DeTomaso Mailing List: March 1997, Message #132
     



From: Dick Williams <dcwilliams@premier.net>

Subject: Stay Away From This Guy

Date: Tue, 18 Mar 1997 14:02:56 -0600



Below is a copy of a letter I sent to "2 On Your Side", an investigative

TV news show on WBRZ in Baton Rouge, LA.  I thought I would share this

with you all for two reasons; because he has contracted work with

several out of towners (including Californians) so I wanted to make sure

everyone in this group steers clear of him and I am also needing some

help finding the right person to work on my Pantera.  Any input would be

much appreciated.  Here is the letter:



Back in April of '96 I asked Bob Miller of Yesterday's Auto Restoration

in Baton Rouge to do some work for me on my 1972 Pantera automobile and

it has been a nightmare ever since.



When I took the car in to ask him if he could possibly do the work

(recover seats, purchase and install stereo, purchase and install four

new tires and clean wheels, fix problems with electric windows and find

two emblems that were missing from the rear of the car) I was also

curious about how long it would take him since I was eager to get it

back on the road.  His answer to me was that he was the best man for

this kind of work and that it would only take a couple of months at most

to complete. He also asked for two thousand dollars in advance for the

work and the purchases he was going to have to make. I agreed and left

his place of business with the agreement that he would call me when the

work was done. Keep in mind that he came highly recommended and his

office is covered with pictures of some of the rarest automobiles in

existence (with his shop in the background) and he also claims to have

done some work for a particular C&W music celebrity.



Four months later I called him to ask him what was taking so long and he

gave me various excuses that seemed to me to be legitimate so I said I

understood and that I would wait patiently.  After another four months,

and not even a phone call, I drove to his place of business and

explained how upset I was with the lack of respect I was being shown and

that I would be coming by every week until he finished the work.  After

returning to his shop the following week I realized that my car was not

being worked on at all so I called my attorney for advice.  He advised

that I should, once again, go to his place of business and explain that

I wanted the vehicle immediately, finished or not or that I would go to

the Police with a complaint of unauthorized use of a movable.  When I

arrived at his shop Bob Miller explained that the only thing that they

had left to do was get the tires on and that he would personally deliver

it within two days with the money he owed me (I ended up purchasing the

tires myself to hurry things up).  After three days he drove, not towed,

the car into my driveway without any of the work done and none of the

money and said he would pay me back as soon as possible.  I told him

that I wanted some good faith money and when he said that he did not

have anything on him I explained that if he didn't have some of the

money he owed me by the following day at noon I would take whatever

steps were necessary.  I also said to him, "I don't care if it's ten

dollars, just have it to me by noon tomorrow."  Needless to say, I am

writing this three days later and not even a phone call from him.



After some research I have come to find out that he has filed bankruptcy

before (Classic Auto Restoration), and that he has some serious

liability to the IRS for not reporting some of his auto restoration

income so I am convinced that he will file bankruptcy again and that I

will probably never receive any of the money that is owed to me.

However, I would sure like to make sure that he pays for what he has

done to me by not being allowed to do this to anyone else.  Would you

folks please help to make HIS life miserable for a change?



Thanks for your consideration,



Dick Williams