8 TradeUniqueCars.com.auHAVEYOUjoineda socialmediavehiclegrouplately?The
choicesonofferarestaggeringand,atlastcount,I thinkI’ma
memberofabout30.We’retalkingFacebookgroupshere,or
FaceplantasI oftenprefertocallit.
Thewhole‘socialmedia’conceptissometimesa bitofa
crock.‘Anti-social’mediawouldbeclosertothemarkwhen
you lookatsomeoftheludicrousrantingsthatgetpublished.In
fact therearedayswhenI wonderisFaceplantsolelysetupfor
peoplewhowanttoshoutatclouds.
Butit doeshaveitspositivesideandvehiclegroupsareone
of them.Becauseofthepeculiarnatureofmyf leet,I’mnow
a memberof(takesa deepbreath):AussieSharks(theBMW
shark-noseE24clan),EarlyCommodores,AussieSmokers(two-
strokemotorcycles),VKBrotherhhood(Imayneedtotunnel
rammyunsuspecting 355 togainfullmembership),Northern
BeachesMuscleCars,a KingsMountainIndiangroup,Holden
HQ HJHXHZ&WBplustheToyotaSoarerOwnersofAustralia.
Therearelotsmore...
W hatI likeaboutthemajorityofthemistheytendtobeself-
HAPPY TRIBE
GUY^ ALLENSEND YOUR EMAILS TO: [email protected]
You can also reach our palatial offices via analog at Unique Cars mag, Locked Bag 12, Oakleigh, 3166.
Oh, and look for us on Facebook as Unique Cars magazine. Get in touch and tell us your story...IS JOINING A CAR GROUP HABIT-FORMING?
moderating. Taking a crack at someone else’s car because you
don’t like their taste in wheels or whatever is frowned upon.
Meanwhile, there is a real effort to create mutually-supportive
environments that pass on tech tips and stuff coming up for sale
long before it reaches the public classified market. Gangs like
Northern Beaches do a lot of shows and charity, so a much wider
group of people in the community benefits as well.
I reckon this has broader health benefits, because it means
people don’t have to feel alone. There’s always someone up for a
chat and to offer some advice. It’s terrific.
W hat amazes me sometimes is the sheer numbers. Take the
Aussie Soarers for example, which has over 6000 members!
That’s staggering, as the car was never a local mainstream
model. It only ever came in as a used grey import and even then
in relatively limited numbers. It had a brief moment in the sun
as a popular used buy in the late 1990s, but that soon faded.
Are there really 6000 Soarers over here? I suspect not but may
well be proven wrong. In the meantime I’m content to be part of
the happy tribe.
Guy ‘Guido’ Allen