njim3

I have my car with an Indy, he will follow all of the steps from the IMS Solution manual and I believe that things will be good. Once my car is done I will update with pictures and suggest the Indy to become IMS certified installer to serve folks like me in northern California.

Thanks,

808Bill

I thought you had to be a certified installer before you can even buy the "Solution"

JohnCA58

i believe you can buy the Solutions but won't have any warranty with it. I am ok with that.

charlieaf92

There are a few sites you can order it from. I bought one and put it in - as did the Rennlist member I sold the toolkits too.

Slakker

Am I reading this right? You are going to have him install it from the manual? You realize the highest probability of him making a mistake are on the first couple he does, right? Why pay the extra for the solution and then go cheap on the install? You would be better off going with a retrofit and somebody that's done it 50x than a solution and a first time installer.

But hey, I guess it's only money. Just be sure to disclose you had the solution installed by a non-certified first time installer when you sell it. Otherwise you are absolutely SCREWING the next guy.

Slakker

Actually, would you mind posting your VIN? It would be nice to have as a reference if you put your car up for sale and somebody happened to ask the group about it. Thx!

RngTrtl

subscribing to this one for the lols.

kromdom

OP,
I am curious if you know who JAKE RABY is?

charlieaf92

My understanding is that installing the solution is pretty much the same as any other dual or single row replacement bearing. If you're able to install one, you can do the other. Becoming certified isn't an easy process and there are plenty of qualified people who aren't (I'm pretty sure it's an invite only program) I'm not advocating using uncertified installers, but simply saying just because someone isn't certified doesn't mean they aren't perfectly capable.

(I'm beginning to make some assumptions here) I believe the biggest reason for the certification is to try to get some guarantee that the preinstallation qualification is done, and done exactly right. If the existing bearing is failing, simply putting in a solution or any other replacement won't prevent problems and failure down the road. Then, it's a mess of finger pointing. The certified installers have that pounded into their heads and are willing to walk away from an install if the preinstall qualification doesn't pass.

So, going to someone certified is best. But I wouldn't lose too much sleep over it if your Indy is reputable and has experience with IMS retrofits/replacements. It's probably worth insisting on that prequalification check just to drive the point home though. Once it's in there and your engine is running I honestly don't ever, ever seeing that part failing for any reason. The only real problem is if metal debris is already in the system from the previous bearing (hence the point of the pre qualify). So down the road when you want to sell it, I can't imagine you having any problems. Heck, I put mine in myself - I'll disclose it to a buyer and tell them very truthfully that the bearing will outlast the car without breaking a sweat.

Another great point about the solution - there's no "the seller says it has a new IMS bearing" - you or any prospective buyer can clearly and quickly see that the solution is installed just by looking under the car.

Imo000

Over reacting a little bit aren't we?

Copilot

I did the same thing (self-install). Let's be honest, if we screwed the install up, we would have seen it immediately. And most certainly after a couple hundred miles.

I totally understand Flat 6 Innovations' stance on certified installers, and I think charlieaf92 nailed the reasoning - it's not because the install is hard, it's because pre-qualification is key. If pre-qualification is not done, and the engine fails, the user is GOING to blame the IMS Solution, even if that's not the reason it failed. That means that the currently failure-free record of the IMS Solution would be tarnished, and for no good reason. So, if you had a bunch of random shops that were willing to throw in the IMS Solution and there was no quality control on who was certified to do it, you WOULD have a failed engine (due to some other reason than the IMS) with an IMS Solution in it.

For me, I had the engine apart anyways, read through the pre-qualification procedure, and I DID do everything the pre-qualification requires - including replacing some parts inside (timing chain tensioners). The main reason I did the IMS Solution install was that I spent so much money on maintenance and preventative items on my engine, I wanted to have my own guarantee on my own work. In other words, I wanted to ensure to MYSELF that all the other work I did to the heads, etc. wasn't in vain. I had already purchased a Single Row Pro and Faultless tool, but sold them and decided to get the Solution because ultimately, it wasn't really THAT much more money.

JohnCA58

Copilot, Charlie and Imo, you gus have got it right,

Slakker

An unknown Indy doing a first time install of a Solution? Unless they are better than 80% of the indies out there and are an M96 engine specialists then NO.

I would have no issues buying Charlie's car. His attention to detail, using the proper tools, and desire to do things the right way are well documented. But his motivation is completely different than a repair shop that is trying to maximize their revenue/hour average. And usually you are paying $120+/hr to have a moderately knowledgeable guy pass the job off to his $15/hr mechanic.

How many Indy horror stories, especially in California, do we have to read about before we figure out that they don't care near as much about our cars as we do.

So once again, why even have the Solution installed if you are just going to take it to the cheapest, most convenient place you can find to do it that has zero experience.

Alright. Stepping down now.

njim3

I bought the kit through Vivid racing. Then i contacted Callas they denied customer's ordered part. Return will cost 25% restocking so i decided to go to an Indy.

Slakker

That sucks.