Well I really dont know where to start so I will start from the beginning.in march I needed an engine replacement on my 2000 Acura Integra so I looked at several places and decided to have Soshin do the work on my car. My reason for choosing this place was
1) they had the engine that I needed
2) they were close to my mom's house so it made it more convenient for me since I lived in San Diego
3) The price was reasonable. The engine I needed was a b18b which is a rare engine considering it is an original and they are usually imported from Japan.
At first they gave me a quote of 750 for a B18 engine and said that it was in stock. I decided to have the work done and dropped off my car on a monday March 12. They said my car would not be ready for a whole week because they were short staffed. On march 14 they called me to tell me that the b18b was not in stock and it would not be coming in anytime soon because they rarely get those engines shipped to them. I told them that I was promised a B18B and I wasnt going to have the work done.instead they told me that my car was already "started on" and I had the option of having a b20 installed. (honda crv engine). Considering that my old engine was already taken out, I felt wrong asking them to put it back in and give me my car back.
So I agreed and they resumed the work. I called their other location in los angeles and was told that I SHOULD NOT be paying the 750, I should pay 550 because that is what the b20 goes for. So I called Soshin back and after a long conversation they adjusted the price. On March 19, I paid for the installation and engine which came to 1300. They added a new water pump, oil pump, and labor fees. As I went to turn the car on, there was no crank. The car didnt want to start. I was told to leave the car overnight for them to trouble shoot the following day. I had to drive all the way back to San Diego without my car.
After a week of B.S., I was told that they could not figure out why my car didnt want to start and they could not help me. I went in on March 26 and they wanted me to take my car without it starting. They said that my car's secuirty system must have locked the car from starting. I went next door to a alarm tech, paid him 20 bucks to come and look at the car. He figured this. THE BATTERY WAS DEAD!!! It took this alarm tech less than 5 minutes to diagnose my dead battery and it took Soshin more than a week to come to no conclusion.
That was just the beginning.
About a week later I noticed a puddle of oil underneath my car. I called Soshin and they said I would have to pay for a new oilpan because they dont guarantee oilpans. I went to another shop and they said it was not sealed properly. I called the BAR and they opened a case for me. Long story short, they had to replace my b20 with the engine I ORIGINALLY requested. They were in the wrong for installing a SUV engine into my Integra. The guy from the Bureau of Automotive repair said he would check everything after they installed the engine just to make sure it was all ok.
After picking up my car I noticed the A/C did not blow cold air anymore. I called the BAR again and he said all he inspected was the VIN of the engine and nothing else. He advised me to contact Soshin and try to resolve this or take them to small claims. I decided I had enough of this place and simply just let it go. I FIGURED WHAT ELSE ARE THEY GOING TO MESS UP!
After this I bought a 2007 Honda Civic SI, and only drove my integra on a few occasions and only put about 2k miles on it before the accident. One night my husband was driving to get some take out and we live in a rural area in San Diego, coming down a hill, he lost control of the car as it veered to the left, he attempted to brake and the car spun out and rolled over into a ditch. The car rolled in the brush at least 3 times. The car was totalled. My husband had to break the window and crawl out of the car. He only sustained cuts and bruises and thankfully was ok. I had to call the sheriff and have my car recovered which cost me 380.00!!
upon inspection of the car, it was discovered that the there was a bolt missing from the engine mount that connects to the car and the rest of the bolts were loose. This was the cause of the car veering to the left. I think to myself, this accident was going to happen no matter what due to the matter that it was installed at soshin, but it could have been different. He could have been traveling at a faster speed or could have hit another car.instead the accident happened on a rural two lane road, unfortunately there was an enbankment on that particular part of road. I advise anyone willing to listen to avoid Soshin Trade Corporation. This could have been much worse and should not have happened.
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