4WD Shops in Christchurch

[skid]

I've fitted 35s to my mates fj 40 with a standard 2 inch lift with only the steering controll arm touching the tires not guards are you sure you have your facts right? rowinz

guys competing in the National Trials Series in F-Class all run 35" tyres and they are not allowed body or suspension lifts.

On a personal note, I have 33s on my 40, and I run a fibreglass front that has the guards 3" higher and I've cut the rear quarters up to the inner guards and they still rub at full flex on the back. :scratch: :scratch:

[spankmeister]

Like I said on Page 1, they did my engine swap, and I have no complaints at all. I think Cory did most of the work, and yes, he has done an outstanding job.

You are always going to get people who will sit either on one side of the fence or the other. Personally, I would go back, because they haven't given me a reason not to. As I would also go back to 4wd Accessories, because they too did a great job.

[knowall]

just remember that you have more recoarse with a named business than a back yard mechanic or a mate as I have seen what a mate has done for a few dollars or beers if you guys are unhappy you should exhaust all means of satisfaction before going somewhere else and slagging off

[petefj40]

always two sides to a story, sounds like judge, jury and executioner here!

If you are referring to me?
I don't mean to be, "judge, jury and executioner here!" I'm mearly putting my experience across. You're free to judge for yourself.
And you are right. There's always two sides to this kind of story. I can only tell mine. But when you get other people telling a simular story, again, judge for yourself.

[petefj40]

To make things fair. Anyone happy or sad about work done at a tradesman's shop in New Zealand, you can always post it up on "mytradesman.co.nz" website. I've listed 4WD Upgrades. But be warned. If your review doesn't get posted for a couple of weeks don't complain (like I did), or it will never get posted.
Here's the link to post a review. Goodluck!
http://www.mytradesman.co.nz/show-trade ... anID=13873

[DaveM]

Interesting topic, I have been to all 3 businesses here, ranging from minor work, through to advice, and prices on equipment.

I will go back to one of these businesses for further servicing and/or mods in the future, the other 2, well, while I hold nothing against them personally, I would not spend my money there again.

[petefj40]

Interesting topic, I have been to all 3 businesses here, ranging from minor work, through to advice, and prices on equipment.

I will go back to one of these businesses for further servicing and/or mods in the future, the other 2, well, while I hold nothing against them personally, I would not spend my money there again.

Ok. Which one WOULD you go back to? Surely I'm not the only one who'd be interested to know?

[rowinz]

Yes, I know the facts. I also know of two other 40s that needed guards cut out to fit 33 12.5s to get full flex, one being my old one. The young chap didn't ask but went to the these guys as the experts.

If I got someone to replace a blown head, I'd expect the shop to check the block too. I wouldn't ask for it (well I would ask IF I took it to a workshop, but I would do the head myself), but they are the guys that should know these things and then offer advice and options.

But once again, this is only my opinion. As I said I know of another chap who spent a fair bit and he's very impresses. In fact I was very impressed with the bars they made for his truck.

[knowall]

these guys sound quite versitile do you think they are stretching there resources as 4wd acc. seem only to sell off the shelf equipment I also here that 4wd acc. has just got rid of there fabricator / suspension guru and have not heard good reports on why he left any can shed light on this would be benifical to the 4wd community

[knowall]

rowan who made the bars as Im after some but they are four a heavily modded vitara were they reasonably priced and look the part and do they build to owner specs?

[ZeusZuki]

You need to be careful what you post here gentlemen - only the facts please You guys really need to get it together. I left 4wd acc ( read they did not "get rid of" me ). The fabricator is still there and does really good work, my position was as a mechanic but included all sorts as I am fairly versatile ( over 12 years modifying 4wd's ). My trade is actually a motor cycle mechanic so 4wd's are pretty agricultural in comparison.
As for the mentioned shops - my experiences eventually led me to 4wd Acc. Rick focus's on what your vehicle usage intentions are as oppossed to how deep your walet is and the product / service is very good. A position came up as a mechanic and I wanted to give it a go but I soon realised that I prefer to tinker with my own rigs and help my mates out when I can. This is not a biased opinion as I supported Rick well before the job came up and because I liked what I experienced I wanted to be part of the team. And yes I have tried MANY of the shops around but I am not about to start slagging people here.

Rumors - judging by the above statement there is another non factual one about to spread - I MEAN: COME ON GUYS

My 2c

"Heavily moded Vitara" - give us a list of mods please

[Steve_t647]

Every shop has good and bad points, you have to pick the right ones for the right job.

I may go to 4wd Upgrades to get them to fab stuff up and fit something (say an engine) or get some parts fabricated and fitted but I would trailer it to a auto sparky to be finished if it is not an off the shelf product with an off the shelf loom (this from multiple people's expierience) . 4wd Maintanance I would not go here either (again many others expierience) , they are good guy's and the Marks adaptors were the problem in one case at 4wd upgrades (they ended up having to get the faces re trued to fit it) but they specialize in Upgrades and are not auto sparky's.

They have cleaned up their act and seem to be better at a lot of stuff but they do not know when to say we outsource this to these guy's. this is their current trouble with reputation.

I will go back to 4WD Accessories to get some things done Rick knows a lot of people and a lot of what has been done before, what works and gives good accurate advice for free. His company also covers all maintanance WOF's and parts you need for most applications.

Summit I have also recommended but they are specialised in Landrover products and the problem was with a landrover, this was also resolved in a couple of visits the second being Labour free as the first didn't fix it, noone could complain with that.

As far as slagging anyone off goes I do not think anyone has done this each and every company has limitations, knowing them and working within their limitations is something they should do, and if you know them you should be able to as well.

Just saying XYZ sucks is far worse than saying they did XY perfectly but I would never get them to do Z.

Just my .07c with Sweedish rounding

P.S. Mike keep up the good work with the site, you are doing it well and are independant! (I need to see your avitar more often )

[petefj40]

Every shop has good and bad points, you have to pick the right ones for the right job.

I may go to 4wd Upgrades to get them to fab stuff up and fit something (say an engine) or get some parts fabricated and fitted but I would trailer it to a auto sparky to be finished if it is not an off the shelf product with an off the shelf loom (this from multiple people's expierience) . 4wd Maintanance I would not go here either (again many others expierience) , they are good guy's and the Marks adaptors were the problem in one case at 4wd upgrades (they ended up having to get the faces re trued to fit it) but they specialize in Upgrades and are not auto sparky's.

They have cleaned up their act and seem to be better at a lot of stuff but they do not know when to say we outsource this to these guy's. this is their current trouble with reputation.

I will go back to 4WD Accessories to get some things done Rick knows a lot of people and a lot of what has been done before, what works and gives good accurate advice for free. His company also covers all maintanance WOF's and parts you need for most applications.

Summit I have also recommended but they are specialised in Landrover products and the problem was with a landrover, this was also resolved in a couple of visits the second being Labour free as the first didn't fix it, noone could complain with that.

As far as slagging anyone off goes I do not think anyone has done this each and every company has limitations, knowing them and working within their limitations is something they should do, and if you know them you should be able to as well.

Just saying XYZ sucks is far worse than saying they did XY perfectly but I would never get them to do Z.

Just my .07c with Sweedish rounding

P.S. Mike keep up the good work with the site, you are doing it well and are independant! (I need to see your avitar more often )

I would have to agree with everything you say. The right Outfit for the particular job. No problems there. But the fact is. Mike at 4WD Upgrades did not take it to a sparky. He cut a corner that in the end cost me. I mean I have pictures of the job he did. The wiring loom was left hanging 3cm away from the header pipe!! If I didn't see it in time it would of melted and god knows what would of gone wrong then. It wasn't wired up correctly. The computer wasn't secured in the glovebox properly. It was just rattling around in there as well as the fuse boxs.
I'm sorry to have to post this. Honestly. But I wasn't told he wasn't going to get a sparky to do those details!
Personally Mike is a good bloke. Don't get me wrong. But I paid a lot of money for a substandard job. Period.

[swampa]

i have paid more than that for some of my work,i am never happy with the work done on my vehicle for the main reasons that their work will never be up to my standard, in some cases some of my wiring is worse than that in the picture, but it goes!!! no garage will do a beautiful job, or one that is perfect, it will always be passable, and just! i have had 2 substancial engine conversions done at 2 very significant shops in the 4wd scene in nz, with the same result, and that is, if you want a perfect job the only people good enough are hot rod guys, not 4wd shops

[petefj40]

i have paid more than that for some of my work,i am never happy with the work done on my vehicle for the main reasons that their work will never be up to my standard, in some cases some of my wiring is worse than that in the picture, but it goes!!! no garage will do a beautiful job, or one that is perfect, it will always be passable, and just! i have had 2 substancial engine conversions done at 2 very significant shops in the 4wd scene in nz, with the same result, and that is, if you want a perfect job the only people good enough are hot rod guys, not 4wd shops

Some people may agree with you. (no disrespect to the Hot Rod guys)
$16,000 is a lot of money for the job that was done. But that's just what I think. Some people might think that's cheap.
I have my standards and they aren't the highest, but I expected NOT to burn through a wiring loom after paying that money.

[Steve_t647]

Oh and before everyone get's really confused there are two mikes in this.

Mike the Site admin (loves 4wd's and built a range powered coiled series thing) and all round independant unbiased good guy

and Mike Tall from 4wd upgrades, owner of the workshop 4wd upgrades.

Just thought I could clear that one up.

definatley not a good look on the wireing that could bring a fire into the inside of the 4x4! More picks of the beast tho

[Petemcc]

They need to know their limits. If they cant to it right then the shouldnt do it at all. They should have got an auto sparky to do the wiring. I would expect any busniess with substandard work like that to pay to get it fixed for you. After all you payed them for what you were expecting to be a professional job. If i were you i would be very pissed off as you are. That kind of work is not good enough unless they said at the start we are shit at wiring and will do a crap job and wont even sucure the computer and fuse boxs.

Pete

[petefj40]

I deleted this post on request.

[spankmeister]

Hi Pete, when did they install the LS1 for you. I checked out my engine bay after reading your posts and seeing your pictures, but I still can't fault them. Everything is wired nice and neat, no problems at all, so far.

[Steve_t647]

Spankmeister they have done a few of your conversions so ironed out the kinks I think (don't quote me) they buy a loom pre-wired for the holden motor's from Australia with the 6 cylinder pulse output for the rev counter and a few other bits, these are fine and all done by an auto sparky over there to make the conversion easy.

Not many people fit an LS1 to other cars or 4x4's they usually end up in Jetboats or sprint cars without some of the electronic stuff.

Also the v6 doesn'tfill the hole like a 5.7L chev

[petefj40]

Hi Pete, when did they install the LS1 for you. I checked out my engine bay after reading your posts and seeing your pictures, but I still can't fault them. Everything is wired nice and neat, no problems at all, so far.

They finished installing it at the start of the year.
I'm pleased to hear you had no problems. Awesome!

[petefj40]

Spankmeister they have done a few of your conversions so ironed out the kinks I think (don't quote me) they buy a loom pre-wired for the holden motor's from Australia with the 6 cylinder pulse output for the rev counter and a few other bits, these are fine and all done by an auto sparky over there to make the conversion easy.

Not many people fit an LS1 to other cars or 4x4's they usually end up in Jetboats or sprint cars without some of the electronic stuff.

Also the v6 doesn'tfill the hole like a 5.7L chev

Mike Tall told me a guy down South pre wires the loom ready for jetboats/4X4's. The loom wasn't the problem. It was how it was installed. (as you can plainly see) What outfit would be happy with that kind of install?? It's all about detail. The finishing touches. Hey maybe I'm the only one that's had this work done. Even so, it's not acceptable in my book.

[Sadam_Husain]

just out of interest petefj40 what was the breakdown of the $16k to do the conversion? I think you said at the start of the thread the LS1 cost you $6k, what work did they undertake on the conversion and how did the other $10k break down to for parts and labour?

[petefj40]

just out of interest petefj40 what was the breakdown of the $16k to do the conversion? I think you said at the start of the thread the LS1 cost you $6k, what work did they undertake on the conversion and how did the other $10k break down to for parts and labour?

I'll answer this in detail at a later stage as I don't have the paper work infront of me. But if you want it sooner you could always ask Mike Tall at 4WD Upgrades? I'm sure he'll tell you.
But off the top of my head these are the things needed for the whole upgrade.
-Motor, loom, cpu.
-Engine mounts
-Front disc brakes
-Power steering box and brace
-New Bell housing
-Hand made headers and system
-Altered sump (making room for front diff)
-Nolathen leaf spring bushes all round
And the labour to fit it.

Anyone in the know will figure out the cost.

[Sadam_Husain]

Was it just the wiring that was the problem with the conversion or was it the cost or were there other problems? The $16k price is probably what I'd expect to be paying out for a shop LS1 conversion with the added power steer and disc brake swap as well.

I did a standard chev swap and that cost me around $5-5.5k to do using my own labour

$2k for donor truck with adaptor plate then all other stuff:
new HEI
exhausts
beer
ground fly wheel and complete clutch
new radiator
more beer
powersteer pump and plumbing
hoses, leads, fittings, paint, bolts, filters oil's etc
gasket set
rebuilt carbie
certification
can't remember all the other stuff other than beer?

[swampa]

things like hoses chew up money real fast, fuel injection hose, power steering hoses, and the list goes on

[petefj40]

Was it just the wiring that was the problem with the conversion or was it the cost or were there other problems? The $16k price is probably what I'd expect to be paying out for a shop LS1 conversion with the added power steer and disc brake swap as well.

I did a standard chev swap and that cost me around $5-5.5k to do using my own labour

$2k for donor truck with adaptor plate then all other stuff:
new HEI
exhausts
beer
ground fly wheel and complete clutch
new radiator
more beer
powersteer pump and plumbing
hoses, leads, fittings, paint, bolts, filters oil's etc
gasket set
rebuilt carbie
certification
can't remember all the other stuff other than beer?

My whole point is.
At the end of the day.
Even if 16k was a fair price for the job done.
How the job was finished and left for me wasn't.
Very clearly, the wiring was the main issue. (Corey's work wasn't)
Like someone else pointed out. If the wiring wasn't fixed at the time i had it fixed, I could of lost the whole truck. I can't see how anyone would be happy with that.
Am I making myself clear here??
(sorry, I'm getting a little tired of making my point)

[adventures_more]

I personally reck'm it comes down to "Communication" with the person/shop where you get the work done , the less you assume & the more "Direct" you are in what/how you want the job done , the less hassles you have , even if you write everything down for him & keep a copy of it OR even record what is said - may seem anal , but saves the hassle of potential problems !

I was nearly done by a gearbox shop in falsgrave st late last year & regretted not "recording" what was said , as i had really noisey driveline noise & all i wanted them to do was trace the noise & nothing else as i was going to fix it myself ,he even said he was going to use a special electronic probe & run it on the hoist to trace .

well i came back tp pick my 4x4 up & they had drained & replaced the oil in the diff's, t/case & gerarbox with new oil , they made an exscuse sayn it was dangerous to use the electronic probe on the hoist & never did that ( even when they specifically explained how they "were" going to do it ), so next they tell me the bill comes to $300+ to replace the oils & they did'nt even attempt to trace the problem, i regretted not recording what was said as we had a "full on" heated arguement & I only agreed to pay for labour only as did'nt want any oils replaced ( should'nt even have paid that as they never did what was asked ) !

[spankmeister]

Also the v6 doesn't fill the hole like a 5.7L chev

I'm buggered if I know how you'd fit a V8 in there, as it looks like a tight squeeze with the V6. Theres about an inch between the pulleys and the fan on the back of the radiator.

[Sadam_Husain]

I'm buggered if I know how you'd fit a V8 in there, as it looks like a tight squeeze with the V6.

they do fit but its a shoe horn job to get them in and I'd hate to try and get my hands in there to work on one