Hughes Engineering

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2016/07/20) */
The customer purchased these cylinder heads (and other parts) 1/years agoThese parts are for a high performance or racing applications, not a standard engine rebuildNeither of these applications can carry any form of warranty, especially
after 1/yearsThe customer returned the heads to us for examinationThe wear and damage was extremeI have been in business years and have examined severely damaged heads from many different applications and I can say without hesitation, that these were one of the worst I have ever seen, and he "claimed" he had only run them for milesI find that very difficult to believe
I returned an estimate of the cost of the repair with a discount of 25% which in view of the time interval, intended use, and the extreme damage at such low "claimed" mileage was generous
As to his claim of having problems, that is entirely possibleHe is changing the use and performance of his vehicle and many problems arise during these build-upsThis goes with the territoryTherefore, we offer the best tech help in the industry with individuals who help customers with tech help and advice all day longWhat he may perceive as a problem with us, is actually us solving a problem that was created by his lack of knowledge on the subjectI am sorry he had problems with our products but in view of all the facts I think my offer is more than fair
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 8, 2016/07/21) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The heads were defective from the get goHughes engines knew about the problems with their headsThey should of put bronze guides in it from the beginningThat's why their website says don't buy the heads without bronze guidesThey found this out in April and I bought the heads in December The business has shady practicesI have friends in the business that stand by their productHughes engines doesn't stand by their productThey have known about the guide situation well before I bought the headsThat is deceptive business practicesThey supposedly setup everything and it didn't workI guess he thinks because of their screwup, that I should pay almost dollars more so they can" supposedly" fix the headsHe had his chanceI want the full dollars back when I bought them

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 29, 2016/10/06) */
Wow! I haven't heard from you folks in 48 years and now 2 complaints in 2 months. As usual, in situations such as this, I don't see things as the complainant does but I won't belabor you by continuing with he said she said dialogue. And as...

usual, the customer will use "distorted" versions of earlier conversations to reinforce his position as the hapless victim.
This boils down to who or what is responsible for the rocker shaft pedestals cracking/breaking on his heads. There are 10 rocker shaft pedestals. 4 of them have their threaded holes sunk deeper into the cylinder head casting and the remaining 6 are only threaded into the pedestal. These remaining 6 are the ones that break. The customer would like us to believe the shims we sold him were the cause of the breakage.
What he refuses to acknowledge is that this particular cylinder head, and Chinese copies of it, are the only ones in this industry that have this problem on the same 6 positions whether they use our shims or not. We have been selling these shims for over 20 years and some of our competitors longer than that, with no problems. This problem with the pedestals cracking has become so prevalent that we have set up a procedure to repair these heads and will advertise it on our website by the end of this week. We even have customers who are having us do the preventative re-work procedure on their new cylinder heads before they install them. The OEM factory, Edelbrock, has even sent us heads to repair and they don't mention shims as a problem.
The customer's heads were the first ones we repaired and since that time we have talked to several people who have the same problem, and most of them have not used the infamous shims. I know all of this is very detailed and confusing to the layman but I would be happy to send you some photos to clarify the subject.
In closing, I am truly sorry for the customer's problems, but it is not ours or our shims' fault, and distorting earlier situations to curry favor for his real problem is not helping his case.
Note: As of today, 10/6/19, we have the repair shown on our website HERE (http://www.hughesengines.com/Index/bigblockvictorops.php).
Yours Truly,
Dave Hughes
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 31, 2016/10/11) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
Mr. Hughes has not provided answers to the detailed concerns that I have articulated. To simplify my queries have I condensed my response as follows:
I will be very concise in my rebuttal and I ask the same of Mr. Hughes, if he chooses to respond. I would appreciate if Mr. Hughes would address each of the following questions explicitly and honestly:
1. What is the opinion of Mr. Hughes regarding the myriad of mistakes, some potentially disastrous, made by Hughes Engines when shipping my engine parts? (Appendix "B") Does it reek of incompetence?
2. Will using a non tapered shim on the rocker arm pedestal reduce the radius of the rocker saddle? If no, please explain. (Appendix "S")
3. Will torqueing the hardened steel rocker shaft into the rocker saddle of reduced radius cause distortion and sometimes cracking of the rocker pedestal? If no, please explain. (Appendix "S")
4. Will the hardened steel rocker shaft rest tightly against the bottom of the rocker saddle of reduced radius? Is yes, how is this possible? (Appendix "S")
5. If there is a gap between the hardened steel rocker shaft and the rocker saddles, would this cause oil leakage from this gap and thus reduce oil flow to the rocker arms? If not, please explain.
6. Why does Mr. Hughes specify a higher rocker shaft torque (30 ft./pds.) than the OEM head manufacturer Edelbrock (25 ft./pds.) (Appendices "M", "N")
7. Why did Mr. Hughes change the shim kit instructions posted on his WEB site later in the same day that I sent him an email blaming this instruction set and shims for the breakage? It seems like a strange coincidence if this was not the cause of the problem, after all the old instructions were made in 2011. (Appendices "C", "D", "E")
8. Mr. Hughes wrote in his reply to my complaint that what I "refuse to acknowledge is that this particular cylinder head, and Chinese copies of it, are the only ones in the Industry that have this problem...". How would I know that? Would I have bought the heads knowing that? He also wrote "This problem with the pedestals cracking has become so prevalent that we have set up a procedure to repair these heads..." Why does Mr. Hughes recommend or even sell these cylinder heads if he feels they have such an egregious defect? Why didn't Mr. Hughes tell me about this defect before I purchased the heads?
9. If indeed the problem is caused by poor design or quality of the cylinder head, then how can I claim warranty from Edelbrock when Mr. Hughes has specified the use of rocker stand shims, as well as over torqueing of the rocker shaft? Both of these are against Edelbrock's recommendations. (Appendices "F","M" and "N")
10. Why did Mr. Hughes attempt to fix the head after telling me that he would not?
Please Mr. Hughes, if you respond, give me something more compelling than "we have been selling these shims for over 20 years". Rocker stand shims were used in limited applications in the distant past, on cast iron heads that are much more robust than cast aluminum. Car engines were once started by hand cranking, but times and technology have changed.
I have included references to relevant written information contained in appendices from my original complaint. Hopefully this information will help Mr. Hughes in understanding the physics behind the problem.
In earnest,
[redacted]
Final Consumer Response /* (3000, 43, 2016/10/27) */
Mr. Hughes, let me school you on Canada Border Services as well, there is NO DUTY ON CAR PARTS ENTERING CANADA. I have all my documentation in order for my border crossings if you care to follow up on your slanderous statement. It took some work to straighten out the mess that you created with all the your incorrect shipments but I managed to get it done.
I sent over 30 pages of detail and written fact for my complaint and all you can do is evade questions and throw back slander? I wish the Revdex.com had the ability to present all of the information that I provided, as I am certain the General Public could easily understand it.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 36, 2016/10/27) */
I am sure the complainant will never accept any response I give because they are the same ones I gave originally and the only ones that are factual.
1. Any mistakes on our part were corrected and sent to an address near the Canadian border so he could sneak it across, like his previous shipments, into Canada and not pay duty!!!
2. Anything is possible.
3. Anything is possible.
4. Anything is possible.
5. Anything is possible.
6. We use a heavy duty shaft and stronger springs.
7. We are constantly updating our website.
8. Not all of the heads crack, but if they do, it is always in the same 3 places regardless of whether they used shims or not.
9. Same answer as #8.
10. I told him we would quickly repair it, as he was in a hurry, and charge him for it if he didn't notify me otherwise in the next 2 days. He did not, so we repaired it. We have been using these shims on aluminum cylinder heads for 15+ years with no problems. All the things he asks in questions 2-5 may be possible but they are not a problem no matter how bad he wants them to be.
I wonder if the Canadian authorities would be interested in his border crossings.
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