bad, mean and clever people..., ...around enthusiast people. Options

[malpaso]

first of all: this is not about anyone from this site. I just want to share (maybe it helps someone here to think twice before they make a decision to make deal with someone you do not know).

I always knew when somewhere are enthusiast people is always at least one who would like to squeeze money from them... You can find them anywhere. But it never came in my mind I meet some self. That is why I lost my first Celica in 2009.

I took my Celica as "family member". I knew I never let it go and keep the car forever so I put a lot of money into it. Engine rebuild, turbo kit, new paint, new suspension, design... everything. It was perfect car pushed to the limit so I needed someone I can trust to maintain it around. I know many good mechanics but unfortunately they are not in CZ . And having mechanic 1000miles away is not "true blue" (as OZ friends would say ). So... I led recommendation of some people from Toyota Club CZ and found the "best guys around" - bunch of local mechanics. It seemed they has knowledge, experience so why not... Everything has started when they checked my car. I received tons of recommendations what should be done with my car... "You need new injectors, new ECU, rings and probably few seals to change... lets spend like $3500 and it is perfect. If not engine can break anytime". Because I wanted to have reliable car and to not loose it thousand smiles from home on one of my great trips I decided to go this way. After few more discussions another results came: "it would be good to rebuild engine = use forged internals and better turbine... to be for 100% sure. It would cost another $3500." Something like that was for me bit hard to accept.... I mean why to put another $7000 into once rebuild-ed and turbined engine to have the same power??? So I asked for another solution. Advice was: put inside 3SGE and turbine it... budget $12500.. It the end I should have perfect and reliable car with 3S engine that has 300-350HP... It was good vision for me. Jump from 200HP to 300-350HP. Car had everything new... only "weak spot" was the engine as they told me... so I took loan from bank and everything started.

After 4months I understood it was scam. $4500 from those $12500 was pure profit and those guys did not know what they doing at all (because never saw 3S engine before and took just info from internet). When I found what is all about I stopped the project and fortunately got some money back. Unfortunately I lost $3500, had another $3500 in parts I could not use and huge debts. Plus as a "bonus" only way out of this was parting out my old ST to get some more money and start over again... There was no other chance.

So... one bad decision and result is no car, big box of useless parts, thousands of lost $$$ and debts. That is what happens when car enthusiast person meets bad, mean and clever person.

note.: one local guy bought that "half past dead" engine from my old ST for $150. What he done is only changed piston rings and now he is running the engine in his car. No issues, everything is perfect...
note.II: in same garage was running similar project as mine (to turbine ST202). Engine in that ST202 died after 700miles and car it self is not running till today. Owner of that ST202 shared on his web site he already spend over $26000 into the car...

[Culpable04]

sadly, that's how it is all over the world.

I bought a car in Dominican Republic to keep as a summer car for when I go on vacation there.

the car was a 1985 Celica Supra P type ( Celica XX ), car was in great shape, no rust, no mechanical issues. but being an old car I wanted to rebuild the engine and a fresh coat of paint. so one of my friends there took the car to what's known as the best shop for toyotas. I sent all the parts from here in a container. new suspension, new seats, gasket set , pistons. they performed all the agreed maintanence while I was here in New Jersey. then car was stored in my garage over there.

SUmmer came and I went there, first trip I take iwth hte car to the beach, car overheats. water pump went, that got me pissed, and I started checking the car closely, no maintance was performed on this engine, no belts replaced, the old sparkplug wires were " cleaned " to look new but the ones I sent weren't installed, and like that I found a bunch of over little things that add up fast. all in all, my vacation plans changed from going to the beach nad visiting family members to me doing all the maintanence on this car. I got it running nicely and sold it since I wouldn't have a shop to trust the repairs too.

Luckily I didn't lose near as much as you did martin, but sadly this is a problem around the world and the only way out ( to some extent ) is to do as much as possible on your own car, but grown ups life sometimes doesn't allow for such a treat, I'm getting closer and closer to have no time to work on my car.