I myself have been involved with Turbo Buicks since '87. Got my first one in '94 after I got out of the service. There have been numerous vendors in the Turbo Buick community, some good, some bad. Boy the stories I could tell.
Maybe someday I'll write a book.
Hmmm.... Anywho, I have had very good business relationships with the following companies, not only with my own stuff, but also with my friends purchases.
In no particular order:
Precision Turbo
Full Throttle Speed
Hartline Performance
DLS Engine Development
Cottons Performance Center
Kirbans Performance Products
RJC Racing
Caspers Electronics
Gbody parts
nos4gn
TR Custom Parts
Quad Air
All of them have good customer service and have been reputable in the Buick community. Not to mention have personally been responsible for pushing the envelope ever higher with these cars. Every vendor/customer relationship can at times have slight bumps in the road, it's the way the vendor smooths out those bumps that's important. To me, it's not about cheapest price, but customer service and honesty. Me being in the parts business myself I see it everyday. You just have to remember, when it comes to Hot Rodding, which after all is what we are doing here, just in a more modern format, nothing ever comes easy. There will always be bumps in the road with your quest to build a perfect street / race car. One thing these cars will force you to develop, is a good sense of patience. There have also been some good vendors which have gone away over the years, and it's a shame to see them go. Each year I would go to the GS Nationals, I would make it a point to try to "spread the wealth" so to speak with all of the vendors. One other thing we have to remember, if it were not for these pioneering vendors who have supported the Turbo Buick community since day one, we would have nothing. The amount of R&D that has been done to get us where we are today is mind boggling. And a lot of people take this for granted big time. Especially newbies who do not know the past.
Think of it like this, the new 2010 Camaros are just now hitting the streets, not much exists for big hp bolt ons. But I can assure you there are many companies who are racing to bring new bolt ons to market for this car. Many companies who are testing and tuning every weekend with their newest toy. You will see a huge amount of stuff this year at the Sema and PRI shows. This is how it's always been. Whether it's been for F-bodies, Mustangs, Mopars, Imports or Buicks. We have been extremely lucky in the Buick world, with the amount of dedication and commitment these above vendors have had with us and Turbo Buicks. I don't know if most of you know this or not, but Turbo Buick parts alone don't keep the lights on. All of those vendors have diversified with other applications. You have too in this day and age. But it's those good guys who have the same desire, (Or is that disease?) that keep us happy with our Turbo Buicks. Without them we'd have nada. Try to remember some of this next time you start beating up a vendor for a cheaper price. One things for sure, getting seriously into Turbo Buicks, is not for the faint at heart, it's definitely an experience. All of these cars have a heart and soul. They will test you when you least expect it. Some more than others. If you treat them right, they will reward you. If not, they will punish you. This is true no matter what brand of hot rod you're working with.
In the end, good customer service and tech support is priceless. And all of those companies above have those two qualities in spades.
Sorry so long winded.
Hope this helps.
Patrick
