Hylift Johnson Lifters Quality Decreasing?
The verdict is in: Topline Auto's "Hylift Johnson" hydraulic flat tappet lifters #5003 have shoddy finish and quality control compared to its competitors, and Hughes Engines has nonexistent customer service.
I received a set of Lunati "Micro-Trol" 71977 lifters, and all 16 have immaculate convex faces without a gouge/nick in sight. I spoke with Lunati's lead tech before ordering, and he confirmed Topline supplies Lunati with USA cast bodies rough machined, and Lunati finishes the lifters and packs them with their internals. The photos below show the Lunati on the left and the Topline "Johnson Hylift" 5003 from Hughes on the right, which is a good representation of 13 of the 16 damaged lifters I received. The Hylift lifter is almost 3/64" taller than the Lunati (see photo), suggesting that Topline had plenty of meat to machine out all the gouges in the face like Lunati did but chose not to. The irony is that the Lunati lifters were $120 cheaper than the Hylift Johnson set.
As for Hughes, over the last five weeks I called and left two voice messages and two emails with no response. All I was asking was to return the lifters for a replacement set that isn't damaged or for a full refund if all the Hylift lifters they have are damaged. This week, I submitted a claim with my credit card company who processed a full refund (parts/tax/shipping) and informed Hughes about the dispute and that Visa placed a hold on Hughes' future Visa purchases to recoup the money Visa refunded me. Hughes has seven more days to appeal the claim before it is closed out in my favor.
The spoke to Rhoads, Crower, and Howards who all told me Topline supplies them with USA cast lifter bodies. All three brands also confirmation that their face finish is free of any gouges/nicks/etc. I couldn't get a straight answer from Comp Cams regarding the source of their lifter bodies even though Comp is associated with Lunati.
For those wanting to purchase hydraulic or mechanical flat tappet lifters, I recommend steering clear of lifters advertised as "Hylift Johnson" and instead going with Lunati, Rhoads, Crower, or Howards since they use the same Topline body but with a superior finish. I'd also steer clear of Hughes since they couldn't be bothered to address my requests.
The verdict is in: Topline Auto's "Hylift Johnson" hydraulic flat tappet lifters #5003 have shoddy finish and quality control compared to its competitors, and Hughes Engines has nonexistent customer service.
I received a set of Lunati "Micro-Trol" 71977 lifters, and all 16 have immaculate convex faces without a gouge/nick in sight. I spoke with Lunati's lead tech before ordering, and he confirmed Topline supplies Lunati with USA cast bodies rough machined, and Lunati finishes the lifters and packs them with their internals. The photos below show the Lunati on the left and the Topline "Johnson Hylift" 5003 from Hughes on the right, which is a good representation of 13 of the 16 damaged lifters I received. The Hylift lifter is almost 3/64" taller than the Lunati (see photo), suggesting that Topline had plenty of meat to machine out all the gouges in the face like Lunati did but chose not to. The irony is that the Lunati lifters were $120 cheaper than the Hylift Johnson set.
As for Hughes, over the last five weeks I called and left two voice messages and two emails with no response. All I was asking was to return the lifters for a replacement set that isn't damaged or for a full refund if all the Hylift lifters they have are damaged. This week, I submitted a claim with my credit card company who processed a full refund (parts/tax/shipping) and informed Hughes about the dispute and that Visa placed a hold on Hughes' future Visa purchases to recoup the money Visa refunded me. Hughes has seven more days to appeal the claim before it is closed out in my favor.
The spoke to Rhoads, Crower, and Howards who all told me Topline supplies them with USA cast lifter bodies. All three brands also confirmation that their face finish is free of any gouges/nicks/etc. I couldn't get a straight answer from Comp Cams regarding the source of their lifter bodies even though Comp is associated with Lunati.
For those wanting to purchase hydraulic or mechanical flat tappet lifters, I recommend steering clear of lifters advertised as "Hylift Johnson" and instead going with Lunati, Rhoads, Crower, or Howards since they use the same Topline body but with a superior finish. I'd also steer clear of Hughes since they couldn't be bothered to address my requests.
