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r3pp

JeffTepper

Well-Known Member
Anyone hear of or know anything about these guys? I just stumbled upon their products today. Sounds like they are building a ground up vintage Mustang body here in the US as an alternative to Dynacorn. Their front and rear suspension designs look interesting. It seems they are well funded and have invested in the R&D side extensively. Here's a link to their site: http://r3pp.com/
 
Looked at their website, but I could not see where they get their sheet metal and they don't say anything about having the stamping machines. I suspect most of the metal is from Dynacorn and/or other vendors.
 
I had seen the website after seeing something about them on the web, as Mid said though it isn't clear if they make the shells themselves.
 
They maybe assemble themselves , but where do the parts come from ? Dynacorn , Sherman ?
I don't believe the story about taking measurement from each orignal car that were made at Metuchen , San Jose and that other plant for making they own parts.
If they would make the parts themselves , it would shown on their website.
Its something you should be proud of it and thereby they would show of with this on their website.
my2eurocent.
 
I watched both the front and rear installation videos and they have the beefiest suspension (by far) for a classic that I've ever seen. If you're going restomod it looks like a very nice and well thought out system. I haven't read any handeling reviews, but I intend to stick with the more classic components (with upgrades) anyway. I haven't seen any pricing, but I'll bet its very $teep. Interesting company.
 
It makes sense that they are using Dynacorn sheetmetal and assembling themselves... I'm pretty sure when Dynacorn first came out with the fastbacks, that they were shipping the components to the US and assembly was done stateside. If they were truly building their own sheetmetal stampings, then their suspension parts would be better integrated as opposed to looking like bolt-on parts.
 
The tooling costs alone would seem insurmountable for them to be doing this on their own. Even if they went overseas to get the metal stamped. Perhaps Dynacorn has suppliers that these guys are also using to produce their metal which would allow them to say its theirs. I don't see anything special or new in their suspension stuff from the two small pictures I came across. If i were to guess this is just another place to go to have someone build you a VERY EXPENSIVE reproduction vehicle. If I had to go the new shell route I would much rather buy the Dynacorn and do it all myself.
 
for a better look watch the installation videos. The front is built like a tank, and the rear is a four link horizontal coil over. Its so far from stock that I wouldn't do it, but it sure is beefy.
 
Good find on the videos. Interesting approach using a cantilevered rear suspension. Hate that they promote it as a bolt in. Those brackets should be welded and I'm sure they do that in their own installations. Love the idea of a four link but those are the shortest upper arms I have ever seen on ANY install. Certainly not what I would call standard geometry but maybe it works well. Just looks weird.

That whole front system is crazy! Beefy doesn't begin to cover it. Fabricated spindles even. Looks like something I would expect to find under the General Lee. I bet that could handle a few "bridge is out" jumps! Not a fan of the whole tubular crossmember apparatus though as it would seem a nightmare to try and work around. And those lower arms, my god. Overkill. Have to tip the hat to the engineering though as the whole thing looks thought out. Just not sure why so much for something short of a very serious race car.
 
I am guessing this was a "racing" inspired suspension since it is a front steer design where you get zero or reverse ackerman. While that works great on race cars, it's not that great on street cars. And I know even rear steer will not have true ackerman during the entire sweep it is much better than front steer (on a street car). I also know it is possible to get a front steer to have ackerman but the tie rod ends have to really intrude into the wheel area.
It also brings up the age old (okay vintage mustangs only go back so far) debate on what cutting the shock towers out of the car do to it's strength. Looks like a nice kit though, I wonder how much weight savings if any...
 
Hey everybody I'm in the process of planning a significant refresh of my '69 Coupe. I've owned the car since Junior year of high school (1993) my pops and I restored it for my graduation and anyhow that pro drag style is outdated now and I want to go a different direction with the car. Just today I decided to try looking for reviews of the company which is how I found my way to this thread so I decided to register and give you my 2 cents.

Long story short I've been planning and researching for my upcoming (re)build and came across R3PP oddly enough from a Craigslist ad. Not sure if I'm allowed to post links but for reference here's an example https://detroit.craigslist.org/wyn/ctd/d/ford-mustang-body/6695025838.html

I watched the SEMA coverage and vetted their website nothing looked sketchy. They do appear to be licensed by Ford Motor Company to reproduce these parts. I called and a pleasant gal answered the phone, answered quite a number of my questions, and jotted down the ones she couldn't answer. About a day or two later Ray (the owner allegedly) called me back. The guy was very enthusiastic almost salesman like he answered all my questions and on a high level things sounded pretty amazing. However I couldn't get over the over confidence this guy had. (tin foil hat on) I just kept thinking too good to be true. Ray mentioned they did in fact spend millions on their own tooling these bodies and panels are NOT Dynacorn's or someone else's (his words). One thing that I caught in the SEMA video when they were asked "And this is all made in the USA right?" they're response was "Yes its all assembled in the USA". Now I didn't press the matter but common sense tells me when you replace the word "made" with "assembled" its not made here in the States. Ray did say all the metal fab and massaging was done in house to very tight tolerances - in other words all the panel gaps would be spot on and better than OEM.

They sell all sorts of parts ala cart but primarily sell the shells in kits so to speak. Basically original, street mod, and basically race car (full tube chassis / cage, etc.) I inquired about the street mod package - which in my opinion sets the car up like a restomod. Muscle car exterior and all the modern amenities underneath. A rolling chassis (shell, doors, fenders, hood, trunk lid) with their front and rear suspension setups using a full floater 32 spline moser with Wilwood's all the way around, was roughly around $35k. This was for a '69 Fastback. IMO that's not a bad deal considering you can't find a rust free donor fastback around these parts for that. I've seen totally rusted and trashed cars for 10 to 20k.

Pros:
1)Fair price IMO
2)Parts look amazingly well built / innovative / new design
3) Parts licensed by Ford

Cons:
1) The company is relatively new and I was skeptical of "we can do anything" sales approach. Call me paranoid but I've seen and heard of far too many stories where guys lost their money or ended up with a totally botched project to the new guy in town who can suddenly give you the world at a bargain price.
2) Custom build parts mean there are no off the shelf replacements. Their spindles are custom so in the event you ever need another better hope their doors are still open. This is a risk with any new business in my mind though.
3) This one thing irked me - the photo on their website of the facility is FAR FROM what the place really looks like when you google street view the place. This turned me off - you're obviously trying to show you're something you're not.
4) Lastly I found a google review for R3PP (that has since been taken down) with someone saying "Be sure to google Ray Carmody Fraud" Well first and foremost this is the same name as the gentlemen I spoke to - and upon googling such a thing I read numerous stories on other Mustang forums how a bloke named Ray Carmody owned a company called Drake Customs. From my research it looked like DC promised a lot in terms of custom bodies and even coupe to fastback conversions. Well they went out of business taking a lot of folks money with them as well as having customer cars abandoned and having to take legal action to re-obtain them.

So in a nut shell that's what my research has discovered. Are these allegations true? I don't know but google it and decide yourself based on other car forum horror stories. If they are true can people change / do you believe in 2nd chances? For me its a maybe, but I'm not willing to make a $30k gamble on that right now. My recommendation is wait it out the company is only 3 years old. Let's see actual clients with finished cars first.

If you're just buying parts I see far less risk but if you're flipping 30k+ for a rolling chassis its a whole other story.

Side note you can add the best suspension in the world but at the end of the day its on a unibody and nothing will ever compare to a full chassis. At any rate I hope this helps the folks here or any future folks wondering the same things I was.

Keep it between the ditches.
-J
 
Last edited:
Gee. Thanks, Jason. First post is a very suspect bashing of a vendor with the usual, "I'm going with this other guy instead..." Nothing fishy here ;)
 
o_O I hope that's interwebs sarcasm LOL. I really was trying to list pros and cons and then my conclusion backed by the information I found. I can edit out my mention of my alternative shop.
 
Your first post here is bashing a vendor and then suggesting another. Have to admit that just reeks of foul play. That was my point. When you throw in the fraud bit it gets even fishier. Smacks of sour grapes. I've seen it many times in forums. Didn't mean anything personal.

Welcome to the Fix, by the way. Our only rule here is we love pics. Let's see your car!
 
Welcome to the fix. Don’t let Terry chase you away!
And we do like pics.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Anyone hear of or know anything about these guys? I just stumbled upon their products today. Sounds like they are building a ground up vintage Mustang body here in the US as an alternative to Dynacorn. Their front and rear suspension designs look interesting. It seems they are well funded and have invested in the R&D side extensively. Here's a link to their site: http://r3pp.com/
BEWARE OF RAY CARMODY

AND R3 PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS

502 / 602 / 604 N. Redbud Avenue

Broken Arrow, OK 74012

918-957-5090




Raymond Brian Carmody II

AKA Ray Carmody

AKA Brian Carmody

COO, R3 Performance Products

Tulsa Home (Sold in May 2022)

11963 S 274th E Avenue

Coweta, OK 74429

714-679-5506 CELL

562-448-3115 CELL

714-785-7934 CELL

760-364-3001 Work CA

ray@r3pp.com

CA Home (Original Home)

1240 Birch Tree Court

La Habra, CA 90631

AZ Home (Current Home)

1715 Onyx Lane,

Lake Havasu City, AZ 86403



SEX: M HAIR: BROWN EYES: GREEN HEIGHT: 5’ 11” WEIGHT: 218 DOB: XX/XX/1978



Raymond Brian Carmody II is a convicted criminal con man and felon with a long history of cheating people out of their money and sometimes their automobiles. Carmody is currently on probation in the State of Arizona for 3 counts of felony theft from customers from his previous and now defunct company Drake Customs LLC of 3979 London Bridge Road, Lake Havasu City, Arizona 86404, phone number 928-855-3733. His Probation Officer is Terra Sears of the Mohave County Probation Department of 515 E. Beale Street, Kingman, Arizona, 86401, phone number 928-753-0741, extension 5405, tsears@courts.az.gov. His company R3 Performance Products is currently paying Carmody’s $1,300 per month restitution to the State of Arizona to clear his $216,962.60 debt to six Drake Customs victims; Frank Gok, Eddie Diaz, Robert Delord, Brian Schultz, Randy Formby, and Robert Moehring. He plead guilty under Arizona case number S-8015-CR-201200166 on August 9th, 2013. Carmody was given 5 years probation, violated it, and then given another 5 years probation on February 1st, 2019.



Carmody had been previously sued by customer Luke Walters under Arizona case number CV-201002314 on October 18th, 2010 for breach of contract, unjust enrichment and fraud related to restoration of his 1968 Chevrolet Camaro and damages of $80,689.29. Carmody was also sued by Raymond Alabama under California case number CIVDS1607125 for negligence and fraud related to personal injury and falsifying an automobile title and paperwork on May 6th, 2016. Carmody and R3 Performance Products were sued by customer Joshua Reis of 1611 12th Avenue, Los Angeles, California 90019, phone number 323-893-5480, mail@joshuareis.com, under California case number SCVA2000647 on June 11th, 2020 for poor workmanship, fit and finish issues, and damages of $10,000 to his body shell and parts during “reconditioning” of his 1966 Mustang convertible.



Carmody has operated in the automotive restoration and body shell business under the names Drake Customs LLC, Recon Classic Car Bodies, Recon Performance Products, West Coast Commercial Services and now R3 Performance Products. Ray currently has a side shop at 20211 E. 83rd St. So. in Broken Arrow, OK for off-the-books projects.



According to former R3 General Manager, Bill Schaffhouser, Carmody and R3 were (and still are) under investigation by Christopher Jones of the San Bernadino County Sheriff’s Office, phone number 760-366-4175, cajones@sbcsd.org, related to multiple customer complaints of VIN tampering and fraud when they decided to abruptly move from California to Oklahoma in 2019. Covid and the move to Oklahoma helped delay these ongoing investigations. Mr. Schaffhouser was told by the Sheriff’s office that they considered R3 a “chop shop.” Mr. Schaffhouser can be reached for addition background information at 951-553-0292. Mr. Schaffhouser has also spoken to Ray’s Probation Officer, Terra Sears, Johannes Van Den Hoogen of the FBI, 949-933-6564, and Joseph Perea of the California DMV Investigations, 951-697-6779, joseph.perea@dmv.ca.gov about Ray and R3.



More recently an R3 customer in Oklahoma, Mr. Thomas Christopher Hall of 4210 Woodmark Drive, Harrah, Oklahoma 73045, phone number 405-249-0280, tchris.hall72@yahoo.com, has filed a complaint with the Broken Arrow Police Department, case number 22-49905, under Detective Mikka Mooney, phone number 918-829-1296, mmooney@brokenarrowok.gov, because his 1968 Ford Mustang, VIN 8F02X17674 was to be “restored” by R3 under the direction of Ray Carmody but the car he received from R3 didn’t have its Ford factory stamped VIN number. Carmody and R3 didn’t restore his car. They built him a car with a new unlicensed and unofficial R3 Mustang body shell and illegally moved his dash VIN tag from his original body shell to this new car. Which is VIN TAMPERING. His original factory stamped VIN number remains on his original body shell, which he has demanded be returned, but has disappeared within the Ray Carmody off-the-books operation somewhere between Oklahoma, Arizona and California. This is THEFT. His original 1968 Ford Mustang fastback body shell, rust and all, is worth about $25,000 as is. Ray Carmody misrepresented that Mr. Hall’s Mustang would retain its value due to R3PP’s Official Mustang and Bronco Body Shell and Reconditioning License from The Ford Motor Company. Ray Carmody knew full well that Mr. Hall’s Mustang wasn’t reconditioned, which simply means restoring his original body shell, and that new body Mustang builds are not as valuable as all-original vehicles. And the R3PP Ford body shell license had expired on September 30th, 2020 BEFORE Mr. Hall’s Mustang was completed and delivered in January 2021. Mr. Hall’s project was not submitted to Ford as a reconditioning nor a new body shell and no licensing fee was paid to Ford. The final invoice given to Mr. Hall at that time says Official Licensed Ford Body Shell Reconditioning, which it was not reconditioned or licensed by Ford. R3 gave Mr. Hall a car, which he has over $200,000 invested in, that he CANNOT legally drive and CANNOT legally sell. This is obviously major FRAUD. BAPD is currently investigating. Mr. Hall filed suit against R3 and Ray Carmody for fraud, unjust enrichment, negligence, breach of contract, etc. under Oklahoma case #CJ-2022-3350 on 11/4/2022.




Additional R3 Persons of Interest

Bradley “Brad” Don Goodin (Ray’s hand-picked General Manager for R3 in Broken Arrow / Tulsa)

11908 S. 227th W. Avenue, Sapulpa, OK 74066 – 918-406-2292 CELL / 918-957-5090 Work

Oklahoma Case 420-CR-00181-GKF – Plead Guilty to Abusive Sexual Contact with 3 Minors under 12 on April 28th, 2021. This former Bristow Police Officer was arrested November 14th, 2019 prior to being hired at R3 with Ray’s full knowledge. He is currently serving 15 years in Federal prison. Also charged with Felony possession of 21 firearms.




Bill Schaffhouser *BE ADVISED – Despite their continued claims

Previous General Manager, R3 Performance Products otherwise, to be clear, R3 IS NOT FORD LICENSED

531 Old Woman Springs Rd., Yucca Valley, CA 92284 in any way, shape, or form. R3 lost their Official

760-364-3001 Work Ford licensing on 9/30/2020. The Ford contacts

760-818-2897 CELL are Kevin Powell at licparts@ford.com and

951-533-0292 CELL David Rudd at drudd13@ford.com. BEWARE OF R3!

bills@r3pp.com / bschaff1@aol.com

(Past R3 GM. Contact him for more on R3 and Ray’s criminal history. He is more than happy to fill in the details.)
 
BEWARE OF RAY CARMODY

AND R3 PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS

502 / 602 / 604 N. Redbud Avenue

Broken Arrow, OK 74012

918-957-5090




Raymond Brian Carmody II

AKA Ray Carmody

AKA Brian Carmody

COO, R3 Performance Products

Tulsa Home (Sold in May 2022)

11963 S 274th E Avenue

Coweta, OK 74429

714-679-5506 CELL

562-448-3115 CELL

714-785-7934 CELL

760-364-3001 Work CA

ray@r3pp.com

CA Home (Original Home)

1240 Birch Tree Court

La Habra, CA 90631

AZ Home (Current Home)

1715 Onyx Lane,

Lake Havasu City, AZ 86403



SEX: M HAIR: BROWN EYES: GREEN HEIGHT: 5’ 11” WEIGHT: 218 DOB: XX/XX/1978



Raymond Brian Carmody II is a convicted criminal con man and felon with a long history of cheating people out of their money and sometimes their automobiles. Carmody is currently on probation in the State of Arizona for 3 counts of felony theft from customers from his previous and now defunct company Drake Customs LLC of 3979 London Bridge Road, Lake Havasu City, Arizona 86404, phone number 928-855-3733. His Probation Officer is Terra Sears of the Mohave County Probation Department of 515 E. Beale Street, Kingman, Arizona, 86401, phone number 928-753-0741, extension 5405, tsears@courts.az.gov. His company R3 Performance Products is currently paying Carmody’s $1,300 per month restitution to the State of Arizona to clear his $216,962.60 debt to six Drake Customs victims; Frank Gok, Eddie Diaz, Robert Delord, Brian Schultz, Randy Formby, and Robert Moehring. He plead guilty under Arizona case number S-8015-CR-201200166 on August 9th, 2013. Carmody was given 5 years probation, violated it, and then given another 5 years probation on February 1st, 2019.



Carmody had been previously sued by customer Luke Walters under Arizona case number CV-201002314 on October 18th, 2010 for breach of contract, unjust enrichment and fraud related to restoration of his 1968 Chevrolet Camaro and damages of $80,689.29. Carmody was also sued by Raymond Alabama under California case number CIVDS1607125 for negligence and fraud related to personal injury and falsifying an automobile title and paperwork on May 6th, 2016. Carmody and R3 Performance Products were sued by customer Joshua Reis of 1611 12th Avenue, Los Angeles, California 90019, phone number 323-893-5480, mail@joshuareis.com, under California case number SCVA2000647 on June 11th, 2020 for poor workmanship, fit and finish issues, and damages of $10,000 to his body shell and parts during “reconditioning” of his 1966 Mustang convertible.



Carmody has operated in the automotive restoration and body shell business under the names Drake Customs LLC, Recon Classic Car Bodies, Recon Performance Products, West Coast Commercial Services and now R3 Performance Products. Ray currently has a side shop at 20211 E. 83rd St. So. in Broken Arrow, OK for off-the-books projects.



According to former R3 General Manager, Bill Schaffhouser, Carmody and R3 were (and still are) under investigation by Christopher Jones of the San Bernadino County Sheriff’s Office, phone number 760-366-4175, cajones@sbcsd.org, related to multiple customer complaints of VIN tampering and fraud when they decided to abruptly move from California to Oklahoma in 2019. Covid and the move to Oklahoma helped delay these ongoing investigations. Mr. Schaffhouser was told by the Sheriff’s office that they considered R3 a “chop shop.” Mr. Schaffhouser can be reached for addition background information at 951-553-0292. Mr. Schaffhouser has also spoken to Ray’s Probation Officer, Terra Sears, Johannes Van Den Hoogen of the FBI, 949-933-6564, and Joseph Perea of the California DMV Investigations, 951-697-6779, joseph.perea@dmv.ca.gov about Ray and R3.



More recently an R3 customer in Oklahoma, Mr. Thomas Christopher Hall of 4210 Woodmark Drive, Harrah, Oklahoma 73045, phone number 405-249-0280, tchris.hall72@yahoo.com, has filed a complaint with the Broken Arrow Police Department, case number 22-49905, under Detective Mikka Mooney, phone number 918-829-1296, mmooney@brokenarrowok.gov, because his 1968 Ford Mustang, VIN 8F02X17674 was to be “restored” by R3 under the direction of Ray Carmody but the car he received from R3 didn’t have its Ford factory stamped VIN number. Carmody and R3 didn’t restore his car. They built him a car with a new unlicensed and unofficial R3 Mustang body shell and illegally moved his dash VIN tag from his original body shell to this new car. Which is VIN TAMPERING. His original factory stamped VIN number remains on his original body shell, which he has demanded be returned, but has disappeared within the Ray Carmody off-the-books operation somewhere between Oklahoma, Arizona and California. This is THEFT. His original 1968 Ford Mustang fastback body shell, rust and all, is worth about $25,000 as is. Ray Carmody misrepresented that Mr. Hall’s Mustang would retain its value due to R3PP’s Official Mustang and Bronco Body Shell and Reconditioning License from The Ford Motor Company. Ray Carmody knew full well that Mr. Hall’s Mustang wasn’t reconditioned, which simply means restoring his original body shell, and that new body Mustang builds are not as valuable as all-original vehicles. And the R3PP Ford body shell license had expired on September 30th, 2020 BEFORE Mr. Hall’s Mustang was completed and delivered in January 2021. Mr. Hall’s project was not submitted to Ford as a reconditioning nor a new body shell and no licensing fee was paid to Ford. The final invoice given to Mr. Hall at that time says Official Licensed Ford Body Shell Reconditioning, which it was not reconditioned or licensed by Ford. R3 gave Mr. Hall a car, which he has over $200,000 invested in, that he CANNOT legally drive and CANNOT legally sell. This is obviously major FRAUD. BAPD is currently investigating. Mr. Hall filed suit against R3 and Ray Carmody for fraud, unjust enrichment, negligence, breach of contract, etc. under Oklahoma case #CJ-2022-3350 on 11/4/2022.



Additional Legal Cases in Ray Carmody’s Home County of Orange, California:

Carmody Raymond B Respondent 93D08235 Aug 24, 1993

Carmody Ray Defendant 93FL9004 Dec 17, 1993

Carmody Raymond Brian Defendant 97NT2839 Nov 5, 1997

Carmody Ray Brian Defendant 558293 Apr 6, 1999

Carmody Raymond Brian Defendant KR2413 Aug 10, 1999

Carmody Raymond B Petitioner 01D001591 Feb 21, 2001

Carmody Raymond Brian Defendant 646330 Feb 26, 2001

Carmody II Raymond Brian Defendant 02CC11090 Jun 25, 2002

Carmody Ray Brian Defendant LH370939 Jan 18, 2005

Carmody Ray Brian Defendant IRM240299 Sep 24, 2005

Carmody Ray Brian Defendant FL806604 Jan 3, 2008

Carmody Ray B Respondent 08D004391 May 14, 2008

Carmody Ray Brian Defendant PL287521 Jan 6, 2009



Additional R3 Persons of Interest

Bradley “Brad” Don Goodin (Ray’s hand-picked General Manager for R3 in Broken Arrow / Tulsa)

11908 S. 227th W. Avenue, Sapulpa, OK 74066 – 918-406-2292 CELL / 918-957-5090 Work

Oklahoma Case 420-CR-00181-GKF – Plead Guilty to Abusive Sexual Contact with 3 Minors under 12 on April 28th, 2021. This former Bristow Police Officer was arrested November 14th, 2019 prior to being hired at R3 with Ray’s full knowledge. He is currently serving 15 years in Federal prison. Also charged with Felony possession of 21 firearms.



Kristin Hughes (Carmody) For More Info:

Original R3 Office Manager, Ray’s Common Law Wife Google “Ray Carmody Scam” or “Ray Carmody Fraud”

909-460-5544 / 760-909-0846 CELL (Keeper of Ray’s Secrets) https://www.stangfix.com/threads/r3pp.24573/

Kristin@r3pp.com / kmhrbc@yahoo.com https://www.ripoffreport.com/report...ormance-classic-mustang-fraud-internet-643707

https://www.allfordmustangs.com/threads/1967-mustang-coupe-to-fastback-conversion.101863/page-2

https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/eleanorinspired1967mustangfastback/drake-customs-t2378.html



Bill Schaffhouser *BE ADVISED – Despite their continued claims

Previous General Manager, R3 Performance Products otherwise, to be clear, R3 IS NOT FORD LICENSED

531 Old Woman Springs Rd., Yucca Valley, CA 92284 in any way, shape, or form. R3 lost their Official

760-364-3001 Work Ford licensing on 9/30/2020. The Ford contacts

760-818-2897 CELL are Kevin Powell at licparts@ford.com and

951-533-0292 CELL David Rudd at drudd13@ford.com. BEWARE OF R3!

bills@r3pp.com / bschaff1@aol.com

(Past R3 GM. Contact him for more on R3 and Ray’s criminal history. He is more than happy to fill in the details.)
 
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