For Immediate Release

September 10, 2002 5:00pm

After around two years of discussion I am honoured to be able to announce the official launch of the Nissan Sports Car Club (NSCC).

The club will hold it's first official event with a barbeque at Parramatta Park on September 28, 2002.  You will be able to sign up on the day and be issued with your membership credentials.

So what will this club bring to the community?  Firstly, there are a range of social events planned, and many more are possible.  Already the September barbeque is well underway, and a "Dawn Run" is scheduled for mid-October.  The dawn run will be limited to members only and we intend to put on food at the end of the event.  Other events being investigated are a drive-in night (with a run to get there) with "car movies" as well as ideas such as skidpan days.  We want to hear from the members what they want to do.

Secondly, it will give owners of Nissan sports cars a unified voice when dealing with suppliers.  There are a number of parts suppliers, driver training organisations, etc who have expressed a desire to work with the club and support it with discounts on products and services.  Your club membership card is the key to these benefits.  The club will negotiate on your behalf, and you will be able to be easily recognised as a member of a bona fide organisation.

In addition, the club will continue to be a focus of information on our cars.  A newsletter will be produced regularly with a mix of technical articles, news, events and general interest.  The first issue will be available to members at the barbeque.

Events, cards and newsletters cost money to produce.  After reviewing other clubs, it was decided that the club would charge an annual membership fee of $A50.00 with a one-off $A25.00 joining fee.  Members who join before January 1, 2003 will gain two extra benefits:

• Membership through to December 2003 (you get the remainder of 2002 effectively free of charge)
• The right to be called a "founding" member.  Something to be proud of in years to come.

This is not a Sydney-only club.  We welcome members from all over the country, and overseas.

By now you are asking what qualifies you as a member.  A full member of the club will own a Nissan sports coupe derived from one of the following:

• S14 200SX, Silvia, or 240SX (from 1995 - 2001)
• S15 200SX or Silvia (from 2001 onwards)
• 350Z (from 2002 onwards)

To put it another way, the car must either have been sold new through a Nissan dealer in Australia, or be of the same type as a car that was sold in Australia.  The club makes no distinction between a Japanese Domestic or export version.  For example, a Japanese market S15 Silvia is eligible, but an R33 Skyline is not.

But if you don't fall into this category, don't despair.  The club welcomes Associate Members who own other kinds of vehicles.  There are some small legal differences between the two types of membership, but associates are welcome at all events.

As with any club these days, a website will be up and running soon, and a range of merchandise is planned.  Some will be on display at the barbeque.

Finally, a club needs people to make it happen, the following people have stepped up to the positions needed to get us operating:

Club President:         Dave Russell

Treasurer:               Roman Clare

Secretary:               Chris Low

Events:                   Greg Cowell

These four are the public face of a core group who came together to make this happen.  We would like to thank (in no particular order):

Dale Ang, Brenton Vettoretti, Phil Brook, Ben Ng, Peter Leonard, Patrick Tye, Amendra Pratap, John O'Connor, Tesaro Sandu, Daniel Hajduk and Chris Moran.

If you would like to get involved, there is plenty of work available for people who want to be involved.  Simply email nscc@200sx.org with how you would like to help.