Does anyone know what going on with Phil at Advanced Induction? I can’t get him to email/text me back and I feel forced to post the following. Maybe it will get his attention or help others make a decision of whom to engage in business with. I first emailed Phil back in early October 2024 to get some 243/799 heads CNC ported. He responded quickly with thoughtful emails and it was clear he was knowledgeable and was offering a sound product. I sent my heads and a check for $900 which arrived in late October. We had good communication for a while, then that communication slowed down and eventually stopped. The last couple of emails I received from him were to thank me for my patience but didn’t offer any update as to when my heads would be in process. The last email I received from him was in April 2025 and this was an email only thanking me for patience. We are now into October and approaching the 1-year mark. I have emailed and texted him multiple times and I have not received a response. I filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau in North Carolina, and they report to me that they can’t get a response. I have been a member of this forum for 15 years, mostly on performancetruck.net. I have never posted anything negative about anyone. I was apprehensive to post something like this because perhaps his health is in trouble or having some type of family crisis that is more important than anyone’s cylinder heads. But at the least, I would expect a business owner to find time to email customers. It’s been 5 months without a reply, and I have not been silent. His website does have a “summer update” that says he was out of the shop in the spring and would be catching up over July and August. If Phil makes this right, I will update this thread. Its not my intention to hurt anyone’s business. We all work hard for our money, and I need to ensure I spend my cash wisely and not give it away.

 

A year with your heads and money with no recent contact doesn’t sound good and very poor business practice.

 

Phil does go through periods of no contact, but a year is a lot. I was considering him for some 243's, but that up/down of the production made me think twice.

 

That doesn't really sound promising if you're at the 1 year mark. Someone that backlogged should be upfront with customers as to a timeframe. That being said, I've heard of a couple local shops who are backlogged around the 6 month mark for engine work.

 

A lot of people recommend AI because they have good stuff. I wouldn't be opposed to buying used AI heads, but i also wouldn't deal with the email backlog I know they have or not being able to reach them by phone. There are too many other good companies where you can get a solid product and not deal with those headaches. Just my two cents.

 

Call Tony Mamo@1 (661) 714-1317. Discover what customer service was like 60 years ago. Actually, Tony is even better than CS 60 years ago......

 

Chalk it up as a loss and buy another set of heads from someone else. I couldn't wait 1 year for a set of heads. The guy who did my heads here in Louisiana took 2 weeks.

 

That's great advice. I have a new order with Tony right now.

I agree. About a month ago I decided that I would not send anymore money to Advanced Induction. I was so patient for so long and I just had enough. 1 month ago, I stated to them in an email that my patience had run out and requested refund. No reply to that either.

 

I know the feeling man, I paid a shop in Irving Texas 15k in 2018. Long story short i never received anything from them. In fact my car is still sitting behind there shop with nothing under the hood. Thats why now im very careful if I pay anyone to do any work for me. I use 1 guy and I've become friends with him and if he does any work on my vehicles he welcomes me to come watch. If fact alot of times ill work on my own ride in his shop.

 

Unfortunately, it's still the same with him. We have posted about this in the past with Advanced Induction. I really wanted to do a set of heads, but I couldn't even reach him.

https://ls1tech.com/forums/general-l...-business.html

 

Unfortunately this has been the same story since about 2020. Seems like this same thread is posted every 6-12 months.

Hope you get your heads back

 

I feel foolish for engaging with this company after I read a few of these negative reviews. No reviews questioned his workmanship and I knew if I had work done, it would be done well. Initially he was very responsive. It doesn't make sense that he could be so busy with such horrible customer service. Other companies seem hungry for the work.
In hind sight, I should have insisted this be placed on a credit card, so I would at least have the option to refute the charge.

 

Best choice I ever made was calling Tony for my engine. Couldn't be happier.

I see you're in NH. I used Golen engines in Hudson, NH for my build, they were great to deal with. I know they have a cathedral port program for the CNC there as well if you wanted to stay local.

Sadly this seems to be a common trend with AI, so when I was in the market, I passed.

 

Yup. Currently working with Tony, and so far its a really good experience. I have heard good things about Golen as well. I have previously used R&L Engines in Dover NH and have been happy with them. They did my LS2 block machining and balanced my rotating assembly last fall. Tony Mamo's 227 heads will be going on this new engine.

 

Apparently the owner of AI doesn’t give 2 about his reputation, or future of his business. Whatta JERK!! Sorry to hear of all this trouble.....

 

You'll never be sorry going with Tony. There aren't many people on the planet that know as much about airflow and porting as he does. There is nobody on the planet that is as good as he is with customer service and communication. You wont get the usual Push 1 for this, Push 2 for that prompts. You get the man himself....

 

Yes, that so much is clear. Tony has been great! I have never spent so much money on a car in a single phone call. But when you get expertise like that on the phone, take the advice and buy the parts suggested.

 

I said the same thing..

I think Scott @Che70velle kid said it best.. Very expensive t shirt.. lol

 

Indeed. The money part doesn’t bother me and is simply a byproduct of the performance. Tony is legit. I know a lot of guys in the industry who from an airflow engineering standpoint, can literally see airflow…who can simply glance into a port and immediately begin to discuss shortcomings…who have spent decades of their lives at flow benches looking for 5 hp. Not kidding. I was in the industry myself guys. I’m 7 miles away from EEI who was a major player in the world of NASCAR with Ford and Dodge Motorsports. Ernie is retired from design work but still refreshes engines in vintage Cup racing classes. His knowledge is astounding. I get my machine work done there still today under the MTI banner. I could EASILY use a local cylinder head guy who was with Ernie through it all for my head needs and camshaft design….I’m talking about a 10 minute drive for elite level cylinder head design and consulting. I had a conversation with Tony many years ago about heads and I knew he was an elite player in this industry. Can he sell parts? Dang right, but it’s only because he knows what works AS A COMBINATION, to get you the best performance possible. Tony has been designing heads for decades…he put AFR on the map after all. And full disclosure here….I have 5 or 6 Mamo shirts hanging in the closet! LOLZZZ

 

Good luck with your situation. Hard to support a business that doesn't act like one.