Fire,

[swartie]

today i went down to drop off my units to have them recreated, and on the way back my engine caught on fire, lets just say thank god i had a fire extinguisher.

i have no idea why or how it started,when i opened the hatch the fire was at the top of my left carb.

all i know was i was driving along, it started coughing and spitting and then lost power, and the cab filled with smoke.

so now i have to get this sorted, will be asking lots of questions over the next few days

 

[jabbo]

Holy crap, good news on the extinguisher though. Sensible man.

I managed to have a small electrical fire in the square last week, absolutely sh@t myself! First thing I did afterwards was go out and buy a fire extinguisher.

Hope you get it sorted soon.

 

[Justin & Muttley]

Sensible man - a warning to all of us!!!
Glad things didn't turn out too bad for you - perished fuel lines are usually the culprits (although it might be hard to tell if things have been fried a bit!).
Fire extinguisher - very, very good idea...

 

[swartie]

yeah trust me, i am going out to get another fire extinguisher.

hopefully not fuel lines as they were replaced last year, i am relly stumped, not sure why this has happened, she has been fine for ages, the only thing i have done is take out her interior.

maybe she is cros with me for doing that.... :lol:

 

[easy]

Glad you are okay fella

Fire extinguisher is a must for everyone

 

[swartie]

i will keep you guys up to date here, on this issue. I have just spoken to the guys at Elite Vw. They seem a nice bunch of guys. I explained the problem and they have diagnosed the problem to probably be a valve problem.

Now this engine was purchased from Big Boys Toys and thats all i have had, Valve problems, twice the engine has seized due to dropped valves.

anyway they have quoted me £50 to collect the van and they will drop the engine, have a look over it and repair it for me.

Will let you know how i get on.

 

[speedwell68]

i will keep you guys up to date here, on this issue. I have just spoken to the guys at Elite Vw. They seem a nice bunch of guys. I explained the problem and they have diagnosed the problem to probably be a valve problem.

Now this engine was purchased from Big Boys Toys and thats all i have had, Valve problems, twice the engine has seized due to dropped valves.

anyway they have quoted me £50 to collect the van and they will drop the engine, have a look over it and repair it for me.

Will let you know how i get on.

Is it still under guarantee from BBT?

 

[swartie]

yep it should still be under guarantee. thing is i can not put up with dealing with them anymore. last time the engine dropped a valve, i had to call them 3 times a day to see how it was going and chase them up. they then told me to ring Jim at the engine shop to which i refused because i bought the engine from them not him.

However the guys from elite have said they will do a list of what is wrong and i will be contacting them for compensation. so if anyone wants to use Big Boys Toys, i highly recomend you do not under any circumstances.

 

[easy]

This is good advice chap. I had a few dealings with BBT and they lied on more than one occasion. So have not bought anything from them for years. Allot of people I know around me, have the same views.

 

[speedwell68]

I have to say that I have heard nothing but bad things about BBT. I'm having issues with another well known company at the mo, every time I order something from them they stuff it up in some way or the part just plain old don't fit.

 

[Justin & Muttley]

Things haven't changed that much then - last time I used BBT was in 1991 for bug parts - they were hopeless then!!!!

 

[swartie]

another update, elite have stripped the engine and found it to have dropped a valve. this is the 3rd time this has happened. I asked Elite if this os normal or what causes that to happen and they said on a 1600 aircooled they have never seen it happen until now.

I have just written an email to Big Boys toys telling them i want the cost of a new engine supplied and fitted by Elite to be covered by BBT or else i will take it further. lets see what happens, i am not holding my breath though. I will also post the letter out to them with a full report as to what is wronf with the engine they supplied.

So far i am still impressed with Elite, they have said they will have my van ready for friday. they have managed to collect my van, strip the engine down and call me with a list of faults within 24 hours. took a week to arrange a time for the van to be collected by BBT last time.

 

[speedwell68]

I have just written an email to Big Boys toys telling them i want the cost of a new engine supplied and fitted by Elite to be covered by BBT or else i will take it further. lets see what happens, i am not holding my breath though. I will also post the letter out to them with a full report as to what is wronf with the engine they supplied.

So far i am still impressed with Elite, they have said they will have my van ready for friday. they have managed to collect my van, strip the engine down and call me with a list of faults within 24 hours. took a week to arrange a time for the van to be collected by BBT last time.

I'd want more than that out of BBT, their crappy engine caused your van to catch on fire. I'd seek legal advice, most solicitors do a free consultation, a suitably worded letter.

 

[swartie]

thatnks for the advice, will defo be looking into that now

cheers

 

[bruce]

sorry to hear the bad news on the engine.

bbt does it yet again i have heard more complaints about this company than any other that sell vw parts.
and they are liars i know from past experience.

bbt never again i know that. :wink:

 

[easy]

We could do a shop visit sometime.... Imagine 100s of earlybays decending on them weilding swarties engine bits in our hands!! :twisted:

 

[speedwell68]

We could do a shop visit sometime.... Imagine 100s of earlybays decending on them weilding swarties engine bits in our hands!! :twisted:

Lets go.

 

[swartie]

just sent them a nice email stating everything and that i would like the costs to be covered by them.

not holding my breath but if need be i will take them to court and hopefully put them out of business. so nobody else gets done by them.

pisser is VZI stilll advertise them. i guess they pay the money

 

[bruce]

i think all averts on vzi are pair for.


good luck keep us posted on how you get on

 

[swartie]

another update, picked my van up from EliteVW, as promised they had the van ready by friday. a new 1641 fitted. So far i am really happy with the service received from the guys. even the engie sounds quieter.

now i have 500 miles to do at less than 50mph. hmmm i do hate this bit. but still if the engine is going to last this time i will put up with this.