(To be) Hellaflush Celica: Hinge and first BeeR. :P

Re: (To be) Stanced Celica

Previously on Andrew's Quest to Get His Car Back:

-OMG amazing deal for engine swap! Talked to mechanic both via phone and in person, and he seems like he's a really nice guy! He always answers my calls and texts ASAP.
-Sent mechanic car and $1000 downpayment (50%) to rebuild and swap his turbo 3sgte engine into my car. (Checked engine out and talked to him several times... He seemed trustworthy... Plus, he gave me a notarized 3 year warranty. Surely, things can't go too wrong...)
-Guy promises to send me pics of the swap process
-Dude keeps pushing back fixing my car cause he supposedly was fixing other people's cars. (Tiny bit fishy since he claimed to "put 100% effort on my car once he got it)
-Claims that he took out my motor. Never sends pics.
-Claims that his motor has cracks in block and crank during his third week of having my car and says that he wouldn't swap anymore. Initially says that he would compensate by fixing my overheating issue for free, but later decides to charge me $500 to fix, and replace a few things:
New timing belt
Water pump
oil pan gasket
valve cover gasket
intake
exhaust gaskets
spark plugs
thermostat
oil change
coolant flush
fuel filter
air filter
(In other words, he would be refunding me $500) Also, never sends pics.
- Pushes back when he would be finished with my car til Saturday. Says that he would call back that day.
-After, about 6 attempts of calling him every 30 min to an hour (starting at night time until 10:30pm), he responds, admits that he has been ignoring my calls, and bitches about how he has a family, and how I'm a selfish prick for not thinking about his life, yada yada yada. (I paid you a thousand fucking bucks, and entrusted you with my car three weeks ago! How the fuck could I not be worried if you don't answer your damn phone, texts, emails, and your voicemail is full!!! Also, whatever the fuck happened to "putting 100% effort into the car til it's done") Says that he can't find a truck to trailer my car to my place yet, and would call me on Sunday between 10 and 11am to tell me when he would drop my car off that day.

What happened:

-Dude never calls. I try calling him multiple times (after 11am might I add), and my mom tries sending him texts. No response...
- After waiting several hours, and still not getting any calls or texts from this guy, my parents and I decided that we wouldn't put up with his bullshit anymore, and decide to pay him a visit... with a cop. (I mean hey, this guy's a stranger who lives 2 hours away. You never know if he's gonna put a gun to your face or what not.)
-Cop talked to the mechanic's parents (address I initially got from him was his parent's house, and where I first met him to see the motor. He claimed that this was where he worked on his customer's cars.), who contacted the mechanic. Mechanic tells cop that he's at a junkyard, and then tells my mom that he's at his daughter's birthday party... -_-
After some PoPo magic, mechanic eventually says that he would come to his parent's place in an hour and a half. (Hooray for good cops! )
-We finally met up with him, and I got my beloved car back. I almost felt bad for the mechanic (since he actually came back with my car), and thought that we were just being overly paranoid jerks... Until I examined my car, popped my hood, and look at my odometer. Car was low on oil, out of gas, dirty as fuck (there was literally dirt all over it), starter was fucked, 3rd gear grinded more often than before, and worse of all, the thing racked up over a thousand miles since I gave it to him. My place to Fontana is only 100 miles. Surely, this guy must've been driving my car a shit ton while he was "fixing it". What really pissed us off though, was how much of a dick he was when we talked to him. He was bitching about how we called the cops and shit, and literally even told us to "get the fuck off my property or I'll sue you for harassment." When I asked him to show me everything he "replaced", he refused, and told me if I didn't like it, then "I'll see you in court." Man, FUCK YOU! You're the one that put yourself in this fucking situation by ignoring my calls, and coming up with complete bullshit excuses for why you purposely ignored all my parent's and my calls and texts!
-At this point in time though, I just wanted my car and whatever money I could get back, and was sick of having to deal with this asshole, so I took my 500 bucks, and drove off with my car. (Or rather, my dad did, but you get the point). Got oil, gas, and then started the long trek home.


And now, my car's finally back home with me. Oh, how I've missed this POS beater... XD
I'm glad he at least kept his promise of fixing my overheating issue, even though he racked over a thousand additional miles on the car in the process...

Overall, I'm super glad I finally have my car back despite the fact that my parents have pretty much banned me from ever getting an engine swap in this car. I'll finally be able to sleep and study in peace again!!! XP
Now to just hope that the mechanic doesn't have any plans of revenge for calling the cops or anything like that... 0_0

 

Re: (To be) Stanced Celica

Yep. I'm out 500 bucks cause of him, but I'm still glad that I got my car back, and that I can actually drive it for more than 20 minutes. XD

On the not so bright side, my parents and relatives have pretty much banned me from ever getting an engine swap, and would love to get rid of the car... Thankfully, that hasn't happened yet. :bowdown

Anyways, to celebrate the return of my car, I bought it a little present.
Pics of the aftermath of my car, and my little gift to it will come once I get home.

 

(To be) Stanced Celica: Aftermath and an actual UPDATE!

Thanks guys!

Yeah, this situation definitely convinced my parents to let me learn how to do things on cars myself. :thumbsup:
I don't have enough money for an engine and its parts anymore though, so I won't be able to attempt my own engine swap for a while... :aargh

Pics of the aftermath of my car:

My car after I picked it up and drove to the nearest Autozone to get more oil. Not sure if you can see cleary see in the picture, but the grill had dirt all over it... Hood also has random sticky residue all over, and I can't seem to get it off with just water and a towel... My phone makes my car seem cleaner than in real life.XD But trust me, it was spotless before I sent it to that mechanic...


Dad preparing to drive it back to SD after getting gas. Note the lack of a front lip. Mechanic removed it to get the car on the trailer, and was supposed to reinstall it once he started working on it. Obviously, that didn't happen... -_-


Forgot to mention that my little privacy cover thing for the trunk got kinda messed up as well...


AND NOW FOR MY FIRST ACTUAL UPDATE to the car!!!
:eek3

To celebrate the return of my car, I bought it new shoes!

Oh wait... I didn't mean that literally... Lol

New shoes for the car!!!

16x8 et23 BMW (BBS) Style 5's

Will be getting adapters, coilover sleeves, and tires soon. :cheers
I'm also thinking about painting these rims. Any ideas? I'm personally thinking of white.

Oh, and a random question: How do I change my actual topic name? I think I may have a official name for my car now... :byodood
Thanks!

 

Re: (To be) Stanced Celica

Thanks for the input guys.

Adapters are from $160 to $350 USD on eBay. (Cheaper is only hub centric, while more pricy ones are hub and wheel centric)
I'm pretty sure all 5 lug BMW wheels have a 5x120 bolt pattern, so you'll want a 5x100 to 5x120 adapter if you Celica has 5 lugs, or a 4x100 to 5x120 if you Celica has 4 lugs.

I'm sooo stoked! Can't wait til I start getting all my stuff together, and make more progress! :mrgreen