Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Common Interests Is SVTOA worth it?

I recently got an SVT and was looking at a few websites... I found that joining the SVTOA is like 40$ a year. It gives you what, access to forums on their website? Anything else? They have a local chapter with the sponsor dealer being about 2 miles from me. I know they put on a spring time meet that�s just a few miles from my house, but I went last year.... without an SVT and without a membership and they didn't see to care. Is there something I am missing... additional perks to joining? Thanks guys!

My local chapter co-sponsors on-track events at Road America and the local drag strip, spirited drives through the countryside, and meet'n'greet events & shows throughout the summer. We also get a discount (albeit a small one) at the sponsor dealership.

I actually let my membership lapse, and no one seemed to care here, either. Its not like they take computerized attendance with the national SVTOA rolls or anything. However, our local chapter coordinator has to submit forms to SVTOA national every so often with signatures of local members so they can maintain their status as a chapter. I'm assuming if you aren't paying dues your signature won't count.

Is SVTOA worth the $40 to enroll? It depends....

What do you want out of a club? SVTOA is an Enthusiast club. If your not an Enthusiast then it's probably not for you. In the Great Lakes Region we have 4 open track events as well as numerous local events. They have discounts from many different vendors but I would consider that to be a small side benefit. At one of our open track events last year we gave rides in a real Ford GT (The $150,000 one) as well as in the 05 Mustang (before it came out)on a road course at speed (I believe I made it up to 130 or so).

If your just looking for a web forum to hang out at and a few discounts then stick with contour.org. If you want to learn how to drive better and faster (legally) or want to actually do something with your Contour then SVTOA is for you.

I can honestly say that I have yet to meet an Contour owner at one of our events that didn't have a blast AND more importantly a new found respect for their Contour.

If you go to www.svtoa.com right now you'll see a Contour is the current featured vehicle.

I can say that I am an enthusiast and as far as driving ability, hanging out with other performance enthusiasts, experiencing really cool things (hey I DROVE the Ford GT at speed at IRP) SVTOA is definitely worth it.
I can say that I have gained a new respect for my SVT as a result of all of the track days I have attended and now as an instructor with SVTOA I am helping others gain a new respect for their cars. If you want to get involved with a group of true enthusiasts as Mark stated then SVTOA is for you. If you live near an upcoming event maybe you can come out and have a look. I'll bet you'll get hooked.

Fern

thanks for the info, just joined So Cal SVTOA

You get a sticker and a pin!!!
other than that you get a bi-monthly magazine where the only articles about your vehicle are re-printed. meanwhile you can read about all the great how-to's and mods for the rest of the SVT line and nothing about your red headed stepchild contour.
The contour board on SVTOA gets about 1 new post a month. You can get so much more here for free.

They also have events in Georgia and Florida. Whether it's worth it, I don't know. Jim (tourdeforce) decided it was and joined saturday. I guess if you can afford the track events, then it definitely could be.

SVTOA is different things to a lot of people.

The big thing SVTOA has is its On Track Events. Whipping your car around a track may seem boring, but it really does give you a new respect to how well your car handles and how badly you pick up habits from daily driving. You learn things that you bring onto the road making you a safer and better driver.

The other thing SVTOA has become is a large networking arena. Aside from the SVTOA forum, there are numerous SVTOA members who interact on forums like CEG or other car enthusiast sites. I know a lot of people who have gotten business from meeting various SVTOA members. Members come from all backgrounds and age, sex and creed. It's a great mix of people who all love their cars.

Besides, you're in a car club with like-minded owners. Almost all of our meets have owners of the respective SVT models asking each other for tips and solutions to some of their nagging problems. I know for our chapter, we have quite a few SVT Contours and who hang out here on CEG!

SVTOA also has discounts on a lot of retailers. It's listed on their site at SVTOA.com. Also, you're invited to special events and such. I know for a lot of us who were SVTOA members in and around Michigan in 2003 got to see SVT's skunkworks and grill some of the engineers.

Granted, I do agree that the SVT Contour hasn't been quite a big SVT attention grabber. However, you talk with a lot of people in SVT and Ford and they just love how it handled and performed.

To be part of the local chapter, you need to be part of SVTOA National. Most local chapters have special discounts and deals with their sponsoring dealership and local club supporters. Also, local chapters also vary in the events they have. My chapter also adds events that can also our members' families to participate and/or volunteer.

Overall, I love being part of SVTOA. It's taught me so much, and I've made a lot of good friends. For the $40 per year, that's not much...considering people have no qualms about spending $3 on a latte at coffee break each day or upsizing a combo every time they hit a fast-food joint.

I agree 100% sure 96SVTCobra, SVT Fern and Gapboypcs and don't really have much to add myself except SVTOA is what you want it to be. You can either become involved and make your local chapter more active with events that you and others like to do or if that is not your thing that go to the events and see what they have to offer. What do you have to loose to give it a try.

I know many people Contour owners and others who have now travelled all over to attend various SVTOA events across both the US and Canada. I for one am one of them and I will be attending a couple of National On Track events myself this year.

Give it a try, you might just like it.