Land Cruisers Direct Status? (1 Viewer)

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I purchased two JDM Land Cruisers from Steve back in 2014. I would love to give him the benefit of the doubt here, but it's looking pretty bad. Ripping off the Land Cruiser Heritage Museum seems pretty bad!

If you're out there Steve let us know what's up! The continued silence here is not working!
I'm not a lawyer, but I would think it is his best interest to not comment on anything about this until the litigation is over.
 
Bro what haha that's wild.

I'd heard good things about LCD as well and was considering buying a 7X through them before I went with a 200, especially since they're local.
Maybe people have had better experiences than me. But when I was looking to import an hzj77 with cash in hand it was rough getting any response from Steve. Not to mention his website inventory hasn’t been updated since at least 2019
 
Steve did a pretty good job of dodging the lawyers so far, but every dog has his day. I know it blew peoples mind when we started this thread because he had a good reputation but I’m out money that I’ll probably never see as well as several others on this thread if there’s anyway I can join up on you guys that are lawyered up, I’d love to as I could never get him served.
 
My two cents, for the people who have been scammed by Steve, not in any particular order:

1) Submit a Form TC-451 form to the Utah Motor Vehicle Enforcement Division (same group that is bringing charges against him) - HERE (very easy - takes a few minutes). An investigator will reach out.

2) Talk to a lawyer to recoup civil damages
 
Steve has got me for my 75 series fire truck. Steve explain that. It’s paid for and was supposed to be here months ago. Not a man of his word. Would love to meet Steve. Steve you are a liar and a thief.
Looks like I might be the latest victim. My partners & I purchased 6 Mega Cruiser tires through Steve who claimed to be importing them directly from Japan. Detailed invoice with a logo and TorFab knew who he was so I thought I'd be safe. Now 2 months of silence... Looks like we're out $4200 for the 6 tires. SLC is a short flight from Seattle, maybe we should sync up on this from a legal perspective along with the others who have spoken up. Unbelievable.
 
I just got a mega cruiser from him two weeks ago. So who knows.

@KmacSeattle I'd give him some time. He mentioned that he'd getting tires for your mega a few times and I told him I was interested in a set as well.
 
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I just got a mega cruiser from him two weeks ago. So who knows.

@KmacSeattle I'd give him some time. He mentioned that he'd getting tires for your mega a few times and I told him I was interested in a set as well.
@doughboy When did you last speak with him? I now know of 4 others (aside from the museum) paid in full that he's gone completely dark on... over a year in one case. How much time would you give someone like that? He's been dark on me for 2 months now. FB, IG, 3 scheduled calls through his website (no show), email, 2 phone numbers.... crickets.

Beyond that he's still actively scamming people on FB & answering questions for new business... But he can't respond to customers that have already paid thousands?? In what world is that acceptable from a business perspective? He can still remedy this if he acts quickly, but it's not just me. Please pass that on if you speak with him. Otherwise I wouldn't give him another penny.
 
@doughboy When did you last speak with him? I now know of 4 others (aside from the museum) paid in full that he's gone completely dark on... over a year in one case. How much time would you give someone like that? He's been dark on me for 2 months now. FB, IG, 3 scheduled calls through his website (no show), email, 2 phone numbers.... crickets.

Beyond that he's still actively scamming people on FB & answering questions for new business... But he can't respond to customers that have already paid thousands?? In what world is that acceptable from a business perspective? He can still remedy this if he acts quickly, but it's not just me. Please pass that on if you speak with him. Otherwise I wouldn't give him another penny.
I just talked to and saw him last weekend. Took delivery of a mega and it was a good interaction. He has a lot on his plate with life but he's doing what he can.

I understand the frustrations everyone has with him and going dark for months at a time or even longer isn't good business practice. I've had my issues with him but he's always come through in the end. I've bought 3 vehicles from him and 2 within the last year. He's a good dude with a lot of stuff on his plate. I'm not saying that that's an excuse to go dark though.
 
I just talked to and saw him last weekend. Took delivery of a mega and it was a good interaction. He has a lot on his plate with life but he's doing what he can.

I understand the frustrations everyone has with him and going dark for months at a time or even longer isn't good business practice. I've had my issues with him but he's always come through in the end. I've bought 3 vehicles from him and 2 within the last year. He's a good dude with a lot of stuff on his plate. I'm not saying that that's an excuse to go dark though.
@doughboyLt. Ray Kaleel from the Utah MV department called and took my statement. As mentioned above, he asked me to fill out a Form TC-451 so he could add mine to the stack. (form/contact info - link below)

According to Ray there are several others pursuing criminal charges against Steve for theft and fraud. Sorry, but he no longer fits my description of a "good dude" & is now flirting with incarceration. Most of us have "a lot on our plate".... & you're right, that's no excuse to blatantly ignore prepaid customers for several months. The thing that really fries my head is that he's actively soliciting new business on FB right now. Guess he's not THAT busy...

If he's your buddy and you want to help him out, you should call him asap (good luck) & let him know the gravity of the situation. I'll hold off on filling out the form until tomorrow as a last ditch effort in good faith. I absolutely hate this... He seemed solid to me too, right up until the point that he had my money.

@thestormtroopy happy to include you in anyway that I can. Feel free to DM me if you want to jump on a call.

 
I just talked to and saw him last weekend. Took delivery of a mega and it was a good interaction. He has a lot on his plate with life but he's doing what he can.

I understand the frustrations everyone has with him and going dark for months at a time or even longer isn't good business practice. I've had my issues with him but he's always come through in the end. I've bought 3 vehicles from him and 2 within the last year. He's a good dude with a lot of stuff on his plate. I'm not saying that that's an excuse to go dark though.
Apparently you're the only person he'll talk to; he ghosted me over a year and a half ago. If he's importing megacruiser tires, then he's bringing over containers, so where the hell is my engine that he was supposed to ship two years ago?
 
Apparently you're the only person he'll talk to; he ghosted me over a year and a half ago. If he's importing megacruiser tires, then he's bringing over containers, so where the hell is my engine that he was supposed to ship two years ago?
Maybe I'm just lucky?
 
Thank god he ghosted me before he got my money !!
 
I just talked to and saw him last weekend. Took delivery of a mega and it was a good interaction. He has a lot on his plate with life but he's doing what he can.

I understand the frustrations everyone has with him and going dark for months at a time or even longer isn't good business practice. I've had my issues with him but he's always come through in the end. I've bought 3 vehicles from him and 2 within the last year. He's a good dude with a lot of stuff on his plate. I'm not saying that that's an excuse to go dark though.
@doughboy Where exactly did you see him a few weeks back? Let's see some pictures of that Mega Cruiser you just picked up from him.
 
@doughboy Where exactly did you see him a few weeks back? Let's see some pictures of that Mega Cruiser you just picked up from him.
I saw him at his shop in Utah, and then in my parking spot in colorado, when he was helping me with the mega.

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I saw him at his shop in Utah, and then in my parking spot in colorado, when he was helping me with the mega.

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@doughboy I love it!!! If that's the one he was crusing around in it's sad to see him give it up. I'm hopeful I will get my 80 soon. So seeing him still selling is a good sign. After all that's how you pay for other projects and move on to the next customer. Sometime you have to bump one or two to sell something else to keep cash flowing. It sucks to see him struggle the way he has.
 
@doughboy I love it!!! If that's the one he was crusing around in it's sad to see him give it up. I'm hopeful I will get my 80 soon. So seeing him still selling is a good sign. After all that's how you pay for other projects and move on to the next customer. Sometime you have to bump one or two to sell something else to keep cash flowing. It sucks to see him struggle the way he has
Seeing him liquidate his own assets, while facing criminal fraud charges, is a good sign? Hahahaha

I’d love to work with some of y’all in a professional setting. I could apparently collect thousands in upfront fees/deposits, then completely ignore all channels of communication for a year and a half, deliver nothing, never acknowledge you, rip off a ton of other people, watch my reputation become that of a scummy con artist, and apparently some of the people here would say “oh no worries, you’re probably just busy 🥰”. DREAM clients. Holler if you want to buy some oceanfront property in South Dakota.

Anyways yeah, always a good sign when the guy facing criminal charges is liquidating assets. Probably means he’s about to get around to your cruiser next. Keep holding your breath!
 

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