I think the reason people "bother" with this plenum is the same reason I did; it is a perfect concept. On paper it looks great. Keep strut bar, keep engine cover, great gains, looks good, less heat-soak, etc. The only problem comes from the transfer of the on-paper idea to the product itself. I think Kinetix is moving in the wrong direction of trying to make it thicker and stronger. Ever heard the expression that in a storm, the twig flexs but the oak breaks. I think it would be better to either make an aluminum mold (couldn't be THAT much more expensive) or to use a more flex-friendly material...

Regardless, I anxiously await Kinetix's response, as I'm sure many of you do.

 

Probably because their product sucks. Should have gone with crawford.

 

here is lsdunique's (the guy who posts for kinetix) response in the gb forum.

 

I dont think they will give the money back and let you sell the V4. You should have just took the time to put the stock one on. It only takes about 45 min to do. Its not worth taking the chance to ruin your motor.

 

I must have been unclear. I want a full refund (including towing fee). I certainly don't expect them to also give me a v4; I don't even want it... BUT, if they have already shipped it to me, I will just resell it myself...

 

dam, that is crazy but I am glad to hear you are ok and no harm came to you.

However, I do have to question the title of the thread.

"Catastrophic failure @ 80mph... stranded middle of nowhere"

you state yourself that after replacing the broken plenum with the stock one that the car started right back up and ran fine. if it however was a catastrophic failure wouldn't your engine be toast?

In my eyes, I look for the positive, and in this unfortunate incident (which very well could happen to others) the positive is that no engine damage occured.

If THAT was the case, then who would be to blame? Being that hindsite is 20/20, once a crack started, and you reported it, maybe you should have switched out to the factory one?

Now, because of this, if/when I have a crack develop, I will now immediately contact them for a replacement AND switch back to the stocker until the new one arrives.

And as for WHY i have one....

the car goes MUCH faster with it AND I get to keep the factory strut bar.


And in all honesty, i am not trying to bash, I am truly sorry for this happening. It must have really sucked to break down, get stranded and get hit with a $150.00 towing bill! I also would be mad. I not only feel bad for Wren because of this but for Kenetix as well who are taking a rash of $hit over a product they are producing to help make our cars go faster.

 

I guess catastrophic could be interpreted differently by different people. I meant catastrophic in that my engine wouldn't run and I was stranded... I do agree about looking at the positive; thats why I said I was thankful it didn't give out while I was going into the sharp turn, or else I might have ended up in some trees.

I feel bad for Kinetix too. If you lookup my old posts, I have nothing but praise for them. I think they got too far ahead of themselves and too eager to release a product before fully testing it. I still give them the benefit of the doubt; I believe the only reason they haven't contacted me yet is maybe they aren't working today. I also believe they will give me a full refund when they hear of what happened. I do love their hiflo cats and might even buy some of their suspension products, but as of now I simply can no longer endorse their plenum.

 

I am sorry to hear about your issues Wren. I can certainly understand after the three plenums I went through. By the way, if you are ever stuck in South East Alabama again, let me know. I can have a pick-up full of good 'ol boys to your Z in 40 minutes or less. My entire family is from that area. I can only assume you were in that area because I believe you were likely in the panhandle of Florida for vacation (given your age, I am thinking PCB).

 

To all kinetix plenum buyers: what is your experience with this plenum? I'm wondering about failure rates and whether i should cancel my order for the v4.
It sure would have been nice if Kinetix were more proactive in this matter by issuing a bulletin (like a tsb) about the problems with their plenums and what they were doing to correct the problem. I would feel alot better if i felt as though i were in the loop about exactly whats going on at Kinetix, eg exactly what changes have they made to the v4 and what testing have they done prior to releasing the new version.

 

Judging from your second pic, it looks like a V2. My V3 has had cracks for a few weeks now, but my stock plenum is on its way to Crawfords.

Let us know if you manage to get a refund. At this point, I'd much rather have my money back rather then try and sell a V4 at a discounted price.

 

all_bark

wren did have a Catastrophic Failure - He was stranded in the middle of no where for gosh sakes, because he used a product that should have never left the factory. Could it have been worse? Absolutely, the engine could have indigested the plastic, but thank goodness it didn't. If you want to keep using yours, watching for cracks every day, and switching plenums, that's your business. I don't have to look at my Crawford, because it works, doesn't crack and it makes power. Good Luck with your Daily Inspections - That's Not for Me!

BTW, glad you got to keep your old strut bar. That's a great reason to use a sub standard product.

Lou

 

Speedracer - BMW M3's, E36's and Infiniti I30's come with pasltic intake manifolds from teh factory..its not only heard of but quite common.

wren - not that this is what you want to hear but why on earth have you been driving for a month with the plenum cracked? There is simply no way for you to tell if its getting worse or not without removing the plenum. Plasic expands and contracts under heat and cooling...this also is exagerated when you drive and lift. I know you're 19 and have some learning to do, but man, you asked for this episode yourself Why should they pay your towing fee...you knew it was cracked, and you drove on it anyway. That's like seeing a bubble in your tire and driving on it anyway, then trying to get the tire company to foot the bill for the tow when it blows.

I had a V2 on my car for a month. It developed 2 small cracks one Saturday. Car ran fine, idled fine. Did I chance it by trying to glue it back together or trying to drive on it til it got worse? Nope...I took it, gently, right to the shop, and at 7 PM on a Saturday, when I should have been home getting ready for a night out with my gf, I was at the shop swapping back to the stock plenum. I know its a tough situation and hindsight is 20/20, but you have to admit driving on something that is damaged is not a smart thing to do.

I am sure they will refund your money back for the plenum. They took care of mine with an offer to either replace or refund within a day or two of me PM'ing them. Being that this is a holiday weekend (very few shops are opened today as there is no UPS delivery and banks are closed), I am sure they will handle it in a timely manner. Just don't insult their intelligence or your credibility by asking for anything more though...it would be unfair.

adam

 

My, My, My -

How can you guys be saying this? Adam, I'm sort of surprised ay you, but we've talked before.

When a consumer buys something, the darn thing should work. The Kinetix plenum as it stands now, doesn't. It's not Wren's fault he bought a piece of junk. And because he's 19, this makes him inexperienced? IMO, anyone who bought the plenum, without first knowing what consumer experience was, made a BIG mistake. YOU fit that catagory! You also missed a night out with your gf, because of something that wasn't your fault, and that's OK with you? wren is not to blame for this failure, Kinetix most certainly is, and they should pay.

Lou

 

Yes, I should have switched to the stock plenum for the trip, but I was and am quite frankly sick and tired of changing plenums. I bought a v1. Got it, changed to it... it cracked. Put the stock back on. Got the v2, put it on. Had to do some warranty work, put the stock on... after warranty work put the v2 back on. That makes 5 times I have changed plenums. I can now do it in about 30 minutes, but don't like to get all greasy and nasty.

OK, so I am 19... and? Are you implying I am less intelligent than someone older? Through my experiences I have found that different people mature at different rates. When I bought a plenum, I did not expect to have to change out plenums constantly. If I really wanted to be a PITA I could request $ for all the time I have wasted due to this POS product, but I won't because that is ridiculous.

Simply put; a warrantied aftermarket product failed, rendering my car useless, forcing me to get a tow. I should pay because their product failed... oh wait, are you saying I should have known their product would fail? This doesn't seem like the kind of product I want to own (one I should expect to fail)...

 

Lou - I agree that it should work...if it does not, at the very least the company needs to make people whole again. To that end, I think Kinetix has done a good job.

I absolutely fit the category...but you know what, I fit that category in alot of respects with alot of products we buy and test on my own car. I ahve said this SO many times before - just ebcause someone sells it does not mean it is worth buying. I've literally wasted more money than lots of people here have into their cars on mods that have not produced a result.....the Fujitsubo headers I talked about in another thread are a perfect example At some point, someone needs to be the first to try something. I know enough, and have been in the game long enough to know what is worth my time in testing, and what is not. I also take full responsibility for the results of my mods...good bad or indifferent. I pull no punches when it comes to parts. If something works, I praise it, if there are shortcomings, I point them out. If it is not worth spending money on from a power standpoint, I say that too (maybe it has some other benefit, such as aesthetics, that someone can find appealing). Having access to, and selling a huge array of parts makes me uniquely positioned to do just that, and I think it has served our customers well. The better informed our customers are, the easier the transaction goes across the board.
Yep, I missed out on a night with my gf because of the failure.....and yes, that did suck. BUT, it would have been alot worse had I been stuck on the side of the road because I did not have the good sense to replace something that I KNEW was damaged.

I am not assigning blame to wren for the unit failing..he's not alone in having a cracked plenum. Heck I am 30 and mine cracked too...age is not a factor here Having been at this a LONG time, and being told to "go scratch", without any reimbursement of the initial product or my time, or the time of our staff, by many "well respected" aftermarket firms on the failure of, or lack of performance of a certain part, I have since come to expect it to a certain degree. But I do think that by driving on the plenum that he knew was cracked for over a month, and then wanting someone else to foot the bill because that damaged part, rendered his car undriveable, is simply not fair. I agree 100% that Kinetix should reimburse him for the plenum...and I am sure they will. I know that life gets in the way of car stuff alot of times...we don't always have the time to do what needs to be done right away. But waiting over a month to replace something you know is not 100% is just asking for something exactly like this to happen.

Having dealt with Kinetix myself (only via emails never even talked on the phone), you can at least sleep easy knowing you are dealing with guys that want you to be happy...they are not out to come up with a way to shaft you (I could name LOTS of companies out there that literally could care less.......unfortunate, but true). Who knows, maybe they will reimburse you for the tow....just don't go in demanding it or expecting it I think is all I am saying.

Make sense?

Anyway, good luck on this....I know it sucks to be without your car for anymore than is abolsutely necessary, and at least you were able to solve the issue with relative ease. If you ever feel like running an intended mod by me (even if you get it from someone else...thats cool), by all means, feel free to - if I have used it, or have first hand knowledge of it, I will be the first to let you know. If I have not used it yet, I'll tell you that as well, and might be able to refer to to someone or somplace that can answer your enquiry. I firmly believe in doing that, as we are here as an active part of the community....not just sitting in some office processing orders all day.

adam

 

Adam

We certainly kicked the S**t out of this one. We both have different opinions. 20/20 hindsight is great. BTW, I'm 65, so both of you are kids to me.

Lou

 

FYI: the plenum wasn't cracked for over a month, I don't know where you got that figure. I said the cracks began forming 6/18, when I promptly requested a v4 plenum. If you bought an AEM intake, and the intake tube split apart, would you not think AEM was 100% responsible for every problem caused by the failure?

Oh well, I see we differ on views. I think just because I had knowledge that the product *might fail doesn't make me responsible for its failure. Some RT cats fail, people know this. If you bought a set of RT cats and they failed, would you find yourself or RT responsible? Put yourself in an individual buyers shoes, not a distributors...

 

Have version 2 or 3 for 6 months including several hours on track and no problems. Love it.

 

I think Kinetix is trying to get a kickass product on the market, and is almost there. Certainly some more R&D could have been done, mybe the product hit the market too early, but still some of the posts in this thread are pathetic...

 

you are right on the timeframes wren..not sure why I said a month either! Sorry about that

yes I would think AEM was 100% responsible for the problem....wth a caveat. If I continued to use the damaged item, I think I am somewhat responsible as well. That's all I am saying.

You have to remember, when I get stuff for my car (I have a 350Z), I am the individual buyer...you would think to some distributors it would matter that we were a shop vs an individual, but sadly, to many, it does not. Items I get for my car are bought on an individual basis first...not in bulk like a stocking order.

The very reason we dont sell RT for example, is because we had a very high failure rate going back about 3 years ago with some of their units....that, plus the fact that they took their sweet time in "handling" the problem through our supplier, left a bad taste in my mouth. It's the very reason we now only use the Ultimate Racing ones. Not only is it a superior product, but I ahve first hand knowledge that it fits, is not prone to failure, and is backed by a reputable company.

Back to the issue at hand...now that the stock plenum is back in, curious to see if you noticed a difference.