# FCP Groton Lifetime Warranty / Quality of FCP Groton Parts



## [email protected] (Aug 18, 2009)

To the entire BMW Community: We recognize that we have had some major issues with quality in the past, particularly with our steering and suspension parts. We have spent the past 2 years weeding out the substandard manufacturers and vendors, and retaining the quality ones. It is our mission to develop, produce, and deliver on time all products that meet or exceed customer expectations. In order to do this, we have implemented quality systems and processes that are continuously being improved to satisfy our customer's changing needs.

We would really like your support, as the BMW community is very important to us. *We need to know, what would you all like to see?* FCP Groton deals with over 50 vendors in and outside the United States. We have access to Lemforder, Karlyn, Uro Parts, TRW, Febi, Meyle, Ocap, and virtually any other brand of steering and suspension on the market. We will tailor our company and products around the needs and demands of the BMW community. What factor does price play in the equation? Unfortunately no company can deliver Lemforder quality at aftermarket prices, but we can give it our best shot.

Additionally we will now be offering an industry first Lifetime Warranty to show you how confident we are in our products. By ensuring excellence through quality and customer satisfaction, our loyal customer base is only growing during these tough times, allowing us to move to the forefront of the automotive industry.

FCP Groton provides a Limited Lifetime Warranty for our automotive products REGARDLESS of the manufacturer's warranty. Should our product fail to be in good working order during the warranty period, FCP Groton will refund the price of the product given that the guidelines have been met and provided that the product has not been subjected to abuse, misuse, accident, disaster or non-FCP Groton authorized modification or repair. FCP Groton's limited lifetime warranty does not transfer with the change of vehicle ownership. FCP Groton will not warranty products for cosmetic reasons (rust, color fade, etc). Email us at [email protected] for more info, or visit warranty.fcpgroton.com.

You've heard about O'Reilly or NAPA extending lifetime warranty on their brake pads and discs. In fact, you may have also heard of other retailers claiming lifetime warranty on non-functioning parts excluding brakes, engine, tune up, or timing. FCP Groton is providing a lifetime warranty on ALL FCP Groton products- no exclusions! Simply meet our requirements and your purchase will be covered for the life of your vehicle! Email us at [email protected] for more info, or visit warranty.fcpgroton.com.


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## fcpeuro (Aug 13, 2009)

Morning Bump.


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## 6 Brit (Jan 19, 2009)

I would like to see you carry parts for e24's lol


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## fcpeuro (Aug 13, 2009)

If we see enough interest, I don't see why we couldn't.


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## 6 Brit (Jan 19, 2009)

[email protected] said:


> If we see enough interest, I don't see why we couldn't.


they won't even give us our own forum on here :rofl:

oh well that makes us "special" :dunno:


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## [email protected] (Aug 18, 2009)

6 Brit said:


> they won't even give us our own forum on here :rofl:
> 
> oh well that makes us "special" :dunno:


Want us to make you an E24 forum? =] We made http://www.volvolution.com/


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## gtxragtop (Feb 25, 2008)

I suggest you offer the customer 2 options. For the suspension for example, Lemforder and another quality option that is more cost effective. There are many of us that prefer to buy the more expensive higher/known quality items and others that shop by price. 

As you stated, poor quality parts will quickly reflect on the company that sold them to you despite the fact that you did not manufacturer them. To gain customers back, offer great pricing on packaged deals. 

My 2 cents.


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## Max_VQ (Jul 9, 2007)

It is nice to see you trying to turn around your company. To be honest, I have not read any good reviews of your suspension parts. Good luck on the turn around.

Too bad the free warranty is only for ASE cert techs that do the install.

Many of the older BMW owners (E36/E46/E38/E39) do their own work. It helps to keep the costs down. However I don't see many DIYers BUYING your warranty, when other parts/vendors include a FREE 1 year / 12,000 mile warranty.

From your web site:
_Product must be installed by an ASE certified technician. If the product is not installed by an ASE certified technician, FCP Groton does not provide a FREE limited lifetime warranty. FCP Groton does however provide the option of purchasing a limited lifetime warranty for non ASE certified individuals who plan to install the product themselves. The cost to purchase a limited lifetime warranty is 10% of the cost of the product. To purchase a limited lifetime warranty_

If a large percent of your Customers are DIYers, your new lifetime warranty is of no value. I guess most of your business is connected to ASE cert techs and the DIYers don't factor in.

Also, for a warranty claim:
-I must buy the part from you
-Pay shipping on the new part
-Pay shipping to return the old part

These extra cost may help a potential Customer spend a little more money and get something with higher quality. Maybe something OEM???

DIYers obviously don't have labour costs, so they are more inclined to use more cost effective parts.... BUT they don't get ANY warranty, so they may look else where.

Again, good luck on turning things around.


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## jieg (Feb 26, 2008)

I agree with Max VQ


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## fcpeuro (Aug 13, 2009)

Max_VQ said:


> It is nice to see you trying to turn around your company. To be honest, I have not read any good reviews of your suspension parts. Good luck on the turn around.
> 
> Too bad the free warranty is only for ASE cert techs that do the install.
> 
> ...


Max,

Thanks for the input. I just wanted to clarify a couple of things.

Regardless of the lifetime warranty, all of our products still have a 1 year warranty regardless of the installer.

As far as the lifetime warranty: 
We had to establish some basic guidelines for who we gave the free lifetime warranty to. We know that a large majority of our warranty returns are from installer error (DIYers that are not using the correct procedures). We actually have an ASE tech in house that calls the customer that is returning the product and asking them how they preformed their install and why they thought the part was defective (9 times out of 10 the part was installed wrong or the part was not defective at all) The ASE tech qualification in our eyes is the only fair and uniform approach to handing out this free warranty. It removes some of the skepticism on our part for possible install error. For those who do not have qualifications, you can purchase the lifetime warranty at 10% of the products price.

If you had any other suggestions in regards to how we can deem an installer qualified enough to receive the free warranty, we would be open to your ideas.

Regards,


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## IngSoc (Nov 17, 2013)

*FCP Groton Reply*

I have used FCP and feel the parts are of good quality and at an attractive price. From my experience, though, they don't honor their warranty even for one year; never tried the lifetime option. (My part was defective, and not installation error.) The problem is not defective parts; FCP doesn't manufacture parts and every single manufacturer, even the best, makes mistakes and therefore defective parts. FCP doesn't keep accurate records, making online purchases troublesome unless you seek to save paper receipts. E-commerce assumes there are digital records, not hard paper copies.

I think FCP should state that they sell quality parts, at reasonably prices and don't expect or anticipate ongoing relationships with their customers. Therefore, save your paper receipt, in case your part is defective in less than one year.

Reading this reply you may falsely assume I wouldn't recommend FCP. I like FCP, and FCP provides a good value with a hidden risk that they have your money and you have their parts, and that's where the relationship begins and ends.


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