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The back channels are busy with activity gentlemen. The new person coming in has a wonderful opportunity should he take advantage of it. With the resume he carries, success could happen. Or maybe its a smokescreen.

If people get burned word of mouth will travel fast.

A smart person would take care of unfinished projects if they wanted to succeed. Even if they shunned off unfinished builds an won in a courtroom, they might be spending too much time there. Would anyone want that?

Continued threatening talk is not wise. We are aware of the issue. Due diligence is a good thing.

Your PM's 4banger, should not be so ultimatum to me. Lets have communication on a friendlier basis. There is a common cause.

Back channels here can be a good thing which has helped me currently, and in the months past. Thank you gentlemen.

JPS claims four cars to be delivered in late May. One has my description. I will cling to that and nose around.

bart posted:

Max, there is a nude beach at La Jolla to consider....but as usual .....nothing but a bunch of old fat guys.....not that there is anything wrong with that... 

I am under the impression that Beverly Hills in San Diego has a number of JPS cars, they might have the scoop.... 

 

Blacks Beach. Dr. Chris and I can go check that out if needed.

michel posted:
MaxMartens posted:

JPS FB shows activity 4-1 & yesterday claiming attendance at La Jolla Concourse. Somebody attend!

And yes any of those available cars should be ours, NOT to new clients.

I will keep my positivity and look to see progress on the JPS business front.

$70.00 per ticket. WE are going to Good Guys in Del Mar instead. 

 

$70 a ticket for a concourse? That'll keep out the riffraff (starting with me!)

I never put a time ultimatum on John with my build. I understand his process, if you want to call it that. He holds true to his style. It goes as Chuck says. I have given John free reign. Time is on my side (even if its delayed time).

I am keeping with the thought of good intention with John and the new person coming in. I will keep the thought that things could get better!

Maybe, and just maybe, if John is not feeling so well, could he have a sense of responsibility to pass his torch to a fresh operator??? That would be a good scenario.

I am going the glass half full route.

 

 

 

 

All the hard luck stories and excuses. My rose-colored glasses came off a long time ago.  I am not swayed by hard luck stories and propaganda pictures anymore.

There's a big move going on right now. Assets are being shuffled. Things are hiding in storage. Businesses have closed. New ones opened with "no connection" with the old. Things are moving from one pocket to another while being removed from a third. A fresher feeding ground opens for those who do not know. Nawh. Can't be. Not here.

All I can say is "watch". You can tell me how wrong I am later. I'll be glad to be wrong.

Karma is king. Some things have to just die off before we can finally get rid of them. But there will be more on the way and the newbies will forget. They are only successful because "one is born everyday" and "none or so blind as those who will not see."

I decided my "how to not get ripped" essay could be a waste of time. Those here who would use it already know what I would say. The others wouldn't believe it until they paid their own "tuition". 

 

FYI. Look on JPS Motorsports website. Kinda confused about all these company names and what is actually active and inactive on public records. Sorry to get sidetracked. I am sure they will clear that up.

Go to About Us...Behind the Scenes...See Our Build Process. In the center of the picture you will see the rear end of a coupe. Look closely. It almost appears to be touched up and teardrops have been swapped with bee hives. Man, isn't that nice? Sure looks unique. I bet it was a special color recipe from an old left over German paint from WWII. I really like it. Looks very much like a sample I have here. Even the polished Vintage wheels were what I was going to use. Nice.

I was going to do some of those things with a coupe once. You see, I was having it built by someone for my very sweet wife as a once-in-a-lifetime birthday present. It didn't work out. I wonder where it is now? Atlanta? California? Storage? Who knows. Sure is/was nice. I wish I could afford one of them now. You know how it goes. Money out here and there on services and personnel. Maybe I can find the new owner one day and look it over first hand.

Rusty S posted:

I hate these kind of threads. It wasn't so long ago everyone was lynching Greg at VMC. Nobody knows what is going on in John's life. He may very well be doing his level best.

You may be right, Rusty, but then you may not be. Since money is involved and John hasn't been exactly easy to get hold of it leaves the door wide open for speculation. If you were part way through building a car with the guy (and had given him a sizable chunk of cash), under these circumstances wouldn't you be wondering what the hell is going on?

Last edited by ALB

I will simply say that the contracts are an area that most of us may not have realized need more work and must have many more conditions and caveats to protect the buyer.  

Otherwise, there may be no schedule for finishing, no expectations of fit, finish even source of parts whether used or new or even refurb. 

You, we, are putting a lot of trust in what the usual build is or isn't

Also, what happens if after the delivery date you start chasing an issue who's cost is it and for how long?  What if the vehicle develops something that you chase and after 2 years you realize was a major error was a logic error by the builder which caused you to chase it for 2 years at your cost. 

These are all potential situations that a custom build can create. 

Did I mention, Shipping of the vehicle and the list goes on. 

Sometimes I think we as a group should develop a basic contract to detail what a build contract should have after all having a full discussion of all points gives you the best possibility to have a good build and a good working relationship. 

 

4Banger posted:

There's a big move going on right now. Assets are being shuffled. Things are hiding in storage. Businesses have closed. New ones opened with "no connection" with the old. Things are moving from one pocket to another while being removed from a third.

 

Karma is king, for sure.

Banger, you have any evidence of the above quote? I mean beyond the location move and restructure as seen online? If it is happening, it should be shared with all as it has relevance. From what I have seen online the new business does not state its ending the connection with the past.

HAS THE N. HOLLYWOOD LOCATION BEEN EMPTIED? Has Mr Crane said to you there is 'no connection'? I hate to see slander if the move and restructure takes time.

I would change your tactics and quit rubbing salt in the wound. We now know the story. Lets hear how this plays out, when it plays out.

 

**** If someone wants to visit the La Jolla Concourse, take some pictures of evidence JPS is in attendance, maybe talk to a live person, I WILL REIMBURSE YOU VIA paypal. $70 that is. No pics of attendance no reimbursement. Take a pic of your ticket (or a receipt of).

Fair enough? Any takers?

 

Last edited by MaxMartens
IaM-Ray posted:

I will simply say that the contracts are an area that most of us may not have realized need more work and must have many more conditions and caveats to protect the buyer.  

Otherwise, there may be no schedule for finishing, no expectations of fit, finish even source of parts whether used or new or even refurb. 

You, we, are putting a lot of trust in what the usual build is or isn't

Also, what happens if after the delivery date you start chasing an issue who's cost is it and for how long?  What if the vehicle develops something that you chase and after 2 years you realize was a major error was a logic error by the builder which caused you to chase it for 2 years at your cost. 

These are all potential situations that a custom build can create. 

Did I mention, Shipping of the vehicle and the list goes on. 

Sometimes I think we as a group should develop a basic contract to detail what a build contract should have after all having a full discussion of all points gives you the best possibility to have a good build and a good working relationship. 

 

IaM-Ray. Man, I really like your thoughts. Imagine if SOC came up with a contract or list of what to include. Such as holding money in escrow. Personally I'd never buy anything again that wasn't complete and ready to go right then. I'd rather buy Seduction or Vintage parts and build it myself. What's the REAL registration Scooby and the legal implications of VIN's and component parts? No more leaving up to the sucker to deal with it. And what about real intermediate completion deadlines? No waiting until the end to call out the dogs. Most real contractors are bonded and insured. What about proof of insurance and certain grades/certification of mechanics? They're out there. Third party objective inspections. The list goes on. No contract can ever be perfect. But we can sure do a hell of a lot more to make a difference for people like us.

In the end, we set the bar. If we want to talk about "level best", let's focus on both words. Let's make this forum about being on the level and doing the best we can. In an ocean, there will always be bottom feeders. They have a function. They eat up the trash. If we want the industry to survive, get better, and put the "thump" back into a solid made car door, we got to quit talking BS and work on the solution. So what is SOC about? We can have fun. Fun is fun. We can make a difference too.

I thank you for your comments. I think they are on target. I want to "pull the weeds"... both past and future.

 

Max. Ease up. I well understand your concerns. You have read far too much into my statements. I referenced no particular business. If you are concerned about a particular business, do research. There are current public records available. If you want to know the difference between a sole-proprietorship and a corporation and what happens to assets, do research. I do not support slander. It is not productive. Stay healthy. Stay focused on your plight. I will refrain.

I have a hard time taking serious, someone that will not say who they are.

It is easy to slander someone, in a dark room. No one knows who you are.

Someone can make up a story, some of that story might even be accurate.

One line, someone asks for help, everything else being, they screwed me and I'm going to make them pay. One way to try and make them pay is, ruin them in the public eye.

4banger, do you have a name.

This is old, at least someone should meet face to face with the persons and or company you maybe trying to do business with.

I have some color sanding to do and I hate color sanding.

I am leery of the internet. Everyone should be. I have given a screen name. But who really should care what my name is? It's not what's important. I can tell you that I do not lie or cheat or steal and I don't do slander or ruin people's lives. I'll leave that to others to make their choices. And I have always been trying to help as best I can. I don't really care if you believe me or not. I have work to do. Personally I think you are a distraction and are simply overlooking the big picture. This may be a classic example of why things have persisted so long. 

How about this. I stop my part here. I would hope productive discussion will continue without my input. Anyone can do their own research or wait for the evening news. I can't get too specific here and do all the leg work for you. You will believe what you see or not. I have to stay focused.

Cheers and beers

Last edited by 4Banger

Good luck with that meeting. When Tom Dewalt's car was acting up at Carlisle, Tom asked John to come over and look at it. Said he'd be over. He never showed up the WHOLE WEEKEND!

So much for his word and my opinion of it. Once he's got your money, uh, buh-bye!

After watching that firsthand, then having a part in the disassembly(photographed and posted here) and repair of the Green Coupe's engine I don't have a resulting positive feeling.

Some manufacturers are hard to get warranty work.

 

A example, my wife and I purchased a new 2017 Mercedes-Benz.

 

About a month after receiving the vehicle, we received a letter saying we needed to contact our local dealer, there is a recall and our vehicle maybe effected.

Called the dealer, gave them the vin # and was told, yes our vehicle is effected. I ask what was the issue and what did we need to do.

They said the center drive shaft bearing could come detached during a crash and the cause the fuel tank to rupture, thus causing a fire.

I ask when we could bring it in to get the recall taken care of. I was told they were waiting parts and would contact us when the parts were available.

About 30 days went by and I had not heard anything. Called the dealer for an update. Still waiting parts, they said. I ask what we could do and was told, not to drive the car, if we were concerned with the possible safety issue.

We did get a call and had the issue resolved about 4 months after purchasing the vehicle.

That's what one gets, when you buy a vehicle from a Fly-by-night company.

Last edited by Roy Simpson, Ex owner FF Plastic Porsche

I've heard talk before like "mine is good", "I had a nice experience", "my steering wheel is great", "100k miles and not a problem yet". I've also heard about "maybe we can meet this guy at this place on this date", "I saw a beautiful motor and model car displayed" and "maybe things will change" and "give slack whenever possible". I say none of that is worth taking to YOUR bank.

Consider this. Let's say a fictitious business does 500 deals and 50 are indisputably bad and some are VERY serious and go unresolved. That's enuff for me to get out the 10' pole right there. You can judge whether the source is good or not but most people want things to go smooth so try to give the benefit of the doubt to them especially if you've heard all the stories before. The individual instances are most important to the individual who inherited the problem. But to ignore the SOURCE of those problems gets into areas like honesty, commitment, morals, and integrity. You can fix bad jobs eventually and easily. Changing a person who has conducted themselves a certain way over decades (intermittent or not), whether it gets good for a while or not, is not so easy. I'm glad I had wonderful parents and role models. I wish that for everyone. All this is about the CAR AND BUILDER DETAILS. There's more.

The BUSINESS is a separate consideration and equally important. While your money is being spent by someone else (kinda scary...why don;t they have any money?), is the business active or inactive? Is it incorporated or sole proprietorship? Big deal. Based upon hints (some stated above), are you prepared to have total trust (or to lose that money)? You can start by going to State Secretary of State for opened or closed articles of incorporation, You can go to county offices for private businesses. You can go to BAR for possible violations operating without a license. You can see whether the business has failed to pay for licensing fees (like if a check bounced), or renew papers, or paid taxes. You can even Google Map any address posted and see whether it is a store or a rented mailbox (not that a dated pic tells you what's inside). All kinds of stuff available IF you take the time. Couple this with the above and you might be able to connect the dots and come to a MEANINGFUL opinion than "I did OK" implying that you will do OK today or tomorrow.

And then there are the LAWS. State and Federal. Like or not, whether ignored today or not, they are on the books. If you choose to ignore them or allow others to because you think it will be OK, you have to be prepared. You could lose your car or whole estate. I have real, documented examples that makes skins crawl. Imagine having your new $100k+ RV confiscated by the state and told to "Go after the seller" or your insurance pulled after an accident that causes people to be hospitalized and you have to cover the bill (unless maybe you try to avoid debts by closing a business and seeking protection under limited liability or bankruptcy). That MIGHT work.

The good news is I built two brand new custom vehicles from scratch not so long ago. Both took some extra energy, a bit more money and time but they were 100% legit throughout. I was comfortable that they would pass ANY law or test. Brand new matching numbers vehicles just like a 2018 whatever. Later I trusted someone and believed things I was told. The outcome was not so nice. Once settled, I won't go that route again.

Today I would not buy anything but a completed car (from Troy...ha). It would be fully registered in the seller's name prior as a COMPLETED car (not a donor part) and already roadworthy. I would have it fully inspected and check VIN as well as all the other records associated with that VIN at the state capitol. Only then I would pay only the legal owner. You are more likely to be fine as well as anyone you sell the car to in the future.

I wish I had more time to explain details and was free to do so. But we are busy on a "Mission from God".  Just a general public service announcement about no particular business or builder. Take it or leave it.

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