Has anybody been in contact with Luke (stereoinstaller1) recentley?

[Rouvld]

Has any one of you guys been able to get in contact with Luke (stereoinstaller1) recentley either on the forums or by phone?

[2002tiiguy]

funny you say that, no, i have not been able to, unfortunately

[Rouvld]

funny you say that, no, i have not been able to, unfortunately

You too? Something's up with him, I find it funny that he can't email, call or PM me but he can log in on r3v and post on Facebook/Instagram. But can't get in touch with me to resolve a matter with my recent order.

[imjusthere]

His phone is shut off. Oddly enough he can receive texts though.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

[AndrewBird]

I talked to him today. He doesn't have cell service, but should be getting emails and receiving texts through Google. I'll mention something to him about you guys trying to contact him.

[2002tiiguy]

be patient, hes a great guy, i would be highly surprised if he was ignoring you

[steady330]

be patient, hes a great guy, i would be highly surprised if he was ignoring you

I've been trying to get him on the phone, email, text, Facebook, etc., etc. I suggest he is COMPLETELY hiding from customers he has swindled (like me). Paid him in December for my son's box and after a laundry list of excuses, I gave him space, only contacting him once a month. Four months later, he still hasn't come through on his promises to deliver product, but he's been enjoying my money the whole time. I ask for a refund and he came UNGLUED...calling me every dirty name in the book and threatening to send the "law" after us.

I sent him money based on people on forums saying he's a "nice guy." I disagree. He's not that nice, and I have to question anyone who claims he is. Are you sure? My story of dealing with GAS and Luke isn't the only one of its kind in cyberspace.

[Exodus_2pt0]

That's a shame, the guy really does make a quality product. I had one of his boxes in my E34, it made my Kicker 10" best buy junk sound amazing.

Wish he would chime in here.

[Exodus_2pt0]

What exactly did you order? And what exactly is the issue?

Just curious, since this is now a public matter.

[Andy.B]

I personally have only had positive experiences with GAS. I am sorry to hear yours has been so negative.

I think that big business e-commerce has set the bar incredibly high, and shopping experiences like Amazon Prime have whitewashed the e-commerce experience.

When you are buying from someone online, you are literally sending money to a stranger, on their promise that they will send something back. In terms of many enthusiast driven pop up businesses, that usually means it's some guy (or girl, hopefully well-intentioned), in their garage or basement, usually working a full time job, and balancing a family, a social life, chores, adult responsibilities, etc. When one person starts to become displeased with the transaction, you have two normal folks, with pride, stress, and unknown levels of expectations.

That seller doesn't have Amazon's pockets to offer a refund. It's very likely they may have spent that money on materials for the next sale. And that buyer may not have enough wiggle room in their budget to comfortably wait on a several hundred dollar transaction to be resolved.

It is easy for an argument over money and services between two normal people to quickly get ugly. And that is the important thing to keep in mind. It's just two normal people. It isn't a big company with lawyers, insurance, accountants, customer service specialists, etc. It's just two strangers arguing over a transaction. You can safely get snippy with a big business CSR, comfortable in the knowledge that they aren't going to take it personally, and at the end of the day, have deep enough pockets to make you happy. When you get snippy with a normal person, they ARE going to take it personally, and they DON'T have to make you happy.

On the other hand, some sellers ARE bad at sales and customer service. Some sellers are dishonest. Sometimes good sellers turn bad. Sometimes a seller makes mistakes. Some folks have no business trying to run a business.

I'm not saying OP was the instigator in communication breaking down here. I'm not saying GAS was the problem either. The truth is, none of us will ever know for sure. I simply think it is important to remember that in today's customer service driven world, where "the customer is always right", you aren't always buying from a big business. There is no universal rule of things being 'fair'.

Sometimes you're sending money to a stranger that is trying their best, but at the end of the day, doesn't owe you anything.

Be careful, read reviews, ask questions before sending money, and use a payment services that offers you a recourse. If things go south, request a refund, share your experience, and move on. Dragging a still-in-progress transaction into the public space is unlikely to help the situation.


(I am not a business. I don't sell a product. I don't work in customer service. I don't know GAS or OP. I have been burned as a buyer, and as a seller on ebay/amazon. I don't have a horse in this race. I just hope to see less of these stories in the future, and I think if folks are more careful, and temper their expectations, that will happen.)

[Rouvld]

^^^I agree with you on the aspect of big company vs small niche companies. But, in my particular situation, I feel it was a blatant lack of communication on the sellers part. When I spend 600+ dollars on something I expect to get what I paid for. In my situation it didnt get everything I paid for. And I find it infuriating when I reach out to get a simple problem worked out on multiple occasions that's caused by the seller and I'm not met half way. And the fact that said seller has the time to log on/off r3v throughout the day, post on Facebook, post on Instagram and not get back in communication with me is unacceptable. It's like you loan a friend a $100 and he says he'll pay you back asap, but the you see him at the bar two weeks later buying rounds of shots for everyone knowing damn well he owes you $100. It's just common courtesy. I will say that Luke has reached out since this post or my last email I sent him and said he'll be send out the parts that I was missing from my order, he said it was due to parts being delivered late, which is understandable. My problem is, if he knew that the parts were backordered why wouldn't he just tell when he was sending the package out in the first place. A simple email or call or text simply saying "hey man I don't have the parts to make your crossovers yet, they're backordered. I'll get them out as soon as we get the parts." would have been enough.

[florida_dirt]

I've seen him post on his IG account, in one post he stated that he's no longer going to be making boxes or anything anymore. He posts quite frequently. I've always wanted a Luke box.



Who knows, people have bad days. Things piss you off and sometimes you say fuck it all. It's a shame because his work is quality.

[Wschnitz]

He makes a good product, but honestly I'm not entirely surprised there are people who don't like him, or that hes gone out of business.

The dude refused to take any reasonable action to expand his business, was only marketing products through forums and his website. His turn around time was way too long on boxes, and sometimes he had quite the attitude when you pestered him about when your product was going to be finished.

If he had done something like marketed on ebay/amazon/etc with the boxes and started prototyping more and more BMW's for boxes I bet he would have no issues at all with business.

[Shangsta]

shit i need to order my crossovers before he shuts down

[agent]

If he had done something like marketed on ebay/amazon/etc with the boxes and started prototyping more and more BMW's for boxes I bet he would have no issues at all with business.

It's easy to play armchair quarterback. It's definitely easier than trying to bootstrap a business and grow it organically.