Peter @ Southbend

[Doughboy21kd]

I am sure that some or maybe most of you know or have heard of Peter @ Southbend... .



I just wanted to shine the light on this guy for going more than out of his way on Customer Service and keeping his customers ... ... .



I had ordered a clutch (SB OFE) and the hydraulic upgrade for a G56... .



Well when putting in the clutch over the labor day weekend i ran into some problems..... First i had problems getting the stock flywheel off and between NWBombers and TDR website i had posted my problem and within 10 minutes i was getting phone calls with answers to my questions and knowledge on how to get it off... . Well after that i found that i had no flywheel bolts for the new flywheel so B4 i could email peter someone else had already done it for me(Thanks Sweing)... . This all took place on saturday... After getting off the flywheel i noticed oil on the back of the stock flywheel looked at the truck and what do ya know the rear crank shaft seal was leaking ... I'm thinking to myself come on its only got 6K on the clock... .



Well Monday rolled around which was labor day... . Peter called me on the phone which was very un-expected on a holiday..... Had told him my problems and troubles and he was more than happy to help me out... . He overnighted the new flywheel bolts to me and took care of me with other things that had occured in the install process... ...



Clutch is in and truck moves awesome now..... Now just need to add the power to it..... Oo. Oo.



I just wanted to let someone know that i appreiciate what Service(peter) @ Southbend has given me and that if anyone else has a problem with there Clutch issues... . Don't hesitate to call peter as he gets a A++++ in my book for top notch service... .

 

[BigBadDodge]

No surprises here, Peter's customer service is awesome like the products he sells.



BBD

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

For the record, was the new flywheel SUPPOSED to come with new bolts?

 

[Doughboy21kd]

When you get as new flywheel: Yes



Example: I switched from the wonderful Dual Mass flywheel that DC puts in the G56 transmission's back to a single mass flywheel..... Peter says you supposed to get new bolts as the stock ones wont work(not long enough)

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

... So, in other words, what you got in "customer service", was what you DIDN'T get with the original shipment, as it should have been?



Sorry to be so dense, but I have trouble with the concept that late shipment of missing parts is to be considered "excellent customer service" - to me, best customer service would be for ALL the parts to be there from the beginning!



But, as usual, I'm probably missing something here... :-laf

 

[jwilliams3]

Whats wrong gary forget to take your geritol today? :-laf

 

[JGK]

OK. Maybe Peter made a mistake and forgot the bolts that should have been included originally. But he made good and sent them.



But to continue with the theme of this thread - Peter's excellent customer service - I have to relate my experience last July. My dual disk 3600 - 6 puck clutch started slipping prematurely. I contacted Peter. He had me remove it and send it back for examination. He sent me a brand new clutch with release bearing free of charge. When I mentioned the problem of chatter and engagement noise, he considered it might be the 6 pucks and sent a set of 12 puck disks to try. Again, no charge. The only cost to me was the time to R & R the clutch and shipping charges to send it to him. That's why we love doing business with SouthBend.



Now contrast that with my Canon inkjet printer that started complaining of a bad print head last week. $10 up front just to TALK to tech support at Canon. Not for me. The local service center wants $25 minimum just to drop in a spare (used) one just to see if that fixes it - a 2 minute job. Pi$$ on 'em.



Anyway, Peter is truly a 5-star dealer/manufacturer.



-Jay

 

[Sixpack]

Mr. Personality speaks! Where's the bla bla bla emicon?

 

[RobertP]

with all of this great talk about Peter and southbend i cant wait to get get my con fe. Oo.

 

[drawson]

Gary for a person that has never been a South Bend customer you sure do like to jump in on every thread about them. And I've yet to see you say anything good about them?? As my Granddaddy would say if you don't have anything good to say don't say anything at all!!!



I for one have always had SUPER customer service from Peter!! I unlike Gary go way back with Peter & South Bend(1999). I have always had the best service from them.



Peter as always YOUR the MAN!!!!

 

[Highfinance97]

I

Peter took care of me with two Fe's and now my 3850 DD.



last year when i had the transmission down and was puttin in the DD (oct/Nov. 2005) there were no 1 3/8 input shafts to be found across the U. S.

the only ones that would've been avalible the soonest were haisley's which were $900. 00. So peter offered me a Smokin deal that i couldnt refuse, and i ended up getting haisley's input shaft



he is very friendly, he returns phone calls in a very timely fashion and very noligable. all in all Peter is a great guy, even to Bull **** on the phone :-laf





Michael

 

[willyslover]

Dee. . just goes to show ya, ya can't be all things to all people. .



I too will say that Peter is one of the very few companies who I trust 100% with not only advise but also in their great product. . also an early user and now many miles on my FE with reasonable high HP and heavy pulling a 16K 5er. [miles on the clutch is now about 145K]

 

[Turbo Thom]

I've said it from the start. If I had a kennel full of dogs and Peter sold cat food, I'd buy cat food, cause 1- It's Peter, and 2- Peter will make it feed like dog food.



Good people.



. . Preston. .

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

Gary for a person that has never been a South Bend customer you sure do like to jump in on every thread about them. And I've yet to see you say anything good about them?? As my Granddaddy would say if you don't have anything good to say don't say anything at all!!!



I for one have always had SUPER customer service from Peter!! I unlike Gary go way back with Peter & South Bend(1999). I have always had the best service from them.



Peter as always YOUR the MAN!!!!

You totally miss - or deliberately ignore - my point...



Not to mention the "need" to demean me personally, rather than stick to the issue!



Please point out ANY part of my earlier posts in this thread where I in the SLIGHTEST abused or demeaned Peter or SBC!



I merely questioned, calmly and logically, the enthusiasm and basic theme of this thread - and the original poster has himself responded with calm courtesy to my comments - I appreciate that, since I intended NO insult or abuse to him, OR Peter!



The issue?



What truly constitutes "unusual customer service"?



First, let's examine REASONABLE, and EXPECTED customer service:



1. Stuff we buy should meet all claims made for them.



2. Stuff should be delivered promptly, and packed in a way to reasonably minimize damage.



3. Stuff poorly made, or defective, should be replaced immediately without debate - or money refunded.



4. Vendors should be easily reached, and rapidly responsive to problems and questions. .



That pretty well covers the basics.



What is reasonable on the part of the customer?



1. Properly outline (in performance parts like clutches) as accurately as possible, exactly HOW the product is to be used, and what you expect from it.



2. Carefully inspect delivered merchandise as soon as it arrives, to determine any damage or shortages (There IS a parts list, RIGHT?) - and to also visually assure yourself the stuff is really what you wanted and expected.



3. Carefully follow ALL vendor specifications for installation - he can't reasonably be expected to warrant stuff poorly or improperly installed.



4. If problems or questions arise, proper customer service will (should!) rapidly be available for help.



SO, how does the topic and lead post in this thread measure up?



1. Parts arrived in a poor state - either poor packing, or poor transportation. Normally, that is sufficient grounds for refusal of delivery!



2. Apparently no parts list, or else it wasn't referred to to discover missing components.



SO, customer contacts vendor (others did so as well), and subsequently, missing parts are delivered to complete the installation.



QUESTION:



What part of the above qualifies as "unusual" customer service?



All seems pretty normal and reasonable to me - and pretty much what I consistently have received from the vast majority of vendors I have dealt with in the past years.



It's true, that sometimes vendors fall short on what a reasonable person considers normal levels of service - but they usually aren't around very long!



SO, my point in all the above - as much as that clearly irritates some here - is that while it's always nice to hear happy endings to member problems, over-embellishing what was actually a rather NORMAL outcome and response to a problem seems sorta excessive if examined calmly and rationally.



I suspect Peter himself would agree that what he did here was pretty normal stuff - for the decent vendor he clearly is! I'm not intending to minimize what Peter did here, but question the overemphasis of what is actually pretty normal stuff for a decent vendor.



What then, constitutes UNUSUAL customer service?



1. Free replacement at no cost, parts that have been improperly used outside design limits.



2. Free replacement of parts that have been clearly abused.



3. Free replacement of parts that have been improperly installed, clearly outside vendor supplied guidelines.



4. Unusual efforts and/or actions on the part of a vendor to resolve issue FAR outside his responsibility or control - and to do so rapidly.



There are more - but that's the basics.



Peter at SBC has REPEATEDLY, and consistently displayed virtually ALL the above, as evidenced by the MANY testimonials posted here in the past - THOSE are the ones clearly deserving of the sort of applause this thread suggests. Peter IS "the best" in terms of going the second mile for his customers - I'd have absolutely NO qualms doing business with him, or recommending him to friends.



And I've said THAT a few times before too, Mister Drawson - sorry you missed it!



I don't necessarily think he makes the best clutches for all applications (but he very will might! ) - and he certainly doesn't make the CHEAPEST - but THAT, was NEVER the subject or issue here!



SO, what's one of the surest ways to stirr up a violent and explosive response on this board? Easy - just offer up ANY opinion that in ANY way can be construed by a SBC fan as intended to detract from the integrity or quality of Peter and his product.



To the best of my knowledge, I have never done that - or at least it was never my intention - and if it seems that way, I will here and now publicly apologize to Peter - since HE alone is the one so entitled. As always, Peter and SBC provide customer service in ALL issues, big and small, that is second to none!



In an earlier thread about the unfortunate and untimely death of Greg Boardman, I attempted to point out the sensitivity and need to offer flowers (complements) to the living, rather than bouquets at their funerals - the original poster in this thread was attempting to do just that - sorry I spoiled his effort - and he too has my sincere apology.



The rest here who might wish continue to mis-apply my comments and point, and then choose get abusive over it... Well, you KNOW what you can do, too... :-laf

 

[SEwing]

I just wanted to add that Peter took the time with me, a clutch novice, to examine which clutch would be best for what I have done to the truck, what I was planning on doing to the truck and my driving style. I had a couple of questions during the install and gave him a quick call. He was willing to take the time out of his busy day to discuss my issues and give me the advice that I needed to complete the job correctly.



After I got the Con Ofe installed I was having issues with shifting between first(low) and reverse and I called him again and he recommended the hydro upgrade kit, which is only required on about 50% of the G56 trannies. I have dealt with companies before that couldn't care less about their customers after the exchange of money and goods was complete.



This is one man and one company that I will go back to when the time is needed and I will highly recommend them to all my friends that have a need for any type of clutch that Southbend make or can make.



Thank you Peter for making such a great product.



Shawn

 

[South Bend Clutch]

I would like to thank all of you for the kind words.



Gary, You are obviously a very intelligent person and for the most part your reasoning is just. The fact of the matter is we screwed up. The bolts should have been in the flywheel. We caused a problem and we disrupted his weekend. I believe the reason for his post is, I called him on a holiday, red labeled what he was missing the following day, asked him if incurred any additional expenses. He said he was doing it himself and would have to keep the transmission jack a little longer so I sent a check along with the parts to pay for the jack and hopefully a little extra to buy some beer. Would all companies do this? I would hope so. Do they? Some, not all. But, I sure feel better when I do.



You have stated in many posts in the past that a good company should not have to show there customer service after the sale and the sheer numbers of people posting could possibly show inadequate parts. Keeping up with the HP and trying to connect it to the ground has not been an easy task but we are trying our best. Do you all remember back when Joe Donelly achieved 400 HP! :-laf I would also think you would understand numbers relative to problems. We sell quite a few clutches so if you think of ratio (problems to no problems) I think our numbers are pretty good.



Anyhoo, Have a great night folks and don't forget to tell your family that you love them.



Peter

 

[BPonci]

Peter,YOU ROCK!!!!! As far as i am concerned your company service and products are top quality. As you know in business you cant please everybody. But you guys do a great job of trying. KUDOS to SBC!!!

 

[BigBadDodge]

How about Peters custum service



Hey Peter do you make a three disc clutch? no! want too? been in for a year now



That's Custum Customer Service :-laf



Thanks for everything big "P"



BBD

 

[BSwope]

Peter im wanting to up grade to the 3850 DD and im kinda leary cause i have the G56 and im wanting to start sled pullin but ive been readin that some fellas are breakin some internal parts with the DD's installed, could this be because the DMF isnt in their to obsorb some of the spikes created by the cummins? I know that the trannys are not made for this type of play from the factory, i just dont want to spend alot and get one of your awesome clutches and not be able to use it with a broken transmission. Any thoughs?



Thanks

Buddy

 

[GO 4LO]

I've got Iron Giants in both of my stick shift trucks and plan to run nothing but SBC's in the future. Awesome product, great customer service, quick responses to questions, and classy responses to questions/needling online.



Chris