wardharris
SILVER Star
Clearly a Proffittable enterprise...
Builds A Troopy Finds Its Owner (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter 61Mk+
- Start date
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I have been burnt realy bad from Proffit's Cruiser. Either they think they are all that or they over rate themselves. I had to fight every months to get news from the project, i got probably 3-4 email responses over 35 appro. Sent email. Was calling and no answer 9/10 with no call return. The things they got right was the LHD cab from UAE and they trayback from autralia. My feeling is they didn't touch the cruiser before i told them i was flying to pick up everything!! A month after they called and it was ready to go back.......all messed up.
Hopefully the "resurrection" will make a difference. Only time will tell.
c2dfj45
Supporting Vendor
What a read this thread was. Wow. I too remember the build thread on this one when it was started.
These are great eye-openers for all of us....even those of us on the builder side of things. This industry is plagued with guys that have zero ethics and basically build junk....we deal with it daily. It's not that hard to do work the right way, build great customer relationships and suck it up when you get something wrong.
Kudos to you @61Mk+ for working thru this one. I think most people would have thrown in the towel!
These are great eye-openers for all of us....even those of us on the builder side of things. This industry is plagued with guys that have zero ethics and basically build junk....we deal with it daily. It's not that hard to do work the right way, build great customer relationships and suck it up when you get something wrong.
Kudos to you @61Mk+ for working thru this one. I think most people would have thrown in the towel!
These vehicles basically undergo 2 builds and unfortunately both are at the owners expense.
The second build which should be unnecessary, hopefully corrects the poor craftsmanship and lack of quality control, again at the owners expense.
The second build which should be unnecessary, hopefully corrects the poor craftsmanship and lack of quality control, again at the owners expense.
c2dfj45
Supporting Vendor
I think the other big thing here is you get what you pay for. It's great to save a buck and maybe use the guy who is giving you the prices you want to hear and like but that's where stuff goes sideways. In order to do stuff the right way, it takes time and time is money. I'm sure there are a few exceptions but it's rare. In order to have the right guys, the right tools, the right environment....it's costly.
Do your due diligence......know who is building your truck. Google them and look for the bad...not just the good. Ask for references. Inspect their work. See how they keep their shop. Common sense stuff that sometimes gets pushed aside when we let our passion take over.
Builds should be a fun experience.....not a heartbreaking one. And they definitely should't have to be done twice on the same truck.
Do your due diligence......know who is building your truck. Google them and look for the bad...not just the good. Ask for references. Inspect their work. See how they keep their shop. Common sense stuff that sometimes gets pushed aside when we let our passion take over.
Builds should be a fun experience.....not a heartbreaking one. And they definitely should't have to be done twice on the same truck.
I get people asking me about the business who sold me FJ73 on here from time to time because they can't find much online about their business practices. If you go to the BBB page for the business, there is some pretty bad complaints which makes me feel fortunate to get what I did get because some people didn't even get anything at all it seems.
It is not my nature to openly bash a business but I have no issue sharing my experiences if you ask me in order to save another person the headache.
It is not my nature to openly bash a business but I have no issue sharing my experiences if you ask me in order to save another person the headache.
@c2dfj45 ..... "I think the other big thing here is you get what you pay for.
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While I readily agree with your assessment, when it comes to the builds performed by the fine folks in Colorado, you damn sure didn't get what you paid for. These builds were "big bucks" and supposedly performed by folks that knew what they were doing. In many cases the customers were to far away to easily inspect the progress and had to rely on emails and phone calls which often went unanswered.
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While I readily agree with your assessment, when it comes to the builds performed by the fine folks in Colorado, you damn sure didn't get what you paid for. These builds were "big bucks" and supposedly performed by folks that knew what they were doing. In many cases the customers were to far away to easily inspect the progress and had to rely on emails and phone calls which often went unanswered.
c2dfj45
Supporting Vendor
Agreed BUT, with the pics I saw of those builds(I studied them very closely), a million things jumped out that were problem areas and indicative of the build quality. It's a huge risk that people take when you have someone build you something that is not close for easy inspections. That's why photo documentation.....REAL photos of work is important(not just a pic shot from across the shop showing a bumper installed). When a shop can't come thru with that.....be cautious. And while these CO builds were 'big bucks'.....I don't think they were really all that expensive for what it takes to do one the right way....remember....some of these trucks are being built a second time(or need to be). Maybe a 2 build price is what the real price should be.....
These should all be out in the open in my opinion.... It should be caveat emptor in the end.
Well I guess "big bucks" is in the eye of the beholder.
c2dfj45
Supporting Vendor
Well I guess "big bucks" is in the eye of the beholder.
Absolutely. I knew that was going to come out wrong.
c2dfj45
Supporting Vendor
Absolutely agree Beno. It ends up obviously helping the consumer but I think it ends up making for better shops. Until they change their name and start the non-sense all over.
After my experience with Volcan4x4, I certainly agree with you there.
Caveat Emptor ..... A thought that was that fish egg stuff you ate on Ritz Crackers.
wardharris
SILVER Star
HOW TO SELECT A BUILDER
On MUD? Some of the epic clusterbuilds seen on MUD have been the work product of active vendor/posters, so no guarantee there.
Laudatory articles in media? Not necessarily a good source - what do they know?
Heavy online ads, videos, etc.? Why are they trying so hard?
Big stink presence at SEMA, Overland Expo, FJ Summit, etc.? Same question
High price, exclusive, "do you a favor" attitude? Same question
Ask previous customers how it went? Good luck if you can find a few that will talk. People don't want to look stupid or get sued....
Ask how many times they have changed names, locations, partners, left the business, etc.? Good idea!
"We have a secret process to make non-compliant vehicles magically pass emission and crash standards for legal importation" Uh, no thank you
If I had a hundred thousand dollars to spend (or two hundred) I know who I would call to get a retro 40 (ICON), a restored or reimagined 40/42 (FJ Company) or a reimagined 79 (@c2dfj45 or @sleeoffroad)
For custom builds, there are some others worthy of consideration as well - @torfab, @orangefj45, Odd Iron Offroad, RSO Performance, etc.
Avoid hyperbolic marketing messages and don't expect members of this or any forum or community to tell you the truth - including me. There is an apparent bias against plain speech in order to protect business and personal relationships.
Trust but verify and get it in writing......
On MUD? Some of the epic clusterbuilds seen on MUD have been the work product of active vendor/posters, so no guarantee there.
Laudatory articles in media? Not necessarily a good source - what do they know?
Heavy online ads, videos, etc.? Why are they trying so hard?
Big stink presence at SEMA, Overland Expo, FJ Summit, etc.? Same question
High price, exclusive, "do you a favor" attitude? Same question
Ask previous customers how it went? Good luck if you can find a few that will talk. People don't want to look stupid or get sued....
Ask how many times they have changed names, locations, partners, left the business, etc.? Good idea!
"We have a secret process to make non-compliant vehicles magically pass emission and crash standards for legal importation" Uh, no thank you
If I had a hundred thousand dollars to spend (or two hundred) I know who I would call to get a retro 40 (ICON), a restored or reimagined 40/42 (FJ Company) or a reimagined 79 (@c2dfj45 or @sleeoffroad)
For custom builds, there are some others worthy of consideration as well - @torfab, @orangefj45, Odd Iron Offroad, RSO Performance, etc.
Avoid hyperbolic marketing messages and don't expect members of this or any forum or community to tell you the truth - including me. There is an apparent bias against plain speech in order to protect business and personal relationships.
Trust but verify and get it in writing......
wardharris
SILVER Star
Me too....@61Mk+ ..... Sorry for the continuous hijacking of your thread.
