John, SpecialT, and his "business practices"

[thirdmanj]

However I trust him. How many business's can you say that about.

Again; Dave and Julie, Toby and Misty, Josh Bengston. Sh-t, I've even gotten one on one tech support from Houston, Florida, and Washington. I've also never had to wait longer than two weeks for an order from ANY of the above mentioned businesses. John's got some good stuff for sure, but the way he runs his show turns people away. NOBODY should have to wait like Corey did, or you have been doing. That said, I've only ordered a few things from John and they came relatively quickly, and I feel his soft-lift door struts are noticeably better than Houston's.

[andy blackmon]

Several times over the years I have heard people with bad comments about SpecialT and John. I have ordered many parts from John over the years and several time he has helped me with a tech problem. I hate that John is building a bad reputation with this group because as I said never in several years never have I ever had an issue of any kind with him--maybe I have just been lucky.

[dmc6960]

I am one who ordered lots of stuff from him in the early and mid 2000's. During that time he was relatively new. Many of his own engineered parts I was very skeptical of and always steered clear of. Even then people were reporting bad reputations with him. I didn't understand how that could be as I've always had great service from him. I even gave him some leads on parts he later started selling.

Then 2006 rolled around and I wanted to completely rebuild my AC. When only half the order arrived, it was all downhill from there. I haven't ordered anything from him since. And never will again.

[jorge figueroa]

this is what I wrote in this forum 1-14-2013

at first when I got my delorean 9 years ago
buy john hervey parts without any problem
I've helped other friends of mine who have other delorean in restoration.
The problems started when I criticize only one product that sells john hervey

criticism was not to hurt their business but to encourage him to improve his product as it was built with low quality materials
since then I am the number one enemy of John Hervey in Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico has over 25 DeLoreans in different conditions, some work some do not and others in full restoration.
I am well known in Puerto Rico as I have restored several DeLoreans and their owners are very happy with my work
Some owners have tried to buy the products only to receive threats
john hervey said that if you hear that your car is restored by me
never again sell parts to Puerto Rico
nobody threatens me or my people of Puerto Rico
for my part will never see a penny again
his obsession is such that told us by phone that uses Google Earth to see where all DeLoreans are located in Puerto Rico and if they are close to where I live
*
in Puerto Rico is said that a person with that attitude is not right in the head


john hervey last thing he said to one of my friends
was that in Puerto Rico there are no DeLoreans
and never will sell parts to Puerto Rico

as this current economy and close the Puerto Rico market
with over 25 DeLoreans visually counted (possibly more)
is only a matter of time before specialtauto is out of business
like other sellers of the past

[jackb]

I've ordered a few things from SpecialT, never has it gone as I hoped.
He'll say over the phone it will ship tomorrow... Two weeks later call back and guess when it will ship? That's right, tomorrow. Nothing but a condesending attitude from the man. He shouldn't even bother telling people he's a one man operation anymore, because he's said it so many times the whole world already knows by now, no doubt.
I won't order anything from him in the future more complex than a copper fuel washer, or anything I need sooner than a month and a half a dozen phone calls/emails asking about it while being ignored.

[TTait]

I bought a number of good parts from John over the years, typically about 2 weeks to get an order. I have spent many thousands of dollars there for parts for my 2 cars which both arrived DOA and probably totaled in the eyes of anyone with any good sense...

I have also gotten a few bad parts::
2 Bad otterstat
lug nuts paid for but never sent
fuel pump failed after 4 months
soft lift struts failed after 5 months and 9 months respectively
replated fuel system hollow bolts - 2 snapped on install after being overcooked when plating - the rest were thrown out
clutch bleeder burst after 2 months
second clutch bleeder leaked badly from day 1 and was discarded
heater core poorly packed and arrived damaged
replacement split AC hoses cut to wrong length
radiator #1 leaked immediately after install
radiator #2 started leaking after 10 months
standard door struts lasted 24 months
D140 alternator failed at 3 years
cooling tank sight tube installed - leaked
first steering rack - 15 degrees of play in steering wheel after install
second steering rack - 6 degrees of play but still so tight you feel it grinding
tie rod ends - so long that they had to be installed with no locking nut and welded to rack
8mm wires - 2 failed within 8 months
Front hub with bearing - bearing came apart during shipment
2 rebuilt axle assemblies - neither could be installed because boot clamps blocked bolt holes
Can of freeze 12 - all contents leaked out, apparently during shipping, because who would ship an empty can - right?

There may be more...

I should mention that I did buy the fuel baffle kit twice, it worked well both times, and actually came with some minimal installation instructions - but I believe that is the only time I ever got written installation instructions with a part from John.

Now, the other day as the new forum sections were coming on line, I had a little fun making a temporary post to them calling "first" (a popular internet meme for the first one to post on a comment or story). Those posts were appreciated briefly - but then they were deleted.

I'm going to try again - in a different matter. I hereby call "First!" on the above defects - I was assured by John each time that no one - ever - had any problems with any of these products. So, if by some really unlikely circumstance (ahem) any of you have any problem with any of these items, know that I was the guy that found the problem first. You're welcome?

Actually - that not entirely fair, one of those items does stand out where I was not entirely "First". When I called about the first defective steering rack John said that of all the steering racks he has ever shipped, only one was returned for being dangerously sloppy and unusable. He said that one was returned to him and "his guy" checked it out, and told him it was just fine. Now I did ask John what happened to that rack that turned out to be "just fine"? He said since there was no problem with it he cleaned it up a little and re-sold it again. It never occurred to him that he probably sold it to me. I hope he did at least - I'd like to think he sold it to me and not to some other poor bastard.

One other thing to keep in mind, friends: when you get a crap part - you often don't find out till after its installed and you have perhaps put your life on the line to test it for John. If you survive you then get to pull it off again, ship it back at your own expense, wait until a replacement arrives, and then install that one and hope it is better. It really adds to the joy of driving these cars to wonder if that replacement part is about to fail too..

I'm glad many of you have had good experiences with John - but it's worth mentioning that as much of a "problem customer" as I may have been for John, I have also made many purchases from Rob, Toby, Josh, Dave, Ed, and Byrne - and never had ANY problem with ANY purchase from any of them. I've had a couple returns with some of the other franchises and still gladly work with them, but these guys have consistently batted 1000. Consider carefully where you want to send your money.

Tom

[DrJeff]

If you're fine with the idea that you don't go to WalMart and expect Nordstroms services, then...

If you equate Specialt to WalMart, DMCH to Sears, DPI to Nordstroms, it all makes sense. You get what you pay for and the different vendors have identified the price/quality/service niche within which they can survive. If you want Delorean parts/service vendors to survive (which I think is generally the aim of Delorean owners) - then you should be supportive of the concept that having multiple diverse business models is a good idea. There are many types of Delorean owners and people like having options. I personally shop at WalMart and Sears because I like their prices and for the right items the quality/service differences are not an issue. I'm not a fan of places like Nordstroms because for me the prices are too high and the added services are not worth it - since I can do a lot myself and I don't give a sh*t about tags. If you want WalMart to provide the quality and services of Nordstroms, guess what... you'll be paying for it and probably a nice premium at that.

So this is where it gets down our (ie. Delorean owner's) behavior and not the vendors. It is up to us to be smart about what we buy from whom and keeping a rational perspective on quality and service. If you need or want the best quality and are in a time crunch - pick a vendor who can deliver on that. If you are looking for basic items, are less picky about quality (plenty of basic quality parts on the DeLorean have lasted 30 years), and don't want to spend a whole lot right now - pick a vendor who can provide that. The mistake isn't in the vendors' behavior or business model (business models are only bad if they don't make a profit and can't be sustained) but rather in un-balanced customer expectations of what they offer.

[Delorean Industries]

If you're fine with the idea that you don't go to WalMart and expect Nordstroms services, then...

If you equate Specialt to WalMart, DMCH to Sears, DPI to Nordstroms, it all makes sense. You get what you pay for and the different vendors have identified the price/quality/service niche within which they can survive. If you want Delorean parts/service vendors to survive (which I think is generally the aim of Delorean owners) - then you should be supportive of the concept that having multiple diverse business models is a good idea. There are many types of Delorean owners and people like having options. I personally shop at WalMart and Sears because I like their prices and for the right items the quality/service differences are not an issue. I'm not a fan of places like Nordstroms because for me the prices are too high and the added services are not worth it - since I can do a lot myself and I don't give a sh*t about tags. If you want WalMart to provide the quality and services of Nordstroms, guess what... you'll be paying for it and probably a nice premium at that.

So this is where it gets down our (ie. Delorean owner's) behavior and not the vendors. It is up to us to be smart about what we buy from whom and keeping a rational perspective on quality and service. If you need or want the best quality and are in a time crunch - pick a vendor who can deliver on that. If you are looking for basic items, are less picky about quality (plenty of basic quality parts on the DeLorean have lasted 30 years), and don't want to spend a whole lot right now - pick a vendor who can provide that. The mistake isn't in the vendors' behavior or business model (business models are only bad if they don't make a profit and can't be sustained) but rather in un-balanced customer expectations of what they offer.

But what do you do when the Nordstrom prices are the same as Sears but for a superior product?

[TTait]

I wasn't complaining about service, except when I mentioned the thing about instructions, and the shipping times. The fact that I have sent John more money over many years than I paid for both of my cars combined should illuminate that I understand the Walmart analogy.

As Josh pointed out, its not like the competitors are double the price. I would have saved money overall by shopping at "Nordstroms" is a more accurate point. A lot of what John sold me, may not you, was junk, or damaged. My savings from shopping at Johns were more than absorbed by added labor, shipping, and re-replacement of his parts... John cost me more - a lot more. Not just long term, even in the short term.

I'm simply offering up a list of the items I got from him that had serious problems. If anyone finds something there that they have had a problem with too, that could help them. I'm happy to elaborate if it helps.

I'm done with him, and that list is part of the reason why. Customer service and attitude are part of it too, but I chose to focus primarily on the quality of the parts, because that's cut and dry, and it can hurt you in ways more serious than some ruffled feathers.

[DrJeff]

But what do you do when the Nordstrom prices are the same as Sears but for a superior product?

Sounds like a good deal. Now if only I didn't have a bunch of parts bins in the garage full of good deals