EliteVw

[devonmarsupial]

I'd never go back to these butchers ever again and hope anyone and everyone heeds this advice. 4 months and 10 trips to sort out numerous problems. Mostly for a faulty head they said was new and was fine and clearly wasn't . Uneven compression in all chambers upon inspection. They twice tried to send me away with a crippled van , upon 1st picking up van I couldn't even start the thing ClearlY never was bench tested. My Thermostat had disappeared and other bits were missing . It's obvious Almost all there parts are recycled and not even matched. You get last weeks token pistons , cam followers and barrels basically. Not new heads and not new cylinders/ sleeves. There customer service is awfull and you can put £500 on the cost of any quote. I got quoted £1700 and ended up paying for the worlds most expensive engine mounts. I cannot speak for gasures assurances of them but maybe you don't bite the hand that feeds.

[steve8090]

I'm not sure where you guys got that I recommend Elite rebuilt engines, i have used them in the past and after recent performance we will not be in the future, the last two engines I have rebuilt myself and will continue to do so until a more quality, value for money and reliable service becomes evident.

And your above insinuations are based on what facts? Perhaps you would like to elaborate on the runnings of my business and reputation because I'm damn sure I don't know who you are and you are not one of my Customers.

[Plasticman]

Ah Steve he may be related to the 2 newbie spongecakes that I came across last week lol
mm

[Ian Hulley]

Yep, as with all these cases you can only speak (or at least you only SHOULD speak) from your own experiences ... our's was a known engine done by Elite for an old friend who sold the engine (in a box with Elite warranty) on to us. Fitted properly by me into a well-maintained van where all the 'other jobs' had been kept up on and it was a turn-key job.

As I said before you can soon run up a substantial bill when you start replacing clutches, seals, CV joints, exhausts, fuel pumps, ignition bits and bobs, cooling system components (especially if they are obsolete and need to be tracked down and bought no-matter what the cost) ... all to get the van up to scratch for it's new engine ... then factor in the labour charges at Essex rate.

I'm not making up excuses for Elite but NO garage will fit a new engine onto knackered mounts (nor should they be expected to) and building up the (cleaned and tested) ancillary components onto a bare block engine is time-consuming if done carefully. Personally I prefer to do these jobs myself so I KNOW they have been done right.

Ian

[dbz864]

Im amazed on a forum this big and popular no one on here has took it up on them selves to start a business reconing these engines (1.9/2.1). Like aiden Talbot who I don't know, has a excellent repution for gearboxes, im guessing its his full time business. So come on why dosnt someone put there tools where there mouth is and start doing these little engines , ive never done one, don't want to, my old job was in engine building,(im not going back there) tho the engines I worked on were mostly bigger than a t25 van, with the same sort of tolerances so these 4 cylinder ones cant be that difficult. Nice little business for someone with very low start up costs and work from home.Plenty of work for someone.

[AdrianC]

Im amazed on a forum this big and popular no one on here has took it up on them selves to start a business reconing these engines (1.9/2.1).

Like 10CentLife does in the US, with a superb reputation.
http://www.vanistan.com/performance_waterboxers.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
I think his waiting list is about six to nine months. $4400 is £2,650, and that's without any equivalent of VAT (not that you'd turn over enough to register if that was your only business).

[300CE]

How about Marco Mansi, in Hertfordshire - has anyone had one of his engines fitted?!

http://www.marcomansiperformance.com/products.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The guy knows his stuff, 638hp from a 2.1 waterboxer

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewto ... ?p=6244001" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[faggie]

as 300ce said the only person I would trust in the uk to build me an engine

[waltraud]

I heard that Marco had gone to the USA - not so?

[300CE]

I heard that Marco had gone to the USA - not so?

Not sure, he was on brickyard in December but obviously could have accessed from overseas?

[Tobyt25]

Thought id do an update as i was asked about Elite recently. Its been over six months now since the work was done.

The engine runs lovely, really smooth. I used the van all over winter and even in the heavy frosts it started first time and drove well. It has given me more confidence to use the van as in not worrying about it breaking down. I had the engine serviced ready for the summer at a local garage, they said it looked like a good job and it was running well. Would i use them again??
Yes. But expect delays and have a little contingency fund or ask for a fixed price build. A large wedge of my costs were the pick up and drop off from the Midlands to London. Hope this helps other people.

[ChrisTriple]

Toby did you get a breakdown of the costs?

they have quoted me £200 for collection, if I have to get mine done then I'll go pick it up!

[Tobyt25]

Toby did you get a breakdown of the costs?

they have quoted me £200 for collection, if I have to get mine done then I'll go pick it up!

In the end it cost £2300 £350 was for collection from the midlands and delivery afterwards. £50 for a new alternator. I never got a full break down of costs. My old engine was totally knackered so all new parts. At the end of the day, even with the overspend it still worked out cheaper than any other quote. They did phone to say at the time, to say extra parts were needed and how much they were going to cost. Never got a full break down, i was just happy to get my van back and running nicely.

[CovKid]

I used to rebuild engines myself. Never again (other than for myself). Its such a minefield. You never know whats going to hit you next.

If I did it now I'd go at four times slower pace thats for sure.

[jimpainter]

I had a phone call off a customer of mine that I fitted an elite engine to and he commented on how well it's going. Took ages to get delivered though.
As for rebuilding, I have done a cu motor, after stripping the only original parts left to use on the rebuilt motor was the flywheel and fan. Everything else was shot or beyond specs. All machining/parts were done or sourced from stateside tuning who I highly recommend. I would have no worries about building another motor, I have done minis, bikes, beetles, type 4's, finding good parts and a reputable machining company is the hardest part.