I purchased a Mishimoto aluminum radiator for my 100 series vehicle less than two years ago, thinking it would be a reliable upgrade. Unfortunately, I discovered a pinhole leak at the back of the radiator recently, clearly a factory defect. Given Mishimoto's lifetime warranty and the direct purchase from their website, I expected a smoother resolution process. However, my experience has been quite frustrating.
It took exactly two weeks to file and process my warranty claim. Initially, the customer support response time was poor. Instead of promptly replacing the radiator, they suggested using an $18.99 8 oz bottle of K-Seal to patch the leak, which seemed inappropriate for a radiator of this caliber. After several days of back-and-forth emails, they finally agreed to send a new radiator, but insisted on charging a $100 fee for shipping, claiming it cost them $300.
This claim was proven a blatant lie when I checked shipping costs on FedEx, revealing it to be around $70 for ground shipping with dimensions and weight properly entered in. After further negotiations, they reluctantly lowered the fee to $50 from the original $100, still an unreasonable demand given the product's lifetime warranty. Several attempts to resolve the issue over the phone were unsuccessful, with the customer service representative being dismissive and unhelpful, insisting I communicate via email.
Overall, my experience with Mishimoto has been terrible. I will not be purchasing any of their products in the future and regret not choosing a CSF radiator instead. Hopefully, sharing my experience will help others avoid similar frustrations with this company.
(picture of the waterfall coming out of the radiator)
It took exactly two weeks to file and process my warranty claim. Initially, the customer support response time was poor. Instead of promptly replacing the radiator, they suggested using an $18.99 8 oz bottle of K-Seal to patch the leak, which seemed inappropriate for a radiator of this caliber. After several days of back-and-forth emails, they finally agreed to send a new radiator, but insisted on charging a $100 fee for shipping, claiming it cost them $300.
This claim was proven a blatant lie when I checked shipping costs on FedEx, revealing it to be around $70 for ground shipping with dimensions and weight properly entered in. After further negotiations, they reluctantly lowered the fee to $50 from the original $100, still an unreasonable demand given the product's lifetime warranty. Several attempts to resolve the issue over the phone were unsuccessful, with the customer service representative being dismissive and unhelpful, insisting I communicate via email.
Overall, my experience with Mishimoto has been terrible. I will not be purchasing any of their products in the future and regret not choosing a CSF radiator instead. Hopefully, sharing my experience will help others avoid similar frustrations with this company.
(picture of the waterfall coming out of the radiator)