[9899musl]

Originally Posted by Jeff Chambers

Don't get me wrong, but let me play the devil's advocate here. The well known company that you bought the heads from may not be at fault, you and your engine builder may not be at fault. Let me ask a few questions here, just to interject a little more thought into the matter.

- Where was the crank when the heads were set and torqued down?
- What kind of assembly lube was used at assembly and prior to start up?
- What kind/viscosity of oil were you using when the cam siezed?
- What was the engines oil pressure when the cam siezed?
- Was the shortblock assembly thoroughly washed before assembly?
- Did you do any break-in on the entire finished engine?
- Have you cut the oil filter apart to inspect it since the failure occured?
- Did your engine builder check the cam journal torquing at engine assembly?
- Why didn't it fail immediately upon start-up, why 1500 miles in?

What I'm trying to say here is that there are a million variables involved here and the company you bought the heads from may not be any more responsible than you yourself are. Just be careful about trashing their reputation publicly since there is no definitive evidence that their actions led to the failure any more than there is that your actions may have led to the failure. When it comes to performance parts and racing, there are no guarantees. Plain and simple, crap will happen and if you're going to get into the game you have to prepare yourself to accept it. I will temper that thought though....if there is proof beyond reasonable doubt that their actions cause the failure then you are indeed entitled to some sort of restitution even if its only the company providing you with another head of equal value. Otherwise, just because you have a few people that you've talked to that think Company A is at fault, and that you can find some simpathy on a few message forums, really doesn't hold any water in a court of law or an intellegent court of public opinion. My advice, as a long time racer and a performance shop owner, is to work with everyone involved in a very cordial fashion. If together you can fix the problem and all walk away a friends, there's much more value in that than there is in the cost of 1000 heads.

Just some food for thought.

Thanks for the reply,PM sent!