After seeing the nice 4 page color ad for RPM Outlet in DPM, I placed an order for the Sniper Tuning Software for my 7.3L Powerstroke and a gray 3 gauge A-pillar with Stewart Warner gauges through the RPM Outlet website. I received a confirmation e-mail showing my order as entered. Five days later I received an invoice via e-mail showing my order had shipped with the GAS version of the software and the gray A-pillar but only 2 gauges. After 2 days of trying to get through on their customer support line (its always busy) I spoke with George who said to wait until my order arrived to verify it was incorrect.

Four days later my order arrived and I received the GAS version of the Sniper software, a BLACK A-pillar and only 2 of the 3 gauges I had ordered and paid for. I submitted a support request for the proper software and color of A-Pillar I had originally ordered plus the missing gauge. I received a confirmation e-mail showing the details of my support request. 2 days later my support request was denied due to lack of information and the denial e-mail showed a truncated version of my support request with the second half of the information I had submitted cutoff. I contacted their online chat help, got no help there other than being told to submit a support request with all of the information I had originally sent.

After another 5 days of trying to get through on the support line, I spoke with George who told me Sniper Tuning would send me the diesel version of the software directly and RPM would send me the extra gauge and proper color A-Pillar. I waited a month and never received anything.

At this point I began to research RPM Outlet and much to my dismay found they had 90 Better Business Bureau complaints in the last 36 months most of which were not resolved satisfactorily as well as countless forum postings from fellow enthusiasts who had been treated the same or worse than I had.

I've disputed the charge with my credit card company and sent everything back to RPM Outlet at this point. Who knows what will happen.

My question is this: Does DPM have a duty of care to its readers to not accept advertising from merchants it finds are unscrupulous after investigating reader's complaints? Let me know what you think.  

Just a follow up I forgot to mention. Go Google "RPM Outlet" and see how many other people on the web have similar complaints.  

Its a shame that companies like this exist. But the simple fact is advertisers pay the bills. Do you enjoy Diesel Power Magazine? Thank an advertiser. Your subscription doesn't keep DP on the shelves, the ads do. And while it totally sucks that their customer service is crap as long as they keep paying their bills our ad sales team will keep taking their money and placing their ad. They must be doing something right because a 4 page ad in the #1 diesel magazine certainly isn't cheap.

While I'm not discounting your story, and it truly stinks, DP can't protect the readers from everything.