benefits of joining GWOA?

any takers ???.

Who do you think pays for the forum? I have been a member for five years and consider it money well spent. In my view non-members should have restricted access to the forum. I can not see any good reason that they should get the same benefits as members and pay nothing.

I should be :oops:
BUT
I understand that the magazine is quite expensive to produce, especially in colour, I think it was itimised in the accounts synopsis given out at last years AGM, anyway we are in the black and the sums added up, nor can I remember seeing any entry that made me think "fat b------s".
and as Nickolas pointed out what does £25.00 buy one today?
Hope to be there,
Marcus

I just stumbled across this forum via google. I'm only a member of the forum. I've just brought my first G and found it here. I've asked questions regarding some maintenance problems with it and have got the answers here from other more experienced forum members. If there was a restriction that only gwoa members could use the forum then none of the above would have happened.

That is all :D

I have not read all the posts. However, given that:

a really old G is going to cost you 2k plus;

Parts for Gs make other MB parts look cheap by comparison;

MB UK don't know that much about Gs and generally don’t want to know;

£25 is really not a lot of money and just think if everyone who used the forum joined the membership fee would drop.

As to the help I have received, a few instances that spring to mind are (sorry for those I have missed off, it is not intentional):

Mike L for helping me sort out a gearbox problem, turned out to be six rubber grommets as Mike predicted which cost me 8 Euros to replace. I thought it was a major gear box problem;

Oliver W for giving me the part numbers I needed to import my G500, MB would not give them to me and also for advising me on LHDs in the UK;

David W for loads of stuff;

Greeney for advice on bodywork;

Mortison for advice on everything under the sun.

Loads of other people who have helped a non-technical person keep a 19 year old G going for the last 5 years.

With respect, given the number of posts you have made on this site, if you have to ask why it is worth joining then you would probably be happier somewhere else.

In my view Greeney’s comments sum the club up.

Some people regularly attend club events, I do so infrequently, but when I need help there are always one or three people happy to give it.

S B Varney comments are a fair and honest evaluation of how things stand at the moment.

The availability and supply of the workshop CD is an issue that can be discussed at the AGM.

No one is saying the club doesn t have problems, least of all dyslexic secondary school children as administrators(by the way i went to public school) :shock:
It (the club) will only move forward with people putting something into it as well as taking something out of it, however small
PERSONALLY I think if you havent decided by now, you're missing the point completely :cry:

:shock: it sounds as if you are taking the piss elvis
on one topic you are trying to take our forum members and possible
new club members to a "LANING IN SOUTH?MID WALES!!" on the weekend that the agm is on ?

and on the second you are trying to make fun or be thran about the £25 membership fee
not everybody wants to pay it
not everybody is happy with what they get for it
but as they say "you can keep some of the people happy some of the time* but not all of the people all of the time"
but i have paid my second years membership of the club last march
and for me it was the best money that i have spent in a long while
i think there is a lot of the forum that should be kept for payin members but that is my perference and the help that i received from members and club reps was first class (never once have i been steered wrong)
NO club runs perfect
there is a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes from commitee members and club members and there familys as well
and apart from not receiving payment they dont get much praise from it
LIKE this weekend alone, the man hours that that has been put in but club members , ie mervyn weaver mark and the all the rest of them

rant over :(

ps

I believe that a facetious and unhelpful tone does nothing to elicit support nor indeed even sympathy. I am in Brazil, but as a member, hope to occasionally attend meetings/events when in the UK. It really is churlish to try to adopt a "smart-alecky" attitude in approaching this issue- afer all, the club is a spontaneous and voluntary organization, dependent far more on the collective goodwill of it's members than on the derisory sums paid as membership fees.

I also believe, if you do not mind a more personal comment, that some of your previous threads, particularly in promoting the use on heating oil as a substitute fuel, and other such controversial actions, could end up putting this forum and the club at risk unless a significant disclaimer is placed on the site by the administrators. If there are any lawyer members, I am sure they can come up with the required wording.

In the long run, no advantages are derived from undue nickel-and-diming on everything, nor indeed from an over-adversarial attitude. If you really ever intend to join and pay, do so- however existing members are not really in the mood to take lessons from an overly self-important (and frankly, seemingly immature) candidate trying to be the centre of attention on the cheap.

Mmmmmmmmm, seems to be the word used here a lot.

I have not avoided the question, just waited for the answers from others.

Elvis. You are not a clubby person, so why bother with the question, your not going to join anyway. Your purpose was just to create a debate that has been covered before.You already knew the answer.

In my opinion, as current editor, £25 well spent, depends how you look it. I have issue with the money and how it is spent, falls on deaf ears.

The forum was always going to kill the club eventually, that was always my fear.

As for magazine, bring it on Merv, me and you were never going to see eye to eye on that one. You just seem to answer a question with a question, just say what you feel.

I only agreed to do one G Wizz a year, it was up to the committee to find some one to do it for the other 3. You will be receiving a small newsletter which was suppose to be a downloadable PDF from the forum, Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
Remember this was to be organised for the future at the last AGM. nearly a year on, who knows.

Looks like The G centre will get it after all. I have exceeded my quest by doing 2 more G wizz that I never intended.

Elvis, dont bother wasting £25 mate, spend it on a tape recorder so you can listen to yourself every night. Before this debate I had notifed the committe I no longer wish to be a member or do the magazine, I am tired of trying to please people in this club, on and off, for 6 years. I need to get a life, and so do some of you. I can say this, that my efforts and enthusiasm in this club has been a small contributing factor for the personal issue's I have to address, which is why I have resigned.

You will notice I will not be at the AGM, so know I am not avoiding anyone, just have more important things that need addressing.

At the end of the day, you aint happy, dont pay, your are happy, thanks for your memberships.

This site is not FREE, it xcost money and so far has cost in the region of £2000 over the past 18 months.

Heres my AGM sugestions.

Reduce the memberships to £15. Have a downloadable PDF newsletter for members only.

And for those non-geeks of you, they can have a printed version posted to them in the normal way as technology has not knocked at there door yet, and they may be to old to want to bother with a PC, having said that why any body bothers with a PC is beyond me. Apple MAC Rules OK.

Hope all goes well at the AGM and I believe it will be money well spent, just hope lots of people turn up.

Long live the G.

Go check this link out, see for your self what I mean by a downloadble PDF. I set this site up as a trial run for the club, but didnt ask permissoin, was shot down in flames, but in a nice manner from a well respected friend.

http://web.mac.com/ianwatson158/iWeb/Site/Welcome.html

my site can also accept blogs which i have not yet added or read about how it works so you can post replys and videos etc.

I wholly agree with Max and Ian, and think that an all-electronic edition of G-Wizz, as well as a wholly-web-based platform, would benefit both members and visitors. Perhaps it would be possible to bring in some commercial sponsorship to help defray costs, as well as to give more access to special offers on parts, insurance, etc that may be of general interest to G-owners. I believe that a good format is that provided by the RREC, of which I used to be a member, whereby a lot of material is available generally in "headline" format, but where a subscription is actually required in order to gain full access.

As Mercedes are rumoured to be planning a return to the UK with the G, could it be worthwhile to get them involved as well so as to secure some form of support? In any event, the commercial benefits of the forums and membership base are significantly undervalued at present in my opinion.

Regardless of what is actually decided upon, however, I believe that there should still be physical contact between members, with a more defined (if informal) structure to accommodate this.

Another useful type of activity are joint-ventures with auctioneers (e.g. Bonhams with RREC) who organize sales events which bring members and potential buyers together, as well as yielding a usefull commercial return.

Anyone have any more suggestions? Let's try to take things forward if possible!

Actually the website is almost 100% finished - its just that it needs content which comes down to how much are members willing to put in in regards to time. There are a number of items on the site which are currently dormant pending content. The online shop should be open shortly as well.

What is RREC? I agree with the headline format but the problem again comes down to content to link it to and people willing to provide that content. It seems the club has moved into an era where everyone expects everything done for them but no one is prepared to give anything back.

RREC is the Rolls-Royce Entusiast's Club, which has been in many ways one of the most successful clubs of the genre over the years.

I agree that nothing is feasible without coordinated input- I will be in the UK during mid-September, and would be quite willing to see if I could be of help. Additionally, if you feel, pls e-mail me your contact details, and I would be glad to have a cht on everything (as I am in Rio, would prefer Skype- but can also call you on the phone if this is difficult. There are 4 hours' difference.

Tim, Politics now theres a thing, I can say you have e mailed me twice in 2 years about the PDF. However, we as committe members spoke about it 2 years ago,but there is no direction, its upto some one to desigante and follow through the suggestions. But its doesn't happen, hence my comments in my unpublished G wizz, quote' the club has no direction, but i was kindly asked to remove it.

Now you all know me, i say what I think, wrong or right. but i believe the GWOA will slowly lose members, because of the magazine's demise and its lack of direction. The club is G Wizz, the forum and a few faces that attend shows and the AGM. Membership is already in decline, and I can see why.

An example; over 2 months ago I asked what the intinery was for this years AGM so I could publish a newsletter covering it, it was quite a strong and direct e:mail that I sent, because as editor I was being left to guess what was happening. Once I sent this e mail, the cat was put amongst the pidgeons and people started acting with suggestions for intinery, maps, directions etc.

What happend next was a flyer was sent to all members, however no one contacted me about including the itinary in the next G wizz, to enable it published in time well before the AGM !. After all I was the one wanting it, this was all I was waiting for. So they send out a flyer at extra cost in postage and stamps when it could have been sent out in the G wizz newsletter that's been waiting to bepublished.

You will receive the PDF version of the g wizz via post, and included in this is the initnery of the AGM. After the event!!

Politics ?, and you wonder why I am resigning, totally pathetic.

That's what we like - a big happy family... glad that you see the value. We are constantly thriving to add more value but like some have said we are at a turning point. The club was founded over 10 years ago and many of the commitee are a little techno adverse and yet this website has brough it kicking and screaming "part way" into the 21st century.... we're hoping to pull the rest along shortly.

If you can pay by paypal or credit card then you can click the join button. Otherwise PM me your details (phone, email, name and address) and I will pass them on to the membership secretary and he will get in touch with you about paying by cheque.

Sorry I missed this thread before.

I have been a member of the GWOA from virtually the minute after I landed in the UK in October 1995. From that year's AGM I became also a committee member -Southern Regional Rep- a post of which I only resigned when I left the UK a year ago.

Over these years, I have had countless members ringing me home to ask me questions about their Gs. I have at all times treated them with courtesy and addressed their issues to the best of my ability, with olympic contempt for the quality time that I should have otherwise dedicated to my family.

Most forum members know that I have very much been behind the drive, effort and enthusiasm for this forum to exist and become a success over the years. I have offered to this forum whatever I knew about Gs and when I did not know somehting, I always tried to send the member in the direction I felt could help him solve his problem.

I therefore feel entitled to voice a qualified opinion about the issue presented in this thread.

We in the GWOA do not need people who ask themselves what are the benefits of joining the GWOA. We need people who take pleasure in helping their fellow human beings in general and fellow GWagen enthusiasts in particular. Over the years I have learnt that the more generous you are to people, the more generous they are to you. I have had their affection and their gifts to prove it.

But obviously, all this comes at a cost and this is the feeling of giving too much to people who are unable to appreciate your efforts and whose only concern is how well are they spending their membership fee. In the end, you feel abused by these people and their selfishness. And your only solutionis to sit back, relax, and resign from your posts in the GWOA. This is what I did and this is what Ian is now doing. Good for him. But we need people to replace him. Go attend the AGM and volunteer for any of the posts on offer.

But if what you really want is to make a perfect use of your £ 25, go buy yourself the best cuban cigar you can get for that cash, sit back, relax, light it up and enjoy it to the end. It will be your pleasure........

With Mortinsons usual impecable timing & eloquent manner, he has sorted the problem out using nothing more complex than his calming tones & straightforwardness ( is there such a word?).
I think we should vote him onto the UN peace council in the lebanon & within a month all the different factions should be having a ball to rival VE day!
Wonder if he could work his magic on oil prices? what a result that would be!
Elvis, i am sure your cheque will be in safe hands with someone at GWOA unless you want it back for more delicate financial reasons but i doubt that very much.

:D Welcome to the GWOA Elvis is it the G centres turn now ???
give me some notice when its my turn :D
have fun at tommys dont forget to post some photos or maybe getaway on Sunday and come to the AGM sounds like it will be some gig .. :D
Twodogs