I am in the process of working out a deal on a pt6768 JB, and the person says it needs a new turbine wheel, spooled just fine, held boost, and all, but I would want it changed if I run it. I spoke with someone from Precision, and to be honest and prude, he was less than helpful or nice. I almost don't want to buy the turbo for fear that their entire customer service department may be this way. Maybe he was having a case of the Mondays, but that isn't the issue here. My question is:

1. He said that when the new Precision turbine wheel is on, it will be fully balanced again. now need to fully disassemble the chra for balancing. Can it be true?

2. He later said that they do not sell individual components, I would have to send the damn thing to them, and "possibly pay for other repairs" if anything else was damaged. I can understand something else may be broken, but really? Is there anywhere else to buy a "real" billet precision turbine wheel?

3. Does anyone else have any experience with them like this? How did it go? Any advise?

 

I called precision customer service a week ago, asking about an upgrade to the new CEA turbine wheel for my 6262BB,

they said the upgrade costs 550$, and I would need to send the turbo back to them. Then he said:

"once we get the turbo and go over it, we can give you an exact price"

wtf does that mean? instant red flag. im thinking they would purposely try and find something else wrong with it to charge me more for repairs, eventhough the turbo is perfect.

 

I don't want to speak to the integrity of the company, but that was the impression that I got when speaking with who ever I spoke with. He came across as a rude, short individual that just care if I had a Precision turbo on my car or not. What I really need to know is:
Will I be throwing money away if I buy this used turbo that is supposed to only need an exhaust wheel. I know new, will be best, but If I can get the same thing as new with a little effort, why not?

 

Well, you gotta see it from the Precision business model. Because of the fact that they are now creating proprietary stuff like their turbine wheels, only THEY would be able to assemble and rebalance it (yes, it must be rebalanced to the compressor wheel and cartridge before it can be sent back to you). It also means that in an effort for them to not get yelled at by you again, they'll want to check the entire assembly. (No reason to balance anything if its not in like-new condition, since it will just fail prematurely if they don't). So, as much as it sucks in your case, it makes perfect business sense for them to take the whole thing.

If you don't want to deal with just one source for repair, get a used Garrett and go with that. But remember, most places still don't sell individual parts to you because they know you'd just blame them if something went wrong when it was out of your control.

 

i am glad that you chimed in "TheShodan" as I do respect your input, and was actually hoping you would. I do understand why they would want the whole turbo back, I would like it to be that way. My problem with their antics, is that I am trying to see if it's even worth me getting into this turbo. The gentleman that I spoke with was as short as I have ever dealt with, gave me as little info as he could(while still giving me a answer). The exact question I asked was simple:

"If you have to replace the entire shaft, exhaust wheel, and maybe replace the bearings, what would something like that run me?"


He gave me this answer:


"We don't give estimates over the phone, e-mail, or anything. We only give quotes when the customer sends us the turbo. No we don't sell our wheels seperate, because we don't"

For me, that alone is enough to not buy any Precision product. Would you do the fix for me "TheShodan"? If so, is it possible to make a ball park figure quote?

 

Unfortunately, like I said, they use proprietary parts, not like the older ones they had that were still Garretts. even if I could, the parts MAY not match; not worth the risk. My advice is to not buy this turbo from the person at all because you're at a point where its about the cost of a new one to repair the one you're considering. Precision kinda wants it that way

 

I have an older journal bearing turbo that I pushed a bit of water through... I imagine I can just toss some garrett bearings in and hope for the best right? I may need a new shaft but I was hoping to just polish mine for now and hope for the best.

 

Understand that what you are asking him is very variable. It depends on a lot, like what shape the turbo is actually in and what damage has occurred. They don't want to give you a quote of $500, recieve the turbo, and find that the internals have all eaten themselves and have to return you a bill of $1000 or take a huge hit on it. If I remember correctly, they have you send the turbo in, they take it apart, and then they quote you on the costs to fix the damage. From there you can either decline or confirm the fix. I think you're under the impression that you send the turbo in and give them a blank check lol, not how it works.

As far as the "other" stuff, what would you do in their situation? You get a turbo that obviously has a wrecked CHRA, but the customer only wants to replace the wheel. You don't want to just fix the wheel and send it back, because when the turbo fails you will still get blamed regardless. Having a policy that will only repair to the point of brand ensures that the customer receives back a working product that will not fail them. There's nothing wrong with the business model to not let every dick and harry fix their turbos and have poor rebuilds floating around with the term "new" in front of it.

 

I understand how the bidding process works, I was just hoping that they might be a little more friendly to their customer base. At least give me a couple of scenarios that could potentially pan out. maybe even "if we had to fully rebuild it, it would be this much". I guess i was asking for something impossible to deliver. Thanks for the advise, it will be taken.

 

Not necessarily. if the cartridge is a newer model, they won't swap in

 

That's why I don't use PTE. I would rather buy a turbocharger from business that use higher quality parts and are easily serviceable, by just about any turbo repair shop. Not someone who cares about how much they sell in a month. Buy OEM quality turbochargers. Better yet get a turbocharger from built by (TheShodan) He used to work for Garrett and all his custom turbocharges use quality Garrett and Borg parts & are suited to YOUR engine and desires.

Buy quality and know what a rebuild or upgrade will cost before you send it out! Rather than be told that there were "more issues" with your turbocharger once they have it in there hands.

Sorry for the rant but you can only be burned so many times. I would hate to watch more fall into a cyclone of spending money. Heck $550 for just a few hundred more (depending on turbo) you could get something that last twice as long.

Ask TheShodan its free!

Better not forget to say IMO!

 

I am in the TV repair business, and it is a lot of the same thing. It is tough to ballpark something, sight unseen. Yes, you can go by a description of the issue, but you do not want to trap yourself in a hole by giving an estimate on something that you really have no idea on what is causing the issue. TV's share little to no parts (talking boards, not component level) that are the same, even inside the same manufacturer. If people get smart enough on the phone, I have gone to the tried and true "hold your phone up to the tv, and I will see if I can diagnose it that way". I am not saying this is the exact same, but you are not even in possession of the turbo, so you can't really tell him anymore about it than he can himself. You have to look at it as a two-way street. They are the expert/professional/experienced worker with their field of knowledge, just as you probably are in yours. While yes, there is some give and take, you don't give away a service, that you make money with, for free. That is how they make their money. Without that, they would not be here. And you would have one less resource to look to. I am honestly surprised at the amount of information that Mac shares around here, because most places you would look to would charge for some of the information he gives out. Just an outside opinion on the situation based on my experience with situations like this one.

 

I run a precision turbo because I know that Td Autowerkes would take care of any issues I had with the turbo. First few hours of turning on the car with my new 6765 it started spitting oil out of the exhaust side. Td Autowerkes had precision fix it free. 2nd time I install my new 6765 bam same thing happens. Td Autowerkes send it back again. I get the turbo back and problem was solved. Point I'm trying to make is when you buy a precision Turbo by it new and buy it from a shop that has a good relationship with them. It took a month to get my turbo (ordered it when it first came out) then it took 2 weeks each time to repair. Thank god I don't have anymore problems with my turbo but I won't be buying precision turbos in the future.

I've had a master power turbo and a turbonetics turbo before my precision with no issues.
My next turbo will be a Borg Warner

 

Heh.. thanks. Sometimes I feel so unappreciated on here. Its comments like that, that keep me wanting to care. I actually still work with a few teams, where I do charge to feed the family. On here, I like my Hondas, and I like H-T (for the most part) so I'm just trying to make sure the next generation stays on track and keep the faith.

But I gotta give it up to Tony the Tiger, Tepid1, Californiadad, DirtyDA9, Rich7777, Wai, Schister66 and a few other OGs (please forgive me if I didn't mention you.. you know who you are) to keep people in check on here. We try hard to help, because we were once in the same position, and didn't even have this board to give us proper guidance like you guys do now.

Yeah, this place gets a little childish, but you gotta brush it off the shoulders once in a while..Its a Honda, remember, not a Ferrari.

 

All things aside, I try to do as much research as I can before asking. I really like to have a real person to talk/type to. Someone that can listen to my issue, and give according advise. Hence me posting here, hoping that guys like the above mentioned users will chime in and help out. I would just think that a company like Precision would advise a little more than to "request" you to send the turbo to them, then asses the problems. I gave a spacific situation, and asked "if this was all I had to replace, how much is it going to cost me". a rude response is all I got back. Anyhow, I have the answer, and am thankful.