At some point in the last 3 years, the kit seems to have undergone changes that rendered it useless. Having recently purchased a set to replace the ones I got back in 2019, I got to be among the first to find out:
For the record, ECS was quick to make me whole after I told them about all this, and they took down the product page from their website shortly afterward. So, this is NOT a story about a company trying to screw over customers. Quite the opposite: looking strictly at the transaction, I feel well taken care of.
What it is about, I think, is that Turner Motorsport – the product-focused company – no longer exists. It has been replaced by “Turner Motorsport”, the label an effective but soulless retailer slaps on ostensibly high-end products while allowing the remnants of the original company to continue using it for their projects and race efforts.
If that's an exaggeration, it's not much of one. As a TMS employee told me multiple times, this kit is an ECS-designed product and TMS doesn't even have all the relevant info on it.
Description of the problems below, followed by what happened when I contacted ECS support about this.
Problems
First: the top plate lacks a relief to allow the bracket with the studs to slide under the bearing housing. Old on the left, new on the right:
This means there's not enough clearance to allow the full range of camber adjustment. The head of one of the studs interferes with the bearing housing. With the bearing housing fully in place, this is as far as the stud bracket goes:
…Unless you loosen the caster adjustment bolts, allowing the bearing housing not to sit flat against the top plate. Hope it’s obvious why that’s not an option.
Though apparently whoever assembled the plates for shipping thought it was an option. When they came to me, each one was assembled such that
1. The head of one of the studs was sandwiched between the top plate and the bearing housing;
2. The caster adjustment bolts were tight so that the bracket couldn’t move; and
3. Because the bolt head was between the bearing housing and the top plate, the bearing housing did not sit flat against the top plate.
So, it was made so it couldn’t be used as described, and then shipped in a condition in which it shouldn’t be used at all.
Also, the studs are too long. Old bracket on left, new on right:
Pic from a partial install (slightly crooked, which is why the third stud isn't completely poking through):
This prevents the stock ///M-logoed dust caps from fitting. Relatively minor problem compared to not being able to adjust camber. But given that most of the point of these plates (vs. the competition) is that they’re designed to prevent dirt ingress, this seems like a stupid problem to have.
The new kit also lacked this part that sat between the bearing housing and the top plate in the old kit:
Not sure what to make of that.
Finally, the lock nuts are incorrect – again. Same problem as when I received my first kit in 2019. The flanges are too wide to fit into the slots in the FSTB bracket. When I told them about this back in 2019, they were quick to ship me a set of OE lock nuts – but apparently did nothing to actually fix the problem. Guess that was foreshadowing.
Contacting ECS support
My first contact was before the purchase, asking whether there was a rebuild kit available for these camber plates. My wallet would have preferred rebuilding my plates over buying new ones. The rep I chatted with said there was no such rebuild kit, so I bought new ones rather than spending time (which I already had too little of) tracking down parts from third parties etc. Turns out the rep was wrong and there actually are rebuild kits available. Shame on me for believing an ECS support rep rather than doing my own pointing and clicking for 5 minutes.
Next contact was after I saw the problems. I called and asked to speak with someone about technical issues with TMS camber plates. The rep said he could help and didn’t need to transfer me. When I described the issue, it became clear he didn’t understand what I was saying and had no response beyond what was publicly accessible on ECS’s website. I told him again that I needed real, indepth, technical assistance, and he told me I had to speak with someone else – who wasn’t available at that time.
I called again later. Same story: rep told me he could help, then after hearing my comments decided he couldn’t help after all, and finally said I had to speak with someone else – who, again, wasn't available.
I then emailed pics, the above video, and a full description of the problem to a TMS employee with whom I had had contact previously. He made it very clear that these camber plates are an ECS product and he did not have the necessary info to help me. He said he’d bounce me back to ECS, but to someone capable this time.
Within a day, someone was offering to compensate me with a free set of KMAC plates. After recovering from the biggest eyeroll I had ever done, I asked for a different resolution. I got a response within hours saying it had been done. The next day, the product pages for the TMS Hybrid E9x M3 kit had been taken down, apparently in a hurry; no redirects, no explanation, just a 404.
I think it speaks highly of ECS that they were responsive and fast to offer compensation.
What doesn’t speak highly of ECS is that
1. Their real experts are hidden behind layers of people who think they know what they’re doing but really don’t; and
2. The product defects in question were really junior-grade and no one showed any real recognition that the company had screwed up.
For example, I’d have thought a response like this would be appropriate:
Instead, what I got was more like
...followed by quick, unceremonious agreement to my counter-offer.
So: do I feel like I was screwed? Absolutely not. But I'm still left hoping someone else comes out with a well designed sealed moonball camber plate for this car. If they ever do, I might switch to it even if mine are fine, just on principle. As nice as it is when a company moves quickly to make up for its mistakes, it’s better when a company takes its products more seriously.
For the record, ECS was quick to make me whole after I told them about all this, and they took down the product page from their website shortly afterward. So, this is NOT a story about a company trying to screw over customers. Quite the opposite: looking strictly at the transaction, I feel well taken care of.
What it is about, I think, is that Turner Motorsport – the product-focused company – no longer exists. It has been replaced by “Turner Motorsport”, the label an effective but soulless retailer slaps on ostensibly high-end products while allowing the remnants of the original company to continue using it for their projects and race efforts.
If that's an exaggeration, it's not much of one. As a TMS employee told me multiple times, this kit is an ECS-designed product and TMS doesn't even have all the relevant info on it.
Description of the problems below, followed by what happened when I contacted ECS support about this.
Problems
First: the top plate lacks a relief to allow the bracket with the studs to slide under the bearing housing. Old on the left, new on the right:
This means there's not enough clearance to allow the full range of camber adjustment. The head of one of the studs interferes with the bearing housing. With the bearing housing fully in place, this is as far as the stud bracket goes:
…Unless you loosen the caster adjustment bolts, allowing the bearing housing not to sit flat against the top plate. Hope it’s obvious why that’s not an option.
Though apparently whoever assembled the plates for shipping thought it was an option. When they came to me, each one was assembled such that
1. The head of one of the studs was sandwiched between the top plate and the bearing housing;
2. The caster adjustment bolts were tight so that the bracket couldn’t move; and
3. Because the bolt head was between the bearing housing and the top plate, the bearing housing did not sit flat against the top plate.
So, it was made so it couldn’t be used as described, and then shipped in a condition in which it shouldn’t be used at all.
Also, the studs are too long. Old bracket on left, new on right:
Pic from a partial install (slightly crooked, which is why the third stud isn't completely poking through):
This prevents the stock ///M-logoed dust caps from fitting. Relatively minor problem compared to not being able to adjust camber. But given that most of the point of these plates (vs. the competition) is that they’re designed to prevent dirt ingress, this seems like a stupid problem to have.
The new kit also lacked this part that sat between the bearing housing and the top plate in the old kit:
Not sure what to make of that.
Finally, the lock nuts are incorrect – again. Same problem as when I received my first kit in 2019. The flanges are too wide to fit into the slots in the FSTB bracket. When I told them about this back in 2019, they were quick to ship me a set of OE lock nuts – but apparently did nothing to actually fix the problem. Guess that was foreshadowing.
Contacting ECS support
My first contact was before the purchase, asking whether there was a rebuild kit available for these camber plates. My wallet would have preferred rebuilding my plates over buying new ones. The rep I chatted with said there was no such rebuild kit, so I bought new ones rather than spending time (which I already had too little of) tracking down parts from third parties etc. Turns out the rep was wrong and there actually are rebuild kits available. Shame on me for believing an ECS support rep rather than doing my own pointing and clicking for 5 minutes.
Next contact was after I saw the problems. I called and asked to speak with someone about technical issues with TMS camber plates. The rep said he could help and didn’t need to transfer me. When I described the issue, it became clear he didn’t understand what I was saying and had no response beyond what was publicly accessible on ECS’s website. I told him again that I needed real, indepth, technical assistance, and he told me I had to speak with someone else – who wasn’t available at that time.
I called again later. Same story: rep told me he could help, then after hearing my comments decided he couldn’t help after all, and finally said I had to speak with someone else – who, again, wasn't available.
I then emailed pics, the above video, and a full description of the problem to a TMS employee with whom I had had contact previously. He made it very clear that these camber plates are an ECS product and he did not have the necessary info to help me. He said he’d bounce me back to ECS, but to someone capable this time.
Within a day, someone was offering to compensate me with a free set of KMAC plates. After recovering from the biggest eyeroll I had ever done, I asked for a different resolution. I got a response within hours saying it had been done. The next day, the product pages for the TMS Hybrid E9x M3 kit had been taken down, apparently in a hurry; no redirects, no explanation, just a 404.
I think it speaks highly of ECS that they were responsive and fast to offer compensation.
What doesn’t speak highly of ECS is that
1. Their real experts are hidden behind layers of people who think they know what they’re doing but really don’t; and
2. The product defects in question were really junior-grade and no one showed any real recognition that the company had screwed up.
For example, I’d have thought a response like this would be appropriate:
Hi [IamFODI],
Thanks for forwarding all this information. It’s obvious we messed up. We will investigate thoroughly and make changes to ensure this doesn’t happen again. Meanwhile, we’ll be stopping the sale of this kit and pulling all existing kits from the shelf to check them. We hope to get a corrected kit back up for sale ASAP.
As a token of apology for the mistake and gratitude for your efforts, we would like to offer you [XYZ]. Please let me know if this is acceptable and I’ll get the ball rolling ASAP.
Sincerely,
[Customer Support Person]
Thanks for forwarding all this information. It’s obvious we messed up. We will investigate thoroughly and make changes to ensure this doesn’t happen again. Meanwhile, we’ll be stopping the sale of this kit and pulling all existing kits from the shelf to check them. We hope to get a corrected kit back up for sale ASAP.
As a token of apology for the mistake and gratitude for your efforts, we would like to offer you [XYZ]. Please let me know if this is acceptable and I’ll get the ball rolling ASAP.
Sincerely,
[Customer Support Person]
Instead, what I got was more like
We acknowledge that your kit has a problem. Here’s a lower-quality product than you paid for.
So: do I feel like I was screwed? Absolutely not. But I'm still left hoping someone else comes out with a well designed sealed moonball camber plate for this car. If they ever do, I might switch to it even if mine are fine, just on principle. As nice as it is when a company moves quickly to make up for its mistakes, it’s better when a company takes its products more seriously.
Comment