We use Jerry for all our flat four rebuilds. Pf course we remove them and
install them. NWCR also does alot of our machine work. Jerry knows his
[insert pc modifed, censored expletive].

Chris DeLong
Fine Tuning
206.522.5503
www.finetuningperformance.com
Seattle, WA USA

>From: John Smith <johns3539@HOTMAIL.COM>
>Reply-To: John Smith <johns3539@HOTMAIL.COM>
>To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>Subject: Northwest Connecting Rod story
>Date: Thu, 16 Dec 2004 01:00:19 -0500
>
>I found only a small amount of information on Northwest Connecting Rod in
>Seattle when searching the archives, so I want to make sure my 2 cents gets
>added:
>
>A couple of weeks ago my regular mechanic told me I had a cracked head on
>my
>91 Westy.  With my extensive knowledge gained from this list about how the
>conversation with my mechanic should continue, I ask him what he would do.
>Long story short, it was the wrong answer.  In fact, he went as far as
>saying that all he had to do was replace the head and the engine would be
>as
>good as new.  I asked him about the chances of throwing a rod bearing, and
>he said "That happens so rarely... that's a worst case scenario."  Needless
>to say, I got out of there in a hurry.
>
>Not knowing what to do and having roughly $4,000 worth of repairs hanging
>over my head, I weighed my options.  Top only rebuild?  Full engine
>rebuild?
>  It had about 125,000 miles on it already, and I just knew the rods were
>about to go.   After weighing all the pros and cons and determining my
>needs
>and mechanical ability, I leaned towards a full rebuild of a stock engine,
>but still wasn't sure of myself.   Boston Bob?  AVP through Bus Depot?  or
>maybe I should just go Tiico.  I was really hesitant to deal with shipping
>an engine in from CA or MA, and remembered NW Connecting Rod being
>mentioned
>in the archives and receiving extremely strong recommendations, but there
>weren't nearly as many posts as Boston Bob or my other options.   I decided
>to give him a call since he was local.  He was extremely helpful, and told
>me I should come down and we could talk about it more.  We did, and after
>more discussion and a few more checking of references, I decided he would
>rebuild it.
>
>I'm very happy I did.  He's extremely nice and is willing to answer any
>questions.  He'll let you come into the shop, have a look at everything,
>and
>explain what it is he's doing.  He's been rebuilding WBX's for a long time,
>and definitely knows his stuff.  He does WBX's for most all the dealers in
>the area, too.  He only does one car at a time... he took the van in on a
>Monday morning, was done Wednesday afternoon, and was able to keep it under
>$3900 out the door. I'm approaching my 500 mile oil change, and everything
>is just peachy.
>
>From the few posts I read about him in the archives, he is the only man in
>Seattle to do rebuilds... and I would have to agree 100%.  If you need a
>rebuild on a WBX and you're in Seattle, you should seriously consider going
>directly to Jerry at NW Connecting Rod.   This isn't knocking Boston Bob or
>Bus Depot/AVP of course, in my dealings with them, they're great too, and I
>know they do/offer fantastic work.  But if you're in Seattle, your best bet
>may be to just keep it local.  Kudos to Jerry.
>
>Northwest Connecting Rod
>1705 S 93rd St F-7
>Seattle, WA 98108
>(South Seattle, off of 99 on the way to Burien)
>206-763-2487
>
>Onward,
>
>John
>91 Westy (Canadian)