ComplaintsforLate Model Performance of MD, LLC

• Initial Complaint

  09/23/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I dropped off my car for Tuning service on December 22, 2021. The motor was apparently damaged as described by LMP. After 7 months of waiting and $16,000 bill later, Alec from LMP said my new motor was all finished and the car was ready to go! I picked up my 2018 Chevrolet Camaro from LMP on July 12th, 2022 with 42,670 miles on the dash. On August 3rd, 2022, my Camaro motor suddenly shut off while driving on the highway leaving me stranded. The Odometer read 43,029 miles. I Immediately had the car towed back to LMP costing me another $200. After calling them and telling them my problem they agreed to fix it since the car had only gained 359 miles after spending $16,000 for a new motor and tuning. It is now September 23, 2022 and they are refusing to even look at my car let alone fix it. I went to the store in person and expressed my concerns and was promised the car would be looked at on September 19th, which has passed and they still said they "dont have time for it because of new projects" This shop told me the car was all good and ready to go, I paid them their expensive fee which I knew about, but then the car broke down 2 weeks and 359 miles later and they wont even check it out because they already have my money. I am extremely disappointed in their actions and I need my car back up and running, that was the product I paid for. As the car has sit there for almost 2 months while they work on everyone elses car, the mileage hasnt gone up at all. I need to get my car back so I can sell it. Please see the photos of the original quote of $11,678.47, they required $6,000 to start the work which I paid, leaving $5,678.47 Due at pick up. When They called and said its ready they changed the price of work and I owed them $9,422.11 at pick up. I am extremely displeased with how they operate and really expected better customer service from them. It seems there is no end in sight. Also the pictures with location and mileage proving my dates and accuracy.

  Business response

  10/31/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 11, 2022/10/06) */ ***Document Attached*** The customer called us at the end of 2021 asking for a tune after being unhappy with another shop's performance with the vehicle. We received a $100 deposit to schedule him on 12/1/2021. Once the car was dropped off on 12/22/2021 by the customer on a truck/trailer we began diagnosing it within a couple weeks. The engine was popping and backfiring. After doing a leak down and compression test, we were able to diagnose that a lifter was stuck in the bore of the engine causing the issue. We then got the approval from the customer to remove the engine from the vehicle to repair the issue. On 1/25/2022 we then disassembled the motor to replace the failed parts (lifters and cam). During disassembly the technician noticed some materials of the block were being removed with the head bolts along with a hairline crack in the engine block (pictures attached). The customer was notified letting him know that a new engine block was in need. After months of the car sitting on the lift the customer decided to move forward with replacing the block, giving us a deposit for the work to be done on 4/5/2022. The parts were then ordered and delivered to the machine shop to finish being disassembled and reassembled. Once the motor was received back from the machine shop, we reinstalled the motor in the car and completed the tuning. The customer picked the car up on 7/12/2022. Customer then contacted us on 8/3/2022 claiming the car "just shut off on the highway". We told him to bring us the car back and we will diagnose the issue. We have a two-month backlog but told him we would work him in the schedule ASAP. The technician did another leak down & compression test, everything was in good working order. We were able to get the car started but when we went to shut off the car the car would not shut off and continued to "diesel". We checked the oil, and it smelled like raw fuel. So, we then drained the oil and it had almost two gallons of raw fuel in the oil system. After that we removed the fuel injectors and sent them out for testing. On 8/5/2022 One injector came back faulty (it was stuck open) allowing fuel to continuously be sprayed into the cylinder. The customer was notified, and we were given the ok to replace the injectors. We replaced the injectors and did a fresh oil change to get rid of all the fuel in the oil. The vehicle then restarted and ran without running away or dieseling however there was still an issue with what we believe is either the fuel system or electronics. At this point we removed the new injectors and had them tested to confirm they were in good working order. The injectors came back in good working order. We needed more time to diagnose the issue however Alec (owner of LMP) travels a lot for work, so he is in and out of the shop continuously. Alec is the only one that does the tuning at the shop so diagnosing the issue is extremely difficult. The issue the car is having is unrelated to the mechanical work we originally completed, the car was returned in good working order and the customer was able to put 300+ miles on the car without issue. On 9/14/2022 the customer came to the shop unannounced giving us slack for not having his car completed yet. We tried to explain the issue to him the best we could stating there isn't anything mechanically wrong with the work that was done previously. It was made aware that we needed more time with the car to diagnose the culprit of the problem. Then on 10/2/2022 the customer called again asking for an update, we did not have any new findings on the issue. Hours later he called back again wanting to just pick the car up unfinished. So, on 10/3/2022 customer came to the shop and paid us the open balance in cash and had the car picked up with a tow truck. Then immediately after that he went home and disputed the charge from 7/12/2022 after all that work was completed and accepted.

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