hennessey gets a lot of flack but he is still #1 for Viper Tuners

[Tiepilot]

If I had the money for a serious mod, I would give my business to Doug Levin.

IMHO after reading story upon story about Hennessey

, I think you'd be a

to do any business with him.

 

[Bill Pemberton Woodhouse]

I am assuming you are referencing the recent SuperCar shootout, and I would reference the unbelievable standing the Apex Car showed.

The only car without a pro-driver. Braking distances better than any other Viper ( using the very reasonable StopTech system , which is priced under most of it's competitors ). Great times in comparison to the other cars and take out all the stereo and non motor stuff ( sorry guys, most of us just want da power stuff ) , and the price drops considerably.

DLM has a great reputation and seems to be doing some wild , innovative things to keep his customer's happy ( read the recent post about him flying up to help a new customer ).

There are alot of quality tuners,and I am not sure who is the best, but I would assume that service will be the end all in the rarified air of high horsepower mods.

We have had some of our customers go to both of these companies and I have only heard positive items about them both.

 

[HouseofSpeed]

The sad part about the whole thing is that there are still people that think John played a role..other than bull$hit artist...in ANY of the cars that have appeared in the magazines.

Give credit to his "worker men"....and the list is long. The guys in the shop made the cars happen, not John. I applaud those like Doug, Tom, Bill/Wayne, Sean, etc in this business...they are involved in some capacity with the construction of the car....and that sets them apart from the Callaways, Hennesseys, Saleens, et al of the world.

 

[Toronto_ACR]

I have heard a lot of bad things about hennessey and the way he does business. But one thing that you can say positive about him is that he is allways the one in the magazines and allways at the top in rankings against all other Viper tuners. Doug Leven seems like he can make real solid power but he is not at any of these meets trying to get business which i think is a mistake because I think he would do well. I also dont think that SVSi is a factor. he claims a lot but you never hear or see of him in regards to Vipers. At least Hennessey is there which you have to give him credit for.

 

[bad viper]

I wonder if Lingenfelter is going to set-up
at VIO7???

 

[snowmann]

I don't think anyone ever said Hennesy was not good at marketing. Personally I give "credit" to tuners that have happy customers post on the message board thrilled about their upgrade. To me, I give "credit" to tuners that produce customer satisfaction. Customer satifaction is the bottom line in my book. I have always wondered why Doug and SVS have not appeared in MotorTrend or other events? I honestly think the have packages that would give old Hennesy a run for his money. Maybe they don't want to make the poor guy look even worse??

 

[ExecUtron Technologies]

I know that Doug puts his Customers first. He doesn't even have time to put his own Viper back together yet. I'm sure he'd love to go out and participate in various Events and drum-up business. That's always the funnest part! However, Doug knows his priorities and does the right thing. I think this alone makes him the #1 Tuner. His day in the media will come, and he'll get the recognition he's earned (my opinion, of course)...

 

[Serious Eric]

Come on! Isn't it obvious to everyone out there yet? Hennessey scams the little guys and the out of staters who are less likely to show up at his door with a bat and ***** up in a major league way to the magazines. They're free advertising for him! Of course he builds great cars for the reviews.

And those magazine ****** love it and they love him! Shows you how much you ought to believe from what you read in those rags. They know knothing, zilch, nada. The viper community knew he was a criminal loooong before the vette community or the magazine idiots. Don't dismiss the awful fact of what you know just because of the slick PR.

 

[DEVILDOG]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Toronto_ACR:
I have heard a lot of bad things about hennessey and the way he does business. But one thing that you can say positive about him is that he is allways the one in the magazines and allways at the top in rankings against all other Viper tuners. Doug Leven seems like he can make real solid power but he is not at any of these meets trying to get business which i think is a mistake because I think he would do well. I also dont think that SVSi is a factor. he claims a lot but you never hear or see of him in regards to Vipers. At least Hennessey is there which you have to give him credit for.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Well said! In spite of what most people say about HMS ( many with no personal experience themselves ) in addition to the awesome work done on my VENOM my experience with John and his staff was and still is excellent. I think it shows a lot about John and HMS that he showed up for the challenge amid all the popular piling on of Viper owners and even non-owners that have no experience whatsoever with HMS and just want to run their mouths. Also, I'm very curious as to why tuners such as DLM and others don't show up? Maybe their cars are not as good as the dyno numbers suggest? Maybe their modifications don't produce the expected performance numbers when " the rubber meets the road "? Maybe their cars would break during the extreme testing? I'm not saying any of that is true, however, I would think any confident tuner would jump at the chance to prove his product in the most widely read car mag in the U.S.. I think they should show up next time along with the Lambos and Ferraris as the mag suggests. Bottom line...the proofs in the pudding! Great job HMS!!!

Also, thanks for showing up and well done to APEX and TNT. I wish TNT had brought a King Snake...would have been more interesting.

 

[Gerald]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by DEVILDOG:
Well said! In spite of what most people say about HMS ( many with no personal experience themselves ) in addition to the awesome work done on my VENOM my experience with John and his staff was and still is excellent. I think it shows a lot about John and HMS that he showed up for the challenge amid all the popular piling on of Viper owners and even non-owners that have no experience whatsoever with HMS and just want to run their mouths. Also, I'm very curious as to why tuners such as DLM and others don't show up? Maybe their cars are not as good as the dyno numbers suggest? Maybe their modifications don't produce the expected performance numbers when " the rubber meets the road "? Maybe their cars would break during the extreme testing? I'm not saying any of that is true, however, I would think any confident tuner would jump at the chance to prove his product in the most widely read car mag in the U.S.. I think they should show up next time along with the Lambos and Ferraris as the mag suggests. Bottom line...the proofs in the pudding! Great job HMS!!!

Also, thanks for showing up and well done to APEX and TNT. I wish TNT had brought a King Snake...would have been more interesting.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

And your point is???

How many cars does HMS have in his shop to work on? I'm sure he has all the time in the world to attend plenty of magazine shootouts or any other shootouts for that matter.

It's always nice to read about a good day at the track. But in the end, when you close that story book it's better to have customers, NOT victims....

Gerald

 

[Viperoctane]

Wow nobody could of said it any better then Gerald. Customer service comes first. Gerald "THE VIPER SCHOLAR" hehehe your new nick name if you don't mind

 

[Kurt 97 GTS]

Agree with Gerald!!

Devildog,

You are quick to point out that many have no personal experience with HMS, then procede to rattle off a list of maybe's against other tuners. I have no personal dealings with HMS, but with all of the maybe's in your post I'm just wondering if you have had any experiences with any of the "other" tuners? If you don't, then aren't you just doing what you accuse others of?

I've seen your car at our club meetings and it's very nice. I'm glad that you are pleased with your car!! I'm sure that if others would have received the same service, then they would be just as happy and this would be a moot point.

 

[randall]

the easiest thing to do is to GET WORK IN THE DOOR,the hard part is GETTING THE WORK OUT THE DOOR!

 

[HP]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by randall:
the easiest thing to do is to GET WORK IN THE DOOR,the hard part is GETTING THE WORK OUT THE DOOR!

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

John had no problem with parts going out the BACK door!!

 

[Eddie N]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by HP:
John had no problem with parts going out the BACK door!!

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

and give it a few more months, and he'll also be taking it IN THE BACK DOOR....

sorry...couldnt resist the joke...

- eddie -

 

[Doug Supercharged Vipers]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by DEVILDOG:
Well said! In spite of what most people say about HMS ( many with no personal experience themselves ) in addition to the awesome work done on my VENOM my experience with John and his staff was and still is excellent. I think it shows a lot about John and HMS that he showed up for the challenge amid all the popular piling on of Viper owners and even non-owners that have no experience whatsoever with HMS and just want to run their mouths. Also, I'm very curious as to why tuners such as DLM and others don't show up? Maybe their cars are not as good as the dyno numbers suggest? Maybe their modifications don't produce the expected performance numbers when " the rubber meets the road "? Maybe their cars would break during the extreme testing? I'm not saying any of that is true, however, I would think any confident tuner would jump at the chance to prove his product in the most widely read car mag in the U.S.. I think they should show up next time along with the Lambos and Ferraris as the mag suggests. Bottom line...the proofs in the pudding! Great job HMS!!!

Also, thanks for showing up and well done to APEX and TNT. I wish TNT had brought a King Snake...would have been more interesting.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>Sir, missing the event was most unfortunate for Doug Levin Motorsports Inc. (hereinafter "DLM") and I really wish I could have attended but I made the decision solely to stay at my workplace to complete performance jobs contracted by DLM. Three or four days out of my schedule may not seem like a lot to most but it further delays customers cars from being completed.

If your sincere about your question as to whether DLM is good enough to compete at this type of event I will answer the best I know how. I prioritize my customers and work three hundred and sixty-five days out of the year and owning one of the biggest Viper tuning shops in the Country supports my objectives. There will be plenty more events for DLM to attend to and as time continues you'll see more DLM cars making the grade -- I promise!

Regards,
Doug Levin

 

[Birvini]

It's my understanding that SVS will be at VOI with his Stryker twin turbo.

 

[King GTS]

I LOVE my Viper! I haven't had so much as 1 problem with it. My experience was GREAT!

 

[HP]

Trey are you going to VOI? If so slow down and honk when
you go by Little Rock, and I'll catch up with you.

 

[King GTS]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by HP:
Trey are you going to VOI? If so slow down and honk when
you go by Little Rock, and I'll catch up with you.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

That was Classic!!!!! I looked at that post for a while laughin Hugh before I could even respond!

 

[Marc Lublin]

This point is almost not worth talking about anymore, but since it was brought up here goes. I have found John to be a crook, liar and have the worst customer service I have ever witnessed in any company. Can he build a fast car? Of course. With a competent staff most shops can. Does he have his customers best interests at heart? Just listen to so many of his former customers and you will know the answer. Does he know how to get his face in the mags? It's the one thing he's personally good at. Hopefully due process will take over and HMS will be a thing of the past.

 

[Mike Brunton]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by HouseofSpeed:
The sad part about the whole thing is that there are still people that think John played a role..other than bull$hit artist...in ANY of the cars that have appeared in the magazines.

Give credit to his "worker men"....and the list is long. The guys in the shop made the cars happen, not John. I applaud those like Doug, Tom, Bill/Wayne, Sean, etc in this business...they are involved in some capacity with the construction of the car....and that sets them apart from the Callaways, Hennesseys, Saleens, et al of the world.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

You know, it's real easy for folks to say "hey, I am the guy that made it happen, the other people just sat there and took the credit".

It takes more than knowledge of tuning to run a tuner business. JPH may not be a very good hands-on worker, and he may or may not be a bad person, depending on your views, but he DID have the skill and know-how to put the right people together, and do the right things to run a successful company. There are a MILLION talented people out there who don't necessarily become rich and famous, because it takes alot more than just talent to succeed.

I think this particular criticism being layed on the guy is misdirected. You think Bill Gates sits at his desk and writes software all day?

 

[Serious Eric]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by DEVILDOG:
Well said! In spite of what most people say about HMS ( many with no personal experience themselves ) in addition to the awesome work done on my VENOM my experience with John and his staff was and still is excellent. I think it shows a lot about John and HMS that he showed up for the challenge amid all the popular piling on of Viper owners and even non-owners that have no experience whatsoever with HMS and just want to run their mouths. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Why am I not surprised. Give him a big wet one and just turn over your credit card then why don't you? I have some experience with Hennessey's work and no experience with any of the other tuners, yet if I were to go that route again I'd darn sure choose one of those unknowns over Hennessey.

Haven't you noticed that he screws out of staters far more regularly than those that live within "shooting" distance? No that couldn't be it ... I'm sure it was just your charming personality that got you good service.

 

[HouseofSpeed]

oneslowhemi.....obviously you don't know John very well. I speak from experience in regards to whether or not he is mechanically capable. You read too many magazines and are like so many of the other sheep out there that continue to buy the bull$hit.

 

[Bonkers]

Notice how everyone for JHM on this thread is Texan? Just an observation. I, like many, asked Jon to at least defend himself and he has yet to. As far as I'm concerned if he doesn't think much of a (potential) future customers worries then this (potential) future customer doesn't think much of him.

**** I'm not even a owner yet and both Doug and Lingenfelter both tried to "keep" my business when I mentioned apprehensions.

Anyway, I think even the article itself said this, the shootout was a flat out competition with only one person (Mallet) driving the car there. C&D didn't pay for airfare, hotels or anything and the costs would have been directly out of pocket for the no-show tuners. Even if the promotional benefits were profitable I don't see Doug as a guy desperate for business. If he couldn't make it that's all good, I don't hold it against him in anyway.

Doug - should I get the cash for the car AND a DLMTT I'll give it up for four days to represent the shop. Even drive it out there myself..........so long as I get to watch the fun.

I love the note were they said they couldn't get a SINGLE F40 owner to present. Says a lot about super-supercar owners.

 

[DEVILDOG]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Doug Supercharged Vipers:

Originally posted by DEVILDOG:
Well said! In spite of what most people say about HMS ( many with no personal experience themselves ) in addition to the awesome work done on my VENOM my experience with John and his staff was and still is excellent. I think it shows a lot about John and HMS that he showed up for the challenge amid all the popular piling on of Viper owners and even non-owners that have no experience whatsoever with HMS and just want to run their mouths. Also, I'm very curious as to why tuners such as DLM and others don't show up? Maybe their cars are not as good as the dyno numbers suggest? Maybe their modifications don't produce the expected performance numbers when " the rubber meets the road "? Maybe their cars would break during the extreme testing? I'm not saying any of that is true, however, I would think any confident tuner would jump at the chance to prove his product in the most widely read car mag in the U.S.. I think they should show up next time along with the Lambos and Ferraris as the mag suggests. Bottom line...the proofs in the pudding! Great job HMS!!!

Also, thanks for showing up and well done to APEX and TNT. I wish TNT had brought a King Snake...would have been more interesting.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>Sir, missing the event was most unfortunate for Doug Levin Motorsports Inc. (hereinafter "DLM") and I really wish I could have attended but I made the decision solely to stay at my workplace to complete performance jobs contracted by DLM. Three or four days out of my schedule may not seem like a lot to most but it further delays customers cars from being completed.

If your sincere about your question as to whether DLM is good enough to compete at this type of event I will answer the best I know how. I prioritize my customers and work three hundred and sixty-five days out of the year and owning one of the biggest Viper tuning shops in the Country supports my objectives. There will be plenty more events for DLM to attend to and as time continues you'll see more DLM cars making the grade -- I promise!

Regards,
Doug Levin

Doug,
Thanks for taking the time to respond. I can see you took my message correctly versus Gerald and Kurt. I asked some " maybe " questions that I thought were valid and closed with the conclusion that I didn't know the answers or that the premise of my questions would end up being true. My point was that since you were not there we don't know the tested performance of your packages. I applaud all the props you get from your customers. However, my postings of my personal experience with John and his staff is always attacked by negative criticism by people that have not had any experience with HMS personally. I guess I and John just don't deserve the same respect as other valid Viper owners and tuners. Whatever, I stand by my statements concerning HMS and the performance of my Venom. I can appreciate how busy you are taking care of your customers, however, as a potential customer of yours among others out here I am disappointed that you could not participate in the challenge. I would love to see how your packages perform against others on the same track at the same time. I have owned a Thunderbird SC in the past and really enjoyed the supercharger response, torque, and even the whine. I actually have thoughts of getting a package from you on top of my enhanced engine internals from HMS. I know some adjustments to my current setup would be required to accommodate your Level III package. However, again I would like to see an independent testing and review of your car conducted as the recent challenge was including a comprehensive spectrum of everyday driving, road course, acceleration benchmarks, 1/4 mile, braking, etc. and resulting reliability under these tough testing conditions. Not having any personal experience with you or your work I am the type that gives people the benefit of the doubt and respect upfront until proven otherwise. Unfortunately, others do not in respect to my postings about HMS and by association myself. I look forward to a published testing of your car and the future possibility of doing some business with you. Thanks again for your professional and personal response to my posting. To Gerard and Kurt hopefully you understand my " point " now. To John and the staff at HMS again congratulations on showing up and submitting to the challenge and once again being the top independently proven Viper tuner in the world!!! To the non-VIPER owners and NON-HMS experienced VIPER owners please don't respond or offer any further criticism of myself or John. I don't listen to disrespectful, unknowledgeable people that apparently only have the courage to pile on with the pack instead of from making independent conclusions about people that they don't know from personal experience.
Doug, from your response to me I know you are a class act. Please come to the next tuner challenge and bring the biggest, baddest machine you have.

I'll be one of the first to congratulate a successful testing of your product!
Thanks,
Jim

 

[DEVILDOG]

randall,
I agree you are entitled to your opinion. However, many people have opinions about HMS that are based on reading other people's comments on top of other people's comments and so on and so on and so on without any personal experience of their own and try to pass their opinions off as factual. This piling on by people with opinions instead of actual experiences is nothing but non-reliable commentary at best....at worst it is baseless slandering of people by people trying to get attention by putting others down. A lot of people seem to follow the herd as it's easier to conform than test the water themselves. I would think that is kind of boring versus having your own experiences. Ever see that Cybertrader add with the herd of fainting sheep! Now that's funny! Too bad it's also true.

 

[DEVILDOG]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by 1bad gts:
True, Devil Dog you are correct that Mopar Perf Illustrated can not exactly duplicate the stress put on a tuner car in the Car and Driver test (inadequate facilitys for top speed ,0-150-0 ect )but Englishtowns Raceway Park does have a brand new road coarse that Smith has been known to lets say put a car thru its paces on.(His skill on a road coarse as well as a quarter mile is near professional level)Dan has volunteered his Viper for whatever is practical to do or test.PS Evans nickname of the TERMINATOR came from his ability to test the durability of the magazines (especially Muscle Mustang And Fast Ford )MANY MANY tuner cars.If a car has a weakness lets say Evan will find it out as evidenced by the fact that alot of the above tuner cars he tests often go home on the flatbed.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
1bad,
Thanks for the additional information. Sounds like a good test. Please let me know if it's published...I'll definitely buy the mag!!! Have fun!

 

[HouseofSpeed]

Devildog....not really worried about you as a potential customer, thanks just the same. I don't consider John a competitor, and my business is doing very well...all because I tell the truth, good or bad. John took *** shots at me on every board in the country after I left his employ, and I held my tongue. Where is John now???

I am personally sick of hearing about his "impact" on the business. Obviously his snow job worked on you as well. If he were really that good, he could build cars without all the people that have left (myself, Ben, Larry, Jason, Joe, et al.).
Haven't seen anything fast from HMS in awhile...and by deductive reasoning, that confirms his position as the greatest imposter since the Wizard of Oz.

You must be registered for see images

Enjoy your car, but don't be too quick too lay your rep on the line for John....he liked you for the cash you spent, nothing more.

 

[randall]

Kyle,
let me know when you move your shop to Kansas!