- Location
- Lafayette, IN
I contacted DirtBound Offroad (WebDog) via PM about a Mojave Cut & Fold Rear Bumper on on January 24th. I asked about lead time and was told "It would ship in 2-3 weeks, probably a little less as I am not super busy at the moment." I specifically asked "So even assuming a week for shipping from there to here (Indiana), I could easily have it within a month from today, correct?" and I was told "Yes, UPS says 4 days to IN."
Lead time was important to me, because I wanted to have it painted and installed before the event I was attending on March 2nd (Winterfest). I placed the order on January 24th, within a few minutes of receiving a response back about the lead time.
After exactly 4 weeks (February 21st) I asked about the status and reminded DirtBound that I would be on the trails in roughly 8 days and needed it before then. I was told "Should ship out in a day or two and get to you tuesday - wed", meaning I would have it by Feburary 28th or 29th, giving me a few days to paint and install the bumper. Winterfest came and went and I had no bumper.
I sent a PM about the status of the bumper on March 9th (6.5 weeks after I placed my order). I sent another PM the same day about a calculation error with the 15% discount that was available when I placed my order. I received 15% off of $475, the base price of the bumper, not $500 as I had ordered it with D-ring tabs. However I'm always grateful for any discount offered by a vendor, so I have no issue with the miscalculation; I just wanted to make DirtBound aware of the issue. I received a response about the discount miscalculation stating that it would be looked into, but I never received a response to my inquiry about the progress on the bumper.
On March 16th (Friday), I received a tracking number via e-mail from Dirtbound Offroad, which I frequently checked the status of. On March 19th (Monday), UPS stated "Order Processed," but it did not appear the bumper had been shipped as there was no origin scan. On March 22nd (Thursday), the origin scan was completed in Los Angeles and the bumper was on its way.
I received the bumper yesterday, March 28th, two months and 4 days after I ordered it. I have no problem with a bumper taking 2 months to build and ship; lots of off-road parts companies have a long lead time. But I inquired about the lead time before I ordered to make sure that I would have it when I needed it. I was assured on several occasions that it would arrive in time, and it did not. Never did I receive any indication that it would take longer than expected, and I had to initiate all communication regarding its status, which did not always yield a response.
I have to admit that for the past few weeks I wondered if I would be receiving a bumper at all. The bumper itself looks to be very nice. But I feel that a) lead time estimates (especially when offered and committed to by the vendor and not arbitrarily demanded by the customer) should be adhered to, and b) if lead time estimates prove to be wrong and the product cannot be delivered in time, that should be communicated to the customer.
I'm sure the experience has varied for other customers, but I thought I would share mine.
Lead time was important to me, because I wanted to have it painted and installed before the event I was attending on March 2nd (Winterfest). I placed the order on January 24th, within a few minutes of receiving a response back about the lead time.
After exactly 4 weeks (February 21st) I asked about the status and reminded DirtBound that I would be on the trails in roughly 8 days and needed it before then. I was told "Should ship out in a day or two and get to you tuesday - wed", meaning I would have it by Feburary 28th or 29th, giving me a few days to paint and install the bumper. Winterfest came and went and I had no bumper.
I sent a PM about the status of the bumper on March 9th (6.5 weeks after I placed my order). I sent another PM the same day about a calculation error with the 15% discount that was available when I placed my order. I received 15% off of $475, the base price of the bumper, not $500 as I had ordered it with D-ring tabs. However I'm always grateful for any discount offered by a vendor, so I have no issue with the miscalculation; I just wanted to make DirtBound aware of the issue. I received a response about the discount miscalculation stating that it would be looked into, but I never received a response to my inquiry about the progress on the bumper.
On March 16th (Friday), I received a tracking number via e-mail from Dirtbound Offroad, which I frequently checked the status of. On March 19th (Monday), UPS stated "Order Processed," but it did not appear the bumper had been shipped as there was no origin scan. On March 22nd (Thursday), the origin scan was completed in Los Angeles and the bumper was on its way.
I received the bumper yesterday, March 28th, two months and 4 days after I ordered it. I have no problem with a bumper taking 2 months to build and ship; lots of off-road parts companies have a long lead time. But I inquired about the lead time before I ordered to make sure that I would have it when I needed it. I was assured on several occasions that it would arrive in time, and it did not. Never did I receive any indication that it would take longer than expected, and I had to initiate all communication regarding its status, which did not always yield a response.
I have to admit that for the past few weeks I wondered if I would be receiving a bumper at all. The bumper itself looks to be very nice. But I feel that a) lead time estimates (especially when offered and committed to by the vendor and not arbitrarily demanded by the customer) should be adhered to, and b) if lead time estimates prove to be wrong and the product cannot be delivered in time, that should be communicated to the customer.
I'm sure the experience has varied for other customers, but I thought I would share mine.