Orange Beach AL Diesel Specialist

[Bayside Bert28]

I am looking for a recommendation for a Detroit Diesel mechanic in Orange Beach AL ... I have been checking with www.boatdiesel too.

Mike

[Harry Babb]

Mike
Call me.....I have a couple of names that I can give you

Harry
251-510-5293 Cell

Chances are that I will not answer the call....I rarely keep the phone in my pocket.....be sure to leave a message and I will return the call.

[Bayside Bert28]

I left a voice mail message for you.

Mike
301-509-1211

[Bayside Bert28]

I checked out the Bertram 54 yesterday ... I spoke with Charlie and I'm going to ask him to survey the engines and generators for me with the goal of understanding how much life might be left in the engines and generators and what it mike take to get them in a condition where the boat can make the 1200 or so mile voyage to Maryland.

Thanks for the recommendation.

Mike

[amuh60]

Good choice.

-Andy

[Harry Babb]

Hey Mike
Glad you and Charlie finally hooked up. He was in my shop Thursday afternoon and told me that you guys had not actually talked yet.

Hope everything goes well for ya.

Keep us posted

Harry

[Bayside Bert28]

I made the offer today contingent upon survey.

If the offer is accepted, we will move forward with the survey.

(there is already a survey on file from a year ago so I have some idea of the condition other than visual which is good.)

Mike

[Harry Babb]

Cool deal Mike

Keep us posted

Harry

[Bayside Bert28]

Charlie from Charlie's Diesel Service is going to start the boat Tuesday and he is bringing David Johnson from Johnson's Diesel Service (Biloxi) along too. As it turns out, David Johnson rebuilt the starboard engine on this boat 4 years ago and he is an authorized Detroit Diesel shop.

Thanks for your help on this ...

Mike

[Harry Babb]

Glad it is gonna work out Mike......

Charlie is a good guy. He should be back in my shop next week to pick up a heat exchanger that we are repairing for him......I'm sure he will give me the story.

Harry

[Bayside Bert28]

Thought I would just add to my original thread to let you guys in on a real horror story.

Charlie from Charlie's Diesel Service is a good guy but referred me to Johnson's Diesel in Biloxi. I ultimately chose NOT to move the boat to Biloxi and Johnson's Diesel because the boat was in Orange Beach and I was getting a compelling sales pitch ....

so I chose Saunders Yachtworks to do the job.

References seemed to check out but I had been warned they would be pricey. I wanted a sizable company that would stand behind their work.

The complete 12V71TI overhaul ended up in the neighborhood of $50k ... and the scope of the work expanded. Left Saunders with a $209,000 bill 6 months later.

65 hours into the fresh overhaul, stopped at Florida Detroit Diesel Ft Pierce for the initial valve adjustment.

They found coolant in the oil and oil in the coolant of my 65 hour very expensive 12V71TI overhaul.

Saunders said the oil cooler failure was just bad luck. So I had to pay $5k for that. I did and remain very upset about that ... but that is only the beginning.

Saunders agreed to fix the "coolant in the oil problem" under warranty "reluctantly I might ad" ... this was a really bad sign.

It was determined that one of the rocker valve guides had loosened allowing coolant to enter the cylinder head under the valve cover. I was back on my way after a couple of weeks and a big scare ... still wondering whether any serious damage was done to my fresh overhaul from running it with coolant in the oil!!!

By December 2010 (250 hours on the engine) , it was determined that 2 more of the valve rocker guides had come loose putting 3 gallons of coolant into my oil system. This time, the oil analysis indicates the engine is toast. Lots of metal in the filters etc.

So ... no surprise Saunders says ... not our fault ... go pound sand.

So ... yesterday, I sat down with a mechanic in Maryland where I am based now and stroked a check for the parts for my second complete overhaul of this engine in 250 hours. $24k for parts. Expected labor of 120 hours.

We are keeping our fingers crossed that the crankshaft is not toast. If that is the case, going to need to cut the salon up and take the engine out.

The only bright side of this story is that I will be able to participate in the overhaul this time as it's close to home. I plan to be present for as much as possible. Work is being done by Central Marine (Herrington Harbour) ... Larry Cress.

[Harry Babb]

References seemed to check out but I had been warned they would be pricey.

That does not surprise me at all......larger companies have more overhead that smaller guys don't have.....and the customer have to pay for that.....and larger companies are not always as efficient as the little "Getter Done" guy.


BUT

Saunders agreed to fix the "coolant in the oil problem" under warranty "reluctantly I might ad"

This part surprises me....just don't sound like the kind of work the guys I know at Saunders would turn out. Does Jim and John know about the "Rest of the Story"?

Wasn't there a problem with the work on the Tower Work also?

hb

[dougl33]

Well that sucks.

How is it not Saunder's fault? You spend north of $200K and he tells you to pound sand? Sounds like a guy everyone should stay away from.

Any chance of getting the better business bureau involved?

[Bayside Bert28]

The tower was Stephen Quinn from Blackfyn Customs ... Equally irresponsible with a total lack of business ethic .. just much less money involved.

I assume Dunlavy tells the bosses when a customer is preparing litigation. His outrageous responses were copied to a last name "Fitzgerald" ... I assumed that was the boss and that they all must love litigation.

I am 47 years old ... been a business owner since I was 19 yrs old and had NEVER sued anybody for any reason until this point. I had always been able to work things out.

I had to hire an attorney over the crap tower work by Blackfyn Customs and now I will be suing Saunders. Sad because litigation is more expensive for everybody.

[Harry Babb]

I am sad to hear this.....for both you and Saunders.

I likewise have been in business for 32 years and have never sued anyone or been sued by anyone......

Hope you get everything resolved to your likings, Mike.

hb

[Bayside Bert28]

Just so you don't think I'm nuts, I'm going to show off Stephen Quinn (Blackfyn Customs) work. This is NOT Saunders.

Here is the enclosure when Stephen Quinn was finished. He thought it looked great. Notice the aft end of the enclosure is 5+ inches too high. It has a huge rake from aft towards the front. It would have been the dumbest looking enclosure ever made.

Stephen Quinn added $2700 to my bill to take 5" off this thing in the back and make it level !!!!! I had to sue him to take the $2700 off my bill and ONLY paid him $20,000 for his work !!



Here is the Stephen Quinn Bow Rail.



Here is the Stephen Quinn Rock Launcher rack.



Here is a You Tube showing the coolant leaking out of the rocker guide studs on my cylinder head.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BseePAQL1JM

Here is Mike Dunlavy (Saunders Yachtworks) response after being notified that the rocker guide stud failed for a second time and ruined the engine.

"Mr. Sobota,
I am sorry to hear about the failure on your engine. I have reviewed the
documents you forwarded. According to those documents, the new failure is
of the same nature as the failure back in July, where the leak is coming
from between the bridge guide and the head. As was the case back in July,
this failure is on parts that were undisturbed and reused on your original
cylinder head casting and original bridge valve guides. I remind you that
the original head casting was reused because replacement heads were not
available from the factory at the time of overhaul. There was no warranty
expressed or implied by Saunders Yachtworks on reused parts. Mickey
Wheeler, at FDDA, who discovered the original problem concurred with us back
in July that the problem was not a warrantable failure. We also offered at
that time to replace the cylinder head with a factory remanufactured one,
which was available in July, for only the additional cost of the parts it
would have cost you at the original time of overhaul, as a goodwill gesture,
which you refused. Since the failure is not related to any materials or
workmanship supplied by Saunders Yachtwork's, we deny any culpability in
this failure.

Mike Dunlavy"

Again ... This is the cylinder head that Saunders overhauled themselves as part of a $50,000 full boat, full retail price overhaul. Of course, it was not a "DETROIT DIESEL WARRANTABLE PART" because it is SAUNDERS RESPONSIBILITY. THEY OVERHAULED and apparently screwed up the cylinder head.

Saunders offered to replace it after the first failure AT MY EXPENSE!!!! And now Mike Dunlavy is trying to make it seem like it was my decision to retain the defective part.... just sick.

This just make me crazy mad.

Here is the oil analysis showing 5% fuel in the oil ... after the coolant in the oil wiped the cylinders dry and it started passing fuel past the rings.



And ... a photo of one of the cylinders. They all look like this.



And the letter from the shop who is going to overhaul the engine ... and stand behind their work!



Mike

[Brewster Minton]

You must be so pissed.