Byre Engineering Dundrod - anyone had dealings?

[mccrackenj]

AS the title says, anyone had dealings with these chaps?

They've been recommended to me but don't seem to be answering their landline or mobile.

I've a Mercedes 500SEC with broken rings on 1 piston. Any other recommendations for someone to help me out?

Ta

[mccrackenj]

Hi guys

Thanks for replying. In the end I wasn't able to get hold of Byre despite ringing them several times and leaving messages etc. They were recommended to me by Stephen at Creevy autos who diagnosed my broken rings. He said they just don't have the capacity to take on a rebuild at the minute and I'd wait for ages for it to be done so he recommended Byre.

In the end I've just got back from dropping the car off somewhere else and I found a replacement engine, which is on its way from London and should be delivered to the mechanic's early next week. That seemed the easiest option.

I appreciate your recommendations, and I'll keep them in mind even though I hope I never need them!

Cheers

John McC

[mccrackenj]

stevieturbo said:

mccrackenj said:

Hi guys

Thanks for replying. In the end I wasn't able to get hold of Byre despite ringing them several times and leaving messages etc. They were recommended to me by Stephen at Creevy autos who diagnosed my broken rings. He said they just don't have the capacity to take on a rebuild at the minute and I'd wait for ages for it to be done so he recommended Byre.

In the end I've just got back from dropping the car off somewhere else and I found a replacement engine, which is on its way from London and should be delivered to the mechanic's early next week. That seemed the easiest option.

I appreciate your recommendations, and I'll keep them in mind even though I hope I never need them!

Cheers

John McC

What exactly were the symptoms ? Piston rings dont exactly break just at random.

A replacement used engine is always a gamble, even more so when buying from afar. A really big gamble IMO.
Hopefully it all goes well though

I picked the car up in London and it ran fine for the 1st 100 miles or so then started belching white smoke. It is definitely oil, not coolant. It left me stranded in England so I had to join the AA, who wanted £2.50 a mile to take me to Cairnryan, plus the £250 in fees - total £1000! In the end they got me to Liverpool but I missed that ferry too. Eventually got back 38 hours after I left home and a lot poorer.

The car hadn't been used much for a while before I got it so the suggestion is that rings have become too friendly with cylinder walls while lying about, and then given up after a bit of use. Won't know for sure until it's stripped down, but with the time it would take to strip right down and diagnose and rebuild etc it seemed easier and cheaper just to get another engine.

As you say, that's a gamble too, but I thought it was worth taking it.

[mccrackenj]

OK, bluey white and smelling of burnt oil. With neat black/burnt oil in the tailpipe.