so whats the word on them. do they really not have cars for sale? They are cheap cars. there must be a reason...
I seem to remember somebody telling me most of the cars the guy sells are rebuilt, which explains the cheap price. I talked to him once looking for some parts and he seemed nice enough, but that's no indication of quality business practices.
Elite Motorsports is World Motor Cars, aka WMC, aka David LaValle. And yes, he "rebuilds" salvaged Imprezas and sells them. And yes, it's an absolute scam.
There are past experiences where he wasn't very forthcoming about the salvaged history. Shoddy workmanship and repairs but charging KBB prices for the cars. A few of his cars had missing parts...parts like 'sway bars.' I think that WMC thread needs a Cliff's Notes with details as to why it's a bad idea.
I just read the whole gigantic WMC/Elite thread. Summary: Elite advertises very cheap Subaru. Owner takes $7K as down payment. Takes twice as long as promised to fix the car with 100 different excuses. Other customers with massive car problems surface. Elite owner has a BS story to explain each problem (it's always the customer's fault, not an abundance of ****ty work). Cheap Subaru is finally "ready," but runs like dog ass. Buyer backs out and demands money back. Elite spends two weeks waffling about returning the down payment despite having promised it in writing. After lawyers are involved he finally cuts a check, but refuses to return the customer's wheels IE: steals them. The entire world understands the owner of elite is a scum-bag scammer.
haha thats what i was thinking! I know a few people that go to elite autosport in blaine.. never heard anything bad about them..
FWIW, I bought a 02 Bugeye from him, knowing his rep, knowing it was salvaged. Had no issues whatsoever with the car. Owned it for a year or so, then sold it and got the Evo. Just my $0.02, not picking sides, just giving my experience of Elite/WMC/Whatever-the-hell-it's-called-now to the OP.
West. For best results I'd recommend staying close enough to one of the poles. If the car takes a dive, one can then push the car between timezones, or possibly park in three or more timezones simultaneously.
I've dealt with over 10 of his cars, and sometimes I feel like I should just drive the car off the cliff. I hate them, hate them, hate them!
We have had great success on both a 2009 STI as well as a 2007 INFINITI G35X in which they warrantied. And yes, we checked on the warranty provider as well. One was rebuilt and one was not. They were honest and upfront either way.... no stories. Either way, we have not had any issues. This company has never been affiliated with that other company called WMC or whatever. Owner's name is Mike something and they have a nice staff. They wholesale broker to the masses as well as perform service work and for insurance companies. They have a central dispatch in which they transfer vehicles throughout the country to other wholesalers. Our family has done our homework and feel that this group is straight up. Just our .02....
I bought a salvage titled civic from a private seller several years back. He was "home body shop" type and kinda shady but at the time the car was priced right so I went for it. I never had any major issues with that car but the longer I had the car the more little things I noticed that weren't done quite right. I'll personally never buy another salvage title vehicle again not because I got ripped off but you just never know what kind of workmanship went into the repairs and where corners may have been cut until its too late. The bottom line is "buyer beware" anytime you purchase a prior salvage vehicle no matter who's selling it especially if the price seems too good to be true.
I would like to bring another person who has dealt with David and see if this is the same guy behind another name. I have worked on 3 of the WMC Subarus. I seen what has happened with each of them '01 2.5RS -continuous engine oil leak; rear main seal? -hammered out pass side fender apron -dash does NOT lay in straight, can't put in the air vent peice in front of dash -Passenger mirror is OLD SKOOL edgy Impreza mirror '05 STi -frontal collision pass side -passenger side head CRACKED and welded back. Silicone used to plug a small hole, but still leaks oil '04 STi -front collision 1/4 -missing front AND rear sway bars -frame is bent to where you can SEE that the pitch mount is not straight front to back I hate working on these cars. Another WRX was purchased from WMC. '06 WRX. This particular one has electrical issues that was never fixed. I only learned later it was a WMC.
looked at a mustang from them a while back. The price looked good, but when I took it into a shop they said the whole exhaust was just some crap pieced together and that it had obviously been heavily modified at some point. They always have great prices because they get them from auction and fix them. Very shady place. They wanted a $100 non-refundable deposit because I wasn't 18 just to test drive it. My dad even called them to tell them they are douchebags. I had $9000 cash to buy a car and they wouldn't even let me test drive one.
We have discussed a few comments on this thread with the owner of Elite Motorsports of Minnesota and have discovered that they are not affiliated in the least with a closed company called World. They specialize in high end wholesale vehicles, service, and transport. There have been many dealers in this location over the decades. Mike said that they do not market or even work on American vehicles much less a Ford Mustang. He basically shook his head and said people shouldn't bad mouth people or businesses they know nothing about. They never had one for sale so the earlier and later posts are inaccurate. Everyone has an opinion, however, they need to get their facts first. Believe me, it was the only way we would spend nearly $50,000 for two vehicles with these guys. Ownership information available through the State. Now on to my next project....
Not to start a flame war or anything but why are you defending them so much that you've taken the time to type a couple paragraphs about them and called them about it etc...?
Dave lavale runs elite motorsports, he is the SAME guy that used to run world motor cars. (which no longer exists) Elite motorsports. 324 concorde exchange, st paul mn.
not to be confused with Elite AUTOSPORTS... which I think people are failing to make the connection that has been mentioned a few times...
Thinking of buying an '02 impreza, salvaged. They haven't started the work yet, and are asking for a downpayment. I'm looking for references, and would love to speak with you about your experiences working with them. Thanks, Dan (320-203-1365)
Is this who you are working with? Enjoy the read. This eltie/wmc gets confusing at times. http://mnsubaru.com/forums/showthre...rsports.-READ-WHOLE-THREAD.?highlight=lavalle
+1. The BBB is great if the business actually actively participates in it. If they don't, then there is a good chance that a few buttholes will fill the thing with complaints that have 'no resolution.' No resolution because the business doesn't actively use the BBB.
EVERYBODY! haha pros and cons to elite for my vehicle! Pro's: got a 08 wrx for $15 with 15k miles! yay! lol cons: hes shady bought a car with a air bag light on, with bent rims, with the wiring harness screwed up, with a brake line not tight (not like hes killing people just found it leaking slowly when it got low) intercooler clamp not tight, and not to mention the worse of all is dealing with dave!! omg!! only answers or responds to who he wants when he wants, will ignore people or certain questions, now i am VERY happy with my car but that is because i was able to fix ALL of these things after he could not because hes not a mechanic at all! theres many other things i cant remember but my car runs and looks perfect and for the price i got it for i am very happy but that in mind ONLY because i was able to fix it all myself, the repairs and time i have into my car would be THOUSANDS!! and i mean lots of these things were almost impossible to fix because he hides and throws **** together. now verdict: DO NOT buy a car from this guy! trust me not worth the headache or the annoyance his cars are crap after he sells them and need much work, i actually bought the car for more and he had to write me a check after he couldnt fix it and i just fixed things myself, the day i bought it we had to write a contract on stuff still needing to be fixed! it was over a dozen items and him not completing them i had to threaten him of suing before we finally resolved it with him paying me off then i easily fixed some problems with hours of diagnostics.
Let me speak from experience and my current situation with Elite Motorsports. I had my heads redone and head gaskets replaced. Now, less than 5000 miles later my car is pumping out white smoke and using antifreeze like it's going out of style. I have spoke with a few reputable shops in the area and they all have stories associated with Elite Motorsport repairs and cars. Dave has stated that he will look at the car and test the head gasket. Outside of that he made no promises. I am stuck working with them now because I can't afford to pay someone else to repair my car. Personally, I will never work with them again and I suggest others follow my lead.
^We've been warning people about them for years! Unfortunately, sometimes when people finally see these threads...it is already too late. DavidLavalle/WMC/EliteMotorsportsFTL. These threads all need to be stickied on the top of the FS section...and General Subaru Discussion...and Off Topic...and Welcome Mat...lol, you get the picture! You'd be better off buying from a junkyard.
