Date: Fri, 15 Oct 2004 11:08:50 -0400
Reply-To: Kenneth Wilford <kenwilfy@COMCAST.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Kenneth Wilford <kenwilfy@COMCAST.NET>
Subject: Re: AMC Heads (My views)
In-Reply-To: <074101c4b22e$5b0d6220$0a0ba8c0@RON>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
Actually this all boils down to a valve issue. What valves are the
folks using? Here is your statement:
"My AMC 2.1L heads do NOT have these valve stems because I do NOT get
them from AMC's U.S. importer. Mine are fully assembled in Europe by
AMC themselves."
The valves are what is supposedly causing the problem (the stem is part
of the valve in case you didn't know).
So what valves are any of these folks using? Who knows? I could be
wrong but unless you know the brand of valves that Marnel is using here
in the US and you know the brand of valves that AMC is using in Spain
then you are just guessing that they are different, better, etc. I
don't know these things. All I know is that in my experience as
installer and a parts sales person I have had no problem with the
readily available US version valves.
That is what I am saying.
The cheaper isssue doesn't bother me one bit. This is America. Some
folks like cheaper. That's fine. I have never had my goal to be the
cheapest, although I do feel that my prices are competitive. When folks
call me they usually talk to me directly. Since I have replaced many,
many heads I can talk to them about the job and tell them what is
involved, what tools they are going to need, what other parts they will
need to get the job done right and without having to make separate
orders for things they didn't think of. I don't know how many times
customers get their mechanics to call me and I talk them through work
which they have never done before. So my extra so many dollars per head
is actually paying for my extra customer service and time on the phone.
Some folks like that. That is why I am here.
No hard feelings I hope.
Thanks,
Ken Wilford
John 3:16
http://www.vanagain.com
http://www.strictlyvwauctions.com
http://www.eurovan.org
http://www.vwcabrio.org
Phone: (856)-327-4936
Fax: (856)-327-2242
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf
Of The Bus Depot
Sent: Thursday, October 14, 2004 4:43 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Re: AMC Heads (My views)
> As far as the valve stem issue goes I have been installing
> and selling these AMC heads for about 6 years now. I have
> never had one have one single problem. I know that other
> vendors have made much of this supposed problem. It is also
> very convenient how they all have some magical fairy dust to
> sprinkle on the heads so that only their particular ones that
> they sell don't have this problem. Some like Go Westy charge
> more for the dust, others throw it in for free (very nice of
> them).
And then others, like me, charge LESS for the ones with the magical
fairy
dust sprinkled on them. :-)
Look, AVP, who does nothing but build Vanagon engines all day long every
day, is tearing apart every AMC head that they get from the U.S.
distributor
because of this valve guide issue. Having seen the mushrooming problem
firsthand, they are afraid to warranty their engines otherwise. Why
would
they go through this time and expense if there were no problem? Maybe
they're being overcautious and 99% of the heads would be perfectly fine
anyway. But when you go to the trouble of replacing heads or an engine,
overcaution is a good thing. What's more, AVP's not the only one to
experience this. Go Westy has reported the same problem, and I've heard
it
elsewhere as well.
The point is, why even risk it? My European assembled heads, which do
not
use the allegedly questionable valve guides, are actually CHEAPER than
those
that do. Why would anyone choose to pay more AND take an unneccessary
risk,
even a small one, for no reason? Maybe the valve guide problem is
common,
maybe it's quite rare, or maybe it's nonexistent and AVP and others are
replacing perfectly good valve guides on brand new heads for no reason.
Either way, what's the downside to playing it safe?
- Ron Salmon
The Bus Depot, Inc.
www.busdepot.com
(215) 234-VWVW
_____________________________________________
Toll-Free for Orders by PART # : 1-866-BUS-DEPOT
