V12 Touring Project Update, aka -- avoid this junk yard

[Kalevera]

Fiona, my touring, is still at the bodyshop. I stopped by to have a look today, she's taped, blasted, primed and ready for paint, which is exciting. My body guys removed the doors and resealed them with a nifty wax type product. Hope to have her back by mid next week.

Meanwhile, the M73 showed up:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v736/suzpectx/fionaM73.jpg

This is where it gets depressing.

I thought I was buying an engine from a reputable company (New York Engines, owned by LKQ) at an amazing price (around $1800 shipped). I was told that this engine had ~60k on it and that it ran great. I decided to deal with them directly, versus bidding on this auction to save THEM some money -- http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=020&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=300089221977&rd=1,1). This all happened before they attained that wonderful cooked (yes, all but one of the positives are from other accounts they own) feedback rating.

The engine shows up, and like all idiot junkyards, they cut the ($4000) wiring harness. This wasn't much of a surprise. How difficult could it have been to simply disconnect it? Not difficult. Added value of having an intact wiring harness? Lots.

More alarming is that it looked like it had sat outside for a while -- rust on the harmonic balancer. A rag for an oil cap, it sits outside for a while, hmmm.

Meanwhile, I was trying to get the VIN from the original car out of the junk yard. They kept giving me excuses. I finally got it from someone who didn't know they were supposed to stonewall me, ran it by my sources and found out that the car had ~108k on it in 2001. The junkyard person who gave me the vin also said that it had an "old" stock number.

At that point, I got suspicious and got into the motor a bit. Loosening the oil drain bolt and out comes about 2 quarts worth of rain (?) water and sludge. Katrina car?

Then the junkyard had the audacity to say that this is normal and not a problem ("We clean all of our engines before shipping" -- does the engine in that picture look cleaned to you?!). I don't have enough space here to detail the ridiculous ******** I've heard from these people.

So, moral of the story: stay away from New York Engines. I wouldn't trust them to sell me a used condom.


On a better note, my friends at Zionsville have a 28k mile S52. I have been thinking long and hard about that, the price is right, but I am fairly certain that I want to stick to the V12 plan at this point. So, I'm still looking for a > '91 E32 750 parts car and now another M73.

[Dave M]

Whit, that blows. Even I looked at it and thought, "I hope it was cheap, cuz it looks cheap".

So, is it going back to NY? Sure looks different than advertised and I'll bet you're not interested in an $1800 loss.

Good luck with whatever you choose to do next.

Dave

[Macv]

You'd buy a used condom?

[yaofeng]

That's not surprising at all that the junkyard cut the wiring. I had that happen to me also, when I am in the yard with a pick-up truck to pick up the engine myself. I looked at the engine. Agreed to the condition and price. The junkyard told me to go have a cup of coffee and come back. The engine will be ready then. By the time I came back, the engine was ready with wiring cut.

Many junkyard in NY metropolitan area hire immigrant hands from south of the border. This is not a slight to the people there. They are not trained in anyway to do this kind of work nor do they have the knowledge. If they are not closely supervised, as often is the case, you end up buying a heap of junk, or at least a lot of trouble.

[Ross]

Oh boy, thats not good. I'm mad with you. Good though that the body is shaping up.
Did you get any e-mail communication or anything documented? from them stating false mileage?
Back in my old gearhead days there was a local junkyard that did the same ****. We knew the son of the owner, any driveline part ALWAYS had 60k on it.
This guy eventually ran afoul of the law. Things are tougher on them now perhaps you will get some satisfaction.
Good luck don't give up.

[632 Regal]

never quite saw feedback like that, I think I would stay away. You cant even leave bad feedback could you?

This sucks.

[markus]

the first step was the name "New york Engines" I wouldnt buy anything used and automotived related form new york to begin with. Id buy an enigne from a reputable source like the euro depot. you may pay a little more but you would get what you pay for.

[nizmainiac]

i feel bad for ya man, if i was you i would kick up like ****, i hope you have better luck next time:)

[BimmerMeUp]

Sucks big time man.

Did you use a Credit Card? Even if the company refuses you a refund, you may be able to dispute the charges as the product was definitely mislabeled (proven by vin# lookup.) Even if they sold to you "as is", they did tell you it was a 60k motor when records show otherwise.

I had a similar thing happen a few years ago, I disputed the charges and was only out the shipping to send the thing back (I probably could have got that back, but I got tied up with something else.)

BTW: How much was Zionsville selling the S52 for? I want to do one in my touring eventually.

[BimmerMeUp]

Could you use this?

http://raleigh.craigslist.org/car/294094423.html

[CharlesAFerg]

Could you use this?

http://raleigh.craigslist.org/car/294094423.html

Don't you have to practically turn the car into a 7-series? Change the brakes to hydraulic or something and relocating parts? Isn't it a huge hassle t put in the M70?

Also, the first post mentioned M73, isn't it the S73?

[94530inh]

the eurodepot has one of these v12s i think they want 850 for it

[Kalevera]

Guys, I'm not worried about getting my money back, more disappointed in the performance of this junk yard. I'll get back what they charged for the engine, either from the junk yard making it right, or by a credit card dispute. I am fairly adept with these things and called the credit card company before telling the JY they needed to pick it up and give me a refund. The junk yard said they'd pick up the engine yesterday. It's still here. I will take an L on the freight, as I used my own people. They did a very good job (one day delivery) and they deserve what they were paid.

The M70 was used on all E32 750 and E31 8 series until sometime in '95, I believe. The M73, and later the M73tu (VaNOS and coil on plug ignition) were used in all E38 750 and late E31 850ci. The S70 was used in E31 850CSi only.

The only reason for using an M73 is that with it, I can put more power on the ground than an E39 M5. That's a big selling point.

In terms of converting the car, there's a lot to be done but it's all routine. One unknown is what to do about the M73's headers. I am not sure if I can retrofit M70 manifolds onto the M73.

[Kalevera]

Thanks for the link. I know someone who could use this, although it's too old for my purposes. Thanks, though!

edit: Zionsville wants $5350 for the full 28k mile S52 kit. It's on eBay, few days to go.

[DanDombrowski]

This makes my cracked trans case from Vines look like nothing! Good luck with it!

[TomG]

You'd buy a used condom?

just turn it inside out and shake the f**k out of it:D

[filip00]

wow, this engine looks like a piece of trash really. i'm sorry for your nerves, i'd be pretty pissed of if i was in your place......

good luck with the next engine and everything else

[632 Regal]

notice the safety belt chain, looks like a big company huh?
wow, this engine looks like a piece of trash really. i'm sorry for your nerves, i'd be pretty pissed of if i was in your place......

good luck with the next engine and everything else

[Kalevera]

notice the safety belt chain, looks like a big company huh?
Haha, it has a fairly standard junk yard look. The blue shop towel is my doing, the original one was a nasty old plaid shirt.

The tipoff that it's been sitting outside (or under water) is the amount of rust on the harmonic balancer and fan clutch flange.

Thankfully (?) they left the DK motors in place, so the intakes were somewhat sealed. Else this thing would be even more of a loss than it is already.

Oh, and they were supposed to pick it up on Tuesday. It's still here.

[Rigmaster]

Haha, it has a fairly standard junk yard look. The blue shop towel is my doing, the original one was a nasty old plaid shirt.

The tipoff that it's been sitting outside (or under water) is the amount of rust on the harmonic balancer and fan clutch flange.

Thankfully (?) they left the DK motors in place, so the intakes were somewhat sealed. Else this thing would be even more of a loss than it is already.

Oh, and they were supposed to pick it up on Tuesday. It's still here.


Spray it silver, put it in the middle of your living room and put a nice thick piece of glass on top- it'll make a nice coffee table.... :)

Sounds like they're never gonna pick it up.

Oh, and $5350 for the Vines S52 kit??!!!! Yikes!!! I'd be VERY surprised if any of these engines have the mileage that these yards state- it is common practice in the junkyard biz to shave AT LEAST 30-40k miles off everything. Some yards will just drop a single digit off the mileage- not bad huh? Until you realize this turns a 165k mile engine into a 65k mile engine..........at least on paper. :)


Good luck with the M73 hunt Whit- let me know if you want me to check some salvage auctions for you.


Bret.

[Kalevera]

Hey Bret --

Hopefully they will when they realize that they're not getting paid for it. Too nasty to go in the living room, even with paint.

The guy selling the S52 kit at Zionsville is reputable and known. I ran the VIN and it's legit. I think the price is fair for what it is.

Happy to pay you a finder's fee if you find something at auction (or, heck, partially or fully subsidizing the cost of the car in exchange for you pulling what I need from it).

[Rigmaster]

Hey Bret --

Hopefully they will when they realize that they're not getting paid for it. Too nasty to go in the living room, even with paint.

The guy selling the S52 kit at Zionsville is reputable and known. I ran the VIN and it's legit. I think the price is fair for what it is.

Happy to pay you a finder's fee if you find something at auction (or, heck, partially or fully subsidizing the cost of the car in exchange for you pulling what I need from it).


Whit,

check your email.

Bret

[SammyBoy]

Fiona, my touring, is still at the bodyshop. I stopped by to have a look today, she's taped, blasted, primed and ready for paint, which is exciting. My body guys removed the doors and resealed them with a nifty wax type product. Hope to have her back by mid next week.

Meanwhile, the M73 showed up:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v736/suzpectx/fionaM73.jpg

This is where it gets depressing.

I thought I was buying an engine from a reputable company (New York Engines, owned by LKQ) at an amazing price (around $1800 shipped). I was told that this engine had ~60k on it and that it ran great. I decided to deal with them directly, versus bidding on this auction to save THEM some money -- http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=020&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=300089221977&rd=1,1). This all happened before they attained that wonderful cooked (yes, all but one of the positives are from other accounts they own) feedback rating.

The engine shows up, and like all idiot junkyards, they cut the ($4000) wiring harness. This wasn't much of a surprise. How difficult could it have been to simply disconnect it? Not difficult. Added value of having an intact wiring harness? Lots.

More alarming is that it looked like it had sat outside for a while -- rust on the harmonic balancer. A rag for an oil cap, it sits outside for a while, hmmm.

Meanwhile, I was trying to get the VIN from the original car out of the junk yard. They kept giving me excuses. I finally got it from someone who didn't know they were supposed to stonewall me, ran it by my sources and found out that the car had ~108k on it in 2001. The junkyard person who gave me the vin also said that it had an "old" stock number.

At that point, I got suspicious and got into the motor a bit. Loosening the oil drain bolt and out comes about 2 quarts worth of rain (?) water and sludge. Katrina car?

Then the junkyard had the audacity to say that this is normal and not a problem ("We clean all of our engines before shipping" -- does the engine in that picture look cleaned to you?!). I don't have enough space here to detail the ridiculous ******** I've heard from these people.

So, moral of the story: stay away from New York Engines. I wouldn't trust them to sell me a used condom.


On a better note, my friends at Zionsville have a 28k mile S52. I have been thinking long and hard about that, the price is right, but I am fairly certain that I want to stick to the V12 plan at this point. So, I'm still looking for a > '91 E32 750 parts car and now another M73.

Yeah its always a PITA dealing with used motor dealers. I try to deal with guys I know who are no none-sense when it comes to swapping the engine if you don't like it. Was a lot easier when I was into my rice cookers, JDM motors are a dime a dozen!

-Sam

[brick8]

I also have had bad experiences with parts from LKQ. Bought a radio for my Volvo, they said it would come with code and VIN. When it arrived both numbers were totally illegible. Radio is worthless without code. They wouldn't respond to e-mails. I will never buy from them again.

[Nick.Hay]

Did they say that the engine you were buying had the 60k miles on it??

Is there a Consumer Protection commission or something there that you can go and tell them about this... as they obviously LIED to you!!

[shanek]

Found this, I think it would be the M70, with 88k which should be KMs because its Canadian. Not sure how far away you are.http://www.buysell.com/root/detail/British%20Columbia/Import_Car_Parts_Accessories/4018/56879439/BMW_V12_mtr_totally_compl_incl_wiring.aspx