Brooks Racing

As the customer has stated Brooks Racing was only contracted to build the short block of the engine assembly and rebuild the cylinder headsThe one damaged cylinder from the piston melting due to a faulty fuel injector was cut out and replacedThe remainder of the cylinders were bored to accommodate an over-sized piston to correct the excessive piston-to-wall clearanceThe rotating assembly was then balanced to ensure a smooth rotating and eliminate excess vibrationsThere was no repair work needed to either the crankshaft or connecting rodsThe low pressure oil pump was tore down and blueprinted as per Ford clearance specifications and reassembled filled with oil to prevent a dry startThere were absolutely no signs of excess wear or pitting in the gears to be concerned ofHad there been any concern whatsoever the customer would have been contacted immediately Upon completion of the short block assembly and the cylinder head repair the customer was contacted for delivery of the contracted workOur work that was completed is in fact under warranty and will be for the following months, however, a short block assembly does not come with any contamination warrantyWhen the customer arrived to pick up the engine it was loaded into the bed of a truck and transferred to it's destination in open airThe customer was responsible at this point for the sealing of the engine and proper cleaning and re-installation of the oil systemThere are several parts to the oil system that could very well have been containing the missing melted piece of the original piston, which the customer stated that he had never foundThis list contains the high pressure oil pump (which the customer stated he let the oil drain out of, but did not have serviced for particle contamination), a complicated oil feed system with tubes and oil pick up, and an oil cooler within the radiatorAs of my knowledge the customer did not remove the radiator and take it to a specialist to have the oil cooler flowed to ensure there was not particulate matter remaining in the system It was stated by [redacted] ***, President of [redacted] , that "In my professional opinion, there is no evidence of failure that points directly to the machine shop (Brooks Racing)The material that was found in the oil pump upon removal is aluminum, which none of the parts machined by Brooks Racing areThe pump has either taken in a particle (of such material) or failed due to lack of lubrication." This statement was a conversation between [redacted] and myself when he also stated that he had told the customer directly that there was no way to point a direct blame of the failureIt is a known fact that diesel engines due to their unique oiling systems have no way of prematurely priming the oil system to ensure continuous oil feed to these critical parts A typical way to solve this issue is to fill the engine after complete assembly from the bottom (of an upside-down sealed engine) to ensure an adequate oil supply to this low volume pumpThe material found and pictured in the attached images is aluminum and could not have been any material left over from our work as every part we manipulated was cast iron or steel To conclude, there is no evidence showing that any work completed at our facility was a direct cause of failure to the oil pumpThe pump failed either because of particulate matter remaining in the oil system that contaminated the pump or due to a lack of oil to lubricate the gears causing it to gall the outer casing

Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.The low pressure oil pump was removed/disassembled and then reassembled by Brooks racing The aluminum filings and scoring inside the pump where either already there when the pump was disassembled and should've been properly identified by Brooks racing so that it could've been replaced, or the pump and housing was not properly re-assembled due to Brooks racing's negligence Per *** ***'s statement to me, the aluminum was from the front housing cover which houses the pump This is the only aluminum in the block Also, I NEVER spoke to *** at *** *** about this issue, but directly to the technician that properly repaired the vehicle Brooks racing was hired to repair the short block and re-assemble it This does NOT include re-assembling damaged pieces without notifying me of such damage so that I could determine whether to repair or replace it The short block was delivered to them with the pump included and assembledThe cooling system, including the radiator does not have oil in it and did not need to be replacedThe high pressure oil pump was drained and flush as was the oil cooler.The damage was either pre-existing, due to the original failure of the engine, which it should've been identified by Brooks racing during disassembly/repair/reassembly Or the damage was caused by Brooks racing improperly re-assembly of the pump, including not properly lubricating as they stated.Regards,
*** ***

As the customer has stated Brooks Racing was only contracted to build the short block of the engine assembly and rebuild the cylinder heads. The one damaged cylinder from the piston melting due to a faulty fuel injector was cut out and replaced. The remainder of the cylinders were bored to...

accommodate an over-sized piston to correct the excessive piston-to-wall clearance. The rotating assembly was then balanced to ensure a smooth rotating and eliminate excess vibrations. There was no repair work needed to either the crankshaft or connecting rods. The low pressure oil pump was tore down and blueprinted as per Ford clearance specifications and reassembled filled with oil to prevent a dry start. There were absolutely no signs of excess wear or pitting in the gears to be concerned of. Had there been any concern whatsoever the customer would have been contacted immediately. 
Upon completion of the short block assembly and the cylinder head repair the customer was contacted for delivery of the contracted work. Our work that was completed is in fact under warranty and will be for the following 12 months, however, a short block assembly does not come with any contamination warranty. When the customer arrived to pick up the engine it was loaded into the bed of a truck and transferred to it's destination in open air. The customer was responsible at this point for the sealing of the engine and proper cleaning and re-installation of the oil system. There are several parts to the oil system that could very well have been containing the missing melted piece of the original piston, which the customer stated that he had never found. This list contains the high pressure oil pump (which the customer stated he let the oil drain out of, but did not have serviced for particle contamination), a complicated oil feed system with tubes and oil pick up, and an oil cooler within the radiator. As of my knowledge the customer did not remove the radiator and take it to a specialist to have the oil cooler flowed to ensure there was not particulate matter remaining in the system.
It was stated by [redacted], President of [redacted], that "In my professional opinion, there is no evidence of failure that points directly to the machine shop (Brooks Racing). The material that was found in the oil pump upon removal is aluminum, which none of the parts machined by Brooks Racing are. The pump has either taken in a particle (of such material) or failed due to lack of lubrication." This statement was a conversation between [redacted] and myself when he also stated that he had told the customer directly that there was no way to point a direct blame of the failure. It is a known fact that diesel engines due to their unique oiling systems have no way of prematurely priming the oil system to ensure continuous oil feed to these critical parts.  A typical way to solve this issue is to fill the engine after complete assembly from the bottom (of an upside-down sealed engine) to ensure an adequate oil supply to this low volume pump. The material found and pictured in the attached images is aluminum and could not have been any material left over from our work as every part we manipulated was cast iron or steel.
To conclude, there is no evidence showing that any work completed at our facility was a direct cause of failure to the oil pump. The pump failed either because of particulate matter remaining in the oil system that contaminated the pump or due to a lack of oil to lubricate the gears causing it to gall the outer casing.

Let me start by saying that I like Steve, Emma & Rich on a personal level. Emma is an absolute sweetheart.
My customer experience was very disappointing and want you to know that it would be foolish on your part to consider taking a vehicle to Brooks Racing to be worked on. My car needed the engine’s rotating assembly rebuilt and I wished to have a supercharger added. The initial estimate was that the process would take 3 months and cost $5,967. After waiting FOURTEEN months and paying Brooks Racing over $20,000 plus much more on parts. The car was not running right and was overheating badly. Let me say again….they had the car for 14 months and although I would call and follow up each week, it would often sit and sit with no work being done. I paid them promptly each time they gave me an invoice in hopes that they would take care of me but still customer service was atrocious. After I learned that they were getting evicted from their location and had actually moved my car to the new location I knew I needed to take my car to somebody else. I am very grateful to Emma for recommending another company that is doing good work for me.
I could write chapters about the saga I endured but I’ll keep things simple:
• There is little or no pride in workmanship
• They do not see things through
• Customer Service is a foreign concept
• They don’t use a calendar and plan their work
• They ignored dozens of phone calls, texts and emails over the FOURTEEN months they had the car
• When I was expecting a $2,500 bill they surprised me with a 11,000 bill.
• The fabrication work done on my car was poor. The welding skills are feeble
• My car sat under a swamp cooler for many months causing surface rust to some parts
• Various wires and cables were melted and or cut
• They are very good at making excuses
I have payed thousands to have the shoddy work performed by Brooks Racing repaired by a competent and conscientious shop including:
• Replacing the “custom fabricated” Cold Air Intake with something that seals to the throttle body and fits in the car
• Plumbing the intercooler coolant system as the system didn’t flow when I got the car which was part of the cause to the overheating
• Replacing the engine support. Brooks had taken the 4” box metal cross member and hacked a huge chunk out of and tack welded a little hollow 3/4” pipe in it’s place
• Repairing the fuel system lines
I tried to schedule to have my car professionally towed to the new shop and Brooks INSISTED on transporting it for me. Unfortunately they used a 5th wheel trailer which didn’t work well for my low slung Italian sports car. When Brooks Racing delivered it they ended up tearing off the fuel lines while unloading it. I’m deeply troubled by the number of scratches, scrapes and gouges that are now on my car after they had it for a year and two months. My car was in nearly new condition with just 11,000 miles on it when I took it to them.
Another crazy thing is that Rich the Mechanic called me after I had gotten my car back and asked me for more money. He said he spent a six of hours “diagnosing” the intercooler system and wanted to get paid. I asked him what his diagnosis was and he said that the cooler was blocked. UGH!!! I told him that I had paid every invoice I received and was not interested paying any more. I explained that I had paid him to install the system PROPERLY once and he failed. I should have to pay him again for diagnosing it. Lastly, I was paying another company to repair it because there were kinks in the system and that is why it didn’t flow.
At the end of the day Brooks Racing treated me like spoiled teenage girl might her daddy’s credit card. They seemed to think I was made of money. They took advantage of me and did awful work on my car.

As the customer has stated Brooks Racing was only contracted to build the short block of the engine assembly and rebuild the cylinder heads. The one damaged cylinder from the piston melting due to a faulty fuel injector was cut out and replaced. The remainder of the cylinders were bored to...

accommodate an over-sized piston to correct the excessive piston-to-wall clearance. The rotating assembly was then balanced to ensure a smooth rotating and eliminate excess vibrations. There was no repair work needed to either the crankshaft or connecting rods. The low pressure oil pump was tore down and blueprinted as per Ford clearance specifications and reassembled filled with oil to prevent a dry start. There were absolutely no signs of excess wear or pitting in the gears to be concerned of. Had there been any concern whatsoever the customer would have been contacted immediately. 

Upon completion of the short block assembly and the cylinder head repair the customer was contacted for delivery of the contracted work. Our work that was completed is in fact under warranty and will be for the following 12 months, however, a short block assembly does not come with any contamination warranty. When the customer arrived to pick up the engine it was loaded into the bed of a truck and transferred to it's destination in open air. The customer was responsible at this point for the sealing of the engine and proper cleaning and re-installation of the oil system. There are several parts to the oil system that could very well have been containing the missing melted piece of the original piston, which the customer stated that he had never found. This list contains the high pressure oil pump (which the customer stated he let the oil drain out of, but did not have serviced for particle contamination), a complicated oil feed system with tubes and oil pick up, and an oil cooler within the radiator. As of my knowledge the customer did not remove the radiator and take it to a specialist to have the oil cooler flowed to ensure there was not particulate matter remaining in the system.

It was stated by [redacted], President of [redacted], that "In my professional opinion, there is no evidence of failure that points directly to the machine shop (Brooks Racing). The material that was found in the oil pump upon removal is aluminum, which none of the parts machined by Brooks Racing are. The pump has either taken in a particle (of such material) or failed due to lack of lubrication." This statement was a conversation between [redacted] and myself when he also stated that he had told the customer directly that there was no way to point a direct blame of the failure. It is a known fact that diesel engines due to their unique oiling systems have no way of prematurely priming the oil system to ensure continuous oil feed to these critical parts.  A typical way to solve this issue is to fill the engine after complete assembly from the bottom (of an upside-down sealed engine) to ensure an adequate oil supply to this low volume pump. The material found and pictured in the attached images is aluminum and could not have been any material left over from our work as every part we manipulated was cast iron or steel.

To conclude, there is no evidence showing that any work completed at our facility was a direct cause of failure to the oil pump. The pump failed either because of particulate matter remaining in the oil system that contaminated the pump or due to a lack of oil to lubricate the gears causing it to gall the outer casing.

Let me start by saying that I like Steve, Emma & Rich on a personal level. Emma is an absolute sweetheart.

My customer experience was very disappointing and want you to know that it would be foolish on your part to consider taking a vehicle to Brooks Racing to be worked on. My car needed the engine’s rotating assembly rebuilt and I wished to have a supercharger added. The initial estimate was that the process would take 3 months and cost $5,967. After waiting FOURTEEN months and paying Brooks Racing over $20,000 plus much more on parts. The car was not running right and was overheating badly. Let me say again….they had the car for 14 months and although I would call and follow up each week, it would often sit and sit with no work being done. I paid them promptly each time they gave me an invoice in hopes that they would take care of me but still customer service was atrocious. After I learned that they were getting evicted from their location and had actually moved my car to the new location I knew I needed to take my car to somebody else. I am very grateful to Emma for recommending another company that is doing good work for me.

I could write chapters about the saga I endured but I’ll keep things simple:

• There is little or no pride in workmanship

• They do not see things through

• Customer Service is a foreign concept

• They don’t use a calendar and plan their work

• They ignored dozens of phone calls, texts and emails over the FOURTEEN months they had the car

• When I was expecting a $2,500 bill they surprised me with a 11,000 bill.

• The fabrication work done on my car was poor. The welding skills are feeble

• My car sat under a swamp cooler for many months causing surface rust to some parts

• Various wires and cables were melted and or cut

• They are very good at making excuses

I have payed thousands to have the shoddy work performed by Brooks Racing repaired by a competent and conscientious shop including:

• Replacing the “custom fabricated” Cold Air Intake with something that seals to the throttle body and fits in the car

• Plumbing the intercooler coolant system as the system didn’t flow when I got the car which was part of the cause to the overheating

• Replacing the engine support. Brooks had taken the 4” box metal cross member and hacked a huge chunk out of and tack welded a little hollow 3/4” pipe in it’s place

• Repairing the fuel system lines

I tried to schedule to have my car professionally towed to the new shop and Brooks INSISTED on transporting it for me. Unfortunately they used a 5th wheel trailer which didn’t work well for my low slung Italian sports car. When Brooks Racing delivered it they ended up tearing off the fuel lines while unloading it. I’m deeply troubled by the number of scratches, scrapes and gouges that are now on my car after they had it for a year and two months. My car was in nearly new condition with just 11,000 miles on it when I took it to them.

Another crazy thing is that Rich the Mechanic called me after I had gotten my car back and asked me for more money. He said he spent a six of hours “diagnosing” the intercooler system and wanted to get paid. I asked him what his diagnosis was and he said that the cooler was blocked. UGH!!! I told him that I had paid every invoice I received and was not interested paying any more. I explained that I had paid him to install the system PROPERLY once and he failed. I should have to pay him again for diagnosing it. Lastly, I was paying another company to repair it because there were kinks in the system and that is why it didn’t flow.

At the end of the day Brooks Racing treated me like spoiled teenage girl might her daddy’s credit card. They seemed to think I was made of money. They took advantage of me and did awful work on my car.

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.The low pressure oil pump was removed/disassembled and then reassembled by Brooks racing.  The aluminum filings and scoring inside the pump where either already there when the pump was disassembled and should've been properly identified by Brooks racing so that it could've been replaced, or the pump and housing was not properly re-assembled due to Brooks racing's negligence.  Per [redacted]'s statement to me, the aluminum was from the front housing cover which houses the pump.  This is the only aluminum in the block.  Also, I NEVER spoke to [redacted] at [redacted] about this issue, but directly to the technician that properly repaired the vehicle.  Brooks racing was hired to repair the short block and re-assemble it.  This does NOT include re-assembling damaged pieces without notifying me of such damage so that I could determine whether to repair or replace it.  The short block was delivered to them with the pump included and assembled. The cooling system, including the radiator does not have oil in it and did not need to be replaced. The high pressure oil pump was drained and flush as was the oil cooler.The damage was either pre-existing, due to the original failure of the engine, which it should've been identified by Brooks racing during disassembly/repair/reassembly.  Or the damage was caused by Brooks racing improperly re-assembly of the pump, including not properly lubricating as they stated.Regards,

Brooks Racing had three employees present at the time of the oil pump removal and inspection. All the internal parts were measured and inspected as per Ford's specification of the pump. There were no areas of concern or wear within the pump. It was then reassembled as per Ford specifications and filled with oil, also by Ford's procedures. Brooks Racing did not install nor add the final lubrication to the engine, therefore can not be liable for the lack of lubrication that damaged the pump. Proper priming of oil to the engine would be the installation and final completion of the engine assembly, which if completed properly would not have damaged the pump. The damage that occurred to the oil pump was from lack of lubrication and could not be controlled or caused by Brooks Racing's contracted work.