| Author | Message | ||
| Greg (Greg512tr)
New member Username: Greg512tr Post Number: 32 Registered: 2-2002 |
J.R-I am the one who purchased the 930 from Scottie prior to his death. When I took it to a shop in Dallas for service they wanted more info on what had been done to the motor. I have never spared expenses when getting a car repaired/serviced and would appreciate more info on what is in the motor in the spirit of providing the best possible service for the car. The repair order lists "disassemble rebuild heads, install cams, port and polish manifolds, reassemble w/custom pistons and rings and cams. poly dip, ceramic coating. " In order to better service the car the shop in Dallas wanted to know what type pistons (J.B or Mahle), what type cams (964, SC or custom grind), and what compression ratio. Was it rebuilt with Porsche parts or others? The "custom pistons" could mean lots of different things. This is stuff thats not on the repair order nor can it be ascertained without cracking the motor. Scottie had told me he felt the engine had been strengthened for reliablitly AND speed but I would appreciate any additional info you could add. Its got about 10k on it since the rebuild and is quite fast (I added a k-27 and bigger I/C.) If you would like to respond privately my e-mail address is [email protected]. Thanks, Greg  | ||
| J. R. Vallandingham (Jrvall)
New member Username: Jrvall Post Number: 4 Registered: 11-2002 |
Will, Actually I didn't take any real offense to anything said, althought after 20 years one in my position can get a little weary of hearing one dig or half truth after another. I'll stand by my statement that no one but myself knows who or how many clients I have. The reasons are varied but simple, first I've never been a braggart or name dropper, I'm a very private person when it comes to 'my business', so who & how many I work for is a rumor that never got started, remember, I've been doing this 30 years, 19+ in business for myself as the head dog, so I don't feel threatened by any local peddlers of 'new magic' and I rely solely on my reputation and experience, second, many of my clients have relationships with new F-car dealers that they wish not to have compromised in any way, while at the same time recieving service on their new and older F-cars or L-cars that kids or novices just can't deliver, third, do you really know how many cars there are in Texas?, in Houston?, or from how far away my clients are willing to come for the best most experienced service money can buy within a several thousand mile radius? I do! A lot more than you allude to I assure you. Niether the clubs nor the chat rooms come close to representing the actual numbers of owners out there. They represent a minute portion of the 'real' market place or ownership tally. A math question for you, I've been in Houston for 21+ years and in business for 19+ years working on Ferrari's daily the entire time . How many Ferrari's does it take to sustain a 'lucky streak' that has lasted 19+ yrs. so far? How many guys do you personaly know that has done it daily longer or better? How many guys do you know that have done it daily from the introduction of the Daytona, 246 Dino, 365BB,308's, 512BB's till now with the 360's? How many X so & so's, best thing since sliced bread shops/mechanics have come and gone in the same 19 year period???? So, it's never been about a popularity contest with me, it's always been about turning out perfect running machines, to the standards of excellence I was trained to deliver. Machines that guys can be proud of, drive daily, get the most upon resale. If I forgot/refused to kiss the right ass along the way, oh well, so be it. I wasn't part of the 'good ole boy' club when I came to Houston and chose not to join, and by doing so I managed to maintain my quality standards and self respect. I did take notice that no one stepped up to buy my shop so that they "could do it the right way" and win popularity contests at the same time. With so vocal of arm chair quarterbacking, wonder why that is ? To answer your question about the Yellow 308GTB, he drives his car daily (thanks to good service and repair) and by being in the fray that often got tagged by someone with questionable driving skills. The reason it's not already repaired involves a certion Body Shop run by a guy who's first name starts with S and the BS story they tried to spin about the non-existance of a new door, meaning the old door had to be repaired. Thanks to my persistance and Algars helpfullness the non-existant door story developed a gapping hole, stalling the repair, however with some honesty back in the game his 'new door' will be here and on his car in the near future . | ||
| william speer (Wspeer)
Junior Member Username: Wspeer Post Number: 84 Registered: 8-2002 |
j.r., i meant no offense to the use of the term "small" when it came to your clientele. i was simply making a comparison to, say a shop that specializes in repairing chevy's. the exotic car market is so small in houston, that anyone who specializes in repairing vehicles of this kind would naturally have a "small" clientele. it's the nature of the business. i saw the yellow "child advocates" car driving down 290 the other day and it looks as though somebody hit it from the side. what happened? | ||
| J. R. Vallandingham (Jrvall)
New member Username: Jrvall Post Number: 1 Registered: 11-2002 |
Hi Guys & Gals?, Pretty funny reading about myself from people that admittedly don't know me and have never been to my shop! I think I should clear up a few falsehoods and set the record striaght. I've begun exploring the possibility of selling my shop for personal & family reasons as Will H. mentioned. However I'm not closing down. Pinnacle Motorsports is as busy now as it's ever been. And the future looks as bright as it ever has. In fact the older the cars get, the more my services and those of Pinnacle Motorsports are needed. Exotic owners can only ignore having their cars serviced for so long before the pendulum swings the other way. Bandaids only last so long. Contrary to someones post, I have a quite large clientel base. Just count the number of cars on my web site and multiply that considerably. Although in that persons defense, I don't have very many cheap do it yourselfers or Cool High Rollers that can't/won't pay their bills. I screen all new clients, those wanting something for nothing are asked to find service elsewhere. The "proper & profesional" servicing of Ferrari's & Lamborghini's is very challenging and hard work, many aspire to the goal of being a Ferrari/Lamborghini Professional but very few make it. I can't even count all the shops that have opened to compete against me in the last 19 years I've been in business or the numbers of hot shot mechanics that were asked by me to go elsewhere to find employment, because they failed/refused to adhere to the standards of quality I set down. Some of the also rans might be working on cars of those spreading some of the falsehoods ? Seems likely. Has anyone called FoH lately to see how many employees/mechanics they've had permanently employeed for the last 19 years that I've been doing my thing? Give them a call, maybe a few of you could learn something. Pinnacle Motorsports was opened to fill the need between Dealer Prices and Arrogance and Shoddy Rip Off Shops. I think I have fullfilled that need very well for over 19 years. My services are certianly not for everyone, however, without my services, I believe the standards of quality in Houston would be far lower than they are. As for the disgruntled lawyer story, I first heard about a certian Ferrari Club member here in Houston spreading a viscious lie about the circumstances surrounding hard feelings. Only one of thousands of lies and half truths that gets told about guys in my position, it's a brutal business in more ways than one. The actual reason for hard feelings was the unwillingness to pay for services rendered, after the fact,not the quality of the work performed, and circumstances created by that unwillingness to pay and take delivery. This unfortunate incident happened at least 5 years ago, I guess hard feelings and revenge run deep in some circles. I might add that I built a 512BB engine and a 2.7 Carrera engine for the same gentleman before building a very fast 930 engine for him spanning 15 years. The real bitterness I believe came about when a used car shyster took this 930 in for $18K and turned around and sold it for $40K...attesting to the quality and beauty I delivered, before the gentleman in OK. bought the car, it was purchased and adored by one of my best friends who is now deceased. Generaly I don't bother to refute or correct false information about me or Pinnacle Motorsports, but this particular lie and the person spreading it seems rather insidious and insistant in his attempts to defame me. For those of you with some grudge, please just call and make phone threats anonomously from now on if you don't mind...LOL... Regards, JRV | ||
| Greg (Greg512tr)
New member Username: Greg512tr Post Number: 31 Registered: 2-2002 |
I have a black 930 that he did the motor on. It used to belong to an attorney in Houston and he had a falling out with J.R. My engine is on the dyno on his web page. I did talk with him once and he seemed a litte eccentric...the car is fast though.. | ||
| TomD (Tifosi)
Intermediate Member Username: Tifosi Post Number: 1598 Registered: 9-2001 |
I spoke to him on the phone once about a car he was repping. Interesting guy to say the least | ||
| William Huber (Solipsist)
Member Username: Solipsist Post Number: 462 Registered: 9-2001 |
Its true, he is the shop. There is no Pinnacle Motorsports with out J.R. The man has a gift for working on rare sports cars. Who ever takes over his shop has a massive task of providing the same excellence of mechanical expertise that he has given his customers for years. | ||
| william speer (Wspeer)
Junior Member Username: Wspeer Post Number: 83 Registered: 8-2002 |
j.r. is selling his shop? i don't know what he is selling other than tools and shop equipment. he "is" the shop. i don't really see him selling his clientele as he doesn't have a large clientele. his clients seem to be pretty loyal to him, but there are a great deal of people who will not even deal with him. i have never had problems with him, but then again, he has never worked on my cars. he does have some great stories to tell though. | ||
| William Huber (Solipsist)
Member Username: Solipsist Post Number: 461 Registered: 9-2001 |
Here's the link for the shop thats up for sale. Its a shame thats he's selling it, but here is your chance to own a great Ferrari & Lambo repair center. www.pinnaclemotorsports.com | ||
| ty (360mode)
Junior Member Username: 360mode Post Number: 70 Registered: 9-2002 |
definitely swing by and say hello... always good to know of a reputable body shop! | ||
| William Huber (Solipsist)
Member Username: Solipsist Post Number: 459 Registered: 9-2001 |
Ty, Memorial One Imports isn't mine & not the shop for sale. They sell some used Ferraris though. I have a body & automotive restoration shop off of 1-10 & Dairy Ashford. Your welcome to come by to visit. Here's my site. www.memorialauto.com | ||
| ty (360mode)
Junior Member Username: 360mode Post Number: 69 Registered: 9-2002 |
i'm pretty new here, is memorial one imports your place? i always take a look from the road on those unfortunate days i'm crawling along I-10... | ||
| William Huber (Solipsist)
Member Username: Solipsist Post Number: 457 Registered: 9-2001 |
A friend of mine is regretfully selling his shop in Houston, Texas. He has been very successful with his endeavor since 1984 but sadly selling due to family matters & other reasons. For further info, please E MAIL me for contact information. Please, only serous inquires reply. [email protected] |