[heavyD^2]

Originally Posted by cbbplanet

Jeesh.. reading this will make me think twice purchasing from Fabspeed and mike@xph in the future.

Just a recent example, purchased a Bimmertech item from a third party vendor. Few months goes by and a harness of the module broke. Contact Bimmertech directly and thy immediately shipped me out a replacement. This is how good business should be done. Stand behind their product.

Just a thought though, have you never asked Fabspeed to repair the crack? Seems like it's small enough to weld and fix to be like brand new?

This was addressed a few posts up. The OP bought a brand new downpipe not a repaired one. If Fabspeed wants to repair that one and sell at a discounted price then that's fine but considering the premium customers are paying for a 200-Cell cat in a stainless steel pipe it should be delivered in perfect condition.

[Ultimateone]

God damn, modding cars is so much fun huh.

[Anthony1s]

Well, Mike told me he shipped out the replacement downpipe on the 16th and I received a tracking number that day. Tracking number still shows zero updates. Seems only a label was created and nothing was shipped. Reached out to Mike via msg here and his staff via their email yesterday to inquire about this... no response. Mike has been posting on here since, so I know he's not away.

[McGary911]

[QUOTE=Poochie;25039771]

Originally Posted by Happy Motoring

I know right..

That's obviously what they did in the first place: patch-repair, smooth it down, then gave it Quality Assurance checkmark and sold it at full retail.

I'm not even trying to knock their hustle but obviously their pipe have quality-build issues and they're always BSing around that fact (see link below).

I understand that every manufacture is going to have some hiccups with their products but IMO interfering with the downpipe and any possible blowback for a few more horse is where risk/reward becomes a diminishing return for me.

I am just glad there're enthusiasts forums like these where one could figuratively test-drive and learn from other's shortcomings. Funny, word-of-mouth can make you and also break you, all in the same breath.


Déjà vu ?:

Fabspeed Sport Cat Downpipe (Dent?) https://www.2addicts.com/forums/show....php?t=1253435

The link brings you to a thread where the client didn’t realize the dent was supposed to be there. I’m guilty, as I did the same thing when I got mine. Fabspeed got back to me within a couple of hours with that info and I installed it that night and never looked back. When you install it you can see why the dent is there. Newer pieces have a cast end and are different.

Agree that a repaired pipe should be sold from the Fabspeed outlet or some crap like that.

This is a great piece and glad the OP has a fresh one on the way.

[Poochie]

[QUOTE=McGary911;25047284]

Originally Posted by Poochie

The link brings you to a thread where the client didn't realize the dent was supposed to be there. I'm guilty, as I did the same thing when I got mine. Fabspeed got back to me within a couple of hours with that info and I installed it that night and never looked back. When you install it you can see why the dent is there. Newer pieces have a cast end and are different.

Agree that a repaired pipe should be sold from the Fabspeed outlet or some crap like that.

This is a great piece and glad the OP has a fresh one on the way.

Fair enough.. But it's just awfully convenient how some units have a dent and others don't, when the design is suppose to remain consistent, one would assume.

Glad it worked out for the OP but I'm going to pass on an aftermarket downpipe; as my car is plenty fast where it still has the ability to scare me and get my license suspended.

Not going to add a potential issue and void the drivetrain warranty, when the vehicle with the stock unit already satisfies my needs.

If I mess with the cat, it's going to be balls-out with a test pipe and tune to disable to the CEL or nothing at all. No point in half-assing it and still having to deal with these such compromises.

[XutvJet]

Originally Posted by Poochie

If I mess with the cat, it's going to be balls-out with a test pipe and tune to disable to the CEL or nothing at all. No point in half-assing it and still having to deal with these such compromises.

A catless DP is full of compromises like strong fumes, excessive noise, odd exhaust sounds, and drone. Lastly, there's no beneficial gain in power either over a quality catted DP. I absolutely love my HJS Euro 6 300 cell DP. OEM looks and fitment, 90% of the gains of a 200 cell unit. No CEL. No fumes. No drone. Improved throttle response. More tq and hp right where it matters. A downright sexy exhaust warble.

[Poochie]

Originally Posted by XutvJet

A catless DP is full of compromises like strong fumes, excessive noise, odd exhaust sounds, and drone. Lastly, there's no beneficial gain in power either over a quality catted DP. I absolutely love my HJS Euro 6 300 cell DP. OEM looks and fitment, 90% of the gains of a 200 cell unit. No CEL. No fumes. No drone. Improved throttle response. More tq and hp right where it matters. A downright sexy exhaust warble.

I agree, I like the concept of a smaller cell catalyst but my issue is I don't want in like a year or so I have to pull it back out because it burned-out prematurely or whatever other nuisance could possible surface.

I went catless on my '98 GS Integra, so I'm familiar with that stickly smell of unburnt gasoline. I was a dumb teen at the time but I don't think now I could now stomach the noxious odor on my daily driver. I was more thinking if I build a weekend car, I'd run a test pipe.

If I do happen to go sports cat, I'm going your route and get a 300 cell HJS Euro cat but a Akrapovic brand. $1,800 is a lot to stomach but their quality looks above-standard from what's available. I imagine a 300 cell would last the life of the vehicle.

[SeanWRT]

I knew Mike@X-PH first in 2016. He's been a extremely responsive and efficient guy as an auto part distributor. As an oversea customer I purchased some 20k USD worth parts from him. And he's been a responsible vendor to my standard. Personally I wouldn't mind working with him in the future again.

This is how business works. The dealer/distributor didn't make profit or take loss in such quality cases. It all goes back to the manufacture. If they don't agree to replacement in the first place, the dealer is very unlikely to take the loss to back up the end user. Instead, the role of the dealer in the middle is a facilitator and coordinator.

Things differ from industry to industry. If you got a defective IPhone from apple store, they immediately gave you a replacement (although apple store isn't a dealer). But in automobile industry, even your new out of box BMW has a defective engine, the dealer won't guarantee you anything without hearing from the manufacture.

[guyno]

Originally Posted by Poochie

I agree, I like the concept of a smaller cell catalyst but my issue is I don't want in like a year or so I have to pull it back out because it burned-out prematurely or whatever other nuisance could possible surface.

I went catless on my '98 GS Integra, so I'm familiar with that stickly smell of unburnt gasoline. I was a dumb teen at the time but I don't think now I could now stomach the noxious odor on my daily driver. I was more thinking if I build a weekend car, I'd run a test pipe.

If I do happen to go sports cat, I'm going your route and get a 300 cell HJS Euro cat but a Akrapovic brand. $1,800 is a lot to stomach but their quality looks above-standard from what's available. I imagine a 300 cell would last the life of the vehicle.

I just installed this Akra DP and their titanium Exhaust on thursday. You'll love it.

[Anthony1s]

Originally Posted by SeanWRT

I knew Mike@X-PH first in 2016. He's been a extremely responsive and efficient guy as an auto part distributor. As an oversea customer I purchased some 20k USD worth parts from him. And he's been a responsible vendor to my standard. Personally I wouldn't mind working with him in the future again.

This is how business works. The dealer/distributor didn't make profit or take loss in such quality cases. It all goes back to the manufacture. If they don't agree to replacement in the first place, the dealer is very unlikely to take the loss to back up the end user. Instead, the role of the dealer in the middle is a facilitator and coordinator.

Things differ from industry to industry. If you got a defective IPhone from apple store, they immediately gave you a replacement (although apple store isn't a dealer). But in automobile industry, even your new out of box BMW has a defective engine, the dealer won't guarantee you anything without hearing from the manufacture.

Kinda shitty of you to come in here and essentially deny everything I've experienced, even though I showed proof that I wasn't treated right by him, he's outright lied to me on numerous occasions, ignored my messages, and was treated the exact opposite of what you claim. And as already explained by myself and others, that is absolutely not how businesses work, nor how they should because it puts the consumer at a loss for their mistakes. You're entire post seems extremely fishy to me.

Again, here is more proof against what you claim sticking up for him.

[SeanWRT]

@anthony,

For some reason my VPN was down for quite a while so I am only able to read texts but can't see the proof pictures you posted.

By 'this is how the business works', I literally meant what the dealer do in quality cases is to facilitate and coordinate. I have no intention to stick up for any vendor and I've been very harsh on vendors as some forum fellows know. I only shared my experience with XPH and I'm not trying to make a judgement.

I understand your position as a customer and can relate that vendor (whoever it is) should be responsible anyway in your case. But this is life and we have to deal with it. Go public is a wise move and I'm glad you did that.

Man Move on, at the end of day you're covered and you're going to have a lot of fun from the new mods.

[Poochie]

Originally Posted by SeanWRT

Man Move on, at the end of day you're covered and you're going to have a lot of fun from the new mods.

He did move on, he was just responding to comments.

He took it better than I would; my credit card would of done have a forced chargeback and I would of moved on to another merchant. Thank you, next✌🏻

I give humans and companies the benefit of the doubt because 'shit happens' but the second I sense any lying, deception, or BSing, I have no problem reneging on a deal.

[No Boost]

There's good reason why Bobby moved on from Fabspeed. Personnel, as a whole, sucks there. They mainly deal in high-end cars (Ferarri, Porsche, etc) and make the bulk of their money modding those expensive machines for their very wealthy clients. We M2 drivers are low on the totem pole. Granted, the sport cat downpipe is top notch but, it doesnt drive their business. They are made in very small batches and rarely have any in stock. I was lucky enough to live 45 minutes from their HQ and deal with Bobby, an M235i driving enthusiast who spearheaded the buying and install process. Again, he has since left for greener pastures. I have my fingers crossed that the DP holds up over the long run (about 2 years thus far without issues). If something does go wrong, though, I'll contemplate avoiding Fabspeed altogether and simply have the DP replaced with another manufacturer's piece of revert back to stock. I don't want the headaches which are a certainty given their history.

[Poochie]

Originally Posted by PrinceCity

Op is being very unreasonable here. These things take time to resolve so he shouldn't be so pushy about it. Especially with creating a post to expose a company on literally the first day he noticed a problem. Before giving any of the companies involved a chance to respond. That's not very fair so I understand why the companies would be mad at him and not want to deal with the nonsense he exegerated about every little thing that's said to him. Really making a mountain out of a molehill here, which like I said, isn't fair to these companies who have tried their best to satisfy him since day one. Like really op? In the email you're gonna say 'can you get on this shipment?' don't be pushy and ppl will treat you better. I think Mike's responses are appropriate considering ops attitude. Especially since I'm sure op got a very deep discount on the downpipe.

On top of that, op should've kept the downpipe once he realized the box wasn't opened at Mike's warehouse. The DP came with an inspection certificate, meaning it passed all extensive tests from fabspeed. Meaning his downpipe is fine. Op should've realized this, especially with his keen detective skills, as he shows he is a very smart man, and reached out to cancel the return. Instead op decided to continue the return, instead of admitting his mistake. Of you want ppl to behave nicely, first thing is to check yourself.

Things take time, shit happens. Don't hold ppl to ridiculous standards and show some empathy ffs.

Your very first post, on an account established today and you decide to defend a merchant with questionable customer service etiquettes.

Yes, that's not suspicious at all..


I'll give you a "like" to add some legitimacy

#RussianBot

[No Boost]

Originally Posted by PrinceCity

...isn't fair to these companies who have tried their best to satisfy him since day one.

So much wrong with your post but this line takes the cake.

[mike@x-ph.com]

How did i miss this thread?!!

Lots of false assumptions being made here unfortunately.

1- We do not send direct from Fabspeed, we stock products and are probably the biggest mover of these downpipes for Fabspeed. Thats why we can get orders shipped out same day when you need to wait 3-4 weeks to get it from anywhere else.

2- Customer received a downpipe claiming its defective, as a vendor we do not have the authority or expertise to make a decision on whether the product received is truly defective or was damaged later (by customer or shipping company).
We need the manufacturer the authorize the claim. The whole process is pretty fast, we are not asking the customer to wait weeks for it, we're just asking for a little patience.

If the claim was for anything other than defective product as the vendor we would take care of it direct without going back to the manufacturer.

Being a car guy, i understand that we get anxious for new car parts. But please be reasonable and gives us couple days to take care of your claim. thats all we are asking for. Customer contacted me on the 12th, We opened the claim with fabspeed, got it approved and are shipping out the downpipe 5 business days later

I was out most of last week and just got back today. I had a conversation with Julian and it turns out there was a couple day delay caused by us. Your exchange should have shipped late last week, my apologies for the inconvenience. I asked him to send it with overnight delivery so you receive it asap! he will be emailing you the new tracking number later today

[Anthony1s]

Originally Posted by mike@x-ph.com

How did i miss this thread?!!

Lots of false assumptions being made here unfortunately.

1- We do not send direct from Fabspeed, we stock products and are probably the biggest mover of these downpipes for Fabspeed. Thats why we can get orders shipped out same day when you need to wait 3-4 weeks to get it from anywhere else.

2- Customer received a downpipe claiming its defective, as a vendor we do not have the authority or expertise to make a decision on whether the product received is truly defective or was damaged later (by customer or shipping company).
We need the manufacturer the authorize the claim. The whole process is pretty fast, we are not asking the customer to wait weeks for it, we're just asking for a little patience.

If the claim was for anything other than defective product as the vendor we would take care of it direct without going back to the manufacturer.

Being a car guy, i understand that we get anxious for new car parts. But please be reasonable and gives us couple days to take care of your claim. thats all we are asking for. Customer contacted me on the 12th, We opened the claim with fabspeed, got it approved and are shipping out the downpipe 5 business days later

I was out most of last week and just got back today. I had a conversation with Julian and it turns out there was a couple day delay caused by us. Your exchange should have shipped late last week, my apologies for the inconvenience. I asked him to send it with overnight delivery so you receive it asap! he will be emailing you the new tracking number later today

Well, now you're just pissing me off. There is soo much inaccurate with what you said here, diluted, and minimized. And I see no false assumptions I've made or continued to make. Nor have you shown any. Only assumptions made by me were based on what you and Fabspeed told me. And trying to turn this around on me being impatient and "too anxious"?? Come on, Mike. You've failed multiple times in this. While all I did was complain about a convoluted process you and Fabspeed are putting me through and update the thread with progress. I wasn't even upset about it until right now.

1. Not sure why it matters if you drop ship or ship directly. There may've been a point, but if there was, I totally forgot it by now... But the first time I mentioned it in this thread I said "I was under the impression they only took orders and the DP was shipped from Fabspeed's location, but looking at the shipping label, it came directly from the retailer" So the VERY FIRST time it was mentioned, in the very same sentence I said my DP wasn't drop shipped. Like I said, I don't remember why I brought it up exactly either or why it mattered. But anyway, I really do not see how there was a false assumption there. Especially since your website says you drop ship items that aren't in stock. So your statement here saying that you don't drop ship is contradictory to that. And if you look further down in the terms and condtions I attached, you will again see that you ship direct from the mfg. So if there was an assumption made by me, which I've shown I've disproved in the very sentence I've said it in, that assumption comes from nowhere BUT what is listed on your very own website.



2. I received a downpipe claiming it arrived damaged, not defective. I never used it to determine if it was defective or not. As a vendor, I do not see how you do not have the authority or expertise to make a decision on whether a product is DAMAGED or not. Especially when there is a physically damaged item and pictures showing its damage. There is ZERO way that Fabspeed can determine I caused the damage more than you can determine it. Like I said, you are welcome to every second of CCTV footage I have showing the minute the package was dropped off, to the minute it left my house to ship back to Fabspeed. It did not leave my couch once during that time and anyone who asks is welcome to the evidence to prove that. There is really no better way to determine it than that... But like I said before, Mike, I don't believe you caused the damage or were even aware of the damage before shipping it to me. From what I could tell, the box was never opened by you after receiving it from Fabspeed. You probably receive a batch order of DPs from Fabspeed and put them on your shelf (unopened) until they are sold. So you could not have created the damage. However, as I said many times before, never in any retail business does there need to be approval from a mfg before a retailer can accept proceed with an exchange. The only thing I can think of for why you want to proceed that way is to make sure you will be covered by Fabspeed before proceeding with the exchange. Which, like I've said, is an added cost of time put on me, the customer, that should never exist.

3. Speaking of time. "The whole process is pretty fast, we are not asking the customer to wait weeks for it, we're just asking for a little patience." I've been patient, Mike. Every single step of the way has been a struggle with you arguing with me, lying to me, telling me others are lying to me, you missing shipment dates you've told me already happened, etc. I've followed your process and it's been anything but "pretty fast". What would be "pretty fast" is if you accepted that you sent me a damaged item, printed me a return label, and sent me a new one once you receive mine back.

But let's take a look at where my assumption of me not receiving a replacement for at least two weeks came from. With the process you've told me and with talking to Sean at Fabspeed, I did estimate around 2 weeks for me to get a new downpipe. I've explained this to Sean on the phone, but not to you. So I received the damaged DP on Friday the 12th, messaged you a few hours after receiving the pipe, you told me you had to forward this to Fabspeed and "hopefully hear from them on Monday", Monday comes, Sean posts in this thread and asks me to call him, I call him and he tells me that there are no support tickets in their system from you and also tells me that the customer service is on vacation until Wednesday. Keep in mind, you told me you contacted them on Friday the 12th and now it's Monday the 15th and they haven't heard from you. So with all this information given to me by you and Sean is where I formed my assumption. Assumptions being, on Wednesday we'd be 6 days into this. Then your process, which I am attaching here, I would send my DP back to Fabspeed near Philly. Assuming Fabspeed would not pay for overnight shipping, it would take 3 days for them to receive the pipe from me. 3 days would be Saturday the 20th. Is Fabspeed opened on Saturday, I don't know, but let's assume they are. Their website says "only by appointment" but I really doubt they would be inspecting damaged returns and approve to you to send me a new downpipe. Assuming you had one in stock, which both me and Fabspeed did not know because you didn't reply to that question. So, worst case scenario if you didn't have one in stock, Fabspeed told me it would take 2-3 weeks for them to make one for me. So that's part of one of my estimations. But regardless of that, assuming Fabspeed took care of their end by Monday the 22nd, approved for you to send me one of your stock of DPs, and you send it out monday. Then it would be another 4 days of shipping time for me to receive it. The initial pipe I was shipped took 4 days, so that's where I'm getting that from. So that puts us at Friday the 26th for me to receive my replacement downpipe, assuming everything goes right and hits the expected ETA's I was told. That is TWO WEEKS to the date of me receiving my damaged downpipe. So my two week estimate wouldn't only be accurate, but extremely generous.

Now what actually happened? You told me you shipped me out a replacement downpipe on the 16th. I was actually extremely thankful for this because it meant I would get it by Friday the 19th. I shipped back the damaged pipe on the 17th. Fabspeed received the damaged pipe on the 18th. You failed to ship me out the replacement downpipe. I contact you to inquire about the shipment. I get no response from you. I also email Julian, get no response from him until 2 days later. He says "I do apologize for the extensive wait, your downpipe will be shipping out Monday guaranteed!". Then today (monday), you tell me there was a delay and the downpipe will ship today (monday) Today is Monday and as far as I know, the downpipe still hasn't shipped. I did not receive and email with a new tracking number like I said I would, and you guys are closed now, and so is Fedex, so I doubt it will still ship today. So let's assume you ship it overnight tomorrow and I receive it Wednesday. Well, that will be 12 days since receiving the damaged pipe, which is still extremely close to my two week estimate.

No matter how it's cut, my two week estimate has been very accurate.
... If you didn't have a replacement to send me... 2-3 weeks because Fabspeed had none in stock and had to make them.
... The process you told me has to happen, 2 weeks as I've explained above
... What really happened. Best case scenario, 12 days, if you ship overnight tomorrow.

Anyway, here is the proof of what I'm going by.





Which, you know, if you actually kept your word this time, I wouldn't be writing this long post nor would I be this pissed off. I would've accepted your apology. In fact, I did accept your apology today after reading your post and wasn't going to write all this, but seeing you failed to ship my downpipe yet again, is why I'm writing it.

So let's take a look at some of the other lies you've told me...

If you look above you say "I just called them and they confirmed that John the general manager will approve it today". Lie #1, John is NOT the general manager, but a Customer Service Advocate.

#2


Sean has confirmed more than once that you do not need to go through them before accepting an exchange. Nor even in this reality am I receiving a replacement direct from Fabspeed. You are sending me the DP direct from your warehouse. And now, let me remind you of your terms and conditions which you quote as this being something I agreed to. As you can see absolutely NOTHING you mention is listed in your terms and conditions.





#3
"Customer contacted me on the 12th, We opened the claim with fabspeed, got it approved and are shipping out the downpipe 5 business days later"

Yes, I contacted you on the 12th. You did not open a claim with Fabspeed, on the 16th there was no claim opened by you. You didn't get it approve, I did by speaking with Sean. You did not ship out a downpipe 5 days later. It's in fact 10 days later now and there is no downpipe shipped.

Honestly, I'm so sick of writing right now and this whole thing is making me want to start smoking again. Just seriously, stop putting blame on me and ship me the replacement pipe so this can all be in the past.

[mike@x-ph.com]

Originally Posted by Anthony1s

Well, now you're just pissing me off. There is soo much inaccurate with what you said here, diluted, and minimized. And I see no false assumptions I've made or continued to make. Nor have you shown any. Only assumptions made by me were based on what you and Fabspeed told me. And trying to turn this around on me being impatient and "too anxious"?? Come on, Mike. You've failed multiple times in this. While all I did was complain about a convoluted process you and Fabspeed are putting me through and update the thread with progress. I wasn't even upset about it until right now.

Oh wow , sir you are so angry you are not even reading my post correctly. I know its frustrating to receive a defective product but you are taking it to another level. There is no point in going back and forth on this as the exchange was already sent. I will point out a few points where you are either misreading my post.

1- i never said you made false assumptions , the reply was not about you.

2- i did not accuse you of damaging the product. We follow a certain process, im sorry you do not like it. We will do our best in the future to make it faster and more convenient to customers

3-The downpipe did ship out today, i will send you the tracking number.

4- i said in my first post 5 business days, business days do not include Saturday and Sunday. You opened claim on Friday, the exchange would have shipped out 3 business days later. We had a delay, took full responsibility and sent the downpipe overnight to get it to you asap!

5- Not sure why you would accuse me of lying about John being the general manager. What would i gain from that lie? Have you considered that maybe i was just mistaken on his role? I deal with Paul who is my wholesale rep, i do not deal with customer service or retail rep at Fabspeed.

6- i am not blaming you for anything. All im asking for is patience, You contacted me on Friday, you are receiving the replacement the next Tuesday. It could have been a faster process of course and i apologized for it and did my best to fix it.


With the exchange already sent out , i do not see a point of contributing to this thread any longer. I wish you all the best and sincerely hope that you were joking about going back to smoking from having to wait 1 week for a defective car part

[Anthony1s]

Originally Posted by mike@x-ph.com

Oh wow , sir you are so angry you are not even reading my post correctly. I know its frustrating to receive a defective product but you are taking it to another level. There is no point in going back and forth on this as the exchange was already sent. I will point out a few points where you are either misreading my post.

1- i never said you made false assumptions , the reply was not about you.

2- i did not accuse you of damaging the product. We follow a certain process, im sorry you do not like it. We will do our best in the future to make it faster and more convenient to customers

3-The downpipe did ship out today, i will send you the tracking number.

4- i said in my first post 5 business days, business days do not include Saturday and Sunday. You opened claim on Friday, the exchange would have shipped out 3 business days later. We had a delay, took full responsibility and sent the downpipe overnight to get it to you asap!

5- Not sure why you would accuse me of lying about John being the general manager. What would i gain from that lie? Have you considered that maybe i was just mistaken on his role? I deal with Paul who is my wholesale rep, i do not deal with customer service or retail rep at Fabspeed.

6- i am not blaming you for anything. All im asking for is patience, You contacted me on Friday, you are receiving the replacement the next Tuesday. It could have been a faster process of course and i apologized for it and did my best to fix it.


With the exchange already sent out , i do not see a point of contributing to this thread any longer. I wish you all the best and sincerely hope that you were joking about going back to smoking from having to wait 1 week for a defective car part

I'm not joking, Mike. It's seriously been an absolute nightmare dealing with you. You minimize everything that happened and then gaslight me. I have been very patient and calm for the last 11 days. In fact, I wasn't even mad previously. Just stating in this thread what was going on. But after your post here clearly accusing me of being the problem, and now this other post denying you were accusing me... it's just wayyy too much to deal with. Not to mention the clearly fake account defending you.

Thank you for sending out the downpipe. I did not hear from you today when you said it would be sent out today. It's almost 11pm here when you told me it was shipped, well after your business hours and Fedex's. So I don't see it being unreasonable to assume you didn't ship it today. Anyway, I hope to receive it well just as much as you do, so this whole ordeal can be in the past.