April 2008, Volume 11, Issue 4


General Meeting - April 2, 2008

The April 2nd, 2008 monthly meeting was called to order by President Keith Thorson at 7:15pm.

The newsletter was approved as printed, however, J.O. Raff called attention to an error in the Treasurers Report. The year was shown as 2007 but has been revised and the Trans Script was approved as corrected.

Keith Thorson moved to adjourn at 7:20 pm but only to be ahead of Frank Brown for a change.

The Treasurer's Report for March, 2008 was given and approved as read by J.O.Raff.

Old Business: Past Events;

Bowling at Crestview Lanes on March 30 was a success with Ted Bechtel being champion overall low scorer, only beating J.O. by a few pins. J.O. could only make a spare by rolling a gutter ball first.

Delicious food was served at the St. Patrick’s Day Pot- Luck on March 16th and it was enjoyed by all.

New Business: Upcoming Events;

The Annual Chili Cook-off will be held at the Raff’s, Sunday, April 27th at 1:30 pm. At this event, prizes will be awarded for Best Red, Best Green, Hottest, Wimpiest and People’s Choice.

Terry reported on the Springtime Extravaganza, promoted by Jimmy J. Gloria Enterprises. It will be a multi-venue event with Antiques, Crafts, Big Boy Toys, Boats and RV’s, a Car Show and Motorcycle Show, etc. at the Placer County Fairgrounds in Roseville, May 10-11.

More info to follow for the Elk Grove High School Annual Car Show to be held Saturday, May 17th. See Upcoming Events.

Thunder in Depot Park, Rio Linda, will be held Saturday, May 24th. See Upcoming Events.

Hot Antioch Nights, open to all year cars, will be held Sunday, July 20th, Terry Trimble has information.

Jimboys and IHOP shows were discussed but no information is available. Last year only older cars were featured.

Any further business was tabled until the May meeting.

Frank Brown moved to adjourn the meeting, Dennis Trimble seconded and Ted Bechtel, not to be outdone, was third. The meeting was adjourned at 8:01pm.

Respectfully Submitted: Irene Raff, Secretarty.

TACA, GSC Meeting Place and Time.

Club Meetings will be held at Denny's Restaurant, 3520 Auburn Blvd, Sacramento, CA at 7:00 PM on the first Wednesday of each month. Anyone with an interest in the Pontiac Firebird, Trans Am, Formula or Firehawk is welcome to attend.

Birthdays.

Gary Vollstedt, April. 4th
Rachel Gershanoff, May 6th

This is the sad story about the Trans Am I bought off of E-Bay from Boise, Idaho. The man sent me pictures of the car and we spoke and sent several e-mails back and forth. I planned to fly out to Boise to see it, but something always came up with me like work, Thanksgiving, then Christmas and I just couldn't find time. So I bid on the car and ultimately won the auction. The car was described as having new weather stripping, rebuilt carb, tune up, new interior, new paint, new decals, runs excellent, etc. You have seen my brown T/A which took 3rd place in the show at the Pontiac Dealer, right? Well based on his description and the pictures I expected it to be close to the same condition as mine. I asked him if I could drive it to California and he said it would make it "no problem". I opted to have it shipped.

This is what happened the morning it arrived. As soon as the truck pulled up, I noticed the hood release cable underneath was hanging down and the body lines were not even. The gaps between the doors and fenders were all jacked up and the corner of the hood stuck up. My first thought was "oh s-". Well, it went from bad to worse. The car ran like crap, the interior was thrown in with screws missing and crap falling off. I think I found some of the screws when I popped the hood and found all the vacuum lines stuffed with screws. The exhaust was trashed, the doors wouldn't close right, the paint looked like s-, the decals were coming off and when I drove it the trans wouldn't shift out of low. I got 1 mile and the rear wheel started smoking and I barely made it to the auto repair. I was devastated.

I called the man in Boise and told him I wanted 3 thousand dollars back. I told him he was a dishonest thief and gave him the run down on what I saw in 5 minutes that any half way decent car person would've seen. He claimed to not have "known" about any of these things.

In the end the car needed new axles, wheel bearings, exhaust system, hand brake assembly, carb rebuild, the vacuum lines reconnected, the vacuum on the trans hooked up so it would shift, rotors, brakes, door pins, and there will be more.

The good news is the guy DID send me 3,000 dollars back. I also bought a '78 T/A from a tow yard in town which was in MUCH better shape than the '79 put 400.00 dollars in it and made 2,800.00 in profit. I was lucky that with the refund and the other T/A I sold, it worked out monetarily fine but it has taken 3 months and I will be putting every dime I have made into the Anniversary T/A.

I have learned to NEVER be too busy to look at a car you plan to buy! I am not a stupid person, but boy, I outdid myself on this fiasco! I was fortunate this guy was at least partially an honest man who kept his word to me. Please print my story in our news letter if you feel it may help or be of interest to our members. Happy Motoring!

Deb.

P.S. My Daughter, Kim, is an E-Bay dealer. (See www.kookooforyou.com). When I passed this story by her, her first comment was "Buyer Beware"! Although E-Bay and Pay-Pal provide some buyer protection, precautions should start at home. For instance, be assured that an article is returnable and refundable, in writing, before the purchase and never buy high value items sight unseen. Always check the sellers E-Bay feed-back rating. Print-out a copy of the description of the item the seller placed and a copy of the Auction award. When an item is not received as advertised, immediate action should be taken with photographs and descriptions of the deviations from the description and/or the damage in order to justify returning the article and receive a refund. Thanks to Deb for her "Word to the Wise" email and Kim for her advise. Remember, "Buyer Beware" and not only on E-Bay! - Ed.

Upcoming Events: 2008.

CHILI COOKOFF - 4/27/08
Sunday, April 27th, Tentative. (More details to follow).

ASSOCIATION OF CALIF. CAR CLUBS CONFERENCE - 5/6-9/08
Tuesday thru Friday, May 6 thru 9. May 6, 10:00 AM-2:00PM, Capitol Car Show and Shine on West Steps of State Capitol. May 7-8, 9:00AM-4:30PM, Presentations from Calif. Highway Patrol, DMV, Bureau of Automotive Repair, Calif. Air Resources Board, Various Legislators, Tour of Towe Automobile Museum and Catered Lunch. May 9, Tour—to be determined. ACCC encourages a Club Delegate and Car Enthusiasts attend because of issues detrimental to the Car Hobbyist.

GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING - 5/7/08
Meet at 7:00 - 9:00 PM, Denny's Restaurant, 3520 Auburn Blvd., Sacramento, CA.

SPRINGTIME EXTRAVAGANZA - 5/10-11/08
Saturday-Sunday, May 10-11, 10:00 AM-6:00 PM, all cars, Entry fee, $45.00 or General Admission, $6.00, $5.00 for Seniors, or 2 for 1 special with coupon. Placer County Fairgrounds. (Individual event as of now). More info at www.springtimeextravaganza.com.

ELK GROVE HIGH SCHOOL ANNUAL CAR SHOW - 5/17/08
Saturday, May 17th, (More Info To Follow).

THUNDER IN DEPOT PARK - 5/24/08
Saturday, May 24th, 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM, $20.00 per car, Depot Park on 'M' Street in Rio Linda. Pre-entries receive an Event Hat free and a Discount Coupon for a T-Shirt).

HOT ANTIOCH NIGHTS - 7/20/08
Sunday, July 20th, all cars, $22.00 early entry fee, $29.00 after July 10. ( Non-Club event).

PONTIAC NIGHT, SACRAMENTO RACEWAY - 7/23/08
Wednesday Night Drags, July 23rd. (More Info To Follow).

HOT AUGUST NIGHTS - 8/7-9/08
Thursday-Saturday, August 7-9, Reno Livestock Events Center. Emphasis on pre-1972 cars. (Individual event).

ALL PONTIAC SHOW- 9/25-28/08
Wednesday-Sunday, Sept. 25-28, hosted by POCI at Bass Lake. (More Info To Follow).

ANNUAL MEETING AND CHRISTMAS PARTY - 12/13/08
Saturday, December 13th, Hungry Hunter, Sacramento. (More Info. To Follow).