GTM Performance Engineering & Forged Performance - Parting ways...!?!
#1
04-12-2010 | 05:59 PM
GTM Performance Engineering & Forged Performance - Parting ways...!?!
Originally Posted by SAM@GTM
For well over a decade we at GTM have prided ourselves on offering our customers and clients with access to superior performance tuning and aftermarket performance product manufacturing. We hold ourselves to the highest of standards and prove this daily through hard work, dedication, and exceptional customer service. We also hold all resellers of our product to the same level of standard that we hold ourselves.
Over the past few months there have been issues brought to our attention regarding one of our resellers, Forged Performance. Without going into great detail, we at GTM have decided that it is in our best interest, as well as our customers and clients, to discontinue supplying this organization with our products.
This does not mean that your options are limited in where to purchase your GTM products or have them installed. There are many reputable resellers of GTM items and our website is a great outlet, as well. For those who have had - or are in the process of having - GTM parts installed at Forged Performance, all warranties pertaining to these GTM items are still applicable. Rest assured this change will not impact those who have patronized us in the past or those who will do so in the future.
Please feel free to PM, email or call me with any questions or concerns.
Sam
Over the past few months there have been issues brought to our attention regarding one of our resellers, Forged Performance. Without going into great detail, we at GTM have decided that it is in our best interest, as well as our customers and clients, to discontinue supplying this organization with our products.
This does not mean that your options are limited in where to purchase your GTM products or have them installed. There are many reputable resellers of GTM items and our website is a great outlet, as well. For those who have had - or are in the process of having - GTM parts installed at Forged Performance, all warranties pertaining to these GTM items are still applicable. Rest assured this change will not impact those who have patronized us in the past or those who will do so in the future.
Please feel free to PM, email or call me with any questions or concerns.
Sam
#2
04-12-2010 | 06:47 PM
wow!
here's some back story
here's some back story
Forged Performance - Marietta, GA
List your entire build list.
GTM Stage 3 twin turbo kit, HKS FCon, OEM motor and now built short block.
1) Workmanship/ quality of work: 1
2) Pricing 1
3) Condition car was returned vs drop off condition 1
4) Customer service 1
5) Honesty 1
6) Willing to stand behind work: 1
7) Would you use this shop again: NO
8) Would you recommend this shop to a friend: NO
9) What do you think of their overall knowledge of this platform: 2
10) Do they have a professional looking shop. YES
11) Was the final price on your invoice the same as agreed: NO
12) Was your car completed on the date promised NO
13) Did you have any issues with your car after delivery..big or small: YES
Comments:
My name is Juan and I have seen the recent threads on certain forums about my motor. I have tried to move past this incident, but knowing that Sharif is using my bad experience to promote his shop makes me want to tell the world about what I went through with Forged Performance. I have tried to tell my story before but I was bashed off of the forums because I couldn’t write well enough to explain my experience. English is not my first language – so to keep from having a repeat experience, I have had someone help me edit this thread. To help keep it simple, I will explain using bullet points. All of these are facts. No lies or stretching of the truth.
Back story:
• I took my new G37 to Forged Performance for install of the GTM Stage 3 turbo kit.
• My stock motor blew while Sharif was tuning it on the dyno.
• Sharif told me that 500whp was safe and that the stock motor would hold. His advice is what I took when making decisions for this build.
• The stock motor did not hold and Sharif blamed it on bad rods from the factory or damage caused by a previous owner.
• The car had 1500 miles on it when the motor blew. There was no previous owner and no prior work performed.
• I was made to pay for parts for a new short block. I never wanted a built block. I wanted the safe 500whp promised on my stock motor.
• I did take my car from the shop while having a balance, but it was only because there was no work done on the car for months. Sharif kept promising work, but none was ever done. I admit it was not the best strategy, but there was no theft involved. The keys were given to me by a Forged Performance employee.
• I posted an “apology” thread so that Sharif would finish the work promised. Posting that thread was not my idea.
• After another month of Sharif not being able to get the car to run properly, he shipped the car to Sam @ GTM so that Sam could diagnose the problem. The car was supposed to be fixed and shipped back to Sharif for finalization. I chose to leave it with Sam for all final repairs.
Damage done to the car while at Forged Performance:
• Wiring harness was damaged and ground to VVEL left off. This is why Sharif could not get the car to run properly.
• The car was backed into a lift damaging the rear bumper and tail light. Sharif wanted to replace this with parts from a junk yard.
• Shift **** was removed using pliers and damaged beyond repair.
• Holes were drilled through my VIN plate on the firewall when mounting the fuel pump regulator.
• Chassis was cut to make GTM turbo kit fit. This was not needed. The kit was installed improperly.
• Plastics were cut to make the turbo kit fit. More unnecessary modification due to improper install of turbo kit.
• Intercooler piping was cut to make it fit (again unneeded) and left metal shavings inside.
• Intercooler piping crushed to make room for an oil return line.
Cost to me:
• Nearly a year without my car and over ten thousand dollars in additional expenses repairing the damage Forged Performance caused. Sharif did pay for part of the GTM bill.
Once more for clarification, English is not my first language, so I have had help formatting this post. But all things said are 100% true and factual. Pictures have been included so that you can see the state my car was in when it arrived at GTM and after Forged Performance could not diagnose the car’s inability to run properly. Because I have a hard time writing in English and have a family to take care of, I will not be reading or responding to this thread. I just wanted to let my Forged Performance experience be known. I am sure Sharif will defend and deny. It is his right. I will let the post and pictures speak for themselves. Thank you for taking the time to read my story.
Damage to rear brake light.
Bolt left loose.
Bracket left unsecured.
Power steering lines hitting intercooler piping.
Thin wire cutting into oil return line.
Wrong piece of intercooler piping used. Bracket cut off instead of using correct piece of piping.
Plastic undertray cut to fit piping. Plastics left loose and unsecured.
Sub-frame cut to clearance piping.
Piping crushed to clearance oil return line.
Intake and intercooler piping zip tied together. Debris on intake filter and connection.
More of same zip tied piping and debris.
Reason for debris on intake. Tire was rubbing intake due to improper installation of kit.
List your entire build list.
GTM Stage 3 twin turbo kit, HKS FCon, OEM motor and now built short block.
1) Workmanship/ quality of work: 1
2) Pricing
13) Condition car was returned vs drop off condition
14) Customer service
15) Honesty
16) Willing to stand behind work
: 17) Would you use this shop again
: NO8) Would you recommend this shop to a friend
: NO9) What do you think of their overall knowledge of this platform
: 210) Do they have a professional looking shop.
YES11) Was the final price on your invoice the same as agreed
: NO12) Was your car completed on the date promised
NO13) Did you have any issues with your car after delivery..big or small
: YESComments:
My name is Juan and I have seen the recent threads on certain forums about my motor. I have tried to move past this incident, but knowing that Sharif is using my bad experience to promote his shop makes me want to tell the world about what I went through with Forged Performance. I have tried to tell my story before but I was bashed off of the forums because I couldn’t write well enough to explain my experience. English is not my first language – so to keep from having a repeat experience, I have had someone help me edit this thread. To help keep it simple, I will explain using bullet points. All of these are facts. No lies or stretching of the truth.
Back story:
• I took my new G37 to Forged Performance for install of the GTM Stage 3 turbo kit.
• My stock motor blew while Sharif was tuning it on the dyno.
• Sharif told me that 500whp was safe and that the stock motor would hold. His advice is what I took when making decisions for this build.
• The stock motor did not hold and Sharif blamed it on bad rods from the factory or damage caused by a previous owner.
• The car had 1500 miles on it when the motor blew. There was no previous owner and no prior work performed.
• I was made to pay for parts for a new short block. I never wanted a built block. I wanted the safe 500whp promised on my stock motor.
• I did take my car from the shop while having a balance, but it was only because there was no work done on the car for months. Sharif kept promising work, but none was ever done. I admit it was not the best strategy, but there was no theft involved. The keys were given to me by a Forged Performance employee.
• I posted an “apology” thread so that Sharif would finish the work promised. Posting that thread was not my idea.
• After another month of Sharif not being able to get the car to run properly, he shipped the car to Sam @ GTM so that Sam could diagnose the problem. The car was supposed to be fixed and shipped back to Sharif for finalization. I chose to leave it with Sam for all final repairs.
Damage done to the car while at Forged Performance:
• Wiring harness was damaged and ground to VVEL left off. This is why Sharif could not get the car to run properly.
• The car was backed into a lift damaging the rear bumper and tail light. Sharif wanted to replace this with parts from a junk yard.
• Shift **** was removed using pliers and damaged beyond repair.
• Holes were drilled through my VIN plate on the firewall when mounting the fuel pump regulator.
• Chassis was cut to make GTM turbo kit fit. This was not needed. The kit was installed improperly.
• Plastics were cut to make the turbo kit fit. More unnecessary modification due to improper install of turbo kit.
• Intercooler piping was cut to make it fit (again unneeded) and left metal shavings inside.
• Intercooler piping crushed to make room for an oil return line.
Cost to me:
• Nearly a year without my car and over ten thousand dollars in additional expenses repairing the damage Forged Performance caused. Sharif did pay for part of the GTM bill.
Once more for clarification, English is not my first language, so I have had help formatting this post. But all things said are 100% true and factual. Pictures have been included so that you can see the state my car was in when it arrived at GTM and after Forged Performance could not diagnose the car’s inability to run properly. Because I have a hard time writing in English and have a family to take care of, I will not be reading or responding to this thread. I just wanted to let my Forged Performance experience be known. I am sure Sharif will defend and deny. It is his right. I will let the post and pictures speak for themselves. Thank you for taking the time to read my story.
Damage to rear brake light.
Bolt left loose.
Bracket left unsecured.
Power steering lines hitting intercooler piping.
Thin wire cutting into oil return line.
Wrong piece of intercooler piping used. Bracket cut off instead of using correct piece of piping.
Plastic undertray cut to fit piping. Plastics left loose and unsecured.
Sub-frame cut to clearance piping.
Piping crushed to clearance oil return line.
Intake and intercooler piping zip tied together. Debris on intake filter and connection.
More of same zip tied piping and debris.
Reason for debris on intake. Tire was rubbing intake due to improper installation of kit.
#5
04-12-2010 | 07:50 PM
in all fairness, sharif's response should be included too...
Wow, I just spoke to Sam about 2 hrs ago.
Since I wasn't able to respond in that thread, I will post it here.
This will likely be my only post on this matter.
Forged Performance has been in business for over 5 years, and we literally work on about 400 cars each year and have thousands of satisfied customers. We are here 6 days a week working and managing 30-40 project cars at a time with the 11 employees on the payroll. We've performed everything from simple bolt on's, to full race car prep and custom fabrication. Our consistent track record is well noted on various forums we have always been one of the leading Nissan tuning shops on the country. I've personally tuned several hundreds of Nissan's with a pattern of safety and reliability.
That said, our shop is no different from many others in that we aren't perfect, and we do make mistakes. The people that worked on this customer's car were terminated long ago, and no longer work here. In fact, we haven't worked on this car for well over a year. Clearly, the pictures posted are not representative of the type of work we perform on a daily basis, and there is no excuse for it.
Now lets talk about the false and misleading claims that the owner of the car has posted:
1) On the original installation, the engine did not BLOW-UP on the dyno from tuning. During the initial baseline tuning process I made less than 10 dyno pulls on the car, and most of them were not even to redline. At this point, everything appeared normal. However, after an initial brief road test a light ticking noise was heard. This ticking noise was later determined to be caused by 5 rods with the smallest of bends to them. If you can tell me how rods become laterally wavy from some light tuning, I would love to hear it.
Engine components, bearings, pistons, head gasket, and crank show no signs of detonation, leanness, or improper tuning.
2) Once it was determined that the rods were bad, the customer had the choice of having us build him a new OEM block, or our built S1 Shortblock. He was not forced to switch to a built block. He chose our S1 Shortblock and paid for parts ONLY. All of the thousands of dollars of labor were covered by Forged Performance. All this customer had to give us was some time to complete the project.
3) The customer couldn't wait for his car to be finished, so instead he came into our shop and illegally removed the car from our lot without paying his $12,000 outstanding balance. I called 911 and the police arrived while I was on the phone with the customer begging him to bring the car back. I agreed not to press charges.
4) The damage to his vehicle while in our custody is unquestionably our responsibility and the customer was informed of this damage immediately. The tail light and bumper needed to be replaced and repainted. It always has been, and we paid for the repairs without any question. We never once suggested junkyard parts.
I am still at a loss as to why this person waited for over a year to make this thread. When the customer took possession of his vehicle from GTM, he drove it to my shop and we had a good conversation about the whole situation. At that point, we shook hands and looked eye to eye and agreed that I would take care of a portion of the GTM bill, and cut him a check for the damages. If there were still some hard feelings, I didn't sense that.
In fact, about 4 months ago, the customer called and spoke to Scott Siegel one of our tuners here, asking how much it would cost for a methanol kit and retune of his FCON.
So rather than speculate on the purpose of this thread, I will close by saying that I've spent the better part of a half decade building some of the best Nissan's in the country and building this business from the ground up. I started with myself and one employee, and we've now grown to 11 employees. Our business has quadrupled over the years and it's because we offer a lot to our customers. As we've gotten bigger, we've also become a bigger target and many people are just waiting to pounce if they ever see a horror story about our shop.
We aren't perfect obviously, and there have been plenty of bumps, poor hires, and mistakes made along the way. If you think there is another shop in the country that is perfect, you should think again. But under no circumstances have I ever turned my back on a problem, or a customer, when an issue presents itself. I've spent thousands of MY own dollars fixing issues that weren't even our fault! This business may seem like it's just fun and in many ways it is. But it's also the sole source of income for 11 households, and puts food on tables, pays mortgages and puts kids through school. So we will defend our business vigorously, while striving to get better each day at what we do.
I'm sorry I won't be able to go back and forth on this thread. I have advised my sales guys to stay out as well since they are not involved in this matter.
Since I wasn't able to respond in that thread, I will post it here.
This will likely be my only post on this matter.
Forged Performance has been in business for over 5 years, and we literally work on about 400 cars each year and have thousands of satisfied customers. We are here 6 days a week working and managing 30-40 project cars at a time with the 11 employees on the payroll. We've performed everything from simple bolt on's, to full race car prep and custom fabrication. Our consistent track record is well noted on various forums we have always been one of the leading Nissan tuning shops on the country. I've personally tuned several hundreds of Nissan's with a pattern of safety and reliability.
That said, our shop is no different from many others in that we aren't perfect, and we do make mistakes. The people that worked on this customer's car were terminated long ago, and no longer work here. In fact, we haven't worked on this car for well over a year. Clearly, the pictures posted are not representative of the type of work we perform on a daily basis, and there is no excuse for it.
Now lets talk about the false and misleading claims that the owner of the car has posted:
1) On the original installation, the engine did not BLOW-UP on the dyno from tuning. During the initial baseline tuning process I made less than 10 dyno pulls on the car, and most of them were not even to redline. At this point, everything appeared normal. However, after an initial brief road test a light ticking noise was heard. This ticking noise was later determined to be caused by 5 rods with the smallest of bends to them. If you can tell me how rods become laterally wavy from some light tuning, I would love to hear it.
Engine components, bearings, pistons, head gasket, and crank show no signs of detonation, leanness, or improper tuning.
2) Once it was determined that the rods were bad, the customer had the choice of having us build him a new OEM block, or our built S1 Shortblock. He was not forced to switch to a built block. He chose our S1 Shortblock and paid for parts ONLY. All of the thousands of dollars of labor were covered by Forged Performance. All this customer had to give us was some time to complete the project.
3) The customer couldn't wait for his car to be finished, so instead he came into our shop and illegally removed the car from our lot without paying his $12,000 outstanding balance. I called 911 and the police arrived while I was on the phone with the customer begging him to bring the car back. I agreed not to press charges.
4) The damage to his vehicle while in our custody is unquestionably our responsibility and the customer was informed of this damage immediately. The tail light and bumper needed to be replaced and repainted. It always has been, and we paid for the repairs without any question. We never once suggested junkyard parts.
I am still at a loss as to why this person waited for over a year to make this thread. When the customer took possession of his vehicle from GTM, he drove it to my shop and we had a good conversation about the whole situation. At that point, we shook hands and looked eye to eye and agreed that I would take care of a portion of the GTM bill, and cut him a check for the damages. If there were still some hard feelings, I didn't sense that.
In fact, about 4 months ago, the customer called and spoke to Scott Siegel one of our tuners here, asking how much it would cost for a methanol kit and retune of his FCON.
So rather than speculate on the purpose of this thread, I will close by saying that I've spent the better part of a half decade building some of the best Nissan's in the country and building this business from the ground up. I started with myself and one employee, and we've now grown to 11 employees. Our business has quadrupled over the years and it's because we offer a lot to our customers. As we've gotten bigger, we've also become a bigger target and many people are just waiting to pounce if they ever see a horror story about our shop.
We aren't perfect obviously, and there have been plenty of bumps, poor hires, and mistakes made along the way. If you think there is another shop in the country that is perfect, you should think again. But under no circumstances have I ever turned my back on a problem, or a customer, when an issue presents itself. I've spent thousands of MY own dollars fixing issues that weren't even our fault! This business may seem like it's just fun and in many ways it is. But it's also the sole source of income for 11 households, and puts food on tables, pays mortgages and puts kids through school. So we will defend our business vigorously, while striving to get better each day at what we do.
I'm sorry I won't be able to go back and forth on this thread. I have advised my sales guys to stay out as well since they are not involved in this matter.
#7
04-12-2010 | 10:12 PM
Check out this thread (from a partner website).
Sharif threatens the guy to take down his review or he will sue him for libel. LOL, what a joke, I was unbiased until that point.
Sharif threatens the guy to take down his review or he will sue him for libel. LOL, what a joke, I was unbiased until that point.
Trending Topics
#8
04-13-2010 | 12:08 PM
From the My350z thread:
Additional info from the other threads, and any other information regarding this matter should be posted in this thread. Hopefully the mods will stop deleting posts (in order to keep this thread from being bumped)....
You would be correct, there are more stories, and I'm one of them. Since some of you seem to be trying to distinguish between Sales and Service, lets just say that my story deals with both. Don't bash me because I have never posted on this forum, as I own a G37. However, I will be posting my story on this forum in the near future. Both Sharif and his attorney have told my attorney that they will sue me as soon as I post, so I'm paying a 1st amendment (freedom of speech) attorney to go over my story before I post it. As indicated on this thread already, Juan was contacted by Sharif's attorney telling him to take the thread down. I also know of 2 others that have yet to come forward, one of them being a good friend of mine.
#9
04-13-2010 | 12:12 PM
I'd like to see more pictures of:
Valves/head
Cylinder walls
Spark plugs
Piston surface
Claims were made, but do not remain proven, and I'm sure these are all things you took pictures of; it would be very clear if detonation/tune was not an issue, and the rods simply could not handle 500whp, while the crankshaft can.
I find it a bit strange that the above mentioned pictures are not shown. "Light tuning" shouldn't be an issue given that there ARE base maps for this car and with Forged's experience with TT VQ37's. Were you doing drivability/partial throttle tuning?
@ the OP: What is the final result?
I feel that both parties are still not telling the WHOLE story.
#10
04-13-2010 | 03:19 PM
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 21,095
Likes: 47
From: Toronto, GTA north
posts.
#11
04-13-2010 | 03:56 PM
From what i'm reading there is a few sides to this story. Obviously some of the facts are on the table. I sense that not all of it is. Like Sharif says no company is perfect. Even GTM has had its past mistakes. As long as the companies stand by their workmanship and products thus they will correct the mistakes by taking partial hits on costs. As i can also see Sharif and Sam have chimed in on the situation to add more to the story. Something sounds really fishy on one end. Sam has posted more pics on G37driver showing proper install of the kit. Sharif has gotten an attorney to protect his company but it seems suing is involved. Though that isn't clarified unless i misread something the comments somewhere. At this point i can't comment till the rest of the facts or story is available on table.
#12
04-13-2010 | 04:01 PM
