BBK SSI Intake Warning

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I was mainly referring to the thread from 2007. It pissed me off pretty good. I don't feel that situation was handled very well, and even though it's old, it still counts. I guess I've been jaded by a culmination of observations, opinions from friends, and other Mustangers about BBK.

And Bryan, even though we don't know each other and you probably don't care for me right now, it's nothing personal. I think I just have a different philosophy about operating businesses and working with people. No biggie.

I used to take stuff very personally when it came to issues like this. I wanted to make my point as strongly as the person posting.

It's taken a while to get over that and just let it go and I 've been trying harder to understand that a negative thread is not the end of the world even though it may seem like it while we are here. The real world does not revolve around what is on these pages.

Most people can't imagine how many calls and emails we get that are yelling, kicking, screaming, threatening law suits, or fully blaming us for all sorts of issues that are totally the customer's fault/problem.

Typical example; headers hitting steering shafts... when the guy's motor/tranny mounts are totally trashed. BBK's problem right? I get stuff like that ALL day. To the point where I'm not able to do anything else but man the phones.

It can be hard to transition from a flood of calls like that where I have to play Mustang Detective over the phone or via email, then educate people on the status of their own cars, then move on to a call where there is an actual problem...

Sometimes things can get downright stupid, and we just need to pull out, take a deep breath, wipe off, and re-insert to make sure it's being done properly:D
 
Dude you need to understand how bad it sucks to spend that amount of time and money on something and to have a REAL issue with it just to be treated like all the other morons.

We kept on and on getting a gas leak from the exhaust (behind headers) and we were losing fuel pressure. The headers smoked after a couple of minutes each time we turned the motor over. I was just about to take the heads back off and check the rings/valves. So I did a compression test and every cylinder held. We searched over and over looking for a leak from the rails with flashlights at night and in broad daylight. Nothing. Finally we took the rails back off because I was sure it was a hung injector. I put the stockers back on and then I couldn't get them to seal. The caps were breaking off the bottom. We tried a bit of oil, petroleum jelly and a couple of the caps off of the 24lb injectors I pulled back off. Tried for hours. Finally they sealed.

Then I go to prime it and check it again and POOF! The tube starts leaking. Now this is where it got ugly. LITERALLY 4-6 hours a night for 2-3 days trying to get that stupid tube to work. Tried oil, petroleum jelly, o-rings with the kit, different o rings, doubled up o rings, 2 on one side and one on the other. Everything imaginable.

Then I quit. I was pissed.

My buddy comes over (WHT306) and tightens it all back down. I'm half paying attention and ready to make this thing a door stop when he gets everything as it should be, spacer in flush, rails in flush and tight and he bloody thinks to do something that after all of those hours I never once thought to do...

He wiggled the stupid tube and it had about 3-5 milimeters play. Rediculous. Upon inspection the gas was going down the back of the motor and running down the headers.

Me -----------------> :cry:

Then I call and was told to file down the spacers a bit. We did. It was just too much play and there are only 3 spacers. Any more and the angle would have been shot.

I made the thread after talking to several people who told me the only way to fix it will be to heliarc the stupid holes and fab up a fuel line in the back.

Me -----------------> ::fuss::

So I email and have to pay for a new tube. Fine. No problem it was 3 years old. I get it. I set it next to the other tube and they are identical. I email back and now I'm half way pissed...

I've got $3,000 sitting on top of a motor on a 1993 Notch with 66k original miles and I can't start the car because of this fuel leak.

I get an email back that says "Did you have a question?"

Me ------------------> :uzi:



Had it been a vacuum leak- I get it. Had it been a bur in the lower intake- I get it. But to realize just how close I came to blowing the car up after weeks of frustration and the whole time not realizing it was indeed a leak from the PROPRIETARY rails. Dude I looked the last time and had a 3 foot puddle under my car.

I still don't know how in the heck we never saw more than a bubble or two from this thing until one night a week or two ago when it spewed like mad.

My 2 year old was chasing me to the garage wanting to play every night. Then I find out it's possibly the casting of the intake or the rails themselves?

I was bent. Now I think I'll just let the project sit until I can afford another intake or I may just use an old explorer intake I have. I'm done with that thing man.
 
I used to take stuff very personally when it came to issues like this. I wanted to make my point as strongly as the person posting.

It's taken a while to get over that and just let it go and I 've been trying harder to understand that a negative thread is not the end of the world even though it may seem like it while we are here. The real world does not revolve around what is on these pages.

Most people can't imagine how many calls and emails we get that are yelling, kicking, screaming, threatening law suits, or fully blaming us for all sorts of issues that are totally the customer's fault/problem.

Typical example; headers hitting steering shafts... when the guy's motor/tranny mounts are totally trashed. BBK's problem right? I get stuff like that ALL day. To the point where I'm not able to do anything else but man the phones.

It can be hard to transition from a flood of calls like that where I have to play Mustang Detective over the phone or via email, then educate people on the status of their own cars, then move on to a call where there is an actual problem...

Sometimes things can get downright stupid, and we just need to pull out, take a deep breath, wipe off, and re-insert to make sure it's being done properly

I understand. I ran a real estate team for a while, and spent all of college making a living off of commissioned sales. The hardest part of making a sale definitely comes after the sale itself. And people can definitely be stupid (I see even more of that now as a patrol deputy).

I don't know much about BBK. And you're just one guy. And maybe things are a lot different than they were 2 or 3 years ago. But for a company who relies on direct sales of a tangible product to generate revenue, those products should not have ongoing issues in their design. A lemon here and there is one thing, but when it comes to cars (death traps in and of themselves) and especially "no brainer" bolt-ons like an intake and/or especially the fuel rails, this should not be a common problem...it would be a lot less costly to change the product now, than be held liable in a civil court (much less criminal court) if something were to happen to someone. Even more so when the fuel rail issue seems to be easily rectified through modification.

I haven't done enough research on the product to form a concrete opinion, but over the last few years I've gotten the impression that maybe you guys have been trying to sell a product with a known flaw, or a flaw likely to occur, instead of just addressing the issue from a standpoint of "can we simply make this product better for the consumer." Like I said, y'all may have a fix for this already and I just don't know. The whole issue just leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

As for the tons of complaints you get, etc., I would love to see more companies take the Seth Godin approach to business, and use each complaint as an opportunity to make a raving fan for your company by being less confrontational and more consultative. Using that as an opportunity to go the extra mile instead of making a customer feel like and idiot...(even when he is).

For example...let's say with your header clearance issues. Included with your kit but SEPARATE from your instructions should be a bright colored piece of paper titled: A Friendly Reminder About Installing Your New Headers......At BBK, we know that many of our customers like to install their new goodies themselves. To make your home installation a breeze, here are a few extra installation tips. If your motor-mounts are old and broken, there is a chance that your new headers may not properly clear your steering shaft. Blah blah blah......include all known "user error" type tips. The customer sees it as an extra help, and it's quite possible that he didn't KNOW that bad motor mounts could cause his fitment issue. Now you've saved both of you a phone call AND given him a guide to fixing his own problem without getting you involved. (All of this of course assumes that the product is well-made.)

Something as simple as this (knowing potential problems in advance and addressing them), gives you even more leverage and credibility on the phone when there is a problem, but could also alleviate some calls when the guy reads the note, looks at his mounts and says, well damn! And realizes he has some work to do....

And suddenly, the forums, emails, and Twitter are buzzing with, "Check out what BBK did for me when I had this issue....these guys rock" type posts. Customer happy, BBK happy, Bryan happy.....etc. (though I'm guessing they need to hire another Bryan....).

I needed something rant about today....I guess you won. Sorry.
 
Dude you need to understand how bad it sucks to spend that amount of time and money on something and to have a REAL issue with it just to be treated like all the other morons.

We kept on and on getting a gas leak from the exhaust (behind headers) and we were losing fuel pressure. The headers smoked after a couple of minutes each time we turned the motor over. I was just about to take the heads back off and check the rings/valves. So I did a compression test and every cylinder held. We searched over and over looking for a leak from the rails with flashlights at night and in broad daylight. Nothing. Finally we took the rails back off because I was sure it was a hung injector. I put the stockers back on and then I couldn't get them to seal. The caps were breaking off the bottom. We tried a bit of oil, petroleum jelly and a couple of the caps off of the 24lb injectors I pulled back off. Tried for hours. Finally they sealed.

Then I go to prime it and check it again and POOF! The tube starts leaking. Now this is where it got ugly. LITERALLY 4-6 hours a night for 2-3 days trying to get that stupid tube to work. Tried oil, petroleum jelly, o-rings with the kit, different o rings, doubled up o rings, 2 on one side and one on the other. Everything imaginable.

Then I quit. I was pissed.

My buddy comes over (WHT306) and tightens it all back down. I'm half paying attention and ready to make this thing a door stop when he gets everything as it should be, spacer in flush, rails in flush and tight and he bloody thinks to do something that after all of those hours I never once thought to do...

He wiggled the stupid tube and it had about 3-5 milimeters play. Rediculous. Upon inspection the gas was going down the back of the motor and running down the headers.

Me -----------------> :cry:

Then I call and was told to file down the spacers a bit. We did. It was just too much play and there are only 3 spacers. Any more and the angle would have been shot.

I made the thread after talking to several people who told me the only way to fix it will be to heliarc the stupid holes and fab up a fuel line in the back.

Me -----------------> ::fuss::

So I email and have to pay for a new tube. Fine. No problem it was 3 years old. I get it. I set it next to the other tube and they are identical. I email back and now I'm half way pissed...

I've got $3,000 sitting on top of a motor on a 1993 Notch with 66k original miles and I can't start the car because of this fuel leak.

I get an email back that says "Did you have a question?"

Me ------------------> :uzi:



Had it been a vacuum leak- I get it. Had it been a bur in the lower intake- I get it. But to realize just how close I came to blowing the car up after weeks of frustration and the whole time not realizing it was indeed a leak from the PROPRIETARY rails. Dude I looked the last time and had a 3 foot puddle under my car.

I still don't know how in the heck we never saw more than a bubble or two from this thing until one night a week or two ago when it spewed like mad.

My 2 year old was chasing me to the garage wanting to play every night. Then I find out it's possibly the casting of the intake or the rails themselves?

I was bent. Now I think I'll just let the project sit until I can afford another intake or I may just use an old explorer intake I have. I'm done with that thing man.
Mang, I know your frustration and sympithise but wish you would let them fix the problem. They are stepping up and want to correct it for you, let them! :fuss: Dont just pull it off and swap something else on there then stare at that fancynew door stop and get pissed off evey time you see it. Get the replacment stuff and install it, if it still has an issue then raise holy hell and you know I will help with it. He acknowledged the mistake and wants to help. Its the fastest and cheapest way to get the car going again, I dont see why you would not take the help now.
I mean if they would have offered it in the first place you would have accepted, right?
 
I totally understand. I'm a long time enthusiast myself.

I've been broken down or stuck in situations wehere there was no help available with no money to fix the problem.

Only car (86 GT) sitting in friends parents driveway with a busted T-5, bumming rides to and from work while car was down for 2 months.

Finally get enough money to get a rebuilt one from a Mustang yard, and the F'r breaks 3 days into it.

No warranty no love. Back to square 1.

Not sure why it leaked on you, but the offer to inspect the intake stands which is more that I got with the busted T-5.
 
Alright then you should have my email address. I kind of just want to set the entire car on fire but the interior is so nice I just keep blowing out the match.
:nice: Think how much happier you will be in a week or so when you fire her up and she dont spew fuel every where. How sick it will be when you pull out on the road and row through the gears as the car kicks itself sideways when you power shift to third gear. :nice: Gotta look at the big picture and how happy you will be to have your baby back up and running before the summer ends. :banana:
 
I totally understand. I'm a long time enthusiast myself.

I've been broken down or stuck in situations wehere there was no help available with no money to fix the problem.

Only car (86 GT) sitting in friends parents driveway with a busted T-5, bumming rides to and from work while car was down for 2 months.

Finally get enough money to get a rebuilt one from a Mustang yard, and the F'r breaks 3 days into it.

No warranty no love. Back to square 1.

Not sure why it leaked on you, but the offer to inspect the intake stands which is more that I got with the busted T-5.
Man, that is class act. If I could afford one I would buy it just from that statement right there. Bryan is offering to make it work. I cant think of a single supplier or vendor I have bought from that has ever gone to that extent of customer service.