Houston ! We've made contact with Ford of Canada !!!!!

[Kobassa Power]

Please read the entire thread.

Attention Ladies and gentlemen of the SCCOO, we will have the pleasure of having Peter Jansen of Ford of Canada in attendance at an upcoming meeting. I'd like to pick the date of July 14th and a location in the west with a large parking area and room for all of you. Please provide positive feedback Some of the regular people that I expect to be there include: Prez-Ed-ent, Lazybird, Leslie Borda, No excuses Sean(we need your diplomatic skills), Wayner, V8arrik, Greg Coleman-Colewoman and Coleboy, Andy Wanger, Mr&MrsHarris, Jason, SteveN (with his fixed hernia) McBilly, Steve Richards(withorWithoutaMoranaEngine) WidowmakerSteve, Kirk(BramptonRepairDepot) and of course all of you that haven't been mentioned.


Hi John, thanks for your letter and e-mail. I have been on a world-wind travel schedule over the past 5 weeks, which has made responding to customer letters and e-mails challenging. However, that is an excuse - so I do apologize for my delayed response to you.

One of the greatest reflections of a product is its ability to attract and retain loyal customers - and in certain special circumstances, have customers develop a social gathering or club to share their pride in their product. I think that Ford Motor Company is very fortunate to have many such customers who through time and dedication keep the heritage of our products top of mind.

I have become involved with many car clubs over the past year, and the partnership has been rewarding for all. I have been able to connect with many loyal Ford enthusiasts and in return, I have become a conduit into Ford Motor Company for these clubs - to provide and share information with and support whenever possible. Although financial support is difficult to provide in these times of limited resources, club members have been very positive on establishing ongoing dialogue with Ford.

I still have a few more weeks of travel remaining - with time freeing up in mid-July. Let me know where your club will be meeting on July 14th or 28th, and I will attend your meeting.

Sincerely,

Peter Jansen
Brand Manager - Focus, Mustang, Thunderbird, SVT
General Marketing, Ford of Canada


My original

May 18, 2004

Ford Management : Mr. Peter Jansen, Ford Thunderbird Brand Manager
Mr. John Vernile, Regional Manager Great Lakes Region
Dear Sirs:

My name is John Zlupko and I have proudly owned and tirelessly
maintained my 1991 Ford Thunderbird Super Coupe for the last 11 years.
In 1997, a group of many devoted Thunderbird owners formed the Super
Coupe Club of Ontario. We are a car club dedicated to the enthusiastic
celebration, enjoyment, preservation and modern day enhancement of
our 1989-1997 MN12 Ford Thunderbirds & Cougars. Due to the ravages of
time , rust and attrition we are no longer just drivers but forced to
be Do It Yourself part-time mechanics. Our members spend countless
hours and thousands of dollars dedicated to maintaining and updating
their cars.

The purpose of this letter is to inform you of our club's existence and
ask you to recognize our loyalty, dedication and enthusiasm for the
Ford Thunderbird. Along with this recognition I am also humbly offering
Ford the opportunity to reward our efforts and patronage. We not only
purchase Thunderbird parts but also Mustang and other v8 applicable Ford
parts. We would like to establish an ongoing relationship with Ford.

On July 29th of 2001 I had the privilege of attending the launch of the
new 2002 Thunderbird in Dearborn Michigan along with former brand
manager Dave Jamieson. Ford Canada did a great job of hosting the
Canadian contingent with a reception, gifts and a test drive preview. To
see the lifelong commitment of the classic Thunderbird owners in
preserving their cars from the 1950s to the 1970s was very inspiring.
I'm sure that they had to overcome the challenges that we are
encountering such as part availability, member attrition and of course,
time and expenses.

I do not have any one particular promotional request to ask of your
great marketing machine but if I may make some suggestions I would offer
these; Thunderbird seminar by a former design team member , get
together sponsorship(Dave & Busters) Ford merchandise prizes or
promotional items(tshirts,banners,etc), Carlisle 2004 Ford Nationals
involvement, Ford ShowNShine BarBQ June 13th( we will participate this
year) parts purchase opportunities, launch parties, Thunderbird and
Mustang club joint promotions, Michigan/Toronto Indy opportunities, a
copy of the 1989 Thunderbird TV Commercial, race track days,
Thunderbird /Nascar memorabilia.

Some of our members have said to me, " You're wasting your time and
efforts if you think Ford is going to do anything for the Club as they
are more interested in customers who buy new cars every few years.
If it is not in Ford's interest then they won't care to do anything." My
reply is that good companies realize that promotional campaigns do not
only involve an incentive to sell new products but also to reward
loyalty and committment to a brand and its company. It may also be
called goodwill and an intangible added value asset.

I cordially invite you to attend one of our weekly Wednesday meetings
at your convenience. This would be a great opportunity for yourselves to
witness our car club's Ford Thunderbird loyalty and enthusiasm.

[92strokedbird]

I will make all efforts to attend this meeting,i hope that it will be at the Devil's Harp.Thanks John!

[EGGZ_90 _SC]

i'm in for this one. just put up a post where the venue will be and directions...

[charged92]

I'm getting a trip permit!

[fast Ed]

Good work John, we appreciate your efforts on the club's behalf.

A bit more background info for club members who are unaware:

John Zlupko is one of the founding members of SCCoO, along with former prez. Wayne Ing, and Mike Maroschak. He has been working on putting together this letter to Ford for quite a while, trimming and editing it to present a good "face" for the club to Ford of Canada. I'll admit that I was one of the naysayers who thought that Ford would do little or nothing for our club. I had the opportunity to speak with Peter Jansen briefly last month when I attended the SVT Owners Association - Toronto Chapter annual general meeting. I gave Peter one of the club cards, and mentioned to him that we would be hitting him up in the near future for some support, if any might be forthcoming.

So let's get as many people out to a meet as we can, as John said, no excuses.

cheers,
Ed N.

[Andrew Wang]

Way to go John, glad to see your efforts pay off for all of us. For sure I'll
make it a point to be there.

BTW this is hilarious.

Prez-Ed-ent, Lazybird, Leslie Borda, No excuses Sean(we need your diplomatic skills), Wayner, V8arrik, Greg Coleman-Colewoman and Coleboy, Andy Wanger, Mr&MrsHarris, Jason, SteveN (with his fixed hernia) McBilly, Steve Richards(withorWithoutaMoranaEngine) WidowmakerSteve, Kirk(BramptonRepairDepot)

[SeanMatteson]

Originally Posted by Kobassa Power

Some of the regular people that I expect to be there include: ...No excuses Sean...

John,

You are to be commended for taking the initiative and pushing this issue with the folks at Ford. It would be a tremendous boost for our club if we actually had the support of the manufacturer of our cars. Even if nothing more becomes of this than to actually have Ford aware of our existence, it's still a great deal!

...Now for the bad news. I truly wish I could join you guys on either of those Wednesdays, but I am scheduled to be down in Chicago on business from July 12th to 16th, and July 19th to 23rd. I know you mentioned "no excuses" above, but this can't be changed. Coincidentally, I'll be onsite with one of Ford's close allies, in that I'll be working with International Truck and Engine (ITE), the folks who build the PowerStroke Diesels for the Ford line of trucks.

I'll try to contact you in the next day or two to see if there isn't some way I can still contribute to this meeting. I'm not sure if/how that will be possible, but perhaps we can come up with something.

Best regards,

Sean

[Bill McNeil]

Johnny,

Nice job putting this together!

Thanks for the invite anyway.

I won't be attending.

[fast Ed]

Originally Posted by SeanMatteson

...Now for the bad news. I truly wish I could join you guys on either of those Wednesdays, but I am scheduled to be down in Chicago on business from July 12th to 16th, and July 19th to 23rd. I know you mentioned "no excuses" above, but this can't be changed. Coincidentally, I'll be onsite with one of Ford's close allies, in that I'll be working with International Truck and Engine (ITE), the folks who build the PowerStroke Diesels for the Ford line of trucks.

Sean

OK, so if we do it on the 28th, no excuses for you !!

[SeanMatteson]

Originally Posted by fast Ed N

OK, so if we do it on the 28th, no excuses for you !!

Actually, the 28th should work! I'm off on vacation that week.

Cheers,

Sean

[Ryan A Harris]

Nice work John. We'll make sure to show up. lets hop ewe can a good large turn out for this one guys. Bill, you are skipping this one just because its a SCCoO meet, or you have other things going on those dates. We need all the support at a meet like this from all of us here.


Anyway I bet we'll have a good turn out.

I think the HARP would be st, I mean we go there enough. The parking lot has lots of room, and its close to all the highways.

[Bill McNeil]

Bill, you are skipping this one just because its a SCCoO meet, or you have other things going on those dates.

Ryan,

Actually, I have obligations Monday and Wednesday nights until August.

Otherwise, I'd consider attending an event like this.

My car will be on pieces around that time anyway.

[lazybird4pt6]

Brampton Repair Depot - ROTFLMAO!!!!!!!!

Do I really need to say it? Okay.

I'm in! ..... for either date.

ALL - do we want to do this on the 14th or the 28th?

John, I can certainly understand your desire to show at the earliest possible convenience. As I mentioned in my e-mail to you, Thank You, again, for your determined effort!

[92strokedbird]

Is this going to be a poll,we have such good turn-out with them!!!

[Kirk Bryan]

Sweet John! I'll even show up for this one.

Bill,
Your car will be missed. It is a good example of what we strive for.