DjD
Jan 29th, 01, 07:21 PM
Got home from work and found a letter in the mail box from the local chapter of the AQMD (Air Quality Management District). They offered to buy my pre 1981 gross polluting vehicle from me for $500. It qualified because ir runs and is registered. All I had to do was drive it to the nearest crusher and I would get a check!!!
I took the liberty to draft a letter and E-mail it to the Gentleman incharge of the buy back program. Here it is,
<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>
Mr. Stienberger,
Thank you for the generous offer of $500.00 for my 1969 vehicle that has it's registration about to expire. The car in question is a 1969 Camaro convertible. It has been painfully restored to better than new condition and is only driven on special occasions. If you would like to see a picture, you can at http://www.camaroslimited.com/graphics/memcars/den1.gif . This vehicle has a value of over $20,000 and I am sorry to say I will not be taking you up on your offer. The minimum price on a pre 1970 Camaro that meets your requirements (registered and running) is roughly $5,000.00 and many vehicles of this era are approaching the same pricing. You can see fewer and fewer owners will be taking your offer seriously.
I am sure you know as I do, cars like mine are not the gross polluters they are made out to be. This car is in better tune than 90% of all the cars on the road today. With the low mileage it sees annually and the loving care it receives you are barking up the wrong tail pipe. Look around you the next time you are out and about. You won't see too many
pre 1973 vehicles commuting the freeways, city streets or parking lots!! You won't see many of them parked in the driveways of our
homes! They are locked in our garages, driven on Sundays and displayed proudly at a summer car show!!! Your program is targeting the wrong segment of automobile!!!
Classic car collectors are a great bunch of people and have a better understanding of the mechanics of the internal combustion engine than most. We snap at the chance to score a junker and breath new life into it, or to take donor parts from a "one tire in the crusher" vehicle and use them to help restore our projects. From our side of the fence we
see a need to stop crushing these old cars and make them available to collectors and those interested in preserving a part of the american past!!!
I am writing this in hopes you might be open to seeing your program from the other side. When you do things for a while you become complacent and resistant to change. Putting on blinders like a race horse so all you see is the track ahead of you is ok for horses but not for a world as diverse as ours. You need to bring the BAAQMD out of the dark ages. Get automotive enthusiasts on your side. Work with business' to give incentives for car pooling, telecommuting and varied work shifts to reduce traffic congestion. (any car idling along in bumper to bumper
traffic isn't very efficient) Then go after the Auto makers and get them to make vehicles pollute less. And by all means don't forget about all the factories billowing tons of pollution into the air every day. We (car nuts) truly understand the need to preserve and protect the quality of the air we breath. It's time to concentrate efforts on the really effective practices and adjust the years you are after with this program. Help the classic automotive enthusiasts and they in turn will help you... How about a joint venture where the pre 1973 vehicles you
collect get set aside and auctioned off to raise money. Anyone that would bid on one of these cars would be doing so with plans to restore it or part it out for restoration. It becomes win, win!! I look forward to your reply.
Thank you,
Dennis Dunio
Webmaster@CamarosLimited.com<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I encourage all of you to speak up and let your elected officials know how you feel about our pastime!!!
------------------
...Dennis
The Cars:
'69 RS Convertible w/SS trim (http://www.camaroslimited.com/memberscars/den.htm)
'96 Z28SS #1679 of 2410 (http://www.camaroslimited.com/graphics/memcars/96ss.jpg)
The Club:
Camaros Limited Nor-Cal (http://camaroslimited.com)
[This message has been edited by DjD (edited 01-29-2001).]
I took the liberty to draft a letter and E-mail it to the Gentleman incharge of the buy back program. Here it is,
<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>
Mr. Stienberger,
Thank you for the generous offer of $500.00 for my 1969 vehicle that has it's registration about to expire. The car in question is a 1969 Camaro convertible. It has been painfully restored to better than new condition and is only driven on special occasions. If you would like to see a picture, you can at http://www.camaroslimited.com/graphics/memcars/den1.gif . This vehicle has a value of over $20,000 and I am sorry to say I will not be taking you up on your offer. The minimum price on a pre 1970 Camaro that meets your requirements (registered and running) is roughly $5,000.00 and many vehicles of this era are approaching the same pricing. You can see fewer and fewer owners will be taking your offer seriously.
I am sure you know as I do, cars like mine are not the gross polluters they are made out to be. This car is in better tune than 90% of all the cars on the road today. With the low mileage it sees annually and the loving care it receives you are barking up the wrong tail pipe. Look around you the next time you are out and about. You won't see too many
pre 1973 vehicles commuting the freeways, city streets or parking lots!! You won't see many of them parked in the driveways of our
homes! They are locked in our garages, driven on Sundays and displayed proudly at a summer car show!!! Your program is targeting the wrong segment of automobile!!!
Classic car collectors are a great bunch of people and have a better understanding of the mechanics of the internal combustion engine than most. We snap at the chance to score a junker and breath new life into it, or to take donor parts from a "one tire in the crusher" vehicle and use them to help restore our projects. From our side of the fence we
see a need to stop crushing these old cars and make them available to collectors and those interested in preserving a part of the american past!!!
I am writing this in hopes you might be open to seeing your program from the other side. When you do things for a while you become complacent and resistant to change. Putting on blinders like a race horse so all you see is the track ahead of you is ok for horses but not for a world as diverse as ours. You need to bring the BAAQMD out of the dark ages. Get automotive enthusiasts on your side. Work with business' to give incentives for car pooling, telecommuting and varied work shifts to reduce traffic congestion. (any car idling along in bumper to bumper
traffic isn't very efficient) Then go after the Auto makers and get them to make vehicles pollute less. And by all means don't forget about all the factories billowing tons of pollution into the air every day. We (car nuts) truly understand the need to preserve and protect the quality of the air we breath. It's time to concentrate efforts on the really effective practices and adjust the years you are after with this program. Help the classic automotive enthusiasts and they in turn will help you... How about a joint venture where the pre 1973 vehicles you
collect get set aside and auctioned off to raise money. Anyone that would bid on one of these cars would be doing so with plans to restore it or part it out for restoration. It becomes win, win!! I look forward to your reply.
Thank you,
Dennis Dunio
Webmaster@CamarosLimited.com<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I encourage all of you to speak up and let your elected officials know how you feel about our pastime!!!
------------------
...Dennis
The Cars:
'69 RS Convertible w/SS trim (http://www.camaroslimited.com/memberscars/den.htm)
'96 Z28SS #1679 of 2410 (http://www.camaroslimited.com/graphics/memcars/96ss.jpg)
The Club:
Camaros Limited Nor-Cal (http://camaroslimited.com)
[This message has been edited by DjD (edited 01-29-2001).]