Fabspeed fit problem? - Page 3

Stuttgart951 · 03-20-2003, 08:22 PM

Does Fabspeed have a showroom or anything similar? Im sold on the muffler/bypass/chip setup, but not until the fitment issues have been worked out.

They're right down the street from me - If they do have a place to check out products, Ill stop by, ask about fitment progress, and report to you guys next week.

CarreraCat · 03-20-2003, 09:52 PM

Thanks guys, I can't wait to get one. I go for smog on Monday and then I'd be ready for the premuffler. How long does it take to get the premuffler from Fabspeed?

Wavey · 03-21-2003, 05:31 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by ckelly
Last time I spoke to Joe he was having a new jig built, said he was going to try to take care of the stock he has for now. I will be sending my jig to him as well as soon as I get the call tag.

Should know something soon I'm hoping.

I was hoping to wait until next week to post an update, but as this problem remains unresolved by the manufacturer, I think I have to say something.

I think Clay is being entirely too kind. His car has been on jack stands for over 3 weeks waiting for a solution from Fabspeed. I've been dealing with it for over 2 weeks and nothing from Fabspeed yet. I know he's not happy with the situation at all.

In all fairness I have to say that Fabspeed first offered to send a replacement. Clay tried this option and got a part with the same problem. Fabspeed also offered to send a replacement to me, but I don't see any point in that as it now appears that he has a shelf full of mis-manufactured pieces (he said he had over a hundred when I ordered mine in early February).

Fabspeed's next solution was for us to get it fixed in the field, and he would reimburse any costs. He suggested that a muffler shop could cut and reweld the part. Just lovely - a brand new stainless part that cost $250, with cuts and welds and the polished finish ruined. Not a solution.

I did get an offer for a refund, but the problem with that is that I did a lot of research before I bought this part, and if I could get one to fit I'd like to stick with it. I still believe that it's "the" part for this application. Clay discovered that Windspeed sells a Dansk euro premuffler that is made exactly like the OEM part for $319. In hindsight I wish I'd known about that in the first place - you can be assured that the Dansk part will fit perfectly and should provide the same performance. And the additional $70 seems like nothing at this point. I've wasted way more billable time than that looking for a solution.

I also called everyone I could find that was a dealer for Fabspeed, hoping to find a pipe that was made before this problem arose, but everyone drop-ships from Fabspeed so that's not a sloution.

2 solutions are in the works: first, Clay made a jig that Fabspeed is going to look at as soon as they send a call tag and it finds it's way back to Pennsylvania. After that Fabspeed says it will take at least 3 weeks to manufacture replacements that fit. So that's a month out from this point.

Second, I have test-fitted mine again, taken measurements and done a drawing which I took to my machinist. He's going to fabricate a jig to mount it to his milling machine, and mill the inlet flange on an angle to swing the pipe toward the driver's side. It's going to be a cut-and-try process so it may not fit the first time. In Fabspeed's defense, they have offered to pay for repairs in the field, so it fits the first time and I get reimbursed I'll be satisfied (barely) and willing to chalk it up to a bad experience. I hope to have the part back by early next week.

If mine doesn't fit the first try, I think I'll return it to Fabspeed for a refund and order a Dansk part.

I'm not trying to be a jerk about this. I understand that manufacturers can have problems. However, Fabspeed doesn't seem to be able to quickly identify the problem, fix it, and get correct pieces out to their customers. That's the definition of customer service, not "fix it yourself and I'll pay you back". How hard would it be to get a used OEM cat and check the jig? Shouldn't take more than a day or two. Then it shouldn't take more than another day or two to make replacements for the people who've already paid for them. The whole thing could have been resolved in a week if Fabspeed had taken the problem seriously and taken action. As things stand, it will be at least 7 or 8 weeks from the time the problem arose to the time the customers are taken care of. That's unacceptable.

Still, the part is beautifully (even if incorrectly) fabricated. The welds are first-rate and the polished finish is beautiful. The performance improvement and great sound are well documented. If it fit right one might be justified in spending $250 for it.

I'll post more when I know more. I'd certainly be happy to see Fabspeed post their response to all this.

CatteraCat, I'd recommend looking at the Dansk part if you're ready to get the job done.

bill3667 · 03-21-2003, 05:44 AM

I've done a Google search on Windspeed & Dansk but didn't come up with anything worthwhile. Can you point me in the direction of windspeed?

Thanks,
Bill W.

Wavey · 03-21-2003, 05:50 AM

Sorry, my mistake, it's Windward:

http://www.windward-perf.com/

Clay said he talked to them and they have the Dansk for $319. Correct me if I'm wrong, Clay.

Embs · Embs's Garage

In my humble opinion:

Fabspeed does have some really great products, but they do have customer service issues and Fabiani has a punk-ass attitude unless your rolling in dough or you know him.

Read back through my past threads, they recently hung up on me, as I was trying to order parts. I ain't going back and I WOULD have been a repeat customer.

If I have to put up with shat like this, i'll do without or find another supplier.

ckelly · 03-21-2003, 06:52 AM

You are correct, Windward said they had them in stock, I haven't heard a lot of good feedback about their customer service, maybe worse. I spoke to the Dansk rep and they offer both a painted and polished pre-muffler, I'm trying to get price and avail on both at this time.

The rep said that Pelican should be able to get these, but when I called I was told they're not available? Called the Dansk rep back and said to try a different vendor, I'd rather buy from Pelican if I can... Wayne???

Dansk P/N's are 92.100 amd 92.100S

Still waiting for call tags at this time...

BGCarrera32 · 03-21-2003, 07:15 AM

Well, I don't know if you have any comments on this...but I'd appreciate any info. I ordered a euro-premuffler from Huntley Racing yesterday...they say 1-2 week leadtime for manufacturing...$237 with shipping.

Anybody know any good/bad about them? I heard someone else on this board went with one and was pretty happy...the shot on their website makes it look like a nice product.

http://www.huntleyracing.com/engineproductswhole.htm

Once I receive I'll be sure to post an update and photos.
Comments?

-BG

CarreraCat · 03-21-2003, 07:26 AM

Thanks Wavey and all. I was afraid of ordering a Fabspeed only to get a piece from there current stock. I looked for a Dansk Premuffler but didn't find it anywhere. Thanks for the link. How good is the Dansk Premuffler? Is it a good piece? How is the sound quality? Is it excessively loud? In any event I'm getting a premuffler soon, I can't wait.

Thanks again!

CarreraCat · 03-21-2003, 07:30 AM

Hey BG! That pic on the Huntley site looks just like the Fabspeed piece! I hope they are not just distributing Fabspeed, cuz you could get a off set premuffler.

Wavey · 03-21-2003, 07:33 AM

Potential bad news: the illustration on their website is exactly what's on Fabspeed's site. I'd be willing to bet that Huntley is selling Fabspeed's part and it will be drop shipped from Fabspeed, and you already know the story on that. I'd be amazed if you had a part that fits in 2 weeks, but at least you paid $30 less than Clay and I! :>

I should point out that this is fit problem is mainly an issue when it's being installed with an OEM or similar muffler (like a Dansk Sport), where you don't have much wiggle room to shift the muffler. If you're fabricating your own muffler or using some other aftermarket unit you may not have a fit problem.

Good luck with it!

BGCarrera32 · 03-21-2003, 07:44 AM

Oh goody! For Pete's sake. Even the description is almost verbatim as to what's on the Fabspeed site. You guys are probably right. And I'm using it with a stock muffler. Well, we'll wait and see. It still looks like a well built unit, but I sure hope that the alignment issue is sorted out...thanks for the heads up.

-BG

ckelly · 03-21-2003, 03:37 PM

Spoke to Joe today, he still does not have a new jig built!! I asked if he had a stock cat yet to build one and he said they did locate one and they're in the process of building one now. (took me about an hour)

I asked when he'd have stock ready to ship, his reply was 1-2 weeks for reconstructed units.......interesting BG???

When asked how long for new stock, said as soon as the old ones are sold, about 30 days or so roughly.

Oh, and he didn't send the call tags out as he said he would, as he's going to "take care of me later"

Just ship it to him as cheaply as possible. I think I'll just send him my homemade jig at my expense as I really don't care at this point, maybe it will help someone else out.

Not sure what to do now, might be a good time to gank my Dansk muffler off and try the SS Dynomax like SK did. Dual out dynomax Then I won't have to futch with the mismade pipe at all, I can just custom fit everything.

Mike Feinstein · Mike Feinstein's Garage

Man, the more I read, the luckier I feel. I ordered a premuff in January and it bolted right up to my stock muffler with no problem. Took 2 months to get my muffler from Joe, but it's perfect too.

Must be clean livin'.

Stuttgart951 · 03-21-2003, 06:05 PM

Do the fitment issues apply when attaching the pre-muf to a Fabspeed muffler? Anyone?

SK · 03-21-2003, 06:16 PM

Hey Clay, Just so your hopes aren't too high.... When I ordered my Fabspeed Pre-muffler last August, Joe kept telling me it would be here in a week. I must have heard this 6 times or so from him before receiving it in October.

Mike Feinstein · Mike Feinstein's Garage

Michael,

The Fabspeed muffler is clamped to the inlet/outlet(s). So, you have a lot of flexibility getting it dialed in. The inlet can slide inside the muffler quite a ways. I'd say you have about 1.5 -2" of left/right flexibility with the intake pipe to get things lined up. Additionally, you can shift the muffler itself, left or right a bit. Just be sure that you can line up your tail pipe(s) in that context.

Bottom line...no, the fitment problems with the Fspeed rig aren't the same as the stock muffler because the inlet is not welded on.

Clay, it took north of 2 months to get the muffler. I get the impression they're built as they are ordered. I got a number of "shipping next week" messages but my only advice is...be patient if this is the setup you want.

ckelly · 03-22-2003, 06:12 AM

Not interested in waiting any longer at this point. I got fed up with it and clamped my pre-muffler in the vise and took the angle grinder to the inlet flange. Took about 1/2 of the flange thickness off the very end, tapering to zero at the opposite side. Seems to rough fit okay now, but I'm going to put it on a wheel and true everything up so it will seal. Also found the inlet and outlet flanges are not stainless, they're chromed steel, so I should have some nice rust going on well at some point...I was told the Dansk is all stainless, just like their mufflers, for what it's worth.
Seems crude, but I'm sick of this whole ordeal, it's nice weather here, and I've got cabin fever and want my pcar off the jack stands.

I'm going to send Joe's other pipe back to him, actually I'm not, I'm going to wait and see what kind of deal he's going to make me first. I will not pay full price or anything close to full price + the 2nd day shipping I paid, for an item that requires me to rebuild before it will fit. I get the impression that Joe has bigger fish to fry, I'm sure a $250 premuffler for an "old" 911 isn't as important as the 500-1000 muffler and exhaust systems he's building. Maybe it's not, but customer service is, and at this point, I think it sucks. I've waited and waited, called and called, emailed pictures, offered my help, but I still get told about a week, about 2 weeks, whatever. Joe needs to suck up the fact that he's got a manufacturing problem and deal with it and be honest to his customers. In speaking to the Dansk rep, I was told Joe used to use the Dansk pre-mufflers, if so, why couldn't he replace his with the Dansk for now?? Oh, the almighty dollar, that's right, I guess a couple of bucks is worth getting your name drug through the dirt. In my profession, we have always taken customer service and satisfaction as the number one priority, even if it means losing a couple of bucks, that customer will keep coming back and you'll regain that loss in future sales.

There's that soapbox again........

Needless to say, I will NOT use fabspeed again, not because of their products, but because of the customer service or lack thereof that I have received.

I plan on using the pipe I have for now, I have some concerns about the inlet flange being too thin now and warping. I have a Bursch straight pipe as well, and it's flanges are pretty thin and they have warped, not to the point of not sealing, but obvious warpage. I'll post some pictures of the carnage when I get it close to being completed.

MotoSook · 03-22-2003, 06:32 AM

Clay, take no crap from these vendors. Unless we voice our displeasure loud enough for these guys to feel the pain, we are stuck dealing with inferior parts and service. As Porsche owners (and other parts hungry types) we need to let them know the strength of our wallets.

I get the same crap from vendors who make 6 figures of profit from one order or job, and I make damn sure they feel it when they don't give me the quality of product and service I deserve. Just got a new replacement unit recently from a particular vendor, and they paid for the install, shipping and my time! Now they will not mess up again or it'll be free units for me all the time. I think I have their attention!

Good luck with Joe.

Doug Zielke · 03-22-2003, 07:11 AM

"I got fed up with it and clamped my pre-muffler in the vise and took the angle grinder to the inlet flange."

My intent here is not to add fuel to this (Fabspeed) fire, but....

All this trouble over a pre-muffler? A regular old test pipe would give you about the same power increase, *if* there is any to be had at all.

FWIW, before I got SSI's, my SC was equipped with a GHL S/S test pipe. It was at least as well made as the Fabspeed product, but with one major difference....it fit.