My brother and I wanted to take the time to publicly thank First State Motorsports (FSM) of Claymont, Delaware for ultimately finishing a job that others in the recent past have miserably failed. We have to thank Josh, Dan, and the rest of the FSM crew for taking on a most daunting task and delivering a superior product.
Our Supra’s original engine quit in June 2007, and we immediately began the process of purchasing the parts necessary for making the vehicle road worthy again. At the time we were faced with an extremely limited budget and a deficiency for mechanical skills and talent. The following account is a description of how our vehicle ultimately found its way to the care and attention of the team at FSM.
From June 2007 to approximately June 2008, the car had been to two mechanics who claimed they were up to the task. The first mechanic did absolutely nothing with the car, and after a number of months of it collecting dust in his garage, we decided to move it to another local shop that proceeded to pull the motor and just about everything else from the engine bay. This second shop did not perform any additional work, and the car was then moved to a third mechanic who is/was considered to be a competent Supra mechanic.
The car sat under a tree and was basically left to die slowly at this third mechanic’s shop. In the time this mechanic had the vehicle, nothing was completed on the car, and after calling multiple times for updates, I kept receiving excuse after excuse regarding the lack of progress on our car. After a period of approximately 6.5 months, the car was then moved to FSM.
I first found out about First State Motorsports on the forums under shop reviews. After reading the account, I thought that perhaps they would be able to assist in my brother’s and my situation. From the first time Josh picked up the phone, I knew I was dealing with a professional and a businessman. Josh took the time to listen to my situation, evaluate the nature of the build, and proceeded to offer a resolution. Well after a few more phone calls ironing out details, Josh had won our business. To make things easier, the FSM team drove hours to take possession of the car and all of its parts and transport them back to their shop.
One of the qualities noted about Josh and First State is their communication with customers. Josh and his team remained in constant contact, and they provided updates that were meaningful and substantive to the project at hand. Again, from start to finish my brother and I had the pleasure of experiencing this quality. It is without a doubt the single most important tool a shop has to maintain good relationships with their customers.
Without getting into too much detail about the build now, FSM detected a number of issues that made them call into question the integrity of the work previously done by the three prior shops. Knowing that they wouldn’t be able to stand behind someone else’s work, we authorized First State to look into everything mechanically and fix anything that they deemed necessary. This is irritating because we were now paying two times for something that was supposed to have been done correctly in the past.
After a number of hurdles, countless hours of work, and some minor logistical delays, Josh called this past week and gave us the news that the car was ready for preliminary road use. We made our trip to Delaware on Saturday, July 18 to pick it up. Josh was there to give us a full overview of everything that had been done to the car; he even took the time to show us some of the more serious issues we had and how his team rectified the problems. After about 45 minutes of going over the car, Josh fired it up and took me for my first ride in over 2 years. Initially, the car felt good, solid – just like a Toyota should. Then he proceeded to get on I-95 and head south. Leaning into the throttle slightly, Josh brought the car up to speed. The sound of the turbo and exhaust coupled with the feel of a solid build put a huge smile on my face. I was at a loss for words. I was beyond happy; I was beyond tears of joy. First State Motorsports didn’t just fix our car; they brought it back to life. I will never forget that first ride.
The car now has approximately 450 miles on the new motor, and there isn’t a single leak under the car or wet spot near any of the critical fluid lines. Everything mechanically about the car is rock solid, and I will dare say that it drives better now than it ever did. We are scheduled for a follow-up with First State to monitor the progress and address anything deemed necessary.
Again, I’m so grateful that First State was accommodating, and that they took their time to make sure everything was done correctly. To Josh, Dan, and the rest of the FSM crew, my brother and I wanted to extend to your our deepest thanks for making it possible for us to enjoy this hobby again. You guys didn’t get another customer, but rather you earned a client. And we gained friends.
Thinking that this is a dream, I’m still pinching myself but I’m not waking up. This is reality . . . this is First State Motorsports of Claymont, Delaware.
Our Supra’s original engine quit in June 2007, and we immediately began the process of purchasing the parts necessary for making the vehicle road worthy again. At the time we were faced with an extremely limited budget and a deficiency for mechanical skills and talent. The following account is a description of how our vehicle ultimately found its way to the care and attention of the team at FSM.
From June 2007 to approximately June 2008, the car had been to two mechanics who claimed they were up to the task. The first mechanic did absolutely nothing with the car, and after a number of months of it collecting dust in his garage, we decided to move it to another local shop that proceeded to pull the motor and just about everything else from the engine bay. This second shop did not perform any additional work, and the car was then moved to a third mechanic who is/was considered to be a competent Supra mechanic.
The car sat under a tree and was basically left to die slowly at this third mechanic’s shop. In the time this mechanic had the vehicle, nothing was completed on the car, and after calling multiple times for updates, I kept receiving excuse after excuse regarding the lack of progress on our car. After a period of approximately 6.5 months, the car was then moved to FSM.
I first found out about First State Motorsports on the forums under shop reviews. After reading the account, I thought that perhaps they would be able to assist in my brother’s and my situation. From the first time Josh picked up the phone, I knew I was dealing with a professional and a businessman. Josh took the time to listen to my situation, evaluate the nature of the build, and proceeded to offer a resolution. Well after a few more phone calls ironing out details, Josh had won our business. To make things easier, the FSM team drove hours to take possession of the car and all of its parts and transport them back to their shop.
One of the qualities noted about Josh and First State is their communication with customers. Josh and his team remained in constant contact, and they provided updates that were meaningful and substantive to the project at hand. Again, from start to finish my brother and I had the pleasure of experiencing this quality. It is without a doubt the single most important tool a shop has to maintain good relationships with their customers.
Without getting into too much detail about the build now, FSM detected a number of issues that made them call into question the integrity of the work previously done by the three prior shops. Knowing that they wouldn’t be able to stand behind someone else’s work, we authorized First State to look into everything mechanically and fix anything that they deemed necessary. This is irritating because we were now paying two times for something that was supposed to have been done correctly in the past.
After a number of hurdles, countless hours of work, and some minor logistical delays, Josh called this past week and gave us the news that the car was ready for preliminary road use. We made our trip to Delaware on Saturday, July 18 to pick it up. Josh was there to give us a full overview of everything that had been done to the car; he even took the time to show us some of the more serious issues we had and how his team rectified the problems. After about 45 minutes of going over the car, Josh fired it up and took me for my first ride in over 2 years. Initially, the car felt good, solid – just like a Toyota should. Then he proceeded to get on I-95 and head south. Leaning into the throttle slightly, Josh brought the car up to speed. The sound of the turbo and exhaust coupled with the feel of a solid build put a huge smile on my face. I was at a loss for words. I was beyond happy; I was beyond tears of joy. First State Motorsports didn’t just fix our car; they brought it back to life. I will never forget that first ride.
The car now has approximately 450 miles on the new motor, and there isn’t a single leak under the car or wet spot near any of the critical fluid lines. Everything mechanically about the car is rock solid, and I will dare say that it drives better now than it ever did. We are scheduled for a follow-up with First State to monitor the progress and address anything deemed necessary.
Again, I’m so grateful that First State was accommodating, and that they took their time to make sure everything was done correctly. To Josh, Dan, and the rest of the FSM crew, my brother and I wanted to extend to your our deepest thanks for making it possible for us to enjoy this hobby again. You guys didn’t get another customer, but rather you earned a client. And we gained friends.
Thinking that this is a dream, I’m still pinching myself but I’m not waking up. This is reality . . . this is First State Motorsports of Claymont, Delaware.
glad it all worked out for you.
