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      01-13-2017, 08:07 AM   #309
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Shane, I have been following this thread from day one and I am in awe at your self control.
I would have flipped my lid long ago.
Anyhow, is the car in your hands now?....or are they holding it hostage??
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      01-13-2017, 10:08 AM   #310
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Currently being held hostage under an additional invoice that would aid them in discovering why the car is pre-detonating. I'm not willing to pay the invoice amount so we have been talking back and forth for about a week to find a solution. We have not arrived at anything yet. Possibly more resolution to follow later today.

Quote:
Originally Posted by dbarton62 View Post
Shane, I have been following this thread from day one and I am in awe at your self control.
I would have flipped my lid long ago.
I also sincerely appreciate this comment, it did not go unnoticed. It has been a testament and a logical (and possibly financial) approach is all that's kept me level headed. A lot of times I just consider the escalation of force where I would definitely lose time and time again... I think that fear puts me in check every single time.

Thank you dbarton62 for the kind words.
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      01-13-2017, 12:12 PM   #311
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I've made them a counter proposal on the bill they've tried to push forward in regards to the "additional repairs" that need to be made, but no solid figure there. I've also made them another offer which I'm waiting for a response on. I'll keep y'all posted. It's still back and forth and nothing is going anywhere.

For sure deploying to Africa in August though, so that's some good news.
Shane, has full discovery of the cause been determined???
I'm not really following how any kind of negotiations can be performed without determining fault.
Or am I missing something?

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Originally Posted by dbarton62 View Post
Shane, I have been following this thread from day one and I am in awe at your self control.
I would have flipped my lid long ago.
............
^ Plus 1 to this
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      01-13-2017, 11:32 PM   #312
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Quote:
Originally Posted by inTgr8r View Post
Shane, has full discovery of the cause been determined???
I'm not really following how any kind of negotiations can be performed without determining fault.
Or am I missing something?



^ Plus 1 to this
I'm in the same boat and they're starting to do that. The new course of action is to put the ECU back to the stock map and verify that the tune had only been installed at their place of business and never before or on the first motor to debunk any lingering theories. After returning the car to the stock map they're going to test drive it and ensure that no additional damage will occur to the motor. If this test does not succeed they will likely have another course of action for me which will involve some sort of monetary value. However, I'm unsure what that might be, but they will want something in return for their services in discovering what the fault may actually be... I'm fearful of the rabbit hole.

Oh and thank you sir.


One more note: They took the loaner car back.
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      01-14-2017, 12:58 AM   #313
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Sounds like they are a bunch of idiots who won't stand by their work. They must have fucked up somewhere if the engine isn't running right.
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      01-14-2017, 08:28 AM   #314
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It's time to start looking for a shop that's willing to take this on to both figure out what the real issue is AND willing to document what they find for use by your attorney to file suit and recover as much of what you paid this shop as possible.
The tough part of this is you're going to have to wait until the current shop says the car is good to go before you can take it elsewhere.
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      01-15-2017, 12:53 AM   #315
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Does the shop have the ability to read MAF sensor voltage in real time?
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      01-15-2017, 12:23 PM   #316
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Does the shop have the ability to read MAF sensor voltage in real time?
Maybe with the tune from Epic, but I'm unsure. I could ask them that after they complete returning the tune back to stock to see if that is the issue.
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      01-16-2017, 06:32 PM   #317
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Tune has been removed and the original ECU map has been flashed onto the vehicle. Randy confirmed by email that the tune was installed at their place of business with one of their techs. I'm really interested to see where the next move goes and if I'll have transportation by the end of the week.
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      01-19-2017, 04:51 AM   #318
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      01-20-2017, 11:32 AM   #319
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I've relegated myself to documented emails in order to request various information from the shop (probably should have done that a while ago). I unfortunately have not received any additional information regarding the outcome of the vehicle after returning the the DME/ECU back to the stock map. They have informed me that they drove the vehicle 5 miles on Wednesday but we've had some pretty rotten weather here in Austin recently. Hopefully they'll send me an email or leave a voicemail for me regarding the status later today, but I still do not have transportation

I'm working the rest of my options to move forward and ensure that the promises that were made are kept, but they have not provided me a lot of the information to move forward.

They also informed me that I had somehow been speaking negatively about their business but will not provide me the names nor the specific accounts of where I have done so. I stand by the statement that I have refrained from doing so, regardless of what conclusions others may have drawn from my personal experiences with the shop. When something doesn't get done over the course of ONE YEAR, 3 months, 2 weeks, and 5 days (477 total days) I'm pretty sure that speaks for itself, but it's not like I'm counting or anything.
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      01-20-2017, 12:01 PM   #320
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Arsonism View Post
They also informed me that I had somehow been speaking negatively about their business but will not provide me the names nor the specific accounts of where I have done so. I stand by the statement that I have refrained from doing so, regardless of what conclusions others may have drawn from my personal experiences with the shop. When something doesn't get done over the course of ONE YEAR, 3 months, 2 weeks, and 5 days (477 total days) I'm pretty sure that speaks for itself, but it's not like I'm counting or anything.
I can't say I'm sorry enough Shane, and now that they're pulling this on you I wouldn't expect anything but a barely running car back from them. From everything I've read in this thread you're working with some real winners, and for them to even give you any grief after all of their mistakes and incompetence after 477 days is as low as you can get.

Guys like this are who give mechanics an awful name. This is the exact nightmare scenario that no car owner ever wants to experience. I went through it about 15 years ago, and it completely changed the way I've dealt with automobiles and mechanics since.

Good luck.
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      01-20-2017, 02:05 PM   #321
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Sorry, I really hate to think this way, but I can guess what the outcome of this will be.

Since the shop is in full control and only they know what's happening.......
They will find what they screwed up, fix it, blame the tune and not tell you what they did.
And then dump a major bill in your lap to pay before they give you the car back.
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      01-22-2017, 09:20 AM   #322
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Quote:
Originally Posted by inTgr8r View Post
Sorry, I really hate to think this way, but I can guess what the outcome of this will be.

Since the shop is in full control and only they know what's happening.......
They will find what they screwed up, fix it, blame the tune and not tell you what they did.
And then dump a major bill in your lap to pay before they give you the car back.
I feel the same way, do you have a good understanding of the laws regarding mechanic's liens in your state?

You probably signed a contract when the car entered the workshop. Good place to start but state or federal law may superseded parts of it.

If they gave you a lower car, did you sign anything that might make you liable for the costs of the rental or mileage?
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      01-22-2017, 09:56 PM   #323
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Quote:
Originally Posted by inTgr8r View Post
Sorry, I really hate to think this way, but I can guess what the outcome of this will be.

Since the shop is in full control and only they know what's happening.......
They will find what they screwed up, fix it, blame the tune and not tell you what they did.
And then dump a major bill in your lap to pay before they give you the car back.
That's where I have already argued with them ensuring that something like this doesn't happen. I do not have the money to invest into this car past what I have already committed to and although they have not responded to me in regards to the updates after the original map has been installed, I have a hard time seeing where they'll come up with another bill and then even if it does, that bill will be reviewed and a warranty issued otherwise I likely won't drive away with the vehicle.

Quote:
Originally Posted by rjahl View Post
I feel the same way, do you have a good understanding of the laws regarding mechanic's liens in your state?

You probably signed a contract when the car entered the workshop. Good place to start but state or federal law may superseded parts of it.

If they gave you a lower car, did you sign anything that might make you liable for the costs of the rental or mileage?

I am educating myself rather quickly and seeking help wherever I find trouble. There are a couple of options out there for myself and I really hope that one of them will work out. More-so I really hope that this will not come to that and things will be resolved peacefully, however from my understanding that's really not looking very possible nor plausible regardless of how much patience I seem to exert.


They did give me a loaner car and when they did the first two times I had filled out the paperwork but on the third one (the last loaner car that I was using) I had not filled out any initial paperwork and I was asked to complete the paperwork at the time they picked up the loaner car but due to the circumstance I did not fill out said paperwork. I cannot offer more details on that situation at this time.
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      01-23-2017, 07:21 AM   #324
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Wow mate, I am still hoping for a good outcome man. Still my fingers are crossed..
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      01-23-2017, 07:35 AM   #325
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Wow mate, I am still hoping for a good outcome man. Still my fingers are crossed..
+1 sure hope it all works out
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      01-23-2017, 08:40 AM   #326
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Arsonism View Post

They also informed me that I had somehow been speaking negatively about their business but will not provide me the names nor the specific accounts of where I have done so. I stand by the statement that I have refrained from doing so, regardless of what conclusions others may have drawn from my personal experiences with the shop. When something doesn't get done over the course of ONE YEAR, 3 months, 2 weeks, and 5 days (477 total days) I'm pretty sure that speaks for itself, but it's not like I'm counting or anything.
Agreed. They are clearly monitoring this thread.

Good luck for swift and happy resolution to this.
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      01-24-2017, 06:54 PM   #327
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Arsonism View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by inTgr8r View Post
Sorry, I really hate to think this way, but I can guess what the outcome of this will be.

Since the shop is in full control and only they know what's happening.......
They will find what they screwed up, fix it, blame the tune and not tell you what they did.
And then dump a major bill in your lap to pay before they give you the car back.
That's where I have already argued with them ensuring that something like this doesn't happen. I do not have the money to invest into this car past what I have already committed to and although they have not responded to me in regards to the updates after the original map has been installed, I have a hard time seeing where they'll come up with another bill and then even if it does, that bill will be reviewed and a warranty issued otherwise I likely won't drive away with the vehicle.

Quote:
Originally Posted by rjahl View Post
I feel the same way, do you have a good understanding of the laws regarding mechanic's liens in your state?

You probably signed a contract when the car entered the workshop. Good place to start but state or federal law may superseded parts of it.

If they gave you a lower car, did you sign anything that might make you liable for the costs of the rental or mileage?

I am educating myself rather quickly and seeking help wherever I find trouble. There are a couple of options out there for myself and I really hope that one of them will work out. More-so I really hope that this will not come to that and things will be resolved peacefully, however from my understanding that's really not looking very possible nor plausible regardless of how much patience I seem to exert.


They did give me a loaner car and when they did the first two times I had filled out the paperwork but on the third one (the last loaner car that I was using) I had not filled out any initial paperwork and I was asked to complete the paperwork at the time they picked up the loaner car but due to the circumstance I did not fill out said paperwork. I cannot offer more details on that situation at this time.
Dude, I understand your position. But unless you really have an a huge compassion for this shop and an understanding how this project might be affecting their cash flow I think you are avoiding the inevitable. Perhaps the sooner you recognize this, the sooner you can move on to the next step.
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      02-15-2017, 12:38 PM   #328
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I was contacted by who I believe is an insurance adjuster yesterday on behalf of the shop. Not really sure what that entails yet. They had mentioned that they were talking to an insurance company, I just didn't realize it was this sort of insurance. Pretty strange.

Also I'm not sure why I didn't respond to your post rjahl and I apologize for the delay. The complication with something like that is just ensuring you play the game right. One I've never personally gone through. I also want to ensure her I'm still being reasonable in regards to all parties so that should it be taken to another course of judgement other than peers, there is nothing to fear.
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      02-19-2017, 02:04 AM   #329
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Still standing by mate, thx for the updates. Still in awe at your self containment and patience.
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      07-13-2017, 11:41 PM   #330
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Oh boy, I hadn't realized it had been nearly five months since I had last posted here. Lots of things have taken place, however none of it on the vehicle.

For the matter of settling things with the shop, well, I'll leave that out of here for now. Currently I'm working to retrieve the vehicle and I'll have some options. It's opinion time again, because I have absolutely no clue what I want to do with this situation yet again.

SITUATION
I'm going to be deploying soon as most of y'all know. The mission will take me away for around a year, so there's plenty of time for most every option to move forward. The M Coupe will be paid off before December. I will have no debt, non-taxed income from overseas, and a much larger paycheck altogether. When I return I will need a mode of transportation other than the motorcycle that I currently own now (just bought it in May, I will post photos). I've already dumped a substantial amount of money into this car, with next to no regret mind you. This is an object which I love and adore, although it has brought me a significant amount of agony in the latter two years of ownership.

WHAT THE CAR HAS CURRENTLY
- Motor that's currently pre-detonating or something to that effect
--> Some 2004 M3 Lower and upper with my rods (resurfaced and re-machined by local machine shop, I do not have their names)
--> New pistons (although unsure if damaged and to what extent)
- New radiator
- New oil cooler
- Entire oil system revamp
- New clutch/flywheel (UUC)
- New Brakes and Discs
- Epic Tune
- New coated headers
- Every mod I've put into the car to date.


OPTIONS
- Continue to work on repairing the makeshift motor that the shop had put into the car.
- Put a whole new motor into the vehicle with an official BMW shop.
--> Caveat to this is maybe sneaking in deals of a warranty on a new motor, not comparable to a new car but something to at least ensure its function.
- Have Lang Racing rebuild the motor in the vehicle currently
- Make some frankencoupe build with another BMW or other motor (I'm almost at that cost currently).
- Something else?


RESOURCES
Mind you that about $20,000 has been invested into the car itself so far. I'm not really ashamed of this number anymore, it's just unfortunate that it's reached the point that it has. Would you still move forward?

The real question for all of this is, is it worth investing more? I'm attempting to remove the emotional out of this, because I know we all love these cars, but with all the failure so far and a perfectly functioning

Or the final option, bench this, buy a new car and use a warranty for once in my life (I'm not sure I want to adult this hard, but I mean whenever you know you're supposed to adult and don't, well we've seen what happens).

----------------

The car will likely be my Daily Driver and if not I'll look to see what I can do to restore it. For those TLDR.

I'm looking at the above options because I will be:
- I'm deploying for a year or longer
- Have a significantly larger amount of disposable income
- Will need transportation solution when I return


Input?


(For those of you asking why this has finally come up, it's because I'll be towing the car soon more than likely as the property that it is currently stored on is not occupied by the shop anymore and at that junction I might as well have someone else start working on it or ship it somewhere else. If I have to buy a storage unit, I'm wondering just how large that unit is going to have to be, and if this vehicle will be stored there or restored somewhere else).

----------------

Oh yeah, the overall situation, still not good.


SMALL ADMIN NOTE
I will likely post something formally in regards to the full outcome if that information is released, use your imaginations and you likely know what's going on. Apparently I know the folks that are friends with the guys at the shop and I don't mean to berate them at all here, that's never been the intention of this thread. The mechanic and the shop have both felt that I have done such, really I don't feel that this has occurred. Obviously the situation isn't favorable for either them or me, but there is a reality that both parties have had to deal with and that is the time frame of the repair and the status of the vehicle. This thread has never been here to call out or abuse anyone's reputation, if that has been implied so be it, there's not much I can do on that front. However I feel it is important to address that the outcome is still undecided and that currently I hold no ill will towards the shop as we are still working to resolve a number of points. That is not what this post is about, it is about moving forward as I will have limited ability to move parts around come October 2017 and I figure I should find a solution prior to that point in time.


Hope everyone's been well and thank you as always for all the support and advice through this whole endeavor.
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