Michigan outdrive repair location All American Outdrive service

davidbrooks

Does anyone have any experience with George at All American Outdrive Service in Bronson MI?  http://www.allamericandriveservice.com/index.html  I talked to him and he seems really knowledgeable and i cant beat his prices.  New remanufactured complete B3 outdrive for $4k.  I could ship him my drive and he would rebuild it for a fraction of the price of even that.  I just wanted to see if anyone had used him before.

skennelly

I heard of them before.  Here's a thread that has nothing but good things to say.

http://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/drives-lower-units/231366-anyone-use-all-american-drive-service-3.html

Liberty44140

Believe @Black_Diamond has good things to say about them 

Black_Diamond

I have used him. 2x B 3 overhauls. 2 year warranty. 

++++++

Handymans342

How much to ship each way?? They are heavy

davidbrooks

That is awesome news.  Freight is $150 each way.

Black_Diamond

You might ping Alswagg on here too. I'd trust his work too. He's in NW Indiana so shipping would be the same. 

Handymans342

Yes

davidbrooks

@Alswagg thank you. If you weren't so far away i would of had the boat hauled to you by now.

wm61356

I hired All American Drive service to rebuild a B3 from a boat I had a few years ago. The service was excellent! George beat his estimated completion time and I never had any problems with the drive after he rebuilt it. Additionally, George provides a 2 year warranty on his work. That is the best warranty in the business. I recommend him highly!

Dream_Inn

Wow, nothing but rave reviews!  I'll have to remember the name (hopefully not for myself anytime soon - both my drives are new, but for anyone asking)

LaRea

I just got my Bravo 3X back from All American Drive Service.  My review is not a rave review, although it is a positive review.

This company stands behind its work with a two-year warranty, which is even better than what Merc offers on a brand new outdrive.  Their customer service is thorough and effective.  And the real star of the show is price.  Compared to the cost of buying a new drive, I saved a bundle.  Those are the most important points, and I give them high marks.  

Schedule is where they disappointed me.  It took five weeks to complete the repair.  First, the low-bid shipper took a week just to pick up my shipment (partially my fault).  Then, it took AADS over three weeks to order parts from Merc.  He is trying to use just-in-time inventory to control his costs, but he's obviously cutting the margins too thin.  

My advice to anyone considering using AADS:  Call George first, and have a frank discussion about schedule and whether he has parts in stock for your drive.  

Handymans342

 Why didn't you do both drives just curious is OneDrive older than the other one?

LaRea

By the way, George says the typical Bravo 3 sent to him for a rebuild has 600-700 hours of operation.  That's what mine have, so I'll probably rebuild my other outdrive during the off-season next year.  

Handymans342

What was the shipping cost?

LaRea

Virginia to Michigan, $150 each way.  All you do is strap the drive to a pallet using flexible metal plumbing straps.  Easy.  

Black_Diamond

I have personally been George's place a few times.  Small family shop.  I don't think he's running just in time inventory there.  lol  Just saying.  They do get busy, that's probably the biggest reason.  He's been reasonable on turn time for me, I will say I have tried to have anything done over the winter too.

I recommend him. 

Did you switch to the Neo-Synthetic special blend oil for the out drive?  Good stuff.

davidbrooks

@Black_Diamond and @LaRea he turned mine around in 8 days and it was a rebuild.  Also had some casing damage repaired.  I paid the same as you for shipping.  He also talked me through the process to do a fine adjustment on the shift cable.  He will definitely get my other outdrive to rebuild as soon as i have the $ for it.

Handymans342

What's the normal rebuild cost?

davidbrooks

Under $5k.

Handymans342

Geeeezzzz

LaRea

I won't fault him too much on delivery time.  I know it's a small business, and the great price makes it easy to forgive.  But five weeks is five weeks, and a friend of mine has been waiting much longer than that for his Volvo.  So it's not all rainbows and puppies.  

On the plus side, I got a TON of stuff done around the house!

Dream_Inn

Handymans342 said:

Geeeezzzz

Yeah, a complete new B-2 drive for me was ~$7k (maybe under) installed.  I don't feel so bad, but I know the B-3s go for a little more.

rasbury

5 grand to rebuild- what the heck does a new one cost? I thought new there were around 3 grand...

davidbrooks

@rasbury New B3 is around $8k not counting delivery and install.

rasbury

you got to be kidding.....anyone want to buy a nice 270?

rasbury

so if it screws up I should have someone tow me across some submerged logs until it falls off?

RustyS

My buddy purchased a Mercury re-manufactured B3 (with 1yr. warranty) for $6,000 through a marina earlier this season. I'd go this way before the hassle of shipping, etc. Looks brand new on outside; inside good as new if Merc remanufactured I would guess.

Just my $.02....

davidbrooks

Just remember insurance is only gonna cover a % unless you sink the boat, so hit those logs hard and swim.

rasbury

you got that right...man I'm am over my head with this boat, that's for sure! Oh well...

J3ff

man, I was hoping I could get someone to rebuild it for 1000 or less. Guess that is out the window!!