was trying to install newman 2 today and the gear won't get onto new cam
i measured it and found out gear inner diameter and cam corresponding diameters differ by .5 mm
and there's nothing i can do to make it work!
what a piece of crap, no wonder people don't like them.
if newman couldn't get this simple thing right on lathe i'm even afraid to think how the lobes are messed up!
...now i have $350 paperweight

 

Hmm, I just ordered one, haven't installed it yet.

 

Did you contact the vendor you purchased the part from?

My RMW Dominator, that I think is a Newman, went in with no issues. Between the cam, some 450 injectors and tune, I have the MINI JCW that should have been built by the factory.

 

yes I contacted the vendor as well as Newman company itself.
still waiting for reply from the vendor

 

update:
I'm talking to Newman directly and here's our EMail exchange:

me:
Subject: crappy camshaft
Customer Enquiry from website:
a month ago I bought ph 2 Mini Cooper S (R53) newman camshaft from
Minigarage.co.uk was trying to install it today and the gear won't get onto new cam.
i measured it and found out gear inner diameter and cam
corresponding diameters differ by .5 mm and there's nothing i can do to make it work!
what a piece of crap, no wonder people don't like them.
if You couldn't get this simple thing right on lathe i'm even afraid to
think of how the lobes are messed up!
now I have $350 paperweight on my table!

From: Ken Newman
Subject: RE: www.newman-cams.com "crappy camshaft"
Dear Alex,
I am sorry you have had a problem with one of our camshafts.
With these camshafts we buy the cam blank in ready finished, so all the have
to do is grind the cam profiles on to the camshaft.
Please email me pictures of the camshaft with the numbers on the camshaft so
I can report back to the company who supplied the cam blanks.
Once this is done we can then proceed to sorting out a replacement camshaft.

Ken
even if You don't make those blanks it's Your responsibility to check and make sure everything is up to specs!
anyway I found out couple more things today:
comparing OEM and Newman cams side by side noticed
that that little stud sticks out a bit more than on OEM cam
measurements showed on OEM cam it was 3.5 mm long while on Yours it was 4.2 mm
measured cam gear and it was 4 mm thick where it mates to cam surface.
so clearly gear and cam wouldn't be pressed together and it'd be a disaster waiting to happen.
furthermore i tried to screw center bolt into a new cam and it wouldn't go in all the way.
i measured depth and it turned out to be 54 mm vs 58.7 in OEM cam and felt a bit soft when i pocked inside.
using a screwdriver i dug out a bunch of metal shavings mixed with oil.
now hole is 58.4 mm deep.
here are the pictures:
....
it's been 6 days since and I haven't heard from him

reply from vendor:
Brian Edwards <sales@minigarage.co.uk> Apr 19 at 3:55 AM
To
Alex
Message body
Hi Alex
I have fitted many of these cams and have had no issues with them can you send me the exact measurment and a pic of where you are measuring from and i will forward it on to newman to see what they say. The company is 100% to deal with usually. On a side note measure your old cam and compare. If you are replacing timing gear as would be good practice, could it be the cam sprocket that is at fault.
...
well surely statement "sprocket that is at fault." is ridiculous because it fits fine on OEM cam
and since diameters different definitely cam is at fault

 

Keep us advised on how you make out?

 

another week has passed and I never heard back from them.
I guess it tell You something about their customer service...

 

The saying "one aw sh_t cancels out 10 attaboys" comes to mind.

 

yep. sent one more email a few days ago.
never heard back.
that's one company that doesn't stand behind their product
and has some sh.ty customer service!

 

Why did you buy from the other side of the Pond? Was it a very good price?

 

it was $350 Canadian dollars (= $250 USD) shipped

 

Put in a dispute with CC company. Hopefully you bought through CC for protection. Any response at all when you sent them pictures of the cam numbers?

I understand you're upset about it, but going on the offensive straight away isn't doing you any favors. Try to be a bit more understanding, at least at first. The person you're dealing with likely didn't order and grind the camshaft you bought, so try not to hold them liable for it.

 

Actually I would think the selling company is to whom you should seek the replacement. THEN they can do the hoop jumping from the MFG. sales@minigarage.co.uk.. see what they say about you shipping the cam to them and have them sort it thru Newman.

Either way you will be out SHIPPING to the UK from Cn. Bummer !

 

These are the sort of things I consider before I decide to purchase overseas. I recently bought a Quaife from UK and in that case I knew the chance of mishap with the Quaife LSD is next to none, except potential accident during shipping. My experience with vendors in UK have been stellar. I could most of the time negotiate the final price with them. The LSD arrived in 3 business days, and at significant saving over the lowest price on this side of pond.