faslane505
Full Access Member
so i wasn't going to do this publicly, but i feel obligated to do so now. as many of you know, about 3 months ago i blew my engine. dodge voided my warranty because i was "racing and abusing the truck".....i can deal with that. so then i decide to go ahead with the rebuild (almost a full rebuild....2 rods and 2 pistons and a crank) and THOUGHT i was taking it to a respectable builder. i picked the truck up in austin, tx last friday. i was so excited...everything appeared it was going my way.truck drove great..sound from the new headers was fantastic..new clutch, new flywheel...lots of new parts. it was alot of money...but worth it. anyways so im under the hood a couple days after i picked the truck up gettin ready to clean my volant air filter when in noticed a set of vacuum lines just dangling in the front of the engine bay on the driver's side...not connected to anything. i grab them and follow them to the underside of the throttle body...im sure it is really easy to overlook such a small object. i mean sure..i wasnt real mad about this...it was a easy fix. Nonetheless...its something that should have been taken care of. so i hook it back up and THEN notice that the IAC (idle air control) does not have anything on it! i started really racking my brain on this one. i think when i first got that Volant CAI..i didnt hook the IAC up to the intake (bonehead move)....the volant intake had a rubber cap instead of the rubber hosing that leads to the IAC. Now granted that was something i did with the old engine for about 25,000 miles....which could explain for how the engine blew the first time, my fault completely... but with a new engine...being built by a certified viper technician....its the mechanics responsibility to identify those types of foul ups and get it right. so i ended putting about 400 miles on this truck while all the time the engine was sucking unfiltered air. i was so mad at this point....but even still, i wasn't going to make a big deal about it...i was just gonna say something to Robert about it and be done with it. so it comes time for my 500 mile oil change. i take it to my local car wash/oil change facility and get the full service job done (minus the happy ending) and about 10 minutes into the oil change the manager asks me to walk downstairs to the oil bay and that he had something to show me. i walk downstairs and i get to where we are standing under my truck and he points up to the cross member and start pulling bolt in and out of the holes. one didnt even have a nut and the other 3 only had a couple turns of the nut on them which left a good inch+ of wiggle room. at this point i am just furious and burning up the phone with robert and him telling me that he get back with me. just moments after i get off the phone he calls me back over to the truck and then he points to the transmission mount. i dont know if it was where the tranny mount bolts to the crossmember or if it was where the tranny mount bolts to transmission...either way, there is a spot for 2 bolts....and NO BOLTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I DONT GET IT!!!!....i dont believe it affected the drivability of the truck at this point since i had drivin it 500+ mile with it like that and for the simple fact that i hadnt had it over 3000rpm yet. so i called back Robert just moments later. No answer. i leave a voice mail explaining the latest problem with the "missing bolts" situation. havent heard from him yet. so today im out getting a few things from around town and im exiting off I-45 and after slowing for a moment or 2, at about 50mph I down shifted to 3rd and then heard a very distinct metal on metal tapping sounds. i immediately pull over into the first parking lot i come to sure enough its coming from the engine...quickening its metal on metal tapping/screaching with every tap of the gas. truck has 800 miles on the new rebuild. im positive none of the other problems had anything to do with the engine taking a poop...but what it does say is how close and how thorough this "viper tech" pays attention to his work. nothing against Robert....hes a great guy and really helped me alot through my rebuilding process and cut me one hell of a deal. But if i have any say in this what so ever...i will never let that viper tech touch my truck ever again. its completely unacceptable for that many items to have been overlooked in the final stages of such a big and expensive job.
Like i said at the beginning...i didnt want to do this publicly, but in light of number of mistakes in correlation with the blown engine, i felt something needed to be said ive rambled on enough for the time being...
Like i said at the beginning...i didnt want to do this publicly, but in light of number of mistakes in correlation with the blown engine, i felt something needed to be said ive rambled on enough for the time being...
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