ECE = bunch of clowns

[mxman]

I called the gomer at early classic on friday march 12/04
and yes, they are clowns, the tech guy kept putting me on hold and i told him im calling from canada so its costing me an arm and a leg, second off i was asking him about their 4/6 drop
and i would like to say WTF man, the guy said i woudlnt need a c notch for their kit beacuse they use load rated truck springs not passenger car springs, like their competitors, ok a good company doesnt bash others, second off, he went on to say that all the cnotches are stupid and are just 3" notches with a big chunk of rubber and all that the axle tubes are going to do is bang up and down on the rubber in the cnotch...........WTF? dude if you look at the god damned rearend its 4" away from the friggin frame.....
dont tell me i dont need a cnotch .....
this is just my 2 bits, im not very impressed with the suspension companies thus far, i even asked him what the spring rate was since they are "truck rated springs" he didnt even know....

ONE good thing, the 6 bolt ECE front rotors are machined especially for 73-87 front spindle sizes (aka you can use the special 6 bolt rotor then swich over to 5 bolt if you like)

im sure the ece kit is kosher i just dont like morons telling me extremely obvious stuff is stupid when he should know better

[SCOTI]

Not to minimalize your complaint, but 4" of clearance does not warrant a c-section. I have been driving my 74 w/o one for over a year w/less than 2" of clearance. I know 67-72's & 73-ups are different frames, but for comparisons sake, the amount of clearance from the top of the rear axle tube to the frame is what matters.

With my 74, it bottoms out on sudden or big dips..... normal, avg roads cause no problems @ all so the 'need' for a c-section is a personal choice. My 68 does have c-sections but it needed them w/approx 7-8" of drop (blocks + air bags).

But I agree he should know his companys product line well enough to give you an answer on their "load rated truck springs, not pass car springs like their competitors". If he doesn't know his own companys springs rate how can he accurately compare w/anothers?

Sounds like he either really is a 'clown' or was possibly having a bad day. Maybe contact them again & seek a different sales rep & see if your experience was a fluke or if it's a pattern.

[mxman]

i feel almost like a dick for complaining so much, but jeez, (by the way when i said 4 inches of clearence, its practically 4" BEFORE any kind of drop) lol 6 inch drop would.. "lay frame" literally...ON THE AXLE hahaha.... all i wanted to know is how hard the springs were, and why they would not recommend a cnotch, i live in a REALLY bumpy area.... which blows........ one thing thats funny, anybody that would use drop spindles and stock springs, tehy are looking for a kick in the face well, HERE IT IS.....
the truck aftermarket is junk and this almost makes me wnat to ditch my effort to modify my suspension, just so you guys know there is ANOTHER place that sells alot what seems to be quality parts CLASSIC PERFORMACE PRODUCTS

[8t5Silverado]

I like www.macspring.com.

I just ordered a Western Chassis kit from them.

I checked prices on several companies, and with the free shipping, they turned out to be the cheapest for quality parts.

[SCOTI]

I've used both ECE & Classic Perf Parts..... both worked well for me.

[smbrouss70]

I can tell you that after putting my suspension from ECE in my truck, with the quality components and VERY helpful tech support, I'll never use another susp. company's products again. The ride is great and even with the 6" drop rear springs my rear axle has never hit the frame, and I drive it HARD over very rough roads where I live. Currently, I have a problem with the driver's side front brake dragging and I called to see what they could tell me, Stan told me that he would get with his Raybestos guy and call me back. About an hour later I received a call from Raybestos. The guy told me all the common problems with that particular system how to diagnose which problem it was, and gave me his personal cell phone number to reach him even on the weekend so that he could help, and get whatever parts I needed over to me. You don't get that kind of service just anywhere.

I guess I'm just trying to say don't let that one bad phone call disway you from (imo) the best suspension company for our trucks.

Also, the whole 6-lug brake thing may not be all that it's cracked up to be, my stock wheels didn't fit over the calipers and I had to end up buying new wheels anyway. Check this out and see what I mean... http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...threadid=73572

[SCOTI]

Originally posted by smbrouss70


I guess I'm just trying to say don't let that one bad phone call disway you from (imo) the best suspension company for our trucks.

Also, the whole 6-lug brake thing may not be all that it's cracked up to be, my stock wheels didn't fit over the calipers and I had to end up buying new wheels anyway. Check this out and see what I mean... http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...threadid=73572

Good info to know. Thanks for sharing.

[Shane]

Apparently this guy has never dealt with AIM if he thinks ECE is bad.

[Tx Firefighter]

You need to learn spelling and punctuation skills.

My truck has the ECE 6 inch rear drop kit in it. And no c-notch either. I hauled a fully dressed 454 big block engine with all accesories still on it and turbo 400 trans in the bed all over the place without ever bottoming out. That's a LOT of weight and it rode perfectly. In fact, it has never bottomed once since I lowered it.

I have dropped lots of trucks with ECE stuff and never once had a single complaint or problem.

[GSFMECH]

I'm with you Tx Firefighter. I have had ECE's 4/6 drop on my 72 for about 3 years now, no problems whatsoever and can't recall it ever bottoming out. I also installed the same kit on 65streetcruisers truck. I did trim the rubber bumpers however. I have conversed with Dave Clark ( ECE owner) on several occasions and found those guys to be super. Sorry to hear your troubles with them mxman. That was the first complaint I've ever heard about them.

[Joe67]

I just ordered and received the 2/4 drop kit from ECE last week. I've been researching different kits since last fall and with the help of this board, I went with ECE.

Very helpful on the phone and I can't wait to put the kit on the '67

[Hotrod70C10]

Originally posted by mxman
i feel almost like a dick for complaining so much, but jeez, (by the way when i said 4 inches of clearence, its practically 4" BEFORE any kind of drop) lol 6 inch drop would.. "lay frame" literally...ON THE AXLE hahaha....

Let me just say, If you only have 4" of clearance with stock springs then you are using springs that are sagging extremely bad. I myself went from a 2/4 drop from to a 4/6 both from ECE. I did not use their spindles or disc kit though, I picked them up from Mcaughy's. I do not have a C-notch with my 70' and the only way that I would install one is if I went with bags and wanted it lower while aired out. Every one of the guys that have answered your post know their stuff. Especially Scoti and Tx Firefighter. I myself wouldn't recomend parts if I thought they were crap and I would hate for someone to be turned off of a great company just because of one person that works there.

[COBALT]

I've talked to (after completely rebuilding my front and back suspension) most of the guys at ECE at one time or another over the phone, and I think you're out to lunch:

...and yes, they are clowns, the tech guy kept putting me on hold and i told him im calling from canada so its costing me an arm and a leg...

Last time I called I sat on hold for 10 minutes because about 1000 people were calling them. They take them in order, whether you're from Canada or not.

...the guy said i woudlnt need a c notch for their kit beacuse they use load rated truck springs not passenger car springs, like their competitors, ok a good company doesnt bash others, second off, he went on to say that all the cnotches are stupid and are just 3" notches with a big chunk of rubber and all that the axle tubes are going to do is bang up and down on the rubber in the cnotch...........WTF? dude if you look at the god damned rearend its 4" away from the friggin frame.....
dont tell me i dont need a cnotch .....

They're not "bashing". They're telling you the truth. Also, they avoid the c-notch thing with shock and panhard bar relocation kits that are pretty smooth. He was probably trying to save you a HUGE amount of work. It sounds like you jumped to conclusions....or your communication with this guy was extremely poor.

Like someone else said if you think THAT is bad try ordering a suspension kit from another company like LMC, and oh yeah, I dare you to try to ask a technical quesetion. They'll tell you you have to wait 24-48 hours for a tech to CALL YOU BACK with NO guarantee he'll be able to answer your question.

Early Classic Enterprises is the best suspension company I've worked with for these trucks.

[low 84]

i spent alot of money with ece and the products were pretty good but i wasn't pleased with the customer service either. they screwed me out of 100 bucks and would not call me back when they said they were going to.

it all boils down to the fact that no company has a 100% customer satisfaction rate. everyone drops the ball sometimes. there are a ton of people here who have used there parts and are pleased, but i won't be using them agian because they dropped the ball with me.

[COBALT]

They screwed you out of 100 bucks? how?

[LowSeventy]

quote
'im sure the ece kit is kosher i just dont like morons telling me extremely obvious stuff is stupid when he should know better'

Sounds like you probably had the same attitude with him on the phone as you have in your post. I would have told you to take off, eh.
I can only speak for myself, but I have had Early Classic's 3.5/6 kit on my 70 for a couple of years now and never bottomed out. That's the reason I bought their kit, it's engineered to work. If you would have called around and did a little homework, you would realize those guys have their act together.
Like COBALT said, you're out to lunch.

[low 84]

Originally posted by COBALT
They screwed you out of 100 bucks? how?

they sent me a faulty master cylinder with a front disc break conversion kit i bought from them. because this was being done to my daily driver i only had a limited downtime to work with. the truck was taken apart and most of the reassembly done. when it was time to bench bleed the master cylinder the rear valve would not bleed any fluid. because the truck had to be up and running asap i had to go buy another master cylinder localy.

i called ece and told them about the problem very politley and asked to send the faulty master cylinder back and get a refund. their first response was to accuse me of not knowing what i was doing because they said they had previously only had one faulty master cylinder come back. after i told them that the m.s. had been checked and verified to be faulty by more than one certified mechanic, their second response was that i should have sent the bad one back and have them send me a new one. i then explained that because this was my daily driver there was not enough time for me to have done this because it needed to be up and running asap. then they said it was not their policy to give a refund on it because it was purchased as part of a kit not idividualy (even though they do have an individual list price for this item) and all they would do was send me a new master cylinder if i sent mine back. i didn't see what good another master cylinder would do me so i refused this. after going back and forth he finaly agreed to "see what he could do" and call me back. which was not done.

so basically they gave me the run around about a part that they could have easily refunded my money on and gotten their money back as well, because they weren't even the manufacturer of this part, so they could have returned it to their supplier as well and they would have been out nothing. but instead they lost my business for good

[LowSeventy]

quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by COBALT
They screwed you out of 100 bucks? how?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I bet if you called the owner and told him what you just told us, he would take care of it on the spot. I screwed up the master cylinder that came in my kit when we were try to bench bleed it, and they exchanged it for me and even paid the freight. I can't believe they would treat you any different.

[Suicide-D]

I was happy with ECE as well...service and quality... they even met me half way on shipping... and I didn't even have to ask.

[COBALT]

Whenever I buy kits from them I get disclaimers telling me they can't refund on parts from a kit, because the kits are priced differently than the individual parts themselves. Some places will charge you "restocking fees", or refuse returns all together - even for exchanges.

Here's what you should have done: call them up, and get them to exchange it for a good one, THEN go buy your MUST HAVE NOW master cylinder, and then sell the one they send you later on this board or on ebay or something.

Yeah, you can talk to the owner about getting your money back, but come on. You should know by now WHY mail-order and over-the-phone places do business like this. Their kits are large with lots of parts. If they allowed partial returns for a full refund their bean counting goes out the window and the cost of their kits goes up, or their customer service suffers. You get what you pay for.

Not only that but they were willing to send you a replacement one and absorb the shipping to CANADA. If it takes longer to get to your house that's a risk YOU took for ordering from a company in the states.

In other words if you had a project that has to be done the next day, but you're ordering from a company that isn't in the same country as you, and neglect to read their policies on the kits they sell it sounds like you don't plan very well.

[krue]

In the words of the immortal Rodney King, "Can't we all just get along?"

[low 84]

Originally posted by COBALT
Whenever I buy kits from them I get disclaimers telling me they can't refund on parts from a kit, because the kits are priced differently than the individual parts themselves. Some places will charge you "restocking fees", or refuse returns all together - even for exchanges.

Here's what you should have done: call them up, and get them to exchange it for a good one, THEN go buy your MUST HAVE NOW master cylinder, and then sell the one they send you later on this board or on ebay or something.

Yeah, you can talk to the owner about getting your money back, but come on. You should know by now WHY mail-order and over-the-phone places do business like this. Their kits are large with lots of parts. If they allowed partial returns for a full refund their bean counting goes out the window and the cost of their kits goes up, or their customer service suffers. You get what you pay for.

Not only that but they were willing to send you a replacement one and absorb the shipping to CANADA. If it takes longer to get to your house that's a risk YOU took for ordering from a company in the states.

In other words if you had a project that has to be done the next day, but you're ordering from a company that isn't in the same country as you, and neglect to read their policies on the kits they sell it sounds like you don't plan very well.

canada??? i live in texas...........this happened over two years ago. i really don't even care about it now. but i don't agree that thats what i should have done. i did exactly what i should have done. if they were intrested in keeping my business they should have done the extra "bean counting" to keep me as a customer. they didn't, so they kept my money and i take my business elsewhere.

you are more than welcome to keep defending them and telling me that i don't plan very well. whatever.

NO company has 100% customer satisfaction. ECE is not perfect, nor is any other company. they did not provid me with the customer service i desired so i take my business else where. i couldn't care less if other people do business there. i'm not trying to keep people away from them, just giving my expireance with them

[COBALT]

...I appologize. I got the locations mixed up between you and the original poster of the thread...

Still, if you ever are doing a job where things are strict on a timeclock then you have to plan for those problems. If they're up front about their policies you have to at least respect those. I worked with them to get my problems solved, and yes it was frustrating at times, but I didn't allow my frustration destroy the working relationship.

I can call them on something now, and they remember me as a valued customer and are willing to help me MORE than they would have if I demanded that customer support up front.

[cranknut67]

my 2 cents.

I recently picked up the drop spindles and the 73-87 5 lug to 6 lug conversion. I ordered them on a thursday with my cc and expected to see them in 5 days. I didn't even see an e-mail confirmation for 2 whole weeks. I called to try to find out the status and was on hold for 20-30 minutes. They were not able to find the order at all. After the disappointment, I informed them to cancel the order if it did show up, and e-mail me.

After a week went by, I noticed my bank balance was about 350.00 short, almost causing me to bounce my rent check. I checked my internet banking statement and noticed that they had charged the spindles and rotors to my card. I was going to call them about it the next day, but when I got home, the package had arrived earlier in the afternoon. all my stuff was there. just about 2-1/2 weeks late

just kinda crappy - the parts were great!

[veltex]

I have dealt with ECE a bit myself, great outfit, great advice, great service. I am sure that customers that are hard to deal with, get treated differently or not at all by any type of business, mine included.