I sent Concept Illusions a throttle body for their 55mm boring service. When I got it back, the gap between the throttle plate and the bore was so big, that air went right through the tb even at closed throttle and the ECU couldn't even compensate by closing the IAC all the way.

So they told me to send it back.

When I get it again, I can see that it is a totally different core, there are metal shavings all over the inside (hello seized engine) and there is the same gap as before. I pull the plate out (it is uneven) and flip it around, move it, no go. So then I drop the plate in from the intake side, and it slides all the way down to the plate pin on the inside of the bore. I try to drop it in from the manifold side, and it won't fit in any way I try. I wouldn't trust this thing on my lawnmower.

So I have a bad bore and a bad plate. On their second try, they still can't get it right. So I called them (they aren't there) and told them I want my money back and they can have the TB back and they can sell it to the next sucker. I wanted to believe that the first time was a fluke as they seemed to be cooperative, but the product speaks for itself.

Don't be that sucker. Don't buy a bored TB from Concept Illusions.

damn, i was just about to do that. I was thinking about buying their turbo kit and swapping in some different parts. Does this mean the craftmenship of that is shit too? :shrug

Got pics? Out of curiosity, I'm just wondering if they manufactured a new throttle plate at all :shrug


95 Eclipse RS : 5 speed
15.7 @ 87.9mph
Jeep TB writeup - http://www.dimensia.com:81/jimbo/JeepTBfor2gnt.html

maybe they have a new guy up there doing some work now, i personally got my 55mm bore job done on mine there as well about a year and a half ago, came back perfect measured it and it was 55mm all the way through and i got a new brass plate that was a perfect fit, never had any problems with there services or products, maybe they need to look at who they hired like in the last 6 months icause ive seen alot of complaints about them!!!

Originally posted by CustomGS
Does this mean the craftmenship of that is shit too? :shrug

Hope not... I planned on buying a 3" DP and making use of their porting and PC services on a few things... Hope they can shed some light on this... otherwise, ill be taking my business elsewhere...

Ok first off... not sure whats going on with your throttle body.. secondly we would never refuse a refund.. i havent recieved a phone call from you at all...third we do have a new guy doing our boring. we have brand new plates we cnc right here out of aluminum plate.. i can post picts if needed.. contact me tomorrow via phone and i will handle the situation

724-349-3180

Re: the plate.....

1.It's definitely NOT brass, it looks like aluminum.

2.It isn't the original, but then it isn't round either! On the sides that are near where the pin that holds the plate goes into the bore, the plate is actually flattened, so even if there wasn't an issue with the boring, the air would slip by there. And this is NOT to fit it in, as the pin's slot to hold the plate does NOT end at the original plate or bore length.

If someone wants to pm me and let me know how/where to host pics, i will gladly put them up here so you can see what I mean about the plate not fitting or even being machined right. Only wish i didn't take 5 minutes to blow all the @#$%damn shavings out from every hole in the TB with compressed air. They would've really scared you!!
The shavings just add insult to injury, as whoever did the work (the second time) obviously didn't take any time to inspect their work, and from my nightmare experience of 2 weeks ago, I can tell you this part needs to be done RIGHT because even a little clearance causes an unavoidable high idle.
EDIT: I just saw Shawn's post after writing this. I called and left a message at the same number I talked to you on, this time I got a machine and left a message. I left my number on my message. This was all around 4:30 Eastern. I got a call back shortly but it was "Unknown" (the first I have ever seen on my phone) so I didn't answer. I would love to get a good product and your price is super-fair. If you say it is someone else that biffed again, I will give you another chance to get it right because I have no right to bitch if the price is good and the service is good but it takes forever. I'll even pay to send you this one back. I am just mad because this is the 2nd time around and the shavings are UBER-offensive.

You can host pictures at www.imageshack.us .

Send that tb back to us and put attn SHAWN.. i will personally redo that and i will refund your amount in full..that way you have a great part and all of your money back to buy some other go fast goodies..if you want call me at the shop im still here

Ok, I just got off the phone with Shawn. First of all, kudos to him for offering to talk about this @ 8:30 pm and being cool about it too. He even offered to do it himself, guaranteed, and to give me a refund.
If the other poster in this thread says his TB is good, I am willing to give it another shot because the price is low and the service looks to be shaping up as well. I talked with Shawn about the problems with my plate/bore in detail and am sending it back so he can see the problem and correct it so it doesn't happen to someone else. I've got to give them another chance because Shawn is obviously willing to go the extra mile if he is willing to refund and do the work too. I'm trusting him and they can keep my money if it comes back right.
He will be sending a new one soon, and I will post when I get it installed.

Originally posted by silverarrow
2.It isn't the original, but then it isn't round either! On the sides that are near where the pin that holds the plate goes into the bore, the plate is actually flattened, so even if there wasn't an issue with the boring, the air would slip by there.

Actually, that is how it should look. I won't go into it too much, but you cant make them perfectly round and have them fit tight at closed throttle. The sides where it slides into the throttle shaft should be flattened to 55mm - the rest of the plate should be a little bigger. Like 55.2 or 55.3mm. The air won't "slip by" the flattened spots becuase thats where the throttle shaft is.

A properly designed plate should be able to close all the way around the bore of the TB. With the TB uninstalled, you should be able to hold it up to your eye and point it toward a light and see NO light pass through. Its an easy QA check for making butterfly plates. They also shouldn't stick into the bore of the TB as well - thats the only other QA check that needs to be made.

As far as a finishing check is concerned - any metal flakes left in a TB after machining is simply deplorable. I think the worst it could do is damage some spark plugs or maybe even partially clog a catalytic converter(if you still have one)...but still - thats just fucking ugly.

Sounds like your working on getting it together over there(at CI). Good luck with that Shawn.


95 Eclipse RS : 5 speed
15.7 @ 87.9mph
Jeep TB writeup - http://www.dimensia.com:81/jimbo/JeepTBfor2gnt.html

Even though i've been hearing stuff about Concept Illusions stuff being shitty lately, each time they came through and offered to fix it or refund.

With customer service like that, they seem pretty trustworthy. Im going to wait out a little before buying anything tho to see if anyone else has trouble.

Well I purchased an EGR block of kit and also a Valve Cover Gasket kit from them and only recieved their paypal re-ply thus far. I will post again when I get the products/etc.

Ok, I've left this alone for awhile just because I don't want to get involved with the wise-ass smokers on this site who seem to want to rip you for the sake of seeing their bullshit in writing. Approx. 5? months ago, I bought a 55 for a customer, from Shaun. Spoke to him on phone originally. Received TB and when I went to put it on, I noticed the same type of gap all the way around. I knew this was wrong and I told the customer that it would up his idle and make it a bit goofy (were not talking about 1/4 gap here. But it does not take much to get that extra air in there). The kid was so hyped about putting it on (it did look good, kudos to the idea of powder coating) he said just put it on so he could drive fast! Hey, customers always right so I obliged and the idle was up and unstable (even after time for ECU settle in) but he was happy and on his way. I called Shaun and e-mailed Shaun REPEATEDLY after that to see if this was just a fluke thing. No bull here, I was interested in using him for a source and I did not want to get repeat performance. Never received a response. My customer paid me and he was happy so no harm no foul on this one.

Shaun, no anger and no hard feelings on this one but you lost a customer because of this. I called AT LEAST three times and left messages and I e-mailed twice. That should be more than enough to get a response from a 2gnter.

Anyway, crap like this just gets my stubborn ass up and moving so I just developed a way to make my own TBs.

Thought you guys should know.
MB

It's posts like this that make me glad I can just hop in the car and drive over to see www.fierro-racing.com/ personally. Eddie has always been reasonable in his prices and first rate in his services. Shit. He's even getting into MS tuning these days. It's good to see a vendor offering to make things right, but this shouldn't have to take three tries and several phone calls to happen.

for the price it looks like a good deal.

The TB I got back from CI came out fantastic, I'm very pleased with it.

i dunno how you guys are having trouble getting in touch with shawn...shit i never bought a thing from him and i talk to him online everytime i have a question..even if its just about a general question not even something to do with his busines...his screen name is conceptillusions incase anybody has problems getting in touch with him

I just got my egr block off kit and valve cover gasket set from them. Everything looks good as far as I can tell. Will know for sure when I install them next week

Once I get the TB (should be soon) I will also get back to everyone after the install.

I also dont see how its hard to contact Sean, I had a problem with my debit card and he was there everytime I called which was like 40 times lol I suck. :wallbash

I dont think the problem lies with shawn hes helped me alot as well and everytime I can get ahold of him hes got answers. I think there is a loss of communication with the other guys in his shop. If shawn could be super shawn and handle everything personally I think it would be a different result but he does what he can when hes informed of it. As for the troubles Ive had its been with the other guys in shop that seem to drop the ball.

I have emailed concept illusions three times now about their oil line kits and downpipe, still no response from them.
~Jeffo



Top end: Ported and polished head, REV stainless Valves, Crower stage 2 cams, Crower valve springs and titanium retainers, SBI rockers and lashers, Fidanza Cam gears, ARP Headstuds.

Bottom end: JE 8.8:1 pistons, Eagle H-beam rods, Balance rotating assembly, Clevitte Rod and Main bearings, Melling oil pump, Crank scraper, carter water pump.

Ignition: MSD Coil, MSD wires, NGK iridium spark plugs.

Bolt ons: MP 60mm throttle body, ported and polished intake manifold gasket matched, Magnaflow catback, high flow cat, Unorthodox UDP, Ground wire kit.

Suspension: Eibach Ground control coilovers, KYB AGX gas adjustable struts, Strut tower bars.

Drivetrain: SPEC stage 4 clutch

Body/Interior: VIS Evo carbon fiber hood, stock red body, stock black 16" rims. Ractive carbon shift boot and ebrake boot, Ractive carbon blue gauges (boost, oil press., volts, and cluster, blue underseat lights.

Installing at the moment: Garrett t3/t04e stage 2 water cooled turbo, RC 440cc injectors, Vortech SFMU, HKS SSQV BOV, Star FMIC and piping, Star manifold, 3" Downpipe, Tial 38mm WG, Walbro 255 fuel pump, Missing link.

Originally posted by powellds
I have emailed concept illusions three times now about their oil line kits and downpipe, still no response from them. ~Jeffo

Perhaps you should pick up the phone and call?

Originally posted by powellds
I have emailed concept illusions three times now about their oil line kits and downpipe, still no response from them.

/me stands by with torch and a Zippo...

I've had to wait a good while for some items i've ordered from them, but I must say the only way to get in touch with them is by calling. The people that work there are all extremely helpful and friendly.

Seems that they still have issues with service there. I bit the bullet and decided to go with them even though I hear lots of war stories about waiting months for their orders to ship. I purchased their oil feed and return kits which shipped a week after the order, but I have been waiting weeks on my fuel pump,missing link, and items with no responses. First off, everyone shouldnt have to contact THEM looking for stuff they paid for. It should be shipped...period. At least drop an email to them if there will be a delay on one or all of the items ordered. I won't be using them ever again unless this stuff shows up soon or I, at the very least, get an email reply!

good job :thumbsup way to bring back a old post there buddy.

well i am glad he did cause they do still have service issues there and need to get that stuff takin care of. they are loosing a lot of business from this, i have had issuses with them in the past too.

actually i agree it is a good thing to discuss, especially since most people dont search back too far, and concept illusions comes up fairly commonly on most ebay searches for 2gnt parts... i recently bought a melling oil pump from them...and i didnt have a single problem getting it. i didnt have to call or anything...im not sure on the ship date, but it arrived within an acceptable amount of time being that im in the southwest... that and the postal service being what it is..

Can't chew someone's ass because they didn't search, only to talk shit when they bump an older thread, fellas. Jack's an old friend of mine and he knows what he's doing. :thumbsup

Thanks D man.

Yep, they still suck alright. After no replies to my emails, I decided to call and got someone! I asked about the status of my order and his reply was "sorry man, we only do order tracking through emails and online now". Then I told him I ordered it 3 weeks ago, the auro-response email had a link which didnt work (surprise surprise) and I haven't got a single reply so he decided to take down my info and said he'd call back (this was at noon). I get home at 5:30 and yet to have a return call, so I call back and leave a message on the answering machine. Think I got a call or email all day today? nope. Friggin guys burn more bridges than they can build.

I ordered a egr blockoff kit from one of their ebay auctions. The product was as expected. I could have walked to the neighboring state and back in a shorter time than they took to finally deliver it. I called, left 2 voicemails and made 3 email attempts through ebay. Their CS is seriously lacking. I wasnt worried about 18 bucks so I didnt make a big fit about it but 3 weeks to come one state west is kinda crappy imo. So it goes. I got what I needed finally so in the end it worked out.

Ok, so after more than a weeks worth of email attempts with no replies, multiple voicemails and even calling and talking to them 2 times prior....I called again and the kid gives me the same "only through emails man" thing and I blew up. How can I get it through emails if you dont friggin reply ya douchebag? He then hands the phone to another employee, Paul I believe, who was able to at least read back my order form. He then tells me he thinks it shipped about a month ago. After telling him I would be holding the stuff in my hands if that were true, it then became July 1st that it shipped.

It was close to closing and I had the feeling they were just trying to get me off the phone without actually doing a damn thing. He then says he has the USPS tracking number and when he's reading it, every four digits some 'magical' noise happens to make the last couple digits unable to be heard. I'm no friggin fool, this was him blatently mumbling the numbers through a shirt or something. THEN he keeps doing it but the 'magical' noise is now the crumpling of paper. When I get the number I tell him to wait on the line while I check on my comp......guess which tracking number does not exist in the USPS data base.....yep. He then has the comically 'shocked' sound in his voice "really? thats strange. hmmm". He then roughly says "Darn, USPS is closed now or I'd check on that. You'll have to call tomorrow around 5:30 so I can see whats up with the shipping department". Hmm, isn't USPS STILL closed tomorrow at 5:30 like it is today? Yeah, go goof off some more guys. A terrible company! Shawn, you're company is going down the tubes because of the crap you let go with your employee's. I am reversing my payment through paypal tomorrow.

Well, I called yesterday to get my refund and Shawn answered (thank friggin god) and he made sure the item was shipped that day, which it was. Even though it was taken care of (barely), I still wouldn't recommend their services to anyone that wants their product in a reasonable time.

Originally posted by jack_of_trades
Well, I called yesterday to get my refund and Shawn answered (thank friggin god) and he made sure the item was shipped that day, which it was. Even though it was taken care of (barely), I still wouldn't recommend their services to anyone that wants their product in a reasonable time.

These are my sentiments exactly. Won't got through the stories but,unfortunately, this is where it lands.

MB