John,
I appreciate your candor and presentation of facts. It helps explain many but not all things.
The main thing that your original post did not reveal is that this did not occur in the current timeframe. That's why I couldn't figure out how this happened.
Further-you left ambiguous the fact that this was a SBC in a Roush engine thread. I jumped at a conclusion. Still, posting a bad experience, regardless of brand, with a builder is overall beneficial for forum members. It's just important to state a frame of reference.
I came here in 2005. Things are way different now and all those personnel are gone from 2001-except for Bill himself. Little did he realize that a hard-a$$ed decision he made in 2001-2004 would come back to bite him in 2008.
I can tell you that competition and the web has brought about vast changes here over the years and in his thinking. He knows the value of customer service and the power of the web.
For the record: a systematic QC system is in place which gives the builders finite and uniform procedures to follow. So all engines spec correctly whether the builder is a 5 year or 20 year-experience guy. None of the 'yeah but I do it this way' stuff-they all do it the same way. All blocks are honed, decked, align honed, deburred and prepped uniformly.
No more exploding distributors-they're either MSD Ready to Run billets or E-Curves.
At the dyno, every engine is compression-tested, leaked-down and compression-ratio checked. Dyno operators can see any 'smokers' immediately. It will never get out of here. Our hone procedures work very well with our Total Seal rings. ALL rings are gapped between .018-.022". I have no explaination for .058 other than the hone was possibly too aggressive causing immediate and high ring wear which would spread the gap real quick. That's not an excuse for your treatment and you should not have been BS'd about it.
We DO still use those 8 cent umbrellas! Reason is they work well in street applications despite the wives tales. They do NOT stay on the guide-they're designed to ride up and act just like an umbrella over your head on a rainy day. The only reasons they won't work are when
oil drain-backs in heads are too small or if blocks need restrictors in gallerys to prevent filling the top of an engine with
oil.
About warrantys: Our's is with Charter Warranty a large and reputable underwriter. If a customer follows the procedure stated on the Warranty Card enclosed with
every engine, here's how it works. All claims are handled by Charter-however for the first 90 days, we pay full costs to repair. For the next 90 days we pay for all parts and Charter pays labor. After 180 days Charter pays all-this assumes you've abided by the terms. We can do the repairs (freight is on your dime) or an ASE Certified facility as stated in the Warranty terms.
Your
oil pan situation: Today an optional custom pan can be ordered from us initially with the engine order-the engine is built and dynoed with it. Or, if a customer buys our engine with the provided pan and finds he needs to change for fit reasons, he can do so
without voiding the Warranty provided he uses an ASE facility.
I recognize that this is all of little consolation to you and you'll never be a World/BMP cheerleader. You have a lump on the floor for which you've paid hard cash.
This is truly a shame because we have technically, the best blocks and heads out there-the Man O'War and LS Warhawk are clearly superior. The new Hemi is a smashing success.
I just hate to lose guys like you because of poor thinking, corner-cutting and poor behavior. Those days are over.
Thanks for taking the time to set the facts straight.