Sunday, June 26, 2016

MAACO & Capone - Are They The Two Worst "Body Shops" in Maine?

I'll put it up front, then explain - if you are looking to have body work or painting done on a vehicle, whatever you do, don't go to either MAACO in Portland, ME, or Capone Auto in Limington. If you do, you may want to say good-bye to your vehicle.

First, Capone. I left my truck with him in April, 2015 with the understanding that he would get the work done by early July. Never happened. Had not even started it, but I was told they would get right on it. Month after month I was given the run-around. They had taken it all apart, so I could not just take it back. More months went by, and nothing. I was told in early September it was being sent out for sandblasting. As of October, that still had not been done. In November I again tried to get them to get going (I had made a $5000 cash deposit, by the way) and was told "You'll get it back when I finish it." I warned him it had better be soon. In December it was, "You'll have it by summer".

Here it is - summer - 15 months later, and I have yet to see any progress, or even hear from him. I will be suing that jerk. If you ever think about doing business with Capone, don't say I didn't warn you.

Now about MAACO - almost the same deal. I got an estimate for roughly $4000 to get the work done on my Porsche. "Tom" told me we were "looking at a time frame of two weeks" to do the minor body work and paint it. I brought it in two weeks before the Bonney Eagle show, in hopes of making it to the show. Nope! Had hardly started on it. I was told "About another week." Another week goes by, nothing. Was told "a few more days." Still no Porsche. Early June and they told me "another week or so." A week or so later - nothing. Every time I asked when, "Tom" would lie to me.

On June 9th I appeared at MAACO. The car was still in pieces, scattered around the shop. Tom told me they were going to "paint everything that day and the next, and then put it all back together. That meant I would have it back on the 13th at the latest.

Nope! I called and asked why it was not ready. "Just now going into the paint shop - a few more days. We'll have it done by the end of the week." I thought it was going into the paint shop the week before! That's what Tom had told me.

Well, it was the end of the week. It's was not done. He's not sure when it will be done. Tom said I could pick it up anytime, but I would not be happy with it. Why not? Are they doing such crappy work? He needs "more time to 'touch it up' ".

I told him he had 7 weeks to do two weeks worth of work, and I needed the car back. I'm almost 70 and would like to drive it at least once before I kick off. He then has the gall to tell me "We're not going to charge you extra." EXTRA? For what - sitting on their asses for 7 weeks? For lying to me? They should consider themselves lucky if I don't charge THEM.

Now I finally have it back - and these pictures tell a tale of complete incompetence and sloppy work. For $4300 I got a $200 paint job!

The short take - in my opinion both Capone Auto and MAACO are disreputable, will lie to you every chance they get, will drag their feet and will treat you like sh*t. And in the case of MAACO, the work they did on my car is third rate - or less! At least that is my experience. And when you consider just how long I have been getting screwed, and am only now posting, I think I have given them the benefit of the doubt - and now the doubt is gone.

Stay away from these guys if you value your car, your time, your money and your peace of mind!

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Monday, June 20, 2016

D-Car

A couple of you have asked how "D-Car" is coming (the 924), so here are a couple of pix, fresh outta the shop.

But here are pix from a closer inspection - a horrid job by MAACO, Portland ME

Tuesday, April 12, 2016

First Escapade with the Porsche

So, as some of you know, I bought a house in Hiram that needed some rehab. In one of the 3 garages was an '85 Olds Cutlass 442, which I gave to Jimmy Peacock for parts. In another garage was a pretty nice 1980 Porsche, which I essentially got for free.

After getting the turbo rebuilt and making sure it was 100%, mechanically, I registered it as an antique, with a vanity plate. Naturally, being a new vanity plate they had to give me a temporary paper plate. And here's where is gets a bit crazy...

The mechanic said I had to drive it a few hundred miles in order to break in the new turbo, so I decided to drive it up to the house being rehabbed. I pulled into Ace hardware in Cornish to the sound of sirens. Two state troopers - one from each direction - came literally screeching over the curb and into the parking lot behind me. As I got out, they hopped out of their cars, hands on guns, and told me to stop.

"What the heck is this," I thought. Of course, those thoughts were in a different vernacular - I'm keeping this post clean. But I was sincerely confused - this was one of the very rare times when I was not speeding or anything.

Trooper #1 asked if I owned the car. "Of course - that's why I'm driving it," said I. He then asked for my license and registration, which I produced. Meanwhile, Trooper #2 was looking over the paper plate.

Trooper #1 then said, "Sorry, sir - I thought your plate was a fake. There's a lot of that going around." To which I replied, "Of course it's looks fake - it was made by the state of Maine, and doesn't have any duct tape on it." (Mainers understand that reference)

Trooper #1 looked confused; Trooper #2 looked amused. They left.

As I walked toward Ace, I noticed several people in the window. As I entered, the owner asked, "What was that all about? By the way they rolled in, we thought they had cornered a murderer or something." To which I smiled and said, "Nah - I just knocked over a couple hardware stores."

They all had a good laugh, but we all wondered how something as minor as a paper plate could result in such a reaction from the law.

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Tuesday, February 16, 2016

Nicky's Cruisin' Diner - Bangor

Took the wife to Bangor for a weekend spree of shopping, games & more. Decided to check out Nicky's Cruisin' Diner for dinner, simply because they have Cruise-Ins in the summer (Wednesdays), and we wanted to see what it was like.

Short & Sweet - the food was very good, and the service was even better. If you get a chance to do one (or more) of their Cruise-ins this summer, come hungry - it's worth it.

This from a VERY fussy eater.

Meanwhile, I am trying to get as much info as I can on this years shows and cruise-ins. When I have it, I'll put together the 2016 calendar.

Bill

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Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Lucky or What?

Some of you know that I make a big chunk of my income from real estate. And whenever I buy a property, I always try to negotiate some free stuf. Over the years I have gotten (free) a few lawn tractors and mowers, furnishings (once a whole house full), antiques, tools, and even a '65 Mustang. But I think this nearly takes the cake.

I recently purchased a 3 bedroom house in Hiram for $45,000 in a probate sale. The place had a 2-car garage and a separate 1-car garage. And guess what? In one garage was an '85 Olds 442, albeit in poor shape - the roof had been crushed. But the parts were pretty much all there and in good condition. I gave this car to Jim Peacock. But that's not the good part.

In the other garage was a 1980 Porsche (turbo), in good condition. Only 35,000 original miles.

Granted, it is not one of the high-end models (it's the 924 Turbo), but it is becoming rare. And it is a Porsche. And it goes like Hell. And it was FREE! Pix here

Hope to get it all redone and dressed up by spring. We'll see.Meanwhile, I am STILL waiting fgor my '85 GMC 2500 to have its restoration completed - the guy (Capone) may be good at what he does, but is not reliable and is incredibly slow - he has had the truck since LAST April, and he's not even close to finished. Needless to say, he won't be getting the Porsche to work on. I would not live long enough to see it done.

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