Review of Mishimoto Thermostatic Oil Sandwich Plate

Chuck33079 · 09-13-2013, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by derraj06

So as an update. I have not received any I rings from the company.

In fairness I did inform the Brand Ambassador Tyler that I would not be keeping their product on my car. I have received a replacement from Z1 and it will be going on the car tomorrow morning. I have not received any communication from them since.

The shop put another slightly smaller o ring in the car and fired the engine. It will run but it needs more monitoring to know what's going on.

I should have the part tomorrow along with the full report from the dealer. I will post pictures of the part before it gets shipped back to amazon.

My guess is it was a misassembly at their factory and I would be cautious of trusting it is assembled correctly in the future. I probably should have taken it apart to inspect it but instead I chose to install the part how it came out of the box.

Did they happen to mention what, if anything they were going to do if the failure of their part resulted in a dead motor down the line? Are you going to have to make a public stink about it before any action is taken on their end?

derraj06 · 09-16-2013, 08:58 PM

So my apologies on a slow update. I had been busy cleaning up the car and inspecting the front end over the weekend.

Finally got my car back Friday after they installed a new sandwich plate that Z1 got to me quickly. (Love those guys). That was $141 for diagnostics and (another) oil change. This doesn't include ordering another plate from Z1.

The engine is running, and seems to be holding her own. Something doesn't feel right but I think I've just been out of the car for a week.

As for the o rings that I requested. I never received the alleged USPS package. This is as of today 9/16. I specifically asked for them to be over night shipped. I was told the cut off was missed on Monday and they would ship Tuesday. It's a good thing I went another route and changed the plate. This is my only car and I couldn't afford to be without it for so long. I believe the not shipping the parts is poor customer service. It is on par with how I was treated concerning speaking with someone on the phone. I have been ignored when making requests to be contacted via phone and when I called the service rep was in a meeting and could not be reached.

As far as the part itself goes. Here is a picture of the plate post removal. As a note. We put the smaller oring and the sealant on it to check on the engine while waiting on proper replacement parts.

It appears to have a small counter sunk area. To me it doesn't seem to be as pronounced as the one in the video. The smaller o ring appears to have sealed it along with the high temp sealant.

Also, I have evidence it was a mis assembly. I was digging in my backup from my old iPhone and found the picture when I unboxed it and showed it to a friend of mine.

In this picture there appears to be a gap between the plate and the cap.

As I said before I did not altar the plate before install and I didn't know it was supposed to be flush as there is nothing to accompany the plate as far as directions or recommendations.

As for the concerns about what they're do for the engine, Mishimoto's philosophy seems to be ignore the comments concerning damage and when directly asked say "Mishimoto's warranty only covers Mishimoto parts."

As for this part it is being accepted as a return to amazon. I'm shocked they are doing it but I'm thankful for a company that does provide customer service.

Bottom line is I realize it's a performance part and there are risks involved but something like this is not acceptable to me. I feel it is feasible to expect a part to come to you properly assembled. Again this is coming from my background in automotive parts inspection as an engineer.

Chuck33079 · 09-16-2013, 09:14 PM

Now that you posted all of this they'll come in and make some comment about their unsurpassed quality control. If you want a fast response, make a comment about their stuff they take offense to. Their VP will pm you and strongly advise you make a retraction. Bunch of assclowns.

derraj06 · 09-16-2013, 09:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuck33079

Now that you posted all of this they'll come in and make some comment about their unsurpassed quality control. If you want a fast response, make a comment about their stuff they take offense to. Their VP will pm you and strongly advise you make a retraction. Bunch of assclowns.

They can make all the claims they want. Unless they have traceability data to show where the part was correctly assembled, it doesn't make a difference to me. They have no legal grounds to force a retraction and that would be further bad press for them. I am currently working on taking this to any forum that may use this plate as I believe it is important people know.

Chuck33079 · 09-16-2013, 09:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by derraj06

They can make all the claims they want. Unless they have traceability data to show where the part was correctly assembled, it doesn't make a difference to me. They have no legal grounds to force a retraction and that would be further bad press for them. I am currently working on taking this to any forum that may use this plate as I believe it is important people know.

Spread the word, brother. People need to know the kind of garbage they make. Please tell me
youll take them to court if any motor issues arise.

I retracted a joke I made about them out of respect for AK, not because they had any legal case. They're touchy about being called out on making ****.

O&G · 09-16-2013, 10:39 PM

I will never let anyone I care about use Mishimoto products after seeing their thermostat fail on a good friends motor, causing it to blow. He sold the car and retired from the modding scene. I also had their thermostat fail, but I was more fortunate and didn't loose the motor.
Mishimoto is on the left w/ 4k miles on it, Stock unit is on right w/ 6k miles on it........... as you can see the O-ring seal is already gone on the mishimoto while the stock unit looks fine. QUALITY matters.

Forums are here to inform, throw some truth at the readers!

Chuck33079 · 09-16-2013, 10:50 PM

Cheap Chinese garbage. The saddest part is that their VP of something claimed in a pm to me that most of the guys who work there are enthusiasts with modded cars. If that's the case, they should feel really bad that they're foisting off low quality failure prone crap on other enthusiasts.

Now and then they'll get a positive review, and instead of using it to see that they're capable of making quality parts sometimes and just need to get their consistency under control, they use it to say they don't have any problems.

Chuck33079 · 09-24-2013, 03:45 PM

OP, did Mishimoto ever end up sending you those o-rings, or was Tyler just blowing smoke up you ***?

Mishimoto · 10-01-2013, 10:58 AM

We have looked into our thermostatic sandwich plate to determine the exact source of the issue. Our engineers met last week with an O-ring sealing specialist from Parker to further examine the issue and have traced it to a small batch of inconsistent O-rings. These O-rings did not allow for the thermostat plug to be fully tightened. This is limited to just the most recent production lot of our thermostatic sandwich plates, and we are implementing several changes to address the issue.

We have immediately severed the relationship with the previous O-ring supplier, and will be using Parker O-rings for this product moving forward. They are higher quality and more reliable.

We have pulled all inventory of thermostatic sandwich plates from our warehouse and they are currently being re-worked by engineers in our Delaware office before being returned to stock.

We are adding a caution sticker to future production packaging to remind the user to double-check all plugs and fittings to assure they are fully tightened before running the vehicle. We are adding this information to our website as well.

If you currently own a Mishimoto Thermostatic Sandwich plate, and would like a replacement O-ring, please contact sales@mishimoto.com and we will send you a new one free of charge. Even if you are currently running our Thermostatic plate with no problem, and just want peace of mind.

We apologize for any inconveniences this may have caused, and will make sure that the quality of our products stand up to our expectations.

DEpointfive0 · 10-01-2013, 11:02 AM

Chuck, where you at?

Chuck33079 · 10-01-2013, 11:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DEpointfive0

Chuck, where you at?

I think this thread speaks for itself at this point. Our quality control is awesome, it's just that one of our suppliers ****** up. Assclowns, the whole lot of them.

And if the OP ends up losing a motor over this, it's a hell of a lot worse than an "inconvenience".

DEpointfive0 · 10-01-2013, 11:10 AM

My question is:
Don't you guys do an incoming inspection on parts or batches of parts coming in?

Because it sounds a bit too convenient that you had an o-ring expert come in.

Chuck33079 · 10-01-2013, 11:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DEpointfive0

My question is:
Don't you guys do an incoming inspection on parts or batches of parts coming in?

Because it sounds a bit too convenient that you had an o-ring expert come in.

It's just damage control after the fact. They want something on the internet that can be googled so prospective buyers think the problem was solved and buy their parts.

DEpointfive0 · 10-01-2013, 11:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuck33079

It's just damage control after the fact. They want something on the internet that can be googled so prospective buyers think the problem was solved and buy their parts.

Lol, I know that, but I'm wondering why this wasn't caught, at least learn from your mistakes, switching O-ring manufacturers is a cheap way out. And it's not a real way out, it's marketing.

EDIT: And as much as I love America, I don't hate Chinese made products a tenth as much as Chuck, just trying to make a point, and ask a valid question

Chuck33079 · 10-01-2013, 11:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DEpointfive0

Lol, I know that, but I'm wondering why this wasn't caught, at least learn from your mistakes, switching O-ring manufacturers is a cheap way out. And it's not a real way out, it's marketing.

Switching O-ring manufacuters is just a halfassed attempt to shift liability in case someone ends up with a toasted motor. Anybody who reads this thread and still buys their product needs their heads examined. They couldn't manage to get an envelope of O-rings in the mail to the OP, and lied/misled him about it numerous times. Shitty product, shittier support.

I'm not completely anti-Chinese parts, I'm just very outspoken about the companies that knock off real parts, and sell failure prone garbage to people because of slick marketing. I'm anti-crappy Chinese parts.

09-16-2013, 08:58 PM	#47 (permalink)
derraj06 Enthusiast Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Huntsville, AL Posts: 406 Drives: MB 370z Rep Power: 11	So my apologies on a slow update. I had been busy cleaning up the car and inspecting the front end over the weekend. Finally got my car back Friday after they installed a new sandwich plate that Z1 got to me quickly. (Love those guys). That was $141 for diagnostics and (another) oil change. This doesn't include ordering another plate from Z1. The engine is running, and seems to be holding her own. Something doesn't feel right but I think I've just been out of the car for a week. As for the o rings that I requested. I never received the alleged USPS package. This is as of today 9/16. I specifically asked for them to be over night shipped. I was told the cut off was missed on Monday and they would ship Tuesday. It's a good thing I went another route and changed the plate. This is my only car and I couldn't afford to be without it for so long. I believe the not shipping the parts is poor customer service. It is on par with how I was treated concerning speaking with someone on the phone. I have been ignored when making requests to be contacted via phone and when I called the service rep was in a meeting and could not be reached. As far as the part itself goes. Here is a picture of the plate post removal. As a note. We put the smaller oring and the sealant on it to check on the engine while waiting on proper replacement parts. It appears to have a small counter sunk area. To me it doesn't seem to be as pronounced as the one in the video. The smaller o ring appears to have sealed it along with the high temp sealant. Also, I have evidence it was a mis assembly. I was digging in my backup from my old iPhone and found the picture when I unboxed it and showed it to a friend of mine. In this picture there appears to be a gap between the plate and the cap. As I said before I did not altar the plate before install and I didn't know it was supposed to be flush as there is nothing to accompany the plate as far as directions or recommendations. As for the concerns about what they're do for the engine, Mishimoto's philosophy seems to be ignore the comments concerning damage and when directly asked say "Mishimoto's warranty only covers Mishimoto parts." As for this part it is being accepted as a return to amazon. I'm shocked they are doing it but I'm thankful for a company that does provide customer service. Bottom line is I realize it's a performance part and there are risks involved but something like this is not acceptable to me. I feel it is feasible to expect a part to come to you properly assembled. Again this is coming from my background in automotive parts inspection as an engineer. __________________ 2010 Monterey Blue 370Z

09-16-2013, 09:14 PM	#48 (permalink)
Chuck33079 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Houston Posts: 12,265 Drives: 2011 370ztt Rep Power: 29538	Now that you posted all of this they'll come in and make some comment about their unsurpassed quality control. If you want a fast response, make a comment about their stuff they take offense to. Their VP will pm you and strongly advise you make a retraction. Bunch of assclowns. O&G likes this. __________________ 2011 MB Touring-Sport-6sp-Nav/GTM TT/FI TT TDX/JTran/Kosmic/Eibach/Hotchkis/SPC/CSF/RPS/SoThatsWhereAllMyMoneyWent

09-16-2013, 10:39 PM	#51 (permalink)
O&G A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Lone Star State Age: 41 Posts: 1,212 Drives: 40th Anv. Rep Power: 22	I will never let anyone I care about use Mishimoto products after seeing their thermostat fail on a good friends motor, causing it to blow. He sold the car and retired from the modding scene. I also had their thermostat fail, but I was more fortunate and didn't loose the motor. Mishimoto is on the left w/ 4k miles on it, Stock unit is on right w/ 6k miles on it........... as you can see the O-ring seal is already gone on the mishimoto while the stock unit looks fine. QUALITY matters. Forums are here to inform, throw some truth at the readers! __________________ O&G's Build/Journal <---(1st lowmount single turbo treeseventy) Built Engine Thread 2011 F-250 Build/Journal

09-16-2013, 10:50 PM	#52 (permalink)
Chuck33079 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Houston Posts: 12,265 Drives: 2011 370ztt Rep Power: 29538	Cheap Chinese garbage. The saddest part is that their VP of something claimed in a pm to me that most of the guys who work there are enthusiasts with modded cars. If that's the case, they should feel really bad that they're foisting off low quality failure prone crap on other enthusiasts. Now and then they'll get a positive review, and instead of using it to see that they're capable of making quality parts sometimes and just need to get their consistency under control, they use it to say they don't have any problems. __________________ 2011 MB Touring-Sport-6sp-Nav/GTM TT/FI TT TDX/JTran/Kosmic/Eibach/Hotchkis/SPC/CSF/RPS/SoThatsWhereAllMyMoneyWent

09-24-2013, 03:45 PM	#53 (permalink)
Chuck33079 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Houston Posts: 12,265 Drives: 2011 370ztt Rep Power: 29538	OP, did Mishimoto ever end up sending you those o-rings, or was Tyler just blowing smoke up you ***? __________________ 2011 MB Touring-Sport-6sp-Nav/GTM TT/FI TT TDX/JTran/Kosmic/Eibach/Hotchkis/SPC/CSF/RPS/SoThatsWhereAllMyMoneyWent

10-01-2013, 10:58 AM	#54 (permalink)
Mishimoto Base Member Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Wilmington, DE Posts: 80 Drives: 370Z Rep Power: 13	We have looked into our thermostatic sandwich plate to determine the exact source of the issue. Our engineers met last week with an O-ring sealing specialist from Parker to further examine the issue and have traced it to a small batch of inconsistent O-rings. These O-rings did not allow for the thermostat plug to be fully tightened. This is limited to just the most recent production lot of our thermostatic sandwich plates, and we are implementing several changes to address the issue. We have immediately severed the relationship with the previous O-ring supplier, and will be using Parker O-rings for this product moving forward. They are higher quality and more reliable. We have pulled all inventory of thermostatic sandwich plates from our warehouse and they are currently being re-worked by engineers in our Delaware office before being returned to stock. We are adding a caution sticker to future production packaging to remind the user to double-check all plugs and fittings to assure they are fully tightened before running the vehicle. We are adding this information to our website as well. If you currently own a Mishimoto Thermostatic Sandwich plate, and would like a replacement O-ring, please contact sales@mishimoto.com and we will send you a new one free of charge. Even if you are currently running our Thermostatic plate with no problem, and just want peace of mind. We apologize for any inconveniences this may have caused, and will make sure that the quality of our products stand up to our expectations. __________________ Mishimoto Automotive

10-01-2013, 11:02 AM	#55 (permalink)
DEpointfive0 Premium Member Bitches Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: SoCal Posts: 14,824 Drives: a lot Rep Power: 17151	Chuck, where you at? __________________ Do YOU want to know what/where I got my username from? ( Click to show/hide ) NSFW due to language:

10-01-2013, 11:10 AM	#57 (permalink)
DEpointfive0 Premium Member Bitches Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: SoCal Posts: 14,824 Drives: a lot Rep Power: 17151	My question is: Don't you guys do an incoming inspection on parts or batches of parts coming in? Because it sounds a bit too convenient that you had an o-ring expert come in. __________________ Do YOU want to know what/where I got my username from? ( Click to show/hide ) NSFW due to language:

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