Why aren't you a member of the Z Club?

[Mr.G]

Why aren't you a paid up member of the Z Club?

I am a member, thank you very much!
I would like to join but don't know how to??
I don't see the advantages of joining!
I am put off by the price.
I am already a member of another Z club and wouldn't join two.
I live abroad and don't see the advantage of joining?

 

[Devilpaint]

i have to say that i was a bit put off by the price,but having been here for a while i appreciate its not that expensive.
the mag doesnt really have a lot of interest for me as i percieve the 280zx to be the "poor relation" of the forum.
i expect a lot of the membership fee goes towards the publication of the mag.
the forum has been great, as has the advice & offers of help from local members(which has probably saved me the joining fee tenfold).

 

[Mr.F]

The magazine can only reflect the input of its contributors. If no-one is working with the 280ZX, then the content on that model will be slim. However, for anyone doing anything significant with a 280ZX (say, for example, something with a nice kit on it, who might be swapping engines about, has experience in bodywork preparation) then there might be the basis for an interesting article.....

 

[moggy240]

i was under the impression that you should get a better insurance quote if you are a club member aswell !!!!!!!!!!!!!

so that should offset the cost of the magazine and over bits and bobs hopefully plus you get the chance to get free tickets etc to certain events or reduced entrance fee.

i dont think that side of club membership is mentioned enough.........as it is a plus point !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[SeanDezart]

Shouldn't there have been another part of the poll stating " I am a member of this forum and so whay should I pay for being a member ? "

Joining the club has cost me loads of money - if I hadn't been a member and exposed to the wonders of these cars and what can do with them and met most of my best friends, I'd have given up years and years ago and bought MK3 Ford Cortina GTs AND thought that they were the dogs' trailing bitz !

 

[Devilpaint]

so, was that a subtle hint mike?
i'll happily do an article on the kaminari-i've been taking the odd photo-but someone else will have to speel chick it!

 

[Steve J]

I was a paid up member for quite a while before I discovered the internet

I do my best to turn up in person at club meets may be thats a bit of a hint too

 

[chris]

why I am not a member

Hello All,
I visit this site on a very frequent basis and couldn't help but notice that you had the poll up about why people aren't members.

This is not one of the answers that you have as an option but I thought I'd let you all know why I am not a member.

I have had two Z's and the first thing I did after buying the first Z was to join. I was a member for a number of years and really enjoyed the magazine and the feeling of community.

I then had a very bad experience with another trader who is a reasonably active part of your Z community which resulted in me losing my car (yes my whole car!) and the money paid for it. I have taken the trader to court and won. We are talking five thousand pounds in a country court judgement. However I have been unable to enforce this injunction for over two years because the trader sticks all of the assets in other people's names and laughs at the balliffs when they go around.

I have written to the club and spoken to various executive members at various times and no-one appears to be able to help. Whether this is political, or for other reasons, I have no idea.

It may well be worth the club having a period of reflection and deciding whether it is a "proper" club, in which case, I would assume they would have brought the full weight of their community to bear on disputes like this, or whether it is simply a virtual coffee shop for like minded people to chat about shared interests.

Neither is better or worse than the other.

However I for one, would still be a member, if in my hour of need, my club had been willing to investigate such a complaint in its capacity as a community of members, as opposed to simply pretending that there is no dispute and allowing the trader to continue to post on this website. The trader himself is not a member of the club however I cannot believe that pressure cannot be brought by a club which is in effect his most active customers.

Controversial I know but you did ask!

Chris

Ps I am now saving up for another Z and will eventually reach the Z owning ranks again but 5k is a huge chunk to lose and my wife is not going to be so easy to convince after such a massive loss.

 

[Steve J]

Hello!!!

 

[SeanDezart]

Chris,

I'm so sorry that you had a nasty experience, won your case and figured that was solved (to a degree) and then get buggered by petty action to avoid the consequences ! Please PM me with some specifics - I 've been active in the Club since 1989 and at some time on the committee !

I understand why you should not want to join at this point and am indeed surprised that you have the determination to be on this site at all !
Are you a true Z fan then ?

 

[DJZ 60]

Hi Chris.
Shocked to hear of your unfortunate position,as regarding bad
practice by trader. I understand your dillemma,& feel that bringing thing's into the open,prevent's other's from falling into the same trapping's.
Please do PM Sean, & hopefully the Z club commitee,Admin,etc.can
look into this matter. I think fair trading is prefarable,to bad trading & the club
should look into anything that marr's the growth & reputation of a great Z club.
DJZ 60.

 

[chris]

Hello,
Thank you everyone for your friendly feedback!

I will send an email to Sean outlining the case and what happened, maybe this will end up having a happy ending after all.

Thanks again

chris

 

[SeanDezart]

Well it IS too easy to put one's head in the sand ! Problems don't go away, practices are repeated with new people who don't know the reputations of others !
I see that the club does have a responsibility towards it's members to ensure that these caes don't happen or at the very least are not repeated !
Crucify me now !

 

[chris]

re. the dispute

Hi Sean,
I have just sent you an email with details of the trader and the dispute. My solicitor has also faxed over a hard copy of the court judgement - I can fax that to you if you want it but please let me know if you don't get the email.

Cheers


Chris

 

[Z Club team]

It is felt that the Z Club must remain impartial to any dispute between traders and customers. The club can not be seen to be libellous. Where one person may have great problems with a certain company, others may be entirely satisfied.

The Z Club had previously discussed this matter with the trader concerned and an alternative view had been presented in which "Chris" would appear not to be blameless. He has a County Court action - if bailiffs cannot enforce this, what more does he expect the club would be able to do? In view of this dispute the trader concerned voluntarily refrained from Club participation for a long period of time.

Though we greatly sympathise with any Z car owner who has difficulties with a company it cannot be the Z Clubs responsibility to adjudicate.

The Z Club does not advocate, support or endorse any particular company.

 

[Albrecht]

.....The Z Club does not advocate, support or endorse any particular company.......

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

However, its members are free to diss or promote on this site whoever they happen to be spending their hard-earned with this week - depending on how much VFM they think they are getting ( or not, as the case may be ).

And those companies with Banners on this site - or ads in the club mag - don't count, as they are not being endorsed by the Club in any way are they? Certainly not

Stick my head 'round the door on a Friday night and its 'Business As Usual' here. Even a 'Samuri' thread going on - there just had to be one, didn't there? .

'Chris' ( whoever you are ) - why not just 'name and shame' sir? Plenty of others on this site do it without so much as a boo from the "Z Club Team". You apparently have a CCJ in your favour, but the alleged offender is a member of the Z Club and you are not. Why not post the offender's name and see how long it lasts on the site. I bet it won't be long. It's not rocket science.

Just reminded myself why I'm not a member of the Z Club. Can I have my second "warning" now please?

Toodleoo

 

[STEVE BURNS]

albrecht

i bow to your knowledge on the whole Z range
but wish to inform you that you have misread that the alleged offender ( your words) is a member of the Z Club and do not know who has upset you in the past from the Z Club for you to be so confrontational towards a few people in the club
do not intend to get in a prolonged swap of posts on here
but if you want to talk about things that upset you my number is 0208 575 0582

 

[DJZ 60]

I like the Frankie Howard 'Up Pompai' Avatar..................DJZ 60.

 

[chris]

Hi,
Thank you for the prompt response. I agree that I don't want to enter into a prolonged swap here as it doesn't really help. I'll go away and have a think about it and maybe drop a line to the committee. The only points I do want to make here, mainly in response to your comments below so please leave this post up, is that this isn't really a "dispute". The guy has been found against in a county court and is refusing to pay whilst still trading. Whether he has a point of view that I am not blameless is now irrelevent. The judge wasn't impressed and neither should we be. I think we probably want our suppliers to be people who don't ignore court orders.

Secondly and this is the real clincher. If I do go ahead and bankrupt this guy, and I don't want to do this because its lots of hassle, then all the deposits/work in progress/ goods on order etc etc from other customers, and I'm assuming that many are Z Club members, will be stuffed. I would have thought that you would want to tell your members this! How do we look as a Z community if someone places an order with him tomorrow and his they lose all their money in a month? Selfishly, if the threat of this disclosure means that he starts to trade within the law again, then we all win. Thats what I was really looking for the club to do. Its not libelous you simply let me pay for an advert in the club magazine under legal notices. Newspapers do it all the time and they do it for the same reasons we should do it - its a matter of public record.

Thanks again for allowing these posts and although I appreciate that its not nice to have "bad news" on the site I do think its all part of a real world community.

Chris

 

[Albrecht]

.....but wish to inform you that you have misread that the alleged offender ( your words) is a member of the Z Club.......

OK, so this person is not presently a member?

Maybe this comment clouded the issue for me:

In view of this dispute the trader concerned voluntarily refrained from Club participation for a long period of time.

This gives the impression that they did hold membership in the past - true? Or does "Club participation" not actually mean club membership?