a great example of how NOT TOO DEAL WITH A MACHINE SHOP

Grumpy · Mar 22, 2018

heres a post some guy had on a different web site

I dropped my l motor off at a local machine shop in atlanta. I recently moved here so the shop is new to me but looked very clean so i told them to let me know what the motor needs.

The pistons needed to be replaced. It was turbo motor and I had some detonation hurting 3-4 pistons. That was a given visually. So I told the owner to get me a price on the pistons and let me Know what deal he could get. I usually bring the shops in the last my parts to use.

So I go onto the shop yesterday to see what’s going on and they say I owe $3150.00 for bore/hone, balance, line hone, deck and RE oring the deck. The pistons are Ross turbopistons included at 1050$ in the total.

They also welded up some knicks in the head combustion chamber and pulled all the valve guides out and said I need all new ones. The heads still need to have a valve job.

Question is- this entire time I’m waiting on what the cost on the pistons would be and told them not to start until I know all the pricing of what needs to be done.

Am I on the hook for all this? Honestly I would of just moved to my new motor and not done any of this to the old one. Originally I thought it only was getting a set of pistons. Any input is appreciated. I have not signed anything

I see this crap all the time,but at least in this case it looks like the repair works actually being completed,
I've seen several cases where a machine shop closed without notice and the guys engine dis-appeared in the process,
or guys go charged for work that was not even done
and its the result of trusting a stranger who is in business to make money,
and you having no control at all on whats done or the related charges
turning your engine over to any machine shop, without having a detailed discussion with the machine shop owner, is basic insanity!
(having a documented and signed list of what needs to be done and a listed cost and time frame,
is like having a pre-nup agreement to protect you financially and legally,
if things go very unexpectedly badly!)
You really need too be starting off with ,making a well detailed list,of whats too be done,
and agreeing on, an explicit listed time frame, too finish the work listed,
listing exactly whats too be done and expected cost on whats too be done,
written down and listed in a signed written document,
is about as smart as dropping your kids off with a group of known pedophiles,
and not expecting problems.
the guy above will most likely either forfeit his engine , and never get it back,
or pay what ever the machine shop listed charges are to get his parts back.
failing to have a well documented agreement in writing is going too in almost every case,
cost you a lot of cash you failed to expect too spend.
if the machine shop won,t give you a signed documented parts and labor cost document .. find a different machine shop!
terms like,

" we should get to that in a few days"

"come by next week"

"let me see whats involved and we will call you"

" that looks simple enough, but we won,t know until its carefully inspected"

"that valve job and short block assembly, will be based om parts and materials and labor , based on the time required, generally it takes a day or so,
give us a call day after tomorrow "

can be translated into....
"you better have deep pockets this is going to cost you 3-5 times what you expected at a minimum!"

READ THROUGH THE related threads
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/finding-a-machine-shop.321/#post-59253

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...on-picking-a-shop-to-do-work.5053/#post-33138

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...g-with-a-local-machine-shop.14419/#post-74397

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...n-buying-used-engine-blocks.14305/#post-73107

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...ting-started-in-the-car-hobby.339/#post-52906

http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/machine-work-costs.3169/#post-8452

http://garage.grumpysperformance.co...ing-to-partially-fill-coolant-passages.14545/

http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/bare-minimum-tools.11026/

http://garage.grumpysperformance.com/index.php?threads/storing-a-spare-engine.614/#post-46169

a great example of how NOT TOO DEAL WITH A MACHINE SHOP

Grumpy

The Grumpy Grease Monkey mechanical engineer.