Some questions about buying a Viper GTS early Gen2

[APEX66]

Hi Folks,
Just wondered if I could post a few questions on your forum. I don't plan on buying just yet but want to figure out where to look,what to buy and what to pay.
1.Is there a Viper Club?
2.Does it have Club Cars for Sale
3.Where is the best place to look for cars
4.Is there a Club meet I can come to so I can have a close up look or even sit in one to get a general feel for them.
5.What is there in the UK for members , regular meets,club mag,info /tech sharing data.
6.Is there any other form of info sharing in the UK outside this forum.

I have some Viper books on order ,so now just a case of reading up.

7.Is it better to import or buy in the UK?
Sorry for all the questions.

[Dr-Bob]

There is a viper club here in the UK and yes this is the forum..
This is the oficial club site.
http://www.viperclub.org/

And here is the UK regoin
http://www.ukviperclub.co.uk/

Try the clssifieds here on piston heads..

keep an eye on the meets thread here on the viper forums....

Baz

Edited by Dr-Bob on Monday 17th August 20:40

[ViperDave]

APEX66 said:

Hi Folks,
Just wondered if I could post a few questions on your forum. I don't plan on buying just yet but want to figure out where to look,what to buy and what to pay.
1.Is there a Viper Club?

yep its in the US and some of us are a region of it, its not essential to joint to take part in the UK activities, they are PAYG
http://www.viperclub.org/

APEX66 said:

2.Does it have Club Cars for Sale

best place to look is on here, there are a few that may be thinking of selling but not advertising so make yourself known and they may also, there have been a surprising number change hands without any advertising

APEX66 said:

3.Where is the best place to look for cars

on here, maybe autotrader, see 2

APEX66 said:

4.Is there a Club meet I can come to so I can have a close up look or even sit in one to get a general feel for them.

See events wiki at top of forum, our main club only (don't mind a few interested parties attending) event is early in the season which is good for newbies/perspective newbies, most of the rest are public events so its harder to get a seat/chat etc but not impossible if we know you from on here,

APEX66 said:

5.What is there in the UK for members , regular meets,club mag,info /tech sharing data.

The UK viper club is a great place to meet some great friends, some come and stay, some only attend one event and we never see them again, just depends really, we tend to have a few 'club' events and also attend other general events as a club. No Uk club mag, but tom (venom500) has been working on it for a couple of years now so should be a good first addition when it arrives. If you join the US VCA you get a quarterly glossy mag and viper notes. Tech sharing, have a question post it up here, once you are in there are also people that offer you their number.

APEX66 said:

6.Is there any other form of info sharing in the UK outside this forum.

not really other than word of mouth, there is a great resource over at the VCA also, The viper club can really come together, if you decide to import, no doubt a post over on the US board will get someone to take a look at a car for you, you never know one of us may be on vacation locally also and swing by for you.

http://forums.viperclub.org/

APEX66 said:

I have some Viper books on order ,so now just a case of reading up.

7.Is it better to import or buy in the UK?

it up to you, not much in it really, depends how involved and drawn out you want it to be, easier to view a car in the UK but less choice.

APEX66 said:

Sorry for all the questions.

no problem

Edited by ViperDave on Monday 17th August 20:46

[fatboy18]

Be careful there are a few dodgy cars out there, Luckily we know of them DONT JUMP STRAIGHT IN! there are slight differences year by year, colour schemes, ABS, 17" 18" wheels and other mods. Viper parts tend to be expensive so be careful. Talk to us first if you want any more info


Fatboy 18

[APEX66]

Thanks for the replys and useful tips. The VCA site looks great but it seems you need to have a Viper to join?!! Its a shame this forum seems to be the only "meeting " place for chat/meeting dates or are the UK meeting dates and Club news also included in the VCA Club Mag?
It seems to me that you could do with your own more direct club base for grass roots sharing of idea and what you,ve been up to. A pal of mine works for the DVLA and judging by the number of Vipers registered in the UK I find it strange that you don't realy have your own Club? Do you not have anyone who "leads" you or is it all about using this forum. It just seems that whilst most of us do have the internet these days it can be misleading to assume that everyone want to be glued to a forum , I have been in quite a few car Clubs over the years and most have there own chat site and also a grass roots new letter and "proper" Club with membership and all the things that go with it.I personally don,t find chat sites a good way of drawing new members as you quite often have a "hardcore" group that dominate most topics and hence alienate "quiter members". Its a shame your club relies on this forum and has no other news outlets,I think your missing out on ways to expand the Club. Sorry if I seem to be going on a tad,but I was a Club events officer to a large car Club and so feel I have a fair grounding on ways to improve/grow Club membership and to rely soley on a Pistonhead Forum seems a little short sighted. I know its a lot of work once you get into the relms of a "Proper" Club but it almost seems a diservice to such a Iconic car as the Viper I am most surprized that you rely on a car only membership in the US and a chat site on Pistonheads?! The Viper car is heading towards 17 years of age and the new ones are still rolling of the production line yet I can find no info on a UK Viper Club in either Classic Mags or Evo style Mags?
Anyway, sorry for rocking the boat before I've even bought a Viper but my hand will be held up high in the air if you ever decide to form a non-internet side to the car club. Its a shame you can't get a news letter off the ground as that might be a start, I have done club mags in the past so I'd be more than happy to either step in or help out with one.
I think I've rambled on enough for now,but I'll try to make it to a meeting soon if that's Ok so I can getter a better Idea of what to be looking for and to meet some of you.Thanks also for your helpful replys.

[GTSDave]

APEX66 said:

Thanks for the replys and useful tips. The VCA site looks great but it seems you need to have a Viper to join?!!

You don't need a Viper to join the VCA Website/forums. But you do need a Viper to be able to join the VCA.

APEX66 said:

Its a shame this forum seems to be the only "meeting " place for chat/meeting dates or are the UK meeting dates and Club news also included in the VCA Club Mag?

Club news is often reported in the VCA mag, but as there is so few UK VCA members we tend to keep the dates etc noted here, most UK VCA members & the known UK owners who are not VCA members tend to keep one eye on the forums here for info.

APEX66 said:

It seems to me that you could do with your own more direct club base for grass roots sharing of idea and what you,ve been up to. A pal of mine works for the DVLA and judging by the number of Vipers registered in the UK I find it strange that you don't realy have your own Club?

The UK Viper 'Club' is not a funded organisation and is really an offshoot/regional link to the VCA, we incorporate both VCA members and non-members, there is no requirement to join the VCA or pay any subscriptions. As things stand, we have absolutely no idea of the total number of UK registered Vipers, and have no way of contacting those that are here that we are unaware of. The UK 'club' has a website which directs people here, and has contact details, so it is not that difficult for owners to find us if they so chose. http://www.ukviperclub.co.uk/

APEX66 said:

Do you not have anyone who "leads" you or is it all about using this forum. It just seems that whilst most of us do have the internet these days it can be misleading to assume that everyone want to be glued to a forum ,

Please see here: http://www.ukviperclub.co.uk/page2.html

APEX66 said:

I have been in quite a few car Clubs over the years and most have there own chat site and also a grass roots new letter and "proper" Club with membership and all the things that go with it.I personally don,t find chat sites a good way of drawing new members as you quite often have a "hardcore" group that dominate most topics and hence alienate "quiter members". Its a shame your club relies on this forum and has no other news outlets,I think your missing out on ways to expand the Club.

We have a website, and we have a chatsite here... What would we gain from having our own chatsite?

As noted above total numbers at this time are unknown to us, we are aware of many cars but we have the odd few members who appear every now and then at an event they find interesting, and we have members who tend to do as many events as they can, either is fine with us. When it comes to expanding the club, as I have said the numbers of cars in the UK are pretty low, and there is no funding/subscriptions everything the club does is off our own backs and organised by individual members, if Viper owners wish to join in they are made extremely welcome, and they tend to find us if they want to, I don't think we have anything to gain by posting a full page add in the national newspapers advising people of our existence the numbers of cars in the UK are not high enough to warrant a mad scramble to expand the club, and the funding doesn't exist to enable us to do so. I guess what I am trying to say is that what we have works for us as it stands.

APEX66 said:

Sorry if I seem to be going on a tad,but I was a Club events officer to a large car Club and so feel I have a fair grounding on ways to improve/grow Club membership and to rely soley on a Pistonhead Forum seems a little short sighted. I know its a lot of work once you get into the relms of a "Proper" Club but it almost seems a diservice to such a Iconic car as the Viper I am most surprized that you rely on a car only membership in the US and a chat site on Pistonheads?! The Viper car is heading towards 17 years of age and the new ones are still rolling of the production line yet I can find no info on a UK Viper Club in either Classic Mags or Evo style Mags?

As I have said above, there is no funding/subscriptions everything the club does is off our own backs and organised by individual members, if Viper owners wish to join in they are made extremely welcome, and they tend to find us if they want to, I don't think we have anything to gain by posting a full page add in the national newspapers advising people of our existence the numbers of cars in the UK are not high enough to warrant a mad scramble to expand the club, and the funding doesn't exist to enable us to do so.

APEX66 said:

Anyway, sorry for rocking the boat before I've even bought a Viper but my hand will be held up high in the air if you ever decide to form a non-internet side to the car club.

I am not really sure what you mean by a 'non-internet' side to the car club?
VCA Members get a quarterly magazine, and notes which keeps us up to date with the main VCA relevant information, which is often posted here, and we all meet reasonably regularly and catch up at different events. We have a great group of people who know how and where we tend to keep in touch, and as I have said, with no funding we don't have the assets, or to be honest the amount of relevant information, to be printing monthly newsletters.

APEX66 said:

Its a shame you can't get a news letter off the ground as that might be a start, I have done club mags in the past so I'd be more than happy to either step in or help out with one.
I think I've rambled on enough for now,but I'll try to make it to a meeting soon if that's Ok so I can getter a better Idea of what to be looking for and to meet some of you.Thanks also for your helpful replys.

One of our members has been working on the Newsletter for the past twenty months, it's going to be a novel by the time he's finished! In all seriousness though, I don't really know how much information we would have to fill it with. Try and get to a meeting at some point and see what you think, and try and get hold of a copy of this : http://www.amazon.co.uk/Viper-Buyers-Guide/dp/0760... It covers everything you will need to know, and has information on all years and models, it's invaluable when it comes to buying a Viper, as is staying in touch with us for information, we are aware of several cars in the UK which have very questionable history so if you see something you like, run it past us first.

Good luck!

Edited by GTSDave on Tuesday 18th August 10:08

[Ginja]

APEX66 said:

. A pal of mine works for the DVLA and judging by the number of Vipers registered in the UK I find it strange that you don't realy have your own Club?

As we only have a vague idea I imagine we are all keen to know how many there are, could you enlighten us?

Mark

[viper paul]

I can help with that one as I have all the VIN numbers on file and at a last count 110 Vipers registered but as we know the steering wheel is on the wrong side so some may come and go from Europe as well as some US imports from people who just want to make money.

So with a mark such as the Viper then perhaps 20% are interested in being active members, which is probably what we have in the UK, ie about 20 people in the UK, out of that 20 geography precludes some people from attending an event so perhaps 10-12 people, which is what we get from a good turn out.

I must admit, I was waiting for the 'Sales Pitch' in your post, its quite common for people to contact me offering chargable services, but it never came so I assume that was not the intention.

We really do have a newsletter as 'Viper Notes' published by the VCA does list our events as well as others in the world, which is nice.

It did seem that you introduction to us as Viper owners was one of complaint, because you were hungry for information and for that I appologize, but all of us would really welcome you to an event and provide you with much information, so I look forward to meeting you soon.

Please don't hestitate to contact us, I am El Pres, GTS Dave is Vice President and Dr Bob our technical director.

[VENOM500]

It gonna be go goodun.......

[neilsfishing]

VENOM500 said:

It gonna be go goodun.......

[fishboy]

oh no

[APEX66]

Many thanks for all your replys. Looks like the quest is on, for a car that is, not a news letter! Sounds like the news letter writer gets a bit of stick from you lot,know wonder he can't be bothered, maybe I can encourge him a little,but it seems like knowbody needs or wants a news letter? or would there be a demand?
By the way I wasn't going to offer a charge for performing some kind of service , not sure how the VCA works but all the Clubs I have ever been part of have been run without any personal gain in mind,so quite why you seem to think I was going to come with a price tag could be seen as a little OTT,Car Clubs should be about the cars not personal gain or personalitys,but through the medium of the internet your not quite understanding what I am trying to imply. (Your remark could be taken as an insult by some people)ie, "another offer of help for a small fee".

Anyway thanks for all the help,I'll stick to finding a car for now,and maybe see how I can help improve your Club when I come back with one, I guess that would be down to the usual commitee vote/process so hopefully I can make some friends on the way and show the members at your AGM that I am keen to help.Are there any posts in the Club that need to be filled at the moment?.Cheers Dan. I think your figures of Viper's in the UK could be incorrect;)

[neilsfishing]