I had a differential (stock OEM 3.45 ClubSport ti) blow out last year after my original Motor swap. VAC in Philadelphia Motorsports (Armond) replaced the differential with a 3.46 LSD for $1680 . Man I what a total rip off but what could I do, I was new to the Philadelphia area and didn't know who to go to at the time. Armond basically charged me almost $800 for an e30 differential used and a shit load of labor to make this work on my car even though I gave them step by step intructions on how to do it.
Here is where the problem begins, after they swapped the differential the car sounded funny, like a high pitch wine that wasn't there before, but it was hard to put my finger on it. I just know it didn't sound like it did before the blowout. Anyway the sound progressively got worse and now I have this growning noise comming from my rear end when i make turns at slow speed, right or left and only at a very slow speed. I tried to inform Armond of this and he kinda basiicaly ignored me. I told him that this noise was there before i swapped the Wheels, Motor, Driveshaft and suspension, and was present after all this was done. Only think left on the car was the differential he swapped and the half axles. Now I am almost positive it is the differential, what do I do now? Armond can be very difficult to deal with, should I inform him of this problem in writing and take it to the next level with a busness complaint and small claims suite? Man I hate gettting jerked around by Shops:complain

PROBLEMS TO DATE WITH INSTALL ( Dont trust your car with them if you have a BMW, just ask around.) They are getting many complaints from people other than myself. If Armon doesn't become a better people person then Verna's will continue to loose customers like myself.

Current Problem List/Assessment

1) Rear end making a horrible noise while truning, status post repair by VAC/Vernas
2) Axles leaking fluid from right side, status post repair by VAC/Vernas
3) Speedometer stopped working, status post repair by VAC/Vernas
4)Absoultely no customer support for shotty work done

Unless there is some sort of warranty listed on the receipt from the work, I would imagine that you're hosed at this point.

Nope no implied warranty, but I am consulting with student leagal services to find out.

hey doc lol ... i would suggest taking it to a local mechanic. my friend told me a whining noise from the differential means that it is new OR one of the bolts in torqued too much. It might be a simple fix, but stick on those guys to do it.

Cool thanks for the tip. I know for a fact that the differential is not new as it was kinda rusty when they put it on. The noise has gotten progressively worse over the last year or so. I think i remember telling you that the wheels werre rubbing because that is what the noise sounded like. Well it was not the wheels becasue i have swapped on 3 differernt sets with 3 different sizes and i got the same noise but it is really getting bad now. And i also noticed that if I depress the clutch it goes away. At this point i don't know if i want them any where near my car ever again, if you know what i mean.

That blows...sucks to see a shop rip off a consumer. I think that you should try to talk to Armand, and the next move would be to get BBB involved. Also check all the paper work you have with regards to the work being done. Since I'm in Philly, get with me, I know a couple of good lawyers.

Well Armond called me, so I will call him as soon as I get back in town next week to see if this can be worked out. He seems like a pretty stand up guy so hopefully he will take care of me. I will post to let the forum know what happens with VAC motorsports

Low speed noise from the diff, is the fluid! They did not put LS (limited slip) fluid in it!

Drain the fluid, and put in some Redline 75-90ls it will go away!

Was it a rebuilt diff for $800? That is not that bad, there usually more, and that can also be why the noise is there, you are breaking in the clutch packs on the LSD.

No it wasnt rebuilt, but i will check the fluid again. Noise at low speed only when turning left or right.
Total bill for Diff, labor and half shafts was arount $1680

Originally posted by ClubSport332ti
I had a differential (stock OEM 3.45 ClubSport ti) blow out last year after my original Motor swap. VAC in Philadelphia Motorsports (Armond) replaced the differential with a 3.46 LSD for $1680 . Man I what a total rip off but what could I do, I was new to the Philadelphia area and didn't know who to go to at the time. Armond basically charged me almost $800 for an e30 differential used and a shit load of labor to make this work on my car even though I gave them step by step intructions on how to do it.
Here is where the problem begins, after they swapped the differential the car sounded funny, like a high pitch wine that wasn't there before, but it was hard to put my finger on it. I just know it didn't sound like it did before the blowout. Anyway the sound progressively got worse and now I have this growning noise comming from my rear end when i make turns at slow speed, right or left and only at a very slow speed. I tried to inform Armond of this and he kinda basiicaly ignored me. I told him that this noise was there before i swapped the Wheels, Motor, Driveshaft and suspension, and was present after all this was done. Only think left on the car was the differential he swapped and the half axles. Now I am almost positive it is the differential, what do I do now? Armond can be very difficult to deal with, should I inform him of this problem in writing and take it to the next level with a busness complaint and small claims suite? Man I hate gettting jerked around by Shops:complain




ClubSport332ti,


Just curious...

I am not clear on the time that has elapsed with the issue you are speaking about. Could you enlighten me? It sounds as though a year has passed since the work was done & i wanted to be straight on the facts.


When did VAC do the initial work?

When did the problem you are speaking about show itself?

Did you buy a "used" diff {not dealer new, not remanufactured}
or was it "remanufactured" {rebuilt to OEM spec and warranted}

The reason I ask is, the level of expectation a customer should have based upon the source of replacement parts.
When I had to buy a 6-Speed transmission for my Baby project I had 3 choices:
New out of the box
Remanufactured
Used {salvage}

There was a huge difference in price between New and Used and more important a big difference in what I could expect in terms of warranty.

If you could fill in the blanks, I'd appreciate it.

Thanks

Put it this way the car has around 2000 miles on it since their work was done. Problem started initially around a month after the work (hard to tell as I don't drive the car alot living in Center City. I immeadiately suggested this to Armond but he kinda blew me off I felt and didn't take me as serious as I felt he should have suggesting it could be other things, when the problem began after the differential swap and progressively got worse over time). Well within the next couple of months of me suggesting something was wrong, the entire driveline was swapped out except the differential they just put in. Motor, transmission,driveshaft. The differential was used but sold to me with his word it was a good differential and would not be a problem.

"When did VAC do the initial work?" Yes an fair amount of time has passed, as the car sat idle waiting for my new motor to get finished. You are correct, but as stated before there is not a lot of milage on the car since the work was done.

"When did the problem you are speaking about show itself?" about a month or so with a gradual onset of symptoms

Did you buy a "used" diff {not dealer new, not remanufactured} "USED INSTALLED FOR ABOUT $1680


If you are in anyway suggesting that my expectaions are too high and that since I bought a "used" differential I should expect something to go wrong with it, that is total BULLSHIT for several reasons;

1) I was not warned of the potential downfall of using a "used differential" but rather assured everything would be alright and to let him do the work.
2) I paid A LOT of money for this to be done correctly. $1650 for an install of a used e30 diffferential, is that market value?????
3) As a consumer that has spent a lot of money on his car over the past 5 years (two motors, transmisions, differentials, etc), if I was in VAC's shoes I would do everything possible to earn my business, my friends business, and every potential professional person that I am associated with that drives a high performance sports car and is looking for a good place to work on their pride and joy.



Bottom line: As a consumer if my business and potential future business is not worth replacing a "Bad Part" that they put in that probably cost them less than $100, then I say fuck it! I will go somplace else. I can get a another used e30 differential for very cheap and put it in myself and call it a day. But if that happens i will have nothing but bad words to say about a shop like that that doesn't stand behind their work %100.

Over reaction by me, I will call Armond ASAP, you are correct about calling him. Due to my profession, my priority can not always be my car and chasing people down to fix things I felt should have been done correctly the first time. Overall, I don't expect Armond to post anything, I am posting to get advise from the BMW community, which is very helpful to me and to others that may have similar dealings.dunno

I will post my full experience as hopefully this turns out good for both parties involved.

Originally posted by ClubSport332ti
A couple of strange things happen to me since I posted this thread. 1) Armond from VAC called me at my house and left as message while I was away doing my vascular surgery rotation. I found this to be very odd as I posted it and the message was left the following day according to my girlfriend??????? 2) I get a reply from you bassically saying that I am expecting too much and other stuff like that. As I look a little closer I see you are Philadelphia too, coincidence???????? You seem to know a lot about the situation, maybe you can elaborate a little further. Posted from your website do you have some VAC affiliation:dunno





ClubSport332ti,

I merely asked you for more detail.
Personally, my interest in the matter is nil. Having run a retail business for 16 years myself, I understand that there will always be someone, somewhere that isn't a happy customer. The focus of any retail business is to minimize that as much as possible.

My attention was drawn to this issue as a moderator here at BF. Typically when someone posts about a quality of serivce dispute here, the vendor in question usually frequents the board. I do know the Salloum Brothers very well. VAC did the mods on Baby and they handle the routine work on both of my BMWs. I also know that they are not supporting vendors and that they have little presence on the internet message board scene.


My opinion doesn't matter one way or another. I just wanted to get all the facts. Having furnished full details, you have effectively allowed the reader to form their opinion based on all the facts (or at least your side of the issue). Armand is perfectly capable of defending himself and making the business decisions he needs to make and it is up to Armand to respond or not respond as he sees fit.

I would like to point out that since he isn't a regular here at BF, there is little chance he will reply here at BF. My suggestion is to contact him directly...at this point you have nothing to lose.


Good luck with your diff.

Regards,

Bimmerhead (Moderator) thanks for the reply and the help.

I'll post this to the forum and any potential VAC costomers can make there own choice on where to take their car to get fixed.

Facts: A Differential was put in my car that started to make noise with less than 1000 miles on it since install. I replorted this as soon as I drove away and was told it was normal. 2) the noise has slowly progressed to become worse and all this was reported too as my car has been back to VAC twice since the Differential install. 3) Was told by another shop differential seal was bad (how does a seal go bad with under 2,000 of use)

Saga continues

GEEZZEZ talk about gettin screwed, u take ur car to someone to get it fixed, not only did they charge u for a shitty job, it has created more hassle for you and may actually be hurting your car, what does he expect u to do? THey had a job to do that you paid for, now wut? Just tell em to fix it, If they dont I would be F'in pissed, just take legal action after.

I know ClubSport332ti personally and he really takes good care of his car and puts like 10 miles on it a week. Any imperfections on his differential are due to this shops poor installation and not his driving. VAC should stand behind their work like any respectable and reputable BMW company. This is an important feature of any car and having a poor install is a poor reflection of the company. Anyone reading this, take this all into account before any large dealings with VAC. Later
will

I am fucking done with VAC/Vernna's Auto period! Man, I was at the BMW dealer trying to buy a part to fix the crappy work they did on my car installing the differential. OH YEAH, my speedometer doesn't work at all anymore, use to just go out when it rained, this began immeadiately after the differential install. I was told to get new speed sensor by the same shop that fixed my differential leak. Hmmmn, a differential leak after a differential swap, with less than 3k miles on it since the work was done? My fault, I THINK NOT! Anyway BMW calls VAC to ask's what kind of differential was installed on my car because there are different speed sensors. To my supprise, they get a reply from Armond that went a little like this, "it was over two years ago I don't remember." OMFG, they put a differential in, overcharge me for it (yes they overcharged me as i paid $750 for a used e30 diff ) they don't seal the gasket so it leaks and makes noise after putting some milage on the car, and some how put a bad sensor on, to, top it off, I think they used electrical tape on the bottom of my car to protect some wiring.

I have driven this car very little since they put the differential in, reguardless of how much time has passed, they have done a piss poor job on my car and I will never take my car to them again, or refer anyone to them or say anything positive about this shop to any number of people that ask me.

Well..... scratch them off my list. Sorry about your situation, dude.

that sucks...

Originally posted by ayton
that sucks...
Yeah it does! I am fixing shit they did wrong and he doesn't even have the damn time to remember what the hell he put in my car when BMW is calling him to find out:mad: WTF

I am still fricken pissed!

Well found out my car speedo stopped working cause the shop used a butt connector on the VSS wires from the sensor that came loose or broke loose and they had taped it with electrical tape

Who in the heck uses electrical tape on the bottom of a car to protect electrial connections???????

They sold me a new head (theirs) and did the rebuild of the engine on my 318is. They had the car so long I thought they stole it and then when they finally finished it was ALOT more than quoted! It lasted about 5,000 miles and the head was blown again much to my dismay after a 1800.00 dollar job. They did not warranty the job because they said they couldn't warranty a new head on an older bottom!?! HUH? Anyway I put the car off to the side and waited until I found a used engine on Ebay ($350.00 !!) then I pulled the head off that engine and rebuilt it myself since I was way too broke after their repair I was forced to do it myself or lose the car forever. I now have over 15,000.00 miles on the engine and it is running strong and I have found out that I am a damn fine BMW mechanic in my own right after all! I truly believe to this day they did not torque the head bolts correctly but what I find amazing is that anyone would not try to do something for a guy that just spent 1800.00 on an engine repair that went so fast! Do whatever you want but I recommend you stay away from VAC at all costs they are either major rip off artists or the stupidest BMW experts that ever walked the face of the earth! I can thank them for forcing me into finding the expert mechanic inside me that was just afraid to mess it up until I had no choice but to try!

I spent 700.00 dollars on the Head too so the total for the job was about 2500.00 dollars and no warranty! NICE thanks guys you'll never get my work again!