My experience with the Art Carr transmission company:
Before TTC '01 I ordered a super 700 from Art Carr and wanted a reverse manual valve body with compression braking. We talk about it a lot (with a salesman names Scott), send them lots of money ($2K+) and finally get a transmission. We install it and get ready to drive out of the shop and the truck barely moves in 1st gear. Turns out it wasn't a reverse pattern valve body at all, it was a forward pattern. So we talk and they are going to continue to work on the valve body but we have to run it for a while.
Then I get to TTC and run the acceleration event in a low transfer case gear as planned and when I pull my 3-4 shift, I get 4th gear and then it kicks back down to 3rd. Obviously not a full manual valvebody either. Luckily, losing high gear for a couple hundred feet didn't cost me anything at the competition.
I run the trans through the summer of '01 and lose compression braking altogether in 1st gear and it starts to shudder in reverse. So before EJS '02 we pull the multi thousand dollar 700 horsepower pile of crap out and put in my old reliable 700 my dad and I built in our garage in 1991. (which is in the truck right now so there's no way I trashed the AC trans with my driving treatment)
In this process, we pull the tranny pan and find it full of smelly oil and black stuff. Discussions with Scott reassure me that that's just fine, it's just the Kolene off the clutches and it's all fine, no reason to send it back, just replace the valvebody when they get us one. Believing that they would take care of us, I let this steaming pile hit the ground and didn't worry about it.
Another year goes by and they finally send us a new valvebody (in may of '03) but at that point, the old reliable 700 is working just fine so we put the valvebody next to the trans and leave it alone. I think "It shouldn't be a big deal, they took a year and a half to get us the new valvebody, it shouldn't be a problem if we don't put it in right away."
September '04 rolls around and I have a funny noise around the trans so I figure it's a good time to mess with the pile of crap 700 again so I take it to my local tranny guy to check over and install the valve body. He finds the insides are trash and workmanship is the same. The comverter bushing was a hard bushing and the converter hub wasn't hardened, the valvebody apparently didn't keep good pressure in the low and reverse clutches because they were smoked, the planetary wasn't even the newer style with a fluid shield on it. There were other problems that can be itemized.
So I call up Art Carr company and talk to a tech about it and a few days later get a letter stating that my warrany was up after one year from the purchase. I call and attempt to explain the sitation and the woman I end up with (CEO I guess) won't bother to listen and has no idea what I'm talking about. We do find a warranty invoice for the 2nd valvebody but that doesn't seem to prove any part of the story and in fact she flat out accused me of lying several times. One quote was:
"You've been running this car since then haven't you? What, did you just blow and motor and need the trans freshened up?" The fact that she didn't even listen enough to know that the trans was in a TRUCK indicates how much attention I got.
Needless to say I'm very bitter. I trusted them to work on this with me and now have a couple thousand dollars worth of scrap parts and wasted time. And all I asked for was to have it repaired or have parts sent up here for us to pay to have installed. They would be out a couple hundred in rebuild parts and a new converter but instead, they have me thoroughly pissed and I will spread this story at every opportunity. I do not appreciate being called a liar and do not appreciate paying to be a guinea pig and being left holding the bag.
I will personally never deal with the Art Carr company again and can never recommend them to anyone. I'm normally pretty easy going but taking that attitude with this company cost me a lot of money and time and their final treatment of this matter was rude to say the very least. You will probably see this story again as I think that anyone who is considering doing business with art carr should know about it. If this is the way they treat a repeat customer that's in the automotive aftermarket industry, I can't imagine the treatment of a normal retail customer. Given the quality of the work I've seen, it's also likely that you will need to deal with them after the purchase. Do not be fooled by the name, reputation or friendly sales guys like I was, when it comes down to the wire, the company management will not take care of their problems.
The cool shifter that they sell is not an exclusive product to the art carr company. I know it's available from California Performance Transmission and probably many other outlets. I've seen it with the "winters transmission" badge also but am not familiar with that company. That type shifter is definitely the best choice available.
Sorry for the length of this piece, but I think it's important to know. If anyone has more specific questions, you can reply here, PM me or even call me.
