azehr

Hello ladies and gentlemen.

I'm curious if anybody has any dealings with Mondello Oldsmobile performance out of Paso Robles California?

Level 69 442 that my dad gave me for a high school graduation present. A couple years ago I sent my engine and transmission to Mondello to have it rebuilt. They are now currently installing the engine however I have mixed feelings on the quality of work or reliability of the owner. There are a couple of posts online that don't look good however I cannot find any reviews other than just a couple.

I don't Savvy engines and rebuilds very much and Lynn the owner told me I would have 100 to 150 horse Overstock in a 1969 400 engine. It doesn't sound like they have done much in terms of performance to the engine besides new ignition and maybe headers and just rebuilt it with all new stock parts. Has anybody had any dealings or heard of anything good from these guys since Joe Mondello passed away?

oldcutlass

Not many good reviews for Mondello Performance or Lynn for that matter. I personally have never used them, just read the nightmare stories.

joe_padavano

Joe Mondello passed away several years ago. Lynn Welfringer has owned and run the company for a while now. Unfortunately if you use the SEARCH function here, you'll find less than satisfactory dealings with him by most of the people who have used the company lately.

matt69olds

Mondello Performance with Lynn running things is a huge disappointment from when Joe ran the place. Lynn can do no wrong, Lyn is never wrong, and when he is wrong he won't make it right if it might cost him a dime. Whatever part he has in stock is exactly what you need. Whatever parts you currently have are completely wrong for you application. But he is more than willing to sell you what he thinks you need. I have never had any machine work done by him, hopefully his machinist are more ethical and competent than he is.

Gary M

Good luck, you may need it. I wouldn't buy a bucket of water from him if I was on fire.

azehr

Thanks for the input guys, I wish I would have done some research before i used him. All i can do now is hope for the best.

Gary M

Well at this point if I were you I would go to filtermag.com and use their magnets on your rebuilt motors oil filter. Listen for noises, change the oil early and cut open the filters with summit racings oil filter cutter to check for shavings every oil change from now on. Enjoy the car while doing this and only worry if you find something wrong. Keep in mind that even a blind squirrel finds a nut occasionally. You may be fine. Wish you the best of luck on your build.

Gary M

Try to get an itemized bill to document what was done on the build. Hold back payment till you get it and pay by credit card if you can. They will help you if needed in the first 30 days. That HP seems low and you will want to know what you paid for. Same with the transmission. A car I bought was listed as a rebuilt motor but the valve guides where shot and it smoked when first started. One mans meaning of rebuild is another mans meaning of oil change. Don't forget the Better business bureau if it goes south.

cfair

Had them rebuild my 425/455 at high cost. Not much noticeable HP gain over stock.

My big beef is random blue smoke (rings?) in 4 years since rebuild. Haven't pulled heads to see if smoke is valve- or ring- related. Deeply disappointed.

My generic 455 rebuild on my 66 Starfire is vastly better - smooth idle, good economy (well, for a 455...). You know when it just feels right? That's the generic rebuild Starfire.

The Welfringer/mondello 455 is not even close in run quality, for 2-3x the cost. Slightly hotter cam, so that's to its credit, but not happy in the end...

My thinking was to with specialists before they retired/age out of the system. Not a win.

cf

azehr

Did they give you a generic parts list? initially talking to Lynn he said the do machine work specific to the engine but then he cant remember what parts he used. I'm assuming they just put whatever stock Parts they had in it that was available on the Shelf. For paying for a performance rebuild I would have thought the parts list would have had more detail instead of just saying cam, lifters, heads, ect.

h/o guy

As was noted previously, pay with a credit card and be prepared to call them to challenge the charges.


I have repaired several botched projects of Lynn's including a club member's 400 G block build that they did that only lasted 400 miles before eating itself up.


Lynn's attitude towards the customer was that it was a "high performance" build and there was "no warranty' and "you must have not followed proper break in procedure"...


When I disassembled the engine, the rod bearing clearances were way too tight ( chewed up bearings), the donor block they swapped on the customer had all eight cylinders sleeved, the thrust clearance on the crank was non-existent except for the self clearance the engine did on its own, the customer was told he was getting "full roller rockers" but only had roller tip rockers, no-name camshaft, wrong pushrod length, Edelbrock heads that were "seconds" with all sorts of issues, and more...


Bottom line, he is a thief and has marred the good Mondello name. Bernard Mondello is the only Mondello in the business now and he can be trusted to do excellent work on your cylinder heads, stands behind his work, and provides more value for your dollar than most.


Hope all works out for you but be wary of what you get, how its put together, how it performs, and what if any assistance you will get from Lynn after he has your money.


Grant

cutlassefi

To get "100-150 more hp" from a G block isn't the easiest thing to do. The small bore severely inhibits breathing. And is it 100 or 150? He should know that, but he won't tell you because he's less than honest.
Best of luck. However next time before you do anything, you might want to do a bit more research before you pony up the cash.
Again best of luck.

Rallye469

Like others have said, hopefully it all turns out ok.
But you really need to get as much documentation as you can.
And always get a dyno sheet...and show up on dyno day to make sure it's yours.
-pete

Gary M

I checked the BBB in his area and only one complaint. Just because the online site says no refunds does not mean you should get screwed. I took a loss as well as MANY others. Why do we let guys like this continue to abuse customers. What about a class action lawsuit by all the people who got screwed by this POS. I'm in. Until someone does something he will be unstoppable.

Gary M

If nothing else he is using a known good name to defraud unsuspecting customers that think they are dealing with an existing good company - Bernard Mondello.

texxas

I hope your build turns out better than Guy's did. I'm sorry you're in this position.
http://www.73-77olds.com/forums/show...light=mondello
There are more than a few complaints about Lynn and Mondello in Paso Robles.

Gary M

Please , everyone on here that took a loss by this thief please pledge your support to stop this fraud. We can make it stop. I would bet Bernard Mondello is tired of it. He even specifies he is not affiliated with Lynn. List your name and I will contact a lawyer ( this has to stop). Don't back out though because without all of us I stand alone.

Gary M

I'm tired of reading posts on here that ask about a motor at Mondello Performance and if he should be trusted. It's like finding out your daughter just moved into friggem all university and she's the main course. This isn't about my loss, it's about all future screwings this a-hole plans. Let's stop him.

texxas

4 complaints at the BBB and NO reviews.
https://www.bbb.org/santa-barbara/bu...and-complaints

motorcitydeuce

has scammed me for over 2 grand. Where do i sign up to stop this turd? Gary M. if you are going to get an attorney let me know.
Mike P

olds 307 and 403

I wonder how this build turned out?

Gary M

My442

The probability of this turning out good is about zero.

Always do your homework before you lay down cash.

I have been deep into Olds for over twenty years, and I have not seen ONE good engine rebuild by the current owner.

jensenracing77

So sad! I just had an old High school friend that runs a machine shop call me. He said he is rebuilding a Mondello engine that the guy just sank $10,000 into. Said it went about 30 miles and a couple keepers came out and eat the pistons and cylinders up. Also said the bearings are all chewed up. I for the life of me can't understand how or why this guy is still in business! The only light (small light) is that this guy that paid the $10,000 to Mondello is a lawyer. Maybe he can push the right buttons and do something productive to him. Not holding my breath. So sad....

RayK

This Lynn guy sounds A LOT like Bruce Fulper who has been screwing Pontiac people for two decades. Great line of crap, then he gets your money and builds you the nicest looking hunk of s^^t you could imagine. Lives in the same state too!

matt69olds

mechacode

Get ahold of Bernard Mondello (Joe's son). Much better choice.

442SportCoupe

I have not or ever would deal with them. You want to deal with Wise Performance, Danny Lattimore, or Bill Travoto and Rocket Racing when looking at Oldsmobile performance or even a relatively stock engine.

olds 307 and 403

Not so sure about Wise Performance, there have been issues.

azehr

Well sorry I haven't gotten back to anybody yet. After all the bad reviews I decided to have he didn't do the install that way if anything went wrong I would have leverage because he was the one who installed it. So my dad took the car to Paso Robles. He charge $3,500 up front. After he had it for over a year, and asking for more money, I became more concerned. I had a friend go over to the shop and look at the car and he said not much was being done to it for the money being spent. So I decided enough was enough and I would do it myself, and we went and picked it up. I am in short on funds and have been slowly putting it together and I'm getting close to firing it up for the first time. But now my driveline doesn't fit, I also sent him my transmission to get rebuilt, so now I don't think I got the same transmission back. I'm crossing my fingers but I don't have much hope. After I fire it up and break it in, I will definitely try and hire an attorney depending on how it all turns out.

brownbomber77

So uh...what did you get for that $3,500? How much more money did he ask from you and for what services that weren't lined out in the initial $3,500?? And uh, how does the driveline "not fit"? Does it not fit the engine? Is it too long for the crossmember?

VORTECPRO

YES you do!

VORTECPRO

Can some one fill me in, did Lynn work with Joe Mondello, or did he buy the business after Joe's death? I know Battenrunner swore Joe did his 455 and it was a mess, don't know what to think? The more I see of Bernards work, he's very solid in my opinion.

azehr

Hello


My name is Adam, My father gave me a 69 442 as a graduation present and in 2010 I sent the engine and transmission to Modello Olds, Lynn told me he would give me a performance build on my stock 400 and turbo 400 trans, I made payments on it for a few years before it was paid off. After I received it a few years ago, I would have put it in myself however I started to get a bad feeling about this guy and seen bad reviews on his motors and he wouldn't stand behind them. I decided to send the car to him to install it so that if anything went wrong, I would have leverage. Well he had it for over a year and wanted extensive money for very little work. After we were tired of being jerked around, and ran out of money, my father and I picked it up and started putting it together. We discovered the driveline doesn't fit. That's when my friend posted on here a few days ago my numbers and we discovered we didn't receive the original engine and trans. We want to take him to court, I am requesting help from everyone who has ever been screwed to contact me as I want to gather evidence of his historical wrong doing. I am also interested if anyone has taken legal action or know of any good attorneys in California. Im ready to take a stand, whos with me. Also how can I provide documentation and authentication to the attorney about how and where the numbers can be run so I can give evidence that it is infarct a 1977 tranny and 68 engine from Lansing Michigan? Help spread the word!

azehr

The slip joint is to small, im not real good with the part names, I think its the output shaft on the trans is bigger than the driveline. Now come to find out the trans and engine are not the originals that I sent him so im preparing to take him to court. If you know any attorneys or anyone else that has been screwed or taken legal action on Mondello let me know.

Schurkey

Good luck.

rocketscientis

your engine has a VIN number stamped into the vertical boss on the driver side of block at front just under cylinder head & who did the engine come from in Lansing I got all mine ..........transmission i d is on the passenger side towards the rear above pan
rectangular tag pinned to a boss on the case
69 four four two should say 69 OG.... & O G is printed in big letters on the left and right side , its also at lower left bottom of tag 69 OG-xxxx
​stamped in it
the VIN number 68 & up automatics should be located above the pan on the horizontal part of the transmission case on the driver side by the shift shaft I do believe

A 77 th 400 wil hav 77 on tranny rather than 69

joe_padavano

Adam,

I'm sorry you've had a bad experience with Mondello Performance, but spamming the forum with the same message in multiple places isn't helping. I've consolidated all your threads under the one you started in 2017. Good luck with resolving this.

azehr

Thanks Joe, your right, I just figured if it was in more places it would get word out to more people who may have had similar experiences. I thought the old original thread wouldn't get many views.

joe_padavano

A new post in an old thread brings it right back to the top. This is why people with old For Sale ads will add a new post that simply says "TTT", which stands for To The Top.