Dave Lovato

"Jake's asked us to provide honest, and unvarnished reports on the RAT experience, from start to finish- but most importantly on the suitability of the engine he and his team built to the specifications we provided. From the very first email to the last 'after action report' this whole deal has been a genuine (if not inexpensive) pleasure. Finding a builder with the experience, dedication and track record Jake and his team enjoy is NOT EASY. After much consideration and comparison-shopping I decided to have my 912E motor rebuilt to RAT 'stock' specification in the hope that many of the slowly emerging problems I was suffering from might be resolved. The car had run about 120,000 miles of very mixed motoring, from many years in California (where it hardly went any miles at all) to the Alps of Switzerland and the Autostrada of Italy (where I racked up 50,000 miles in just a few years!!) and was in need of a refresher. I use 9126000496 as a touring car, having racked up 4200 miles in 10-days on my last 'round the USA' sojurn- so reliability is a BFD (Big Darned Deal) to me. Ultimately, I needed the 912E to cruise comfortably and reliably at +/- 90mph and NOT OVERHEAT! Especially since so much of the touring I do takes me literally cross-country and or (probably stupidly) hugging the Mexican border or in and out of Arizona's many gullies and hill-climbs, but inevitably on B-Roads that are infrequently traveled by anyone with any sense!

Jake explained much of the history of the Type-4 motor, his reasons for enjoying working with them, and his strategy for improving the performance of mine. If he promised anything it was based on a deep well of experience and in my case, since I sought only stock performance his vision for my motor was necessarily limited. Although there was a small layer of haze over the subject of costs, and what ultimately the motor rebuild would amount to- it was well within the bounds of our generally discussed expenses, and although definitely not cheap, turned out to have been pretty much as expected- give or take a thou! (Just kiddin' Jake!)

I visited the RAT Palace in Cleveland, GA for a couple of hours at Jake's invitation to get a look at the scene of the crime, and was very much impressed by the scope of the facility, the cheerfulness of the RAT Team, and the quality of the work (as well as the amazing engine development) underway. Raby and his assistants LURV this stuff, and that devotion to doing it right, and wringing every sensible ounce of performance (with reliability) from a VW/Porsche motor is visible at every stage of the process. I swear I felt privileged to visit and fork over the thousands of bucks!! Most unusual, I assure you.

The concern that Jake brings to his business is the preserve of the true enthusiast. Enthusiast business people are peculiar because they love the idea of what they can accomplish as much and perhaps more than they love the money they earn. If you love cars, and love getting it right by sticking a great motor in it, you gotta admire the formula. Integrity in shaping an agreement, technical insight and innovation (that no amount of money can easily capture), as well as a friendly and hugely well-informed personality kinda describes the RAT MAN.

My rebuild has geared up barely 1000 miles since I took receipt, but clearly this is a different driving experience. I will withhold judgment on the reliability of the motor, as well as its suitability for cross-country travel until after my late April 'Road Rage Tour' to Arizona via Missouri when I will make another report (with photos!) in the spirit of Raby's request for the "real deal" on his stuff. Meantime- I'm lovin' rowing this thing along!"

5 February, 2003

R/Dave Lovato
9126000496
December, 2002
2056cc RAT rebuild

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