in the tank because of the position of the pumps so i had to put in the old single pump again. I ordered a new single hanger from a vendor. At this point the tank was out twice. Another item that was noticed as being a problem was the wastegate actuator. So I took the one off my blue car and and put it on Toms car. It made a big difference and was holding boost quite well. I took my wideband and got it dialed in through 3rd at 10.8:1. The new hanger came in. Dropped the tank a 3rd time for the new hanger. Got it going and he picked it up. 2 weeks ad i waited for 2 hangers. He had some issues with bogging off the line the next time he raced. Probably due to the alky spraying while in the 2 step. So he lost another day of racing. I'd be pissed too. Car is back and the complaint is that it doesn't run right. So I tell him to meet me at otto's with it. He arrives there and tells me that someone has slashed his tires. He replaced 2 of them. He needs a ride back to Southport so I give him one instead of making him wait and pay for a cab. It was an hour round trip with the traffic. When I got back to the shop I noticed the right rear tire is flat. So I let him know. A day or 2 goes by and no word. Then Tom calls and asks when I'm going to work on his car. I state that it's still sitting here on a flat and I can't do anything with it that requires WOT with the leaking tire. Meanwhile I replace the butchered trans cooler lines with some new stainless ones. A few more days go by and the car is still sitting with a flat. Was I supposed to fix this? Idk. I'm not equipped to fix it. So last night as I'm finishing up my car and leave I see Tom changing the tire (12:45a.m.). He's putting a 29" drag slick. So i ask if he needs anything and he says he's all set. So I arrive at the shop this a.m. And the car is sitting with a drag slick on the right and a 2 inch shorter drag radial on the left with the flat behind the car leaning against the steps. The car is still not road worthy. I figured since he was putting both tires on and getting 2 new tires and the car would be street worthy. But i was mistaken. No way to drive or dyno the car the way it is and diagnose why it's bogging down. That's the entire play by play. I am an ass for working on this car. The owner is too impatient and doesn't seem to understand there is a lot going on in other peoples lives. He is likely pissed because I was working on my own car and not his. Well Tom sometimes you just have to be patient. Whatever is wrong with your car can be fixed. Another for the record i've worked on and looked at different thing on this car free of labor. It's very discouraging when you have thousands of $ tied up and can't enjoy all the time but when you race it should be expected. Sorry to be long winded and sorry about typos. This was sent from my iPhone

 

[bison]

*should have said not at anytime

 

[thewhite87ttype]

With all that being said. Lets start from back in feb. Thats when u first got the car. U were to install new motor and tune and everything u recommended i do i did. From brand new fuel pumps to chip to axels to driveshaft. U asured me along the way that what happened to me last year(car blowing head gaskets and not running right) wouldnt happen this year. U knew my situation and knew that wen noght racing was my only relaxation so to speak. So after we race the first time on may 11th i was advised to change the axels and driveshaft. I did both and car hasnt run right since. Next time i take to track i call u from tack and tell u that its not running and u tell me its a faulty ignition wire and tell me how to fix it. I dont fix it and u come to my shop and fix it. It takes u two minutes to fix. Why u werent proactive and had fixed that wire prior to me going racing i dont know. Next time i go racing the hangar in the fuel tank goes. I tow the car to brian and 3weeks later im told its done.so during that time i tell him car runs hot unless i manualy put fans on. He fixes car including that lifter thing and says its runnig strong making power etc. I pick up and take it to track all viatrailor and car wont make it down track. I bring it back and i am told. It ran good the lasttime i drove it. I inform him yhat i paid him to have it run good when i drive it . I am by know means a rich person and brian knows this. He says he doesnt fix cars for the money so therefore why has he taken thousands feom me? So i get car back to him and im told he is workn on his car and my car sits and thats after i just gave him two grand so i could race. All week long my car sits and he goes racing. And im told hey it ran last time he deove it. So since feb he is the only person thats worked on my car with the sole purpose to race on wen. Several thousands(prob over10) and ive been racing once and ive done exactly what waa recommended by him. He says he doesnt do it fpr money. Then give me my money back . So know maybe everyone knows why i am frustrated.. Tom

 

[thewhite87ttype]

Otto, what does"should have said not at anytime" mean? Was that directed at me? and if yes, i dont understand

 

[Otto J]

Otto, what does"should have said not at anytime" mean? Was that directed at me? and if yes, i dont understand

This thread has nothing to do with me. Not sure why you are asking me.

 

[DailyDrifter]

The lack of paragraphs make it very hard to read.

 

[TurboTGuy]

Sounds as if you two should talk this out face to face.

You need to create a realistic and agreeable timeframe for the repairs to be completed, then double the agreed upon timeframe. (cuz stuff ALWAYS happens)

Tom, I feel your pain, I have a car in process too, and I can't wait to drive/race it.

However, if you aren't skilled enough to fix the car yourself well, then you've put yourself at the mercy of others and that's just how it is. Perhaps you need to be more patient. I know it's frustrating but these cars WILL test your patience, believe me!

Perhaps you forget or are somehow unfamiliar with how hard it is to find quality parts and even more so, find quality people to work on these little cars.

I haven't been around here as long as alot of these folks, but in the couple of years I have been around, I haven't read many bad words about the man you have entrusted you car with.

When attempting to correct a difficult and complex issue, blowing someone up publicly usually doesn't result in an ideal outcome for anyone involved.

Would you do this same thing at work?

**

On the other hand, Bison, if I entrusted you with my car, and let's face it guys, this thing does boil down to trust, I would be upset if I read all about your car and the bets and polls and fun YOU were having while I waited around in the wings.

Perhaps you haven't been clear enough in explaining exactly what you need AT THIS TIME from White87 before you can work on his car.


You guys need to talk to each other directly, set the expectation level on BOTH sides and then strive to meet those expectations.

If stuff happens, communicate it.

Be straight up and don't expect the other guy to read your mind.

Come on you guys, this stuff doesn't need to be so dramatic.

I'm jus' sayin.

I hope you can work it out.

 

[bison]

Otto, what does"should have said not at anytime" mean? Was that directed at me? and if yes, i dont understand

I had a typo at the beginning of the post. That was my correction. You can't edit in the feed back section and i typed on my phone.

 

[bison]

Sounds as if you two should talk this out face to face.

You need to create a realistic and agreeable timeframe for the repairs to be completed, then double the agreed upon timeframe. (cuz stuff ALWAYS happens)

Tom, I feel your pain, I have a car in process too, and I can't wait to drive/race it.

However, if you aren't skilled enough to fix the car yourself well, then you've put yourself at the mercy of others and that's just how it is. Perhaps you need to be more patient. I know it's frustrating but these cars WILL test your patience, believe me!

Perhaps you forget or are somehow unfamiliar with how hard it is to find quality parts and even more so, find quality people to work on these little cars.

I haven't been around here as long as alot of these folks, but in the couple of years I have been around, I haven't read many bad words about the man you have entrusted you car with.

When attempting to correct a difficult and complex issue, blowing someone up publicly usually doesn't result in an ideal outcome for anyone involved.

Would you do this same thing at work?

**

On the other hand, Bison, if I entrusted you with my car, and let's face it guys, this thing does boil down to trust, I would be upset if I read all about your car and the bets and polls and fun YOU were having while I waited around in the wings.

Perhaps you haven't been clear enough in explaining exactly what you need AT THIS TIME from White87 before you can work on his car.


You guys need to talk to each other directly, set the expectation level on BOTH sides and then strive to meet those expectations.

If stuff happens, communicate it.

Be straight up and don't expect the other guy to read your mind.

Come on you guys, this stuff doesn't need to be so dramatic.

I'm jus' sayin.

I hope you can work it out.

This post sums it up well. I'm not too easy to get a hold of during the day and Tom is usually too busy to talk at length during evening. It should also be noted that even if the car had the tire problem fixed it still couldn't have been driven. The car is not registered and requires use of one of Toms dealer plates. Tom like everyone wants to have a 600hp toy wants it to run without problems and wants it fixed immediately when it's broke. The unfortunate thing is that unless you are capable of diagnosing and fixing things yourself you will be at the mercy of others. The more power the worse it gets. Calling me an ass on a public forum in his first post does little to motivate me or anyone who might want to get involved. There has been times where my cars sit for months because I'm too busy to work on them or I'm waiting for an engine or some other issue. That's part of the game.

 

[TurboTGuy]

Ah yes Bison.

You have very valid points, however, so does your customer.

The other part of the game is meeting expectations.

YOU are the one that is responsible for setting the expectaion FOR your customer, not the other way around.

If you don't set the bar, your customer will, and said customer will ALWAYS set the bar too high.

The fact that you do what you do from the heart makes people who trust you all that much more sensetive to what they see (read: perceive) as your concern for their needs.

That said, I have found the key to making people happy is to "under promise, over deliver".

Since I have learned to live by this simple creedo, I have not only been hugely successful at retaining a current customer base, but have been able to grow my business by leaps and bounds.

Business lesson over.

Talk to White87.

White87, QUIT BEEACHING and talk to Bison.

Bison, tell him what you need to begin work on the car.

White87, LISTEN.

No, shut up.

LISTEN....... Then tell him what you expect.

Bison, LISTEN......

See above...

Start over.

It really is that easy.

 

[JOHNDEEREGN]

I say that all of us not involved in this from the beginning do not mean anything to the thread...... The OP and Bison need to figure it out.

 

[charlief1]

I will offer this to both of you and have had this issue several times. If the owner doesn't give an accurate discription of the problem and the tech doesn't understand what the issues are then there will be problems with it. I just got rid of an 84 VW Vanogan that has been sitting since 04. The new owner had no idea what was needed to get it running right and b!tched about how long it took. This was after adding 3 gallons of E-85 and looking at it the next morning.

She thought that she could just add gas, oil, and a little air to the tires and take off for kalifornication. I really hate to say it but she was a stupid b!tch that wanted to have the government take care of her.

 

[TurboTGuy]

I will offer this to both of you and have had this issue several times. If the owner doesn't give an accurate discription of the problem and the tech doesn't understand what the issues are then there will be problems with it. I just got rid of an 84 VW Vanogan that has been sitting since 04. The new owner had no idea what was needed to get it running right and b!tched about how long it took. View attachment 140782 This was after adding 3 gallons of E-85 and looking at it the next morning.

She thought that she could just add gas, oil, and a little air to the tires and take off for kalifornication. I really hate to say it but she was a stupid b!tch that wanted to have the government take care of her.

As I stated before "If you don't set the bar, your customer will, and said customer will ALWAYS set the bar too high."

 

[TurboTGuy]

I say that all of us not involved in this from the beginning do not mean anything to the thread...... The OP and Bison need to figure it out.

Nice summation John, but THEY are the ones who aired the dirty luandry.

If you don't wany people all up in you sheets, don't hang them out for all to see.

 

[ttaowner]

the car is this video (about 5 min in) is the car in question

He's a cheater bro - YouTube

from the video looks like it runs fine to me? video was uploaded on may 4 2011

the day the pics were taken was may 11 2011
i was obviously there trying to race and broke a ujoint and my night was over so i snapped some pics. both of these cars went 10.60 @127 and 128 brians was faster,

also i introduced tom to brian and tom to other people as well. tom is super impatient and wants everything yesterday !!!! i can not express that point enough !!!! he is willing to pay to pay for having things done yesterday but sometimes the other person cant or wont do it. i was told before he even offered to pay some people tripple to work on his car / rebuild his complete blown up engine in a WEEK !!! i have sold tom parts .so i tried explaing things to him a bunch of times so since he has no real mechanical ability he doesnt always understand how things work or how one thing is not always related to another.tom is a used car saleman so he sometimes tries cutting corners and its not always the best idea. i recomended bobby at RPE to build his engine and since it couldnt get done in a week ( bobby has like a year wait) he went to another well known great reputation builder who is NOT A BUICK GUY !!!!! so there were a bunch of things that brian had to fix that he wouldnt of had to if tom went to bobby i know this for a fact because i helped brian drop the engine in toms car and helped on it a little. i was also there when tom droppped the car off for brian to work on.

the fuel sender unit sounds like a typical tom move trying to save a dollar that back fires.

the reason this car was not running right last year is because of the surface on your block was questionable to begin with and you were told that upfront and since the guy who did headgasket #1 told you it was a roll of the dice and you decided to gamble on it and it blew again you should of just had it rebuilt right then in there instead of having mechanic #2 a NON BUICK guy work on it which lead to headgasket #2 #3 and #4 you should of thought back to what you wer told by the buick mechanic #1 that you were rolling the dice to beging with since the block had a slight .001 warp to it I BELIEVE.


so if your car is out street racing in may and at the track in may it kinda looked to me that brian completed the original job of getting the car running and tuned. also changing axels and a driveshaft have nothing to do with it not running right? NOT EVEN CLOSE !!!!!TOM I RECOMMEND YOU TO GET A NEW HOBBY IT WILL BE A LOT LESS STRESSFUL FOR YOU. ALSO I DONT KNOW IF THIS HAPPENS TO BRIAN BUT IF YOUR TRYING TO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH TOM AND SOMEBODY ELSE CALLS (PRESUMABLY BUSINESS ON TOMS END) HE MAY NOT CALL YOU BACK FOR A DAY OR 2.I HAVE KNOWN BRIAN SINCE 1998 AND TOM SINCE MAY2010.

 

[thewhite87ttype]

Its great somebody gets to race bc several weeks and several thousands of dollars and i still cant. Ive been waiting for round two since may 11th. Call me crazy but pay a guy to install and tune a new motor over the winter and follow and pay and do everything he recommended and to only get 1 night with the car(3passes) is wrong. The previous post called him a master tuner and maybe he is but god forbid he change a flat tire(he knows what im talking about) or stand behind his work. So to get my vote in. I vote that the guy is an ass!
Tom with the white ttype.

since my post on wen. and after reading thru the responses and comments left by others and brian, i again have something to say:

first and foremost id like to apologize to brian for calling him an ass. it was both immature and unprofessional. at that time i was extremely frustrated.

other than that i feel i did nothing else wrong. i would be willing to bet others would feel the same way i do if they knew the whole situation, not the bits and pieces of info. that was written on here that only tells part of the story.

the picture painted of me and the image people must have of me being an impatient, unrealistic , person who tries to buy my way thru things simply put is unfair.

 

[bison]

Call me after 6 so we can resolve this.

 

[John Wilde]

Guys,

Let's not fight in this thread, especially about stuff that has nothing to do with the TS original intent.
I deleted this flame war in the making.
Let me know if you have any questions.