I've been thinking of getting some mods and have read many posts about various products and vendors. Some of the posts were by buyers that did not get what they expected and were burned trying to get a refund.
I had a similar experience with a vendor a long time ago when I was tuning my Evo VIII. That company was RnR racing and I hope that no FiST owner has to go through what many Evo parts buyers went through. Here's the post I made on evolutionm.net under my same user name. I think that it still applies today, especially if you are buying lots of parts on one order;
Tips for ordering parts online
It seems that there are several vendors which will take your money and then not ship your parts within their promised time frame. I just had this experience with a large order and was fortunate enough to have my full purchase price refunded by Visa. Here's some tips which might save you some grief.
1. Check for previous posts about the reputation about this vendor. If it's happened to others, you have a good chance that it will happen to you too. Buy from someone else.
2. If you have concerns about a vendor, don't order through their online ordering system. You will be subject to the terms they might have buried somewhere on their site. This includes large (35%) restocking charges for cancellations even when they haven't shipped for months after their promised date. Instead, call them on the phone and get prices and agree on a delivery date and other terms. Then, make your order by email, in which you specify the terms including your expectations of quality and fitment. The terms should include an absolute deadline for delivery. The delivery should be a complete delivery - no partial shipments should be accepted. They need to acknowledge these terms via email, or there is no order. Just say, "Please acknowledge that this is correct, and I will call you back with my credit card number."
3. Use a credit card. If you use Paypal, be aware that Paypal only protects you for 30 days from when you are charged. A lot of vendors can't or won't ship within 30 days and will charge your account as soon as you place the order. In these situations, Paypal offers no protection.
4. Follow up on your order. Send emails asking for the status of the order. Keep everything in writing. If you have phone conversations with the vendor, follow-up with an email restating the same information. Ask for a confirmation.
I had a recent experience where I ordered over $4800 worth of parts from a vendor. I needed the parts by an absolute drop-dead date so I could install them prior to a Vishnu tuning day in our area last month.
The vendor had about 5 weeks to deliver and accepted these therms. The parts didn't arrive in time. Sure, they might have arrived at some point, but the opportunity for their use was lost. This was all communicated up front and agreed to by the vendor.
After I emailed him to cancel the order, he hit me up with a 35% restocking charge for parts I never received. I called Visa and they immediately reversed the full charge. They asked for documentation to support my claims. Based upon my steps above, my documentation left the vendor without a valid claim for the restocking charge.
Just wanted to possibly save some of you from problems that a lot of us have experienced. Credit cards are typically your only reasonably protection - but only if you use them on your terms.
I had a similar experience with a vendor a long time ago when I was tuning my Evo VIII. That company was RnR racing and I hope that no FiST owner has to go through what many Evo parts buyers went through. Here's the post I made on evolutionm.net under my same user name. I think that it still applies today, especially if you are buying lots of parts on one order;
Tips for ordering parts online
It seems that there are several vendors which will take your money and then not ship your parts within their promised time frame. I just had this experience with a large order and was fortunate enough to have my full purchase price refunded by Visa. Here's some tips which might save you some grief.
1. Check for previous posts about the reputation about this vendor. If it's happened to others, you have a good chance that it will happen to you too. Buy from someone else.
2. If you have concerns about a vendor, don't order through their online ordering system. You will be subject to the terms they might have buried somewhere on their site. This includes large (35%) restocking charges for cancellations even when they haven't shipped for months after their promised date. Instead, call them on the phone and get prices and agree on a delivery date and other terms. Then, make your order by email, in which you specify the terms including your expectations of quality and fitment. The terms should include an absolute deadline for delivery. The delivery should be a complete delivery - no partial shipments should be accepted. They need to acknowledge these terms via email, or there is no order. Just say, "Please acknowledge that this is correct, and I will call you back with my credit card number."
3. Use a credit card. If you use Paypal, be aware that Paypal only protects you for 30 days from when you are charged. A lot of vendors can't or won't ship within 30 days and will charge your account as soon as you place the order. In these situations, Paypal offers no protection.
4. Follow up on your order. Send emails asking for the status of the order. Keep everything in writing. If you have phone conversations with the vendor, follow-up with an email restating the same information. Ask for a confirmation.
I had a recent experience where I ordered over $4800 worth of parts from a vendor. I needed the parts by an absolute drop-dead date so I could install them prior to a Vishnu tuning day in our area last month.
The vendor had about 5 weeks to deliver and accepted these therms. The parts didn't arrive in time. Sure, they might have arrived at some point, but the opportunity for their use was lost. This was all communicated up front and agreed to by the vendor.
After I emailed him to cancel the order, he hit me up with a 35% restocking charge for parts I never received. I called Visa and they immediately reversed the full charge. They asked for documentation to support my claims. Based upon my steps above, my documentation left the vendor without a valid claim for the restocking charge.
Just wanted to possibly save some of you from problems that a lot of us have experienced. Credit cards are typically your only reasonably protection - but only if you use them on your terms.
