SMS

60fury

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Location
Waterford, WI
Anyone get interior stuff from them lately? I have been out 23 months now waiting
on door panels for my '60 Fury.....
Thanks
 
23 months!!!! My god, that's a long time ... When I had my door panels made by them for my '58, it took about 10 months, but that was 10 years ago.

They did a super sale during the last months to boost up business during the COVID lockdown. If I remember well, it was -20% on all the store, and they did say that they had an incredible response. Maybe they're buried under orders now ... But anyhow, yours should be a priority!
 
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I contacted them during the sale, they never responded to my 3 requests. I wanted them to do my '62 Polara interior. Going to go to a local shop now. They'll have everything ready in abt 4 months. Door panels, seats, headliner, package shelf etc.
 
Anyone get interior stuff from them lately? I have been out 23 months now waiting
on door panels for my '60 Fury.....
Thanks

I usually have to wait more than 3 years to get my door panel orders filled by them. And then I have to keep calling them after about 2 years and be a pest or I would likely never get them. I believe maybe half their orders are intended to wait you out hoping you will die before getting them filled, then it is good money for them.

But anyone else you sign up to do the reproductions will probably send you junky or incorrect reproductions - it takes dies being made to stamp them as the factory did.

Since they are really the only game in town for correct factory reproduction door panels, you just have to suffer since there really is no other option. All you can do to assuage your pain is to place you order in years in advance of needing them and then you have some leaverage a couple or few years down the road.

No one said restoring a car properly is easy.

So stop your crying and put on your big boy pants - I learned it doesn't do you any good.
 
they never have been fast on getting matls to anyone , but check with them . i once got someone elses order . they didn't know it was wrong . so call them up .
 
There is no excuse for taking over 6 months to do door panels, the process doesn't take that long.
Wit that volume of work stacked up is more than enough to justify more personnel and/or equipment.

Not a good business model in my opinion


Alan
 
There is no excuse for taking over 6 months to do door panels, the process doesn't take that long.
Wit that volume of work stacked up is more than enough to justify more personnel and/or equipment.

Not a good business model in my opinion


Alan

I was told the owner doesn't want to pay for health care that is required when they have more than a given number of employees. So they keep things bottled up at that limit.

They also bought out the only other companies that did similar business, including Original Auto Interiors and Le Baron Bonney I think it was who also made door panels.

The only other company making door panels is one that supplies Corvettes only to my knowledge.

So here we are.
 
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I'm almost 62 yrs old. I'm not waiting 3 years to get an interior done. I'm getting it done and to hell with "correct". I have selected the colors that are close to but not perfect, the texture isn't the same but acceptable to me I just want my car done and driveable so I can enjoy it.
If it was a car that I was building to park in a museum or really wanted concourse correct so I could win trophies perhaps it would be worth the wait.
I'll be happy with the results and be smiling with every mile I put on, sitting in my new seats....
 
I waited just over 3 years to get my 61 Plymouth interior panels. Things moved a little faster once I became a squeaky wheel. I never became impatient or rude with them. Just a email enquiry once a week after the 2nd year.
They have a strange attitude toward doing business.
 
Will is spot on with his attitude toward staying respectful and polite. Rudeness and impatience is a sure way to get shoved to the back of the line. Friendly reminders and a little nudge works best. Wish more folks took that attitude. Thanks for the reminder Will!!
 
23 months seems like an awfully long time - but with door panels there aren't a lot of sources, especially on Forward Look cars, and I'd advise going with bluefury361's model of "polite persistence...." which might help. Good luck.
 
Will is spot on with his attitude toward staying respectful and polite. Rudeness and impatience is a sure way to get shoved to the back of the line. Friendly reminders and a little nudge works best. Wish more folks took that attitude. Thanks for the reminder Will!!

This is the approach I use with both Leslie and Kim who I usually deal with. Eventually, they do come through even though they tend to offer optimistic time frames, making me have to call back again a couple more times after some interval.

And, yes, they are the only game in town but at least the end result (the product you get) is really good - it usually far exceeds my expectations (which are pretty high). That is why I put up with them. In other words, it could be worse...........

I also ask myself how much I would like a job like Leslie and Kim have taking calls all day from less than happy customers. That is why I am respectful to them always. I have not escalated anything to the owner so far because I doubt it would do any good.
 
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I usually have to wait more than 3 years to get my door panel orders filled by them. And then I have to keep calling them after about 2 years and be a pest or I would likely never get them. I believe maybe half their orders are intended to wait you out hoping you will die before getting them filled, then it is good money for them.

But anyone else you sign up to do the reproductions will probably send you junky or incorrect reproductions - it takes dies being made to stamp them as the factory did.

Since they are really the only game in town for correct factory reproduction door panels, you just have to suffer since there really is no other option. All you can do to assuage your pain is to place you order in years in advance of needing them and then you have some leaverage a couple or few years down the road.

No one said restoring a car properly is easy.

So stop your crying and put on your big boy pants - I learned it doesn't do you any good.
Wow. I obtained my top secret clearance in less time and that duration included Corporate Security sitting on it for over 6 months!
 
Sale LOL. More like a fraud. It would be nice to see someone with deep pockets initiate a lawsuit.

Well, then they would just charge more to cover the lawsuit settlement or they might close their doors, leaving us all out in the cold......................................

Just let the administrator of your trust know that you have an order outstanding with them and make them come through is about all that can be done if one kicks the bucket before an order comes in.

They pretty much have us where they want us, like it or not. :(
 
Well, then they would just charge more to cover the lawsuit settlement or they might close their doors, leaving us all out in the cold......................................

Just let the administrator of your trust know that you have an order outstanding with them and make them come through is about all that can be done if one kicks the bucket before an order comes in.

They pretty much have us where they want us, like it or not. :(
I don't know, FCBO class action lawsuit has a nice ring to it LOL.
 
I disagree. Several people here have chosen a different path by going to a different place... We all have a choice.

Sure you have a choice if you don't care about the quality of the work you get. I don't settle for less than authentic original and I don't know any other supplier of door panels, for example, that can provide anything close to what SMS does (unless you happen to own a vintage Corvette is the only exception I am aware of, and I have searched). Special dies must be made to emboss the simulated stitching and the various depressions and patterns in door panels that match the factory original ones. That is why a set of door panels typically cost almost $1000 even when they have the dies for the ones you want. And they are able to match some of the bright moldings that also show up on various door panels as well. Their work is inarguably excellent in terms of what I eventually receive.

If you can't find an original, authentic cloth material that matches the factory material in every way, SMS says they will make it if they don't have it in stock and most of the time they come through just as described. But it takes time and patience to make that happen - if you know of any other suppliers who will do that, then certainly be my guest.

None of us has to walk in their shoes, so none of us really knows the issues they are up against and yes, we are all mostly frustrated at the long waits but if you want original and authentic, that is the price of admission.

And yes, you could have a class action lawsuit that would potentially close them down as Fred suggests, but when that happens, then what do you have left as a choice if you want something really original? I am the type of person that considers most every move/choice I make in life pretty carefully and am accused of "overthinking" things sometimes, but I have found over my many years on this planet that it saves frustration and heartache that makes it worthwhile.

And as some know on this site, I and others too have searched long and wide for vendors of parts we all need for our cars and then when I at least find willing ones, I work closely with them to make the parts as original as possible. Over the last decade of efforts we now have quite a few choices of vendors of very original parts for our cars that is suprising when you look at the long list. If you look at the list of suppliers that made it possible for Tim to restore his 1971 New Yorker to a very original state, for example, then this perspective comes into more clarity. For relatively low volume production 50 year old vehicles, we have it pretty good.

Take a look at this list of vendors who made it possible for Tim to restore his New Yorker to its current state in this thread (many of them are generic, but many important ones are not), as shown in post #343 (Tim and I had a lot of discussions on the best options in terms of suppliers of what he needed to get his car to the level it is that many will see at Carlisle soon):

Wyatt convinced me to destroy my 71...

And SMS and Legendary as well as many others aren't on the list because Tim's New Yorker is pretty low miles and he hasn't needed their services yet.

So yes, SMS is frustrating, but I am also glad they exist at all. And I appreciate that they provide excellent results/products most of the time, so I remind myself of that when I get frustrated and it helps.
 
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Sure you have a choice if you don't care about the quality of the work you get. I don't settle for less than authentic original and I don't know any other supplier of door panels, for example, that can provide anything close to what SMS does (unless you happen to own a vintage Corvette is the only exception I am aware of, and I have searched). Special dies must be made to emboss the simulated stitching and the various depressions and patterns in door panels that match the factory original ones. That is why a set of door panels typically cost almost $1000 even when they have the dies for the ones you want. And they are able to match some of the bright moldings that also show up on various door panels as well. Their work is inarguably excellent in terms of what I eventually receive.

If you can't find an original, authentic cloth material that matches the factory material in every way, SMS says they will make it if they don't have it in stock and most of the time they come through just as described. But it takes time and patience to make that happen - if you know of any other suppliers who will do that, then certainly be my guest.

None of us has to walk in their shoes, so none of us really knows the issues they are up against and yes, we are all mostly frustrated at the long waits but if you want original and authentic, that is the price of admission.

And yes, you could have a class action lawsuit that would potentially close them down as Fred suggests, but when that happens, then what do you have left as a choice if you want something really original? I am the type of person that considers most every move/choice I make in life pretty carefully and am accused of "overthinking" things sometimes, but I have found over my many years on this planet that it saves frustration and heartache that makes it worthwhile.

And as some know on this site, I and others too have searched long and wide for vendors of parts we all need for our cars and then when I at least find willing ones, I work closely with them to make the parts as original as possible. Over the last decade of efforts we now have quite a few choices of vendors of very original parts for our cars that is suprising when you look at the long list. If you look at the list of suppliers that made it possible for Tim to restore his 1971 New Yorker to a very original state, for example, then this perspective comes into more clarity. For relatively low volume production 50 year old vehicles, we have it pretty good.

Take a look at this list of vendors who made it possible for Tim to restore his New Yorker to its current state in this thread (many of them are generic, but many important ones are not), as shown in post #343 (Tim and I had a lot of discussions on the best options in terms of suppliers of what he needed to get his car to the level it is that many will see at Carlisle soon):

Wyatt convinced me to destroy my 71...

And SMS and Legendary as well as many others aren't on the list because Tim's New Yorker is pretty low miles and he hasn't needed their services yet.

So yes, SMS is frustrating, but I am also glad they exist at all. And I appreciate that they provide excellent results/products most of the time, so I remind myself of that when I get frustrated and it helps.
I agree with your reasoning. However, their communication skills are terrible, from what I have read and their record of being non-communicative is unacceptable and comes across as snooty and ‘Holier than Thou’. Those chosen behaviors alone are not worth my business. Period.

A friend of mine had a shop doing some work done on his car.
After some time had passed (weeks), he called to get an update and an ETA on the job.
After several attempts (while leaving messages), he finally got ahold of them. They hadn’t even started on the job!
The next day, he arrived at the shop with a trailer and picked up his car.
The shop was basically in ‘mouth agape’ as he loaded his car and left.

If you enter into a business arrangement with a company, and they are not communicative, they don’t deserve to be in business. I don’t care what they offer!
 
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