[ike84]

beater and jfp -

i think that both of you have valid points. the only two shops that I know of who do m96 rebuilds routinely are L&N and Raby.

with that being said, there are other shops around that rebuild german nikasil motors quite routinely. and they have great success with less sophisticated models in much more demanding applications.

as with any business model, niche providers whose supply is in high demand are able to charge more money. it's all about what you want, how deep your pockets are, and whether you're willing to drink the koolaid.

the koolaid is my problem. l&n doesnt seem to have their **************** together in any way, shape, or form. the design of some of their other products (like the tstat for example) are, quite frankly, idiotic - who the hell makes a tstat that isnt a fail-open design any more?? and their website information regarding m96 issues is, quite frankly, wrong. the whole diatribe about vacumm leaks causing motors to run rich and thats what causes bore scoring, is in my opinion, one of the most wrong things I have ever read in regards to these motors.

mr raby on the other hand doesnt advertise or go through the same show as mr navarro, so its a but harder to judge. he also hasnt had a forum voice for many years after he decided to leave the community. but he used to speak of his motors as being bulletproof and having over a tb of data on his projects, two claims that I just have a hard time buying into. i'm not at all saying that he is dishonest, I just inherently steer away from individuals with absolute confidence.

don't get me wrong, I am not questioning for a minute that these guys know far more about these motors then I do, and I am sure that you get what you pay for in these situations, but I don't know how anyone can justify dumping twice the cars worth into the motor. lord knows raby doesn't need another tank to play with, after all........