All, C5 members; I haven't posted on C5 a lot due to my travel schedule but I have been lurking long enough to know this is a good community. This is why I want to advise all that I have been through a very unsatisfactory dealing with Late Model Speed in Indiana. I went to Late Model Speed to save a few bucks on upgrading after Livernois did a great job getting me to 589 rwhp. It is a long story and I am not going to assault character here. I am merely going to state my experience with them and suggest that you all be very weary what you believe. This has been a painful 12,900.00 learning experience for me. I am not going to banter with Late Model Speed here either. Enough of my time and VERY hard earned money has went in their pocket; which equates to an expensive learning lesson for me that I will NOT forget. My car was going to come home a stroker with 8 rib front and 14 rib rear belt with 10% overdrive on the front.
1.) Late Model Speed has an F rating with the Indiana Better Business Bureau. Please search the Challenger/Charger forums for more information.
2.) After many deadlines come and past and the pit feeling in my stomach grew worse; 6.5 weeks came and I forced the car delivered home after advisement it needed some "fine tuning" and had belt squeek. When the car arrived; it would not even run conistently on it's own. Surging and squeeling loudly around my block so bad that I was afraid it was going to wake my neighbors at 5:30 am and I had to fly out for overseas in a few hours; I advised this was no where near 95% and I was surprised it couldn't idle under it's own power without dying. I was told 2 days prior that his folks were "surprised" at how good it idled as it was such a HP monster.
3.) I never got a full dyno printout as he said "His dyno was old and he didn't take good care of it?" When put on a dynojet; I had literally lost 140 rwhp. That's right; from 589 rwhp to 450 rwhp and had no rev limiter while on the dyno. It had to be manually let off as the rpm kept climbing above the limiter.
4.) Upon inspection, after the car was dropped off (paid for); leaks from the transmission and the rear main seal were very evident, my air didn't work, my remote start didn't work, it was literally 2 quarts low on oil, boost bypass wasn't hooked up, interior wasn't assembled correctly from where the ADM gauges were installed but NOT working correctly, just to name a few.
5.) Now we get to the real problems! I was so upset once I returned home and fully inspected the car myself with the notes taken earlier from skilled friends that it was clear the car could NEVER go back to Late Model Speed. Here I was painfully into a 12,900 lesson so I called upon a trusted professional for help. Here is what was found.
a.) Catch can installed improperly
b.) 3 bell housing bolts were loose
c.) 2 intake manifold bolts were finger tight
d.) collectors on the headers were loose
e.) 2nd ring on 4 of 8 pistons were installed UPSIDE DOWN
f.) cylinder walls had excessive scoring from NO SUPPORT RAILS BEING
USED
g.) excessive oil in cylinders and pistons had puddles of oil on top of them
h.) no assembly lube was used on head bolts, scoring the heads
i.) crankshaft had excessive play
j.) All this and the only personal thing I will say is when the car was
delivered and Late Model Speed could see my initial disgust; they actually
had the testicular audacity to say they could have done better if I hadn't
called them so much. I almost came unglued. That was it for me, done.
All this and I only put 4 miles on the car to dyno and was scared to drive it after it spewed oil and transmission fluid.
I just want C5 members to read and make their own choice. I will follow the BBB from this point forward
. I felt a duty to share my experience as the cost for me is staggering even though my "trusted source" is treating me very fairly on getting my car running again, knowing what I have been through. I have not listed many, many things that occurred but I think you get the picture.
Sincerely,
Shooter1