Unbelievable idiot customer

[POWERHOUSE]

As you guys know, I am on vacation and will not be back until the 25th. Before I closed shop, I made it a point to finish two turbo builds we had going. One of these customers with a Gen 2 wanted a quickshifter installed, which I was unable to do because he asked for it at the last minute and I could not get the parts fast enough. The bike went out anyway. A few days later . . . while on vacation . . . I get an email from Fedex about a shipment I ordered from Dynojet. My shop's name, drop shipped to another state . . . WTF. I contacted Dynojet and found out that this one customer called them, said he worked for POWERHOUSE, and ordered himself the quickshifter, using his own credit card at dealer price, and had it shipped to his own address. They never should have allowed this order, but somehow they did, and apologized. Now what do I do with this customer? You guys all know that we stand behind our builds and each and every one of our customers, but I feel betrayed by this. This guy had no idea I would find out, but I did. One consulation is that he has a Gen 2 turbo and ordered his quickshifter with a Quickshifter Expansion module, the one that shuts down the injectors on each shift. What he needed was an Ignition module, because you never shut off fuel on a turbo, always ignition. I am sure he is going to blow up the motor I just built, and because of his going behind my back and using my name and being the crook that he is, I have no inclination to stand behind this particular build or this customer going forward. One less knucklehead to deal with. What do you guys think?

 

[Hauie]

I wholeheartedly agree. I would not even rebuild his engine after he blows it up for 3x the normal price once that occurs. That's just shitty on his parts.

The worst part about all of this is, he'll probably play victim to all of his friends and family and on social media outlets. He's going to slander your name even when he's wrong because he wants to play victim.

 

[bussassin417]

The ordering situation and the problems this customer could have in the future are definitely not your making.

This post says a lot about you and your character. You have my respect and admiration.

Any decision you come to will be correct. The best one will be the one you are most comfortable with.

I would contact the customer, make him aware of ALL his errors. Then fix the bike at your regular shop rate + parts.

*those without sin cast the first stone

 

[bussassin417]

FYI - if I ever turbo my Gen I it's coming to your shop for sure !!!

 

[TallTom]

I think you should notify him in writing that you won't be honoring any warranty work. That way if he takes you to court, you have a documented trail to explain why.

 

[Johnnie Phatt]

all i would advise to you is
To that hm he ordered the wrong module . Suggest he talk to who ever he bought it from about and exchange it Tell him you will no be installing parts you did not order to insure the quality of you shop and your reputation . He can have anyone else do it that suits him and then it is their problem
Up here we call that a "Because ya"
As in Because ya installed my front tire Now my brake light is not working
I pay the mark up on dealer installed parts so that if there is problem they can not blame me . and so far i have never had a problem because i deal with reputable shops

 

[GAmedic]

Stand behind your build. Tell him to install the quick shifter himself. Charge the difference between shop price and retail price. Dont offer any verbal or written warranty on anything regarding the shifter. Wash your hands clean of that particular customer.

IMHO, a builder should always stand behind his build regardless of the bulls**t another customer pulls. There are ways to make him pay one way or another.

 

[greg3852]

I would say give him a call, and let him know that you are aware he ordered a part claiming to be from there, and advise him you will no longer work on that bike or any bike he owns. I would then send him a registered letter saying the same.

I would also get copies of the order from Dynojet to protect you and your name when he cooks the motor.

 

[1busa]

Damned if you do and damned if you don’t......

It was a D*ck move but @ the end of the day it’s not like he charged the quickshifter to your Account. He just went behind your back to save a couple bucks.

You make your money by word of mouth. So when he’s out riding around and people ask about his Turbo bike he may drop the Powerhouse name. Which could potentially bring more $$$ through your doors. But if his bike blows up and he’s talking and typing about how you built him a Grenade on 2 wheels that will do the opposite for you!

Whether your in the right or wrong especially in this day and age and Accusation can ruin your rep. Just call the guy and talk to him or if he lives close tell him to come in and talk face to face. Let him know what he did offended you and you didn’t appreciate it. Then let him know he ordered the wrong part and it’s gonna detonate his motor.

 

[GAmedic]

Damned if you do and damned if you don’t......

It was a D*ck move but @ the end of the day it’s not like he charged the quickshifter to your Account. He just went behind your back to save a couple bucks.

You make your money by word of mouth. So when he’s out riding around and people ask about his Turbo bike he may drop the Powerhouse name. Which could potentially bring more $$$ through your doors. But if his bike blows up and he’s talking and typing about how you built him a Grenade on 2 wheels that will do the opposite for you!

Whether your in the right or wrong especially in this day and age and Accusation can ruin your rep. Just call the guy and talk to him or if he lives close tell him to come in and talk face to face. Let him know what he did offended you and you didn’t appreciate it. Then let him know he ordered the wrong part and it’s gonna detonate his motor.

Powerhouse has enough positive rep that one bad apple wont ruin it. Also lying to him about a part being wrong would not be the best way to go about it. Being a builder puts you between a rock and a hard place. Gotta keep the business but wash your hands clean of a customer.

At the end of the day, the customer didnt directly steal from Powerhouse nor do I think he is going around bashing them. He bought the part. Powerhouse isnt responsible for that part unless they make him pay up for his fault.

 

[Kiwi Rider]

Just front him Frank, let him know that you know exactly what he did and let him know HOW you know, honesty and communication is the VERY BEST policy, I'm sure you are well aware of that.
Tell him he needs to use the correct part, the ignition cut, or he will blow the motor, I reckon you would HATE to see all that hard work you have done and all the time you have put into that motor LOST.
I think he will see the error of his ways and apologise to you and THANK you for the warning and the advice . . .
this will help him, and you and your good name.
Honesty in business is the the BEST way to conduct yourself and your Business.
My 2 cents.

 

[Bailey9r]

As you guys know, I am on vacation and will not be back until the 25th. Before I closed shop, I made it a point to finish two turbo builds we had going. One of these customers with a Gen 2 wanted a quickshifter installed, which I was unable to do because he asked for it at the last minute and I could not get the parts fast enough. The bike went out anyway. A few days later . . . while on vacation . . . I get an email from Fedex about a shipment I ordered from Dynojet. My shop's name, drop shipped to another state . . . WTF. I contacted Dynojet and found out that this one customer called them, said he worked for POWERHOUSE, and ordered himself the quickshifter, using his own credit card at dealer price, and had it shipped to his own address. They never should have allowed this order, but somehow they did, and apologized. Now what do I do with this customer? You guys all know that we stand behind our builds and each and every one of our customers, but I feel betrayed by this. This guy had no idea I would find out, but I did. One consulation is that he has a Gen 2 turbo and ordered his quickshifter with a Quickshifter Expansion module, the one that shuts down the injectors on each shift. What he needed was an Ignition module, because you never shut off fuel on a turbo, always ignition. I am sure he is going to blow up the motor I just built, and because of his going behind my back and using my name and being the crook that he is, I have no inclination to stand behind this particular build or this customer going forward. One less knucklehead to deal with. What do you guys think?

You prob saved his life, the power would have killed him lol

 

[ottafish]

The motor and invoices and paperwork have your name on them.
If he ends up selling it or talking to others at any meets, it will come up in conversation.
And that conversation could be positive or negative, depending on the outcome of the situation

I agree with the others, best option IMO is to do a face to face and get it out in the open.
Figure out a resolution that is agreeable to both parties.
Complete the build, sign off on the build.
Then decide if you want to do follow up support.

 

[TIMMYDUCK]

Obviously a die-hard Busa Guy, just to be able to spend money with you .

So he saved a few bucks using your corporate account ( Technically not cool ) but he wants his girl as fast as possible, as soon as possible .

Whom of us can't relate to that ?

Be the hero here, tell him about the error of his ways in his quest for speed.

You have a great rep my friend , don't let petty differences ever cloud your love of these bikes.

 

[Hayabusa Wannabe]

They never should have allowed this order, but somehow they did, and apologized.

If Dynojet has not done so proactively, I would ask them to reissue the order and invoice, remove your information, and give you a copy. Legality (which DJ people may not be versed in) would require that such include text that payment was already received, the reason for the reissue, that the invoice does not need to be processed, and that such are replacement documents. If you work it out with the customer and the item gets returned to the vendor, then the return should have such explicitly stated on it. In that case it is protection against any possible future ethical violation of this customer. You would already have a precedent of wrongdoing in your hand. Forgive and forget, but keep a file in case you are forced to remember.

Also lying to him about a part being wrong would not be the best way to go about it.

GAmedic if I interpreted your argument correctly 1busa's suggestion was not a lie as the customer ordered a part which should not be used in the build.

 

[mabupa]

Powerhouse has enough positive rep that one bad apple wont ruin it. Also lying to him about a part being wrong would not be the best way to go about it. Being a builder puts you between a rock and a hard place. Gotta keep the business but wash your hands clean of a customer.

At the end of the day, the customer didnt directly steal from Powerhouse nor do I think he is going around bashing them. He bought the part. Powerhouse isnt responsible for that part unless they make him pay up for his fault.

If you read Frank’s original post again, the dude went behind frank’s back and ordered the part, but ordered the wrong part and it will blow his motor. This is a tough one. I would be inclined to save all emails and receipts and let him install it and blow up his motor. After he does and comes back bitching at frank for building him a bomb on wheels, I would pull out all my paperwork and show him that his motor blew, because he went behind frank’s back and ordered the wrong crap, drop the mic and walk off stage. Or.............. I’ll cool off a bit and just tell him he ordered the wrong part, before he blows the motor up, but I have no sympathy for people with no moral, so I would most likely go with option one.

 

[bigoltool]

I may be a little old school here but... Chances are this guy has misrepresented your business on other occasions you might not have knowledge of as well. I presume the business is your livelyhood, and if it were me I would take legal steps to protect it!

 

[GAmedic]

If you read Frank’s original post again, the dude went behind frank’s back and ordered the part, but ordered the wrong part and it will blow his motor. This is a tough one. I would be inclined to save all emails and receipts and let him install it and blow up his motor. After he does and comes back bitching at frank for building him a bomb on wheels, I would pull out all my paperwork and show him that his motor blew, because he went behind frank’s back and ordered the wrong crap, drop the mic and walk off stage. Or.............. I’ll cool off a bit and just tell him he ordered the wrong part, before he blows the motor up, but I have no sympathy for people with no moral, so I would most likely go with option one.

I did go back and read it again. I'd give him the option and let him choose wisely.

1. Tell him he is responsible for the shifter and there will not be a verbal or other known warranty for that particular part AND if he installs it, it voids any warranty regarding the motor.

2. Explain to him what he ordered is incorrect for his build and tell him to get the right part. Also explain to him that what he did is wrong and should never be done. Treat him like a child.

 

[SSGT_B]

Take away his pie!!

Seriously however, I would contact customer and let them know you are aware of what they did, and that will will not warranty any customer installed parts. Me personally, it would be my last dealings with that customer.

 

[ali123]

WAIT A MINUTE.... I cant order parts on a powerhouse dealer account???? I am soooooo sorry...……. lol.. in all seriousness though... this customer has balls of concrete... 1000-1 odds frank didn't find out.... except he forgot who he was betting against...