Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 12:35:38 -0400
Reply-To: wbarker@NOTES.CC.BELLCORE.COM
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <Vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: Wil Barker <wbarker@NOTES.CC.BELLCORE.COM>
Subject: Re: Fast German Auto rebuilds and core charges?
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This is the first time i've heard anything bad about AVP.
- Did they help you out with the defective seat??
(i did hear that some early heads from AMC dropped a few seats)
I've had a good experience with AVP.
I was setting about to replace my 1.9L with a 2.1 (delayed / stopped due to
an illness in the family) and they have been very helpful in working out
all
the details of the rebuild. They spent allot of time on the phone helping
me fully understand all the options I had. They seem to care allot about
and enjoy helping people with their VW engines. Kyle from Volks MOtor
Sports has seen their shop and says it is very well organized and
they decided to use AVP instead of expanding their own rebuilding
operation.
Also they're warranty is parts and labor (i was very surprised) so if a
part goes bad
they said they'll pay (national average $35/hr) to have the part pulled and
reinstalled.
I've talked to a few other rebuilders who warrant their engines
(12mo/12Kmi) but you have
to pull the engine and ship it back to them (they'll spilt the shipping
cost) so they can check it out.
I can't imagine anyone going through the hassle / downtime of collecting -
i guess that's the
idea.
I had no problem with the core charge. They said they would only charge me
if
they didn't get my core back within 30 days. I think they make their money
by building
engines not by keeping people's money.
Anyway, I hope to be able to finish this project with them in the future.
(my water pump just died too)
- Wil
'85 Westy GL
New Brunswick, NJ
I'm just going to note. Stephens will give it to you hard on the core
charges as well, with the prices FGA lists perhaps even considering the
core
charge they aren't so bad. And I've found Stephens and AVP "quality" to be
somewhere between questionable and laughable. AVP is quite liberal and
will
give you your core money for near anything, which makes you wonder about
their parts, made me wonder why a seat collapsed from day 1 and lasted
about
5000 miles on a 2000cc rebuild. Stephens screws you for the core and
delivers ill machined or incompletely machined junk (waterboxer head
experience.) So all things considered, somebody should try these guys out
and give a definative answer. The air cooled charges aren't so bad after
all, wasserboxers are a bit hefty. Some may say I've been unlucky with
vendors, I say I've just been a bit more descriminating than the average 16
year old kid. We've heard about the core policy from FGA but no real pans
on quality I recall in the last 4-5 years so who knows?
John
janderson@iolinc.net
