Vendor Accountability Thread

BKmetz

Administrator, Member #10
Staff member
Joined
Sep 25, 1997
Location
Illinois
TDI
2015 Passat, titanium beige, 6MT
This thread is for members (not vendors) to post issues about vendors. We want to know about vendor's who are not holding themselves accountable.

The vendor registration program is simply for vendors to declare that they have a product or service available to the members in exchange for money, and that their contact information is valid at the time they were contacted. Vendors are responsible for notifying TDIClub in any change of their contact information. It makes no difference if the vendor is a weekend hobbyist or a real store or shop. The definition of who should be registered as a vendor is anyone who accepts money from the membership for any product or service.

There is no TDIClub seal of approval for any vendor and TDIClub does not resolve any conflicts. When someone becomes registered as a vendor, there is no automatic inclusion to the 'Trusted TDI Mechanic's - By State' thread. http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=130044 Admission to that thread is by referral only. I discourage vendors from adding themselves to that thread as self-promotion can make their credibility suspect. Referrals are earned, not granted. Vendors are expected to have the integrity to hold themselves accountable. Simply put, the vendor is his own warranty for the product or service they are selling.

Members and vendors are to resolve issues privately, just as in any other transaction one engages in.

Members should only post their complaints here after they have tried to resolve their issues privately. TDIClub's forums are the last venue for resolution, not the first.

The rules in no particular order:

Members can post about vendors who have not responded to repeated attempts to resolve any issue. Simply put, when normal and reasonable communication has failed, then post the complaint.

1. No vendor Vs vendor issues.

2. Posts should be factual and civil. Vendors ARE allowed to post their side of the story. So think before you post. Members have embarrassed themselves posting a complaint about vendors when in reality the member was at fault.

3. Only first person accounts allowed. No 'I heard it from whoever' posts.

4. No flaming, trolling, baiting, attacking, etc.

5. Nofanboi posts allowed trashing the competition. This also includes 'reverse shilling' for lack of a better term. Phony accounts that post bogus complaints will be removed and the accounts banned.

6. No whining about petty issues, e.g., shipping was late, parts were back-ordered, item out of stock, price changes, wrong part shipped, etc. This stuff happens in every business. The world is imperfect, TDIClub's vendors included.

7. New members who sign up to trash a vendor will not be allowed, especially if the complaints are about some outside entity that is not part of TDIClub. I have banned a few people for this in the past.

8. Posting about Ebay listings/stores, Craig's list, Autotrader , etc, are allowed if it is about obvious scams, counterfeit items, etc. We want to know about frauds like Dr_boost,rodbuilder, Chinese nozzles, etc.

9. No links to outside whiner sites like MyVWLemon.com, etc. That is not a first person account.

10. No posts allowed except for first person complaints and replies by the mentioned vendor. All other posts will be removed regardless of content. Members who post here must make their contact information available to the mentioned vendor. Vendors do not know their customers TDIClub user-names.

11. Members and vendors, PLEASE post if resolution was reached or not.

12. When special circumstances warrant the action, a dedicated thread will be allowed for discussion of vendor issues.

13. No fanboy, cheerleader, praise posts for one's favorite vendor. All that will do is encourage everyone to post about their favorite vendor and we will end up with pages and pages of noise.

The rules will be a work in progress so I will add/edit as needed as this thread evolves.

Again, I repeat myself; think before you post. I have banned members and vendors who tried to use TDICLub to seek revenge and further their vendettas. I have also removed vendor status from vendors and blocked their access to the for sale forums and the high performance forums. I have also blocked members' access to certain forums when they just can't stay out of trouble when discussing certain issues.

We want to know about and weed out the bad apples.

One area of commerce that deals with customer complaints is when a business has to fire a customer. The customer is not always right. Some people thrive on conflict and are not interested in any reasonable resolution. They simply want to promote their victim status as they feel it empowers them to something they are not entitled to. SPV's (Self Proclaimed Victims) will not be tolerated. The link explains SPVs A to Z.

http://www.epinions.com/content_3317407876


Anyone whether it be a member or vendor who tries to paint themselves a SPV will get a long time out, maybe even perm-ban.

Thank you.

:)
 
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Topolog

Active member
Joined
Sep 11, 2008
Location
Baltimore, MD
TDI
2005 Passat GLS TDI
Stay away from M I N I O N!

Hi All,
Just wanted to share my experience with a member of this forum M I N I O N, who performed geared balance shaft (BS) module upgrade on my Passat TDI. I was referred to him by another TDIClub member. After the upgrade the car does not run as smoothly as it used to. The engine sounds much rougher at idle and during normal driving. There is more vibration coming from the engine, even at low speeds, than before the BS upgrade, and the engine simply sounds louder. After contacting Oilhammer and MOGolf, the members who came up with the upgrade procedure, I found out that the job will have to be re-done, because proper tools weren't used in the first place. This includes replacement of all improperly torqued tension bolts, intermediate balance shaft gear (w/ washers) and timing belt tensioner. Timing will also have to be reset to the proper mark.

Although this pissed me off, I decided to be civil about it and give him a chance to correct the problem. We all make mistakes. I've tried to contact Josh (M I N I O N) for several days (text & voice mail messages on his cellphone, PMs, email) and did not receive any response. Thus, I decided to share my experience to prevent other club members from going through this. It appears that he does not stand behind his work. If you want to save yourself a lot of headaches, stay away from this guy and do not let him touch your car!!!:mad:

P.S. I've also found out after the fact that I am not the only club member who has been screwed by M I N I O N.
 

SBAtdijetta

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 19, 2006
Location
Houston, TX
TDI
'10 Jetta Cup 6spd, '02 Jetta Auto
Well there were "some" issues I had with StreetToys. Some were asking about issues in a S/T for sale thread here so I thought I should give my .02

johnnloki said:
There's a vendor accountability thread just above this one. Nobody's participating.
I thought because nobody else had posted here I should. I would not recommend anyone buy anything from S/t, Nick, or anyone else selling out of that business or address FWIW. A few links to threads below that you can read for yourself and decide if your money is worth taking a chance on...

Blown S/T 1956 SV turbo - my thread
Pic's of my new parts for S/T - by O.C.TDI

in response to: Pic's of my new parts from S/T - by Street Toys
Turbo Reman process/questions - by Street Toys

And several more in this post here in the above thread in a post - by crazyrunner33

Questions and allegations have been tossed around with just cause, and Nick with S/t has never answered any of them, buyer beware (understatement of the year).

More S/t related posts:

Beware fellow TDI owners of this vendor
- by midge4
 
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BKmetz

Administrator, Member #10
Staff member
Joined
Sep 25, 1997
Location
Illinois
TDI
2015 Passat, titanium beige, 6MT
Due to the unusual circumstances of this event, and to keep this thread on topic, IndigoBlueWagon is going to start another thread specific to the TDIParts' server getting hacked and the affected TDIClub members. I will then move all the germane posts from this thread to his new one.

:)
 
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BKmetz

Administrator, Member #10
Staff member
Joined
Sep 25, 1997
Location
Illinois
TDI
2015 Passat, titanium beige, 6MT
Some posts were removed due to the fact that the member never contacted the vendor about the perceived problem, even after the vendor publicly invited the member to do so. This was over two weeks ago.

The poster has not logged on the forums since posting the initial complaint. We conclude the poster was a troll, without credibility and integrity.


:rolleyes:
 

Raimieb

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 6, 2007
Location
ATHENS, GA
TDI
2000 Golf GL, 1.9L TDI
Called Paul At Kermatdi.com Who Sold Me A "new" (street Toys Remaned) Turbo 20k Ago...it Died Already....all Precautions Were Taken, Professional Installation, Oil Changes At Correct Intervals, Rc3 By Jeff, Never An Over/underboost Issue Whatsoever....paul Was Not Helpful And Would Not Take The Turbo Back, So I Am Stuck Without A Car For The Next 4 Months Until I Can Save Up For A New One Or Sell The Car As Is....thanks Kerma For Not Standing By Your Product And For Deceiving A Hard Working American Consumer...
 
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KERMA

Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
Sep 23, 2001
Location
here
TDI
99 beetle and 04 jetta
Ramieb:
I can't find any record of KERMATDI having sold a turbo to anyone with your e-mail address (ramie.bateman@gmail.com according to your e-mail address in your user profile here on the forums)

If this is Walter Bateman I spoke with last week, Where did you buy your turbo, and who did you pay? (it wasn't us) When did you buy it? Who did you buy it from? There's no Walter Bateman in our customer records at all, not even a store profile under that name. I'm afraid we can't reasonably be expected to "back up" something we didn't sell to you.

Regarding any warranty: If you had purchased a brand new turbo from VW, for example, the warranty is 12 months and 12k miles. That's the best you will find from any vendor. At 20k miles of service, it's clearly past any warranty period.

If this is a case of mistaken identity, please reply to me privately with your contact details, and details of the purchase, I will look into this matter a bit more. We might still be able to help you somehow.
 
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Raimieb

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 6, 2007
Location
ATHENS, GA
TDI
2000 Golf GL, 1.9L TDI
kerma turbo from BB (aaron)

The turbo was purchased from aaron kammemeyer and it was a kerma turbo...so either way it was ultimately one of yours. honestly, i understand the 12 month, 12k warranty, just feel like for the money paid for a turbo it should last a little longer than that. and the fact that you don't do business anymore with your turbo rebuilder street toys indicates other people have had this problem and you all have done the right thing by distancing yourself from them. the next right thing you ought to do is realize they did not do as high a quality job rebuilding them as you claimed when selling the turbos for a premium $$$$. if a factory turbo can last 100k plus, in my case 162k, how does such a high quality one like yours fail at 20k? twice the price and 1/7 the longevity, that is not a highly sustainable business model. also on the phone you were of no help. i can and will dig through my bank statements to find the date the turbo was purchased from aaron. Also, i did purchase nozzles from you guys so i am amazed that there is no profile by walter bateman. Guess I will dig up and put into .pdf my bank statement showing the purchases.
Best,

Walter
 
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ultrasparc

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 10, 2006
Location
Wa
TDI
00, Jetta TDI MK IV
Bora Parts ?

I ordered a DC clutch kit and other parts (suspension bushings, temp sender) from Bora parts on 8/15. After a week or so I didn't hear anything, so I emailed on 8/26 requesting a status. Aaron responded that his clutch guy was having issues and asked me what I had received. I emailed him back I hadn't received anything.

Several emails have been sent since then, he has been slow to answer them. I finally sent a email requesting a refund. He emailed me back stating his clutch guy had a family emergency. He told me he would process a refund for me when he got into the office last Wednesday. I have not heard anything and my bank has not been charged back so I just sent him another email.

At this point I am considering calling my bank and having the charges reversed claiming fraud. Its been a month since I payed him $623.43 from my credit card and he has been fairly un-responsive.

I know he gets rave reviews on this site, maybe I am just unlucky ? Maybe he is having financial difficulties ?

I like to think of myself as a fairly reasonable guy, I think I have been very patient about the issue. But in 3 days it will have been a month since he accepted my money and I have received nothing. All communication with him has been after I sent a email to him.

Since this happened I ordered some parts I needed from TDI parts. Peter sent me a tracking number right away and I received my parts when promised, quickly.

Update:

This issue has been resolved, Thank you Aaron.
 
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Bob_Fout

Oil Wanker
Joined
Sep 5, 2004
Location
Indiana
TDI
2003 Jetta - Alaska Green (sold) / 2015 GTI 2.0T
My ST DP is two years old and is rusting. Two different exhaust shops have said it'll need replaced within a year. Anyone else have rust issues with an ST DP?
 

airwolf

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 25, 2006
Location
Cassopolis, MI
TDI
None
Bob_Fout said:
My ST DP is two years old and is rusting. Two different exhaust shops have said it'll need replaced within a year. Anyone else have rust issues with an ST DP?
Taken from the first post:

"Members should only post their complaints here after they have tried to resolve their issues privately. TDIClub's forums are the last venue for resolution, not the first."

So have you tried to work your 'problem' out privately or are you just trying to join in the 'trolling/bashing' fun?
 

BKmetz

Administrator, Member #10
Staff member
Joined
Sep 25, 1997
Location
Illinois
TDI
2015 Passat, titanium beige, 6MT
Well, as the Street Toys down-pipe thread has devolved into whatever it is now, and S/T never posted in it anyway when it came to helping his customers, I can see why Bob didn't want to post his issues there. S/T can always post here the best way for members to contact him. I kept his membership open for that purpose.
 

Lady Bug

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 24, 2007
Location
Salt Lake City
TDI
2001 Beetle
BKmetz said:
Well, as the Street Toys down-pipe thread has devolved into whatever it is now, and S/T never posted in it anyway when it came to helping his customers, I can see why Bob didn't want to post his issues there. S/T can always post here the best way for members to contact him. I kept his membership open for that purpose.
Now, that is not entirely true, now is it? His account was turned off yesterday just before Mr Faut posted. I really don't know what you guys are trying to do here but it is not right in my book!:mad:

Before you accuse him of having two accounts you should know that this is my own account, I just did not want to call myself "Mrs-Street Toys". All of our customers know me already, I just don't post here a lot!

Sondra,
 

BKmetz

Administrator, Member #10
Staff member
Joined
Sep 25, 1997
Location
Illinois
TDI
2015 Passat, titanium beige, 6MT
His status is listed as: Registered User - No Edit, no profile change

I changed his status around 12:35PM yesterday just after he went into his rant. He should be able to post. It was never our intention to ban him or block him from posting.

Lady Bug said:
Now, that is not entirely true, now is it? His account was turned off yesterday just before Mr Faut posted. I really don't know what you guys are trying to do here but it is not right in my book!:mad:

Before you accuse him of having two accounts you should know that this is my own account, I just did not want to call myself "Mrs-Street Toys". All of our customers know me already, I just don't post here a lot!

Sondra,
 
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Street Toys

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 31, 2006
Location
USA
TDI
sold
Bob_Fout said:
My ST DP is two years old and is rusting. Two different exhaust shops have said it'll need replaced within a year. Anyone else have rust issues with an ST DP?
Hello Mr Fout,
We have searched our records and can not find anyone of that name who has ordered anything from us at all. Could you please send me an e-mail with the name you ordered this downpipe?

Thank you,
Nick/Street Toys
 

robzuk

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
Md
TDI
1999 Golf, 2001 Golf, 1987 Cabrio
Street Toys said:
After some "looking into" Bob did in fact post in that thread. Page 5, post #62. Reading that particular post he did not mention that he had a problem with anything rather than he found it amusing to correct a "flaming" comment and "grin". Perhaps if he had spoken up earlier if he did in fact have an issue, I could have addressed the problem way back when. I deeply regret that I do not have the ability to "read between the lines".

Again I thank you,
Nick/Street Toys
I'm going to post my gripe here. I purchased a downpipe from you through Aaron, BleachedBora, about 2 years ago. I have the same issue as Bob. When I get my whitbread DP, I'll post up some pics. The welds look fine to me, but the quality of the pipe you used was sub par.
 

Street Toys

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 31, 2006
Location
USA
TDI
sold
robzuk said:
I'm going to post my gripe here. I purchased a downpipe from you through Aaron, BleachedBora, about 2 years ago. I have the same issue as Bob. When I get my whitbread DP, I'll post up some pics. The welds look fine to me, but the quality of the pipe you used was sub par.
Hello Mr rozuk,

Your particular down pipe if purchased by BleachedBora at that time, he was acting as an agent or something along that line for another customer that I was making certain parts for. Some of those parts the customer decided to source himself and we merely "assembled" their products with their materials. Other products were sourced from our "certified stock", eg. 6061T6 aluminum etc..

KERMA said:
but believe me, we paid for every downpipe and manifold he ever assembled for us (out of parts we bought, we bought every last nut and washer)
As you have mention forehand, we did assemble the product to a good standard however I feel that your particular grievance is undoubtedly with the originating supplier, Kerma TDI. I am really not trying to pass the buck here at all, I hope that you can understand the chain of events! I will be offering new 409 stainless downpipes here in the near future and if it is of any help to you or any other customer that had or has an issue with this particular vendor and this particular produduct in question, I will offer these at a discounted price to those who qualify.

Thank you very much,
Nick/Street Toys
 

Bob_Fout

Oil Wanker
Joined
Sep 5, 2004
Location
Indiana
TDI
2003 Jetta - Alaska Green (sold) / 2015 GTI 2.0T
Street Toys said:
Hello Mr Fout,
We have searched our records and can not find anyone of that name who has ordered anything from us at all. Could you please send me an e-mail with the name you ordered this downpipe?

Thank you,
Nick/Street Toys
Nick,

I purchased my DP through BB. Looks like robzuk did too.
 

GoFaster

Moderator at Large
Joined
Jun 16, 1999
Location
Brampton, Ontario, Canada
TDI
2006 Jetta TDI
These forums are not the place for personal attacks and other violations of the forum rules. This topic attracts a lot of such discussion, hence lots of moderating.

The other thing is that it is the intent of this thread to reflect *current* vendor situations. After a situation gets resolved, and it is agreed by both parties that it is resolved, the discussion leading up to it no longer serves a purpose.

If the situation cannot be resolved, then it remains here, and other people can use that to judge whether they want to do business with that vendor or not.

"Freedom of speech" doesn't work when it comes to keeping large internet forums under control. Complain all you want ... it just doesn't work. You are quite free, of course, to set up your own internet site and express yourself that way.

By the way, the terms and conditions regarding posting in this thread are explained in post #1.
 

Street Toys

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 31, 2006
Location
USA
TDI
sold
Bob_Fout said:
Nick,

I purchased my DP through BB. Looks like robzuk did too.
Hello Mr Fout,

As I posted in post # 23 I really hope that you understand our delima:eek:
What I can do further is, before I even post the 409 Downpipes on our website, I will make sure that there are enough beforehand to accommodate people who may be in need to receive these first. If this is an avenue of choice for you let me know in a couple of days (we are currently addressing technical problems with our e-mail account)

Thank you very much for the courtesy you have extended and the cooperation you've given. We will try our best to insure that everyone is promptly satisfied.
 

Bob_Fout

Oil Wanker
Joined
Sep 5, 2004
Location
Indiana
TDI
2003 Jetta - Alaska Green (sold) / 2015 GTI 2.0T
Street Toys said:
Hello Mr Fout,

As I posted in post # 23 I really hope that you understand our delima:eek:
What I can do further is, before I even post the 409 Downpipes on our website, I will make sure that there are enough beforehand to accommodate people who may be in need to receive these first. If this is an avenue of choice for you let me know in a couple of days (we are currently addressing technical problems with our e-mail account)

Thank you very much for the courtesy you have extended and the cooperation you've given. We will try our best to insure that everyone is promptly satisfied.
Thank you Nick. I don't think any of us realized what exactly was happening with the DPs (as you pointed out in post #23).:eek:
 

tditom

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Sep 5, 2001
Location
Jackson, MI
TDI
formerly: 2001 Golf GL, '97 Passat (RIP) '98 NB, '05 B5 sedan
are we supposed to post here if we have a problem with an on-line vendor but is not yet a 'tdiclub vendor'? Reason I'm asking is that i want to make sure everyone knows about bad experiences a couple of us have discussed here. i just don't want that vendor to get their OK to sell things here without the current issue being known.
 

morris1524

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 4, 2010
Location
Northern CA
TDI
95 VR6 Wagon Conversion Rabbit Diesel
Is Good Guys Biodiesel really reccomended?

Did a user on the site actually recommend them, or did they suggest themselves?

Personally, I would not recommend them.

I had an unpleasant experience having my 79 Rabbit worked on by them. The issues that came out of it are more related to customer service, communication, people skills, and the ability to resolve problems. There may or may not have been an issue with the actual work done, but the car was returned in an unsafe to drive condition.

If anyone want more info, feel free to PM me.
 

snobum13

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 3, 2009
Location
Oneonta, NY
TDI
2002 Golf TDI
Just to warn everybody I have had less than good luck with street toys. I purchased an OMI in June. It for whatever reason did not fit my 02 Golf very well. I decided I would attempt to return it. After many attempts at contact via email and phone I decided to return it regardless of a RA#. I did that and it was never received and returned to me. I finally got Nick on the phone and he gave me the correct address (apparently the one on the return shipping label wasn't correct!??) and told me to send him the tracking number , he would refund on paypal right away. BULL$HIT. I have yet to receive a return payment or the OMI back. NADA. No return email or return phone call. I am out 160$ and pissed off at this point. It has been two months since I sent it back to him. So, I am contacting the local police there and the Better Business Bureau. I'll gladly keep you all up to date on this.
 

darkscout

Grammar Scout
Joined
May 28, 2006
Location
Michigan
TDI
2003 Golf
Is he still in business?

If you paid with a credit card, open a credit card dispute. Go around PayPal, yes, your paypal account will be closed because that's "against their terms" but it's trivial to open a new one.
 
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