Motorman Ben Collins Www.motorman.com rip-off! Hack job! Will not return phone calls. Car is undriveable now and useless. Canton Massachusetts

In February, 2004 Ben Collins of Motorman in Canton, Massachusetts replaced the engine in our 1998 Volvo V70, Cross Country vehicle. 8 weeks later we went to pick up the vehicle and there was an oil leak, they took the vehicle back to fix it. Ben couldn't believe that there was an oil leak.. he apologized and took the car back and said he'd fix it right away. We then got the vehicle back the next week and within a week noted that there still was an oil leak with the new engine on the order of 4 quarts of oil every 500 miles or so.

In addition, there is a large thud in the transmission when the car shifts and the All Wheel Drive function did not work, all of which were fine before we brought the car into Ben. We contacted Ben Collins and he has evaded us and strung us along for over 3 months saying that it isn't his problem and that if we think it is that we need to get it diagnosed. He has evaded calls, changed his answering machine, not called us back and more. He offered 65 dollars toward an 3rd party diagnostic and come to find out the diagnostic to find the oil leak alone will cost over 200 dollars.

Since this information was found out, we have called Ben (Tuesday 4/27/04) and made the demand (over the answering machine because Ben never picks up the phone) that Ben come get the car, fix the problem and have that be that. We paid 3600 dollars and change to get this engine replaced and ever since the car has been a mess. The car also came back with the headlights falling out of it and the rear hatch door broken (opens from the rear sometimes and other times it doesn't).

On May 6th we wrote and sent priority mail and certified mail a Formal Letter of Demand (93A) to Benjamin Collins at his business address. This letter of demand was sent out and never picked up by Ben. The regular mail item was obviously delivered, but he never picked up and signed for the Certified mail version. The certified letter was returned to us at our home in Grafton, Ma. I gave Ben 30 days to respond as described in the 30 day letter of demand and called him on June 5th to "remind" him that he had 1 day left to respond to the letter or we were going to be forced to find a lawyer and take him to court.

June 7th Ben called me back after months of not hearing from him. He indicated to me that He wanted to get the car in for a diagnostic and told me he was willing to give me 100 dollars toward it. We told him I wouldn't do it unless he paid for the whole thing, whatever it costs. We fought with him a bit, but finally he realized that was the right thing to do and agreed. We brought the car into a place called Service Above and Beyond in Ashland, Ma. This is a place that Ben had agreed to send the car to and had suggested.

We brought the car there and spoke with the head Volvo mechanic named Dan. Dan told us he would go through the car with a fine tooth comb. We dropped the car off at 9am and Dan called us back at around 11am. He told us that this engine replacement job was the worst hack job he had ever seen in his multiple years of servicing cars. He said that it was so horrible that we just had to come down to see it because it is just inexplicable.

We did and he showed us how they had basically "crowbared the engine in" (quote from Dan). In the process they had broken a bolt ear off the transfer case and welded it back on without telling us. Ben confirmed this fact when I asked him about it. The Engine itself was in the engine bay at the wrong angle to the transfer case had wore a hole in the engine wall (hence the oil leak). The engine mounts were so stressed from the improper angle of the engine that they had broken. The oil lines were all bent out of shape. The transfer case and transmission were deemed destroyed. All of the drive train rubber boots had disintegrated because of the oil leak so the drive train was shot. Everything on the undercarriage of the car was destroyed because the mechanics doing the work had "neglected to drop the sub frame" (quote from Dan).

We were heartbroken and extremely mad.

This information was relayed to Ben Collins by Dan at Service Above and Beyond and Ben paid the bill for the diagnostic. Dan indicated to us that the car was a safety hazard and should not be driven. We drove the car home (very carefully) and parked it. Dan said you're family could have been killed in this car with the way it is, Ben knowingly almost killed you by giving you this car back the way it was.

We spoke with Ben Collins about the matter and he admitted (over the phone) that his mechanics had screwed up the install by not dropping the sub frame and that the whole thing was just one big Cluster F@#$ (quote from Ben). He admitted that the job was done wrong and expressed intent to fix it. We told him we wanted it fixed by Service Above and Beyond because we did not trust him. He cordially said he didn't blame us. He indicated that he fired his mechanics that worked on the car and later told us that the company is no more. This was our first indication that he might be stringing us along while he files for bankruptcy and tries to get out of helping us.

He also then asked us to write up a letter to the engine supplier indicating that they had supplied Ben with the wrong engine. We told him we were not going to write up such a letter unless we knew for sure it was the wrong engine. We called Dan at Service Above and Beyond and he told us he did not know. So we told Ben that we were uncomfortable doing his dirty work with the engine supplier. We told him that if he wanted to pursue that avenue on his end then that's fine, but he needs to fix the car either way.

He then agreed that he should set up a rental car while the car is being fixed. Then he offered up a suggestion of a rental place. The cars at the rental place were over 5 years old, which was not acceptable to Sherry. We relayed this information to Ben Collins and he was upset. He told us to try to seek out a rental car deal of comparable value. We did so and found a place for 770 dollars for 1 month of rental with unlimited mileage, which was about 220 over what he found which only had 2000 miles per month, and had a very suitable car ready for rental.

We then drew up a Letter for Ben to sign indicating the rules of the rental. Basically outlining what he would pay for, how long the rental would be used for, and that we would pay for gas, and he would be refunded any money if we were to return the rental early. We told Ben we wanted to fax this document to him to sign and he indicated that he didn't have a fax machine. He told us to fax it to the Staples office supply store near his home and he would pick it up and fax it right back with a signature. We faxed it the next day, we followed up with phone calls and Ben did not respond until the next day where he indicated that he was taking the document (right then) to his attorney. We told him that's fine.

I waited for a week for him to get back to me and he never did. I finally got him on the phone and he started complaining that he doesn't "have" to get me a rental and that it was a "NICE" thing he was doing as a decent human being. He said that while he had the car back in February for 8 weeks we did not need a rental so why did we need one now. We told him it was because he screwed up the car and now it's not drivable so we need to have alternative transportation. He told us he was going to figure things out and hung up the phone.

We have not heard from him since. I have left messages for him on both his cell phone and his office phone and he hasn't responded to either.

Todd
North Grafton, Massachusetts
U.S.A.