Carli performance 2.0 system

[nts007]

I just received my shocks back from carli rebuilt. And I'm ticked off. Bunch of nice gouges around the shock body end where the rod comes out.
So. I'm done with them. When I work in someone's house I don't go scratch their hardwood and just carry on. No you don't do that. You take precautions to protect the products that someone ELSE owns and paid for.
So these shocks didnt last a year. But they are now rebuilt by carli. Slightly damaged. Obviously they are a used shock. The coating that was on them is bubbled off in many places. 4 of the 8 rod ends are toast. So they need to be replaced. I no longer recommend these shocks. Brand new they were fantastic. Now this is just a fantastic headache.
So what should I do.
I really want to rip the carli parts off my truck and sell the whole system. Springs and shocks and all the hardware needed. I just can't afford to get a new set for a long time now. I can however put on the pw springs and see where that goes.
My other option is continue digging this hole and get 4 rod ends and change out all the fluids to a better one that will stand up to cold weather and still swap on the pw coils or if I can sell the carli coils and leaf pack then get thurens coils.
Right now from the time the went bad to the time i get them reinstalled i will be out of pocket $450 after the original purchase. Less than a year later. And I still have to deal with the coating. Or just let it fall apart. And what happens next year. And should I spend an extra $100 and get all 8 rod ends instead of just the 4.
So help me out. I'm beyond frustrated at this point. Also dont have many options i can explore for awhile. At least i have the 5100s in right now and only one is bad.

Did I really just get the only lemon shocks that they head? 2 were still good apparently but they have bad rod ends. Really only one of the 4 shocks was good enough to say it could stay with no issue.

So do what. Sell them. Or just accept it the way it is and just shut up.

[nts007]

Pic

[w2dodge]

That blows...when it's time for me to purchase some upgrades. .something to think about..I'd just hang on with them..and hope it works out...and save some $$ for replacements to clear my head

[coder]

I would email them the pics and ask what happened I've been to their shop many times and they are very reasonable guys I would see what they say.

Ultimately those dents are only cosmetic and the shocks will work just a good as if they where new and shiny just put them on and enjoy.

[nts007]

I do know they are cosmetic. In my line of work sometimes slight cosmetic damage can be an indicator of poor workmanship or a lack of experience. That said i do believe they are fine. My issue it that this just keeps adding up. Had I bought Monroe shocks i would have had a set every time they went bad. For free. No I'm not comparing Monroe to the bilsteins I am pointing out that a reputable company stands behind their products.
Now something to point out. Originally I was told by Dan that he would send me a complete set of replacement shocks before i even pulled my old ones out. Bilstein was refusing to warranty so he said that he would eat the cost. All i had to do was give him a credit card.
Now I apparently was mistaken on how he was going about this and I believed I was going to be charged for a complete set. Again. And with the dollar getting weaker it was really going to add up.
Apparently after talking to 2wag they don't charge the card unless you don't send the old ones back. So thats great. That aside i figured I was doing everybody a more cost efficient route by not going that route and sending my old ones back first. To me it seemed like i was helping reduce the cost to carli if they didnt have to comp a new set of shocks.
But after that point i started feeling pretty second rate. And then I kept incurring more and more cost. Like the fact i have to replace the rod ends now too. In hindsight i would have had new ones with a new set of shocks.
I can somewhat afford to get the ends and I'm so far into them it would be silly not to. But what about next winter. This appears to be a compounding thing. And 2wag keeps posting those damn sexy shocks too lol.
I'm just torn right now. I've spent enough already i could have bought kings an maybe avoided this all together.

Oh and my wife is ready to kill me for spending so much extra money on shocks that i was never supposed to have to replace

[nts007]

Take into account I'm venting.

[Cactus Red]

Don't blame ya for that.

Dennis Miller "You can't order black coffee anymore. It's un-creamed..."

[coder]

Take into account I'm venting.

I totally understand how you feel. I am particular about things being correct on my truck and am very annoyed when they're not, I have been through 3 sets of progressively more expensive shocks myself. I also know that evil eye from the wife because you need more money for your truck, and it's not pleasant.

I hope everything works out in the end, good luck!

[AceMan]

I hope so, too. Keep us updated with how Carli helps you out.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[2wagons1driveway]

Boooo that sucks man. Not cool on Carlis behalf....


"Escalators are never really broken...their just stairs for alittle while... "

[nts007]

I sent this reply this morning to carli.

"Not very impressed Dan. I don't damage my customers hardwood floors as i work on them. Cosmetic damage can be a very good indicator of poor workmanship, inexperience or a complete lack of care. A simple rag or rubber strap could have avoided this. Even following bilsteins rebuild guide would avoid this.

At the start of this you were going to send me a complete new set and claimed you were going to eat the cost. I thought I was helping you out as far as not having to absorb that much expense. I see now i should have let you do that as i feel that very little care has been placed on this matter. Not happy. Not impressed. I won't be purchasing anything from carli again and I will be informing others as well. This has been a terrible experience for me. "

[nts007]

Well here is the response. Fastest return email I've gotten lol

"Hi Neil,

Bilstein red-loctites those caps and, sometimes, slightly marring the
surface happens when trying to get the more stubborn caps off.

Sorry!
Dan"

It's all better now right.
Last i checked you had to use heat to break loctight red
Now to figure out what I'm doing with these shocks. Run them with bad ends and carlis fluid for the summer till I can afford the parts to rebuild and refill. Have to do 4 of 8 rod ends. 20 bucks a pop plus tax. Do all 8.
Whatever this is my last post on this.
Moving on

[2wagons1driveway]

See if you can get some better heims maybe? Or try and jam bushings in it instead it can be done.


"Escalators are never really broken...their just stairs for alittle while... "

[cruz]

Well here is the response. Fastest return email I've gotten lol

"Hi Neil,

Bilstein red-loctites those caps and, sometimes, slightly marring the
surface happens when trying to get the more stubborn caps off.

Sorry!
Dan"

I'm with you 100% nts007 . The only thing that would piss me off more than buying high price/high quality stuff and having it fail , only to have the repair at my cost , be f#cked up by shitty workmanship , would be receiving a reply like you got.

[Mr.Smith]

I'm sure there is two sides to the story, but from this viewpoint Carli??? No bueno...

[2wagons1driveway]

Ya man I unno Neil has a valid point. They have all the tools to do it properly. If they had proper 2.0 tools which you'd figure they would then holding the shock bodies inplastic molded vise claws that are meant for the 2.0 shouldn't have been a big deal... Weird. Deffinately won't be sending my shocks to Carli to redo after seeing this...


"Escalators are never really broken...their just stairs for alittle while... "

[Mr.Smith]

Hopefully Thuren can rebuild my Carli/Kings when the time comes...

[AceMan]

I'm sorry to hear you went through all that. I bought a set of Carli King 2.5 last year and just got them installed last week. Eventually, they will need rebuilding.

I wonder if someone from Carli is reading this thread. If yes, it would be nice if we could hear a direct response.

[2wagons1driveway]

No we don't have any reps from Carli just George at 8lug but he can't speak on behalf of the company that makes/ services the products he sells. He backs their products but I don't think he can comment on their service would be nice to have someone who worked for Carli to chime in though I agree...


"Escalators are never really broken...their just stairs for alittle while... "

[2wagons1driveway]

Hopefully Thuren can rebuild my Carli/Kings when the time comes...

no doubt it's been done many times mine will go that route aswell or to HRT down the street.


"Escalators are never really broken...their just stairs for alittle while... "

[AceMan]

I realize George can't comment. I wouldn't expect him to. This is definitely a Carli thing.

I still like their products and may continue to purchase their products. I've always thought and assumed their service is the same. This definitely is an unusual situation.

[orkan]

Is there no company that understands what it means to take care of their customers anymore? I was going to wait for a carli suspension for my new power wagon, but this has got me thinking I'll just go with whatever they can stuff under there at the dealership. That email response shows me that they really don't care about damaging the protective coating on your shocks. Life is too damn short to deal with companies that don't care.

[adeluca73]

From Neil's original post how Carli made him eat the tariff & shipping costs, I figured this was going to be how this was sadly going to end, not surprised. This was my first impression of anyone dealing w/ Carli directly & it has assured me I can & will confidently remove them from any consideration for future upgrades to my PW or any other future truck I own. What an ass, a complete smug douché. He ain't the only game in town--this is how your shit ends up in CH-11, ask Colt, they filed today. They got smug, treated customers terrible, charged waaaay too much for their guns ($1800 for a .357 revolver), lost all civilian business & then started losing their military contracts to FN....

[AceMan]

I wouldn't jump to conclusions yet. Maybe it was just an isolated incident. I'd like to give them the benefit of the doubt. I do like their offroad solutions. Hopefully they may respond favorably.

[nts007]

I don't believe they have bad products. But the product that I purchased didnt live up to expectations. Failed In many areas all in under a year. I don't think they are really engineered for long term survivability in the real world. Especially up north.
When I first talked with George then Dan I felt reassured that they had my back. But after time and dealing with Dan i some fairly sparse emails. Some good some useless it seemed to keep going downhill. The shocks alone with shipping and exchange hit me for $1840. $900 for the fronts and $780 for the rears and $160 for the initial duties and taxes the first time around. Now at this point at nearly $2000 spent I was sure i had a great product with a solid company behind it. Well another $230 into them now puts me over that mark. And I still need 4 uniball ends to replace the bad ones. And I know I need to change out the fluid to something more winter friendly or have a repeat of last year. So as it sits i have a set of $2100 shocks sitting on my garage floor. Yea I'm mad. But what are you going to do. It seems that canadian customers get a second rate service unless they are spending a small fortune.
Either way I'm undecided how to proceed. I'm out of money to spend on this. All i really need to do right now is spend $80 on a 5100 for my driver front and I'm good. The ride sucks but whatever.
After everything i heard a out carli and read other people's experiences. This just pissed me off. But moving on. Open to suggestions in how I should proceed.