The Gold Members Testimonial Competition

[Steve]

I am going to set a competiton for all you Gold Members

The competition is to win a £50 HMV CD voucher and free subscription next year to Gold Membership... Just by submitting a testimonial of your gold membership.

To enter you must write at least 100 word testimonial on how good gold membership is and how you have benefitted being a LOC gold member. It can be based on how much money you have saved by being a member or a simple lovey dovey testimonial of the club.

Serious testimonials will remain within this thread.... The best testimonials will be placed in a top 10 and then the winner shall be chosen and notified and will receive the the winning voucher.

I am going to close this competiton on the 30th of October... so get writing.

you can also edit your testimonial at any time as part of the fun.

Good luck :winky:

[dipstick]

The purchase of a car is for many people the second largest financial investment they will make. Over the years I have been attracted to larger luxury cars, and decided in 2003 that the Lexus brand would be worth my attention.

Previous purchases have always been complicated by the fact that I feel a need to know exactly what I'm getting into. I create spreadsheets analysing running costs, insurance, known issues, exact model types and years and many other factors. Gathering that information is always difficult.

The Lexus Owner's Club made an enormous difference to that data gathering exercise, and after purchase of exactly the right Lexus for me, has proved to be an irresistable source of interest, humour, hard fact and entertainment. Couple that with a smug satisfaction every time significant money is saved on Lexus related purchases, which is just one of the advantages of being a Gold member, (in just four months I have saved nearly five times the annual subscription alone) and indeed, the discovery of perfection moves one step closer.

And everyone who sees the sticker in the car thinks of Austin. As in Powers.

[Fidgits]

I joined the LOC forums back in April after having my IS200 for a year, I wasn't sure about the GOLD membership at first, but after recieving loads of technical information from the site, (e.g. corroded alloy replacement) I decided to subscribe, after all, the membership fee costs less than a night out, and lasts a lot longer.

Since joining GOLD, I have saved over a thousand pounds, and that is in the space of 6 months. I saved over £30 on my 30K service & MOT, £10 on the new smoked rear light clusters. From being a GOLD member, I managed to purchase a Sports Mesh Grill at £125 less than the Lexus Dealer wanted.

When my car needed new tyres, due to being a GOLD member, I saved over £200 on 4 Dunlop SP9000's from my dealer.

When my insurance premium was up for renewal, I contacted the LOC insurance scheme and got a much better policy, £400 less than the best quote I recieved.

With new discounts appearing every week, which includes dealers, car tuning companies, Halfords, and non car related franchises, the amount of money I will save in the next 12 months could easily be 100 times the membership fee.

As well as all these savings, I recieve technical support and guidance, and because my dealer knows I am a LOC GOLD member, they are always upfront and honest about anything to do with my car, as they know I have a support structure that will let me know if anything they tell me is inaccurate.

All in all, being a GOLD member has saved me over a thousand pounds, and this is just on general day-to-day running costs, I get a better from my dealer, and have peace of mind with my Lexus.

[Claire G]

I stumbled across LOC after I'd had my car for a few months. I really enjoyed the banter on the forums and the fact I could find out more about my IS200 from other owners. Their advice has proved invaluable - especially when I was told to look out for corrossion on the alloys and I was able to get them replaced under warranty.

I decided to join GOLD as I wanted to support the Club. The site takes money to run and maintain and I wanted to do my bit to help. The discounts weren't of major interest as I didn't expect to be able to benefit from them (having a lease car). However, I was pleasantly surprised - I've saved money on a holiday, car insurance, and am planning to take advantage of the discounts on theme parks.

Most, if not all, GOLD members save more than their first years subscription costs in a matter of months, especially if they are modifying their cars in any way. Even if you love your car the way it is and aren't planning any additional enhancements you are still able to make savings unrelated to auto discounts.

I'm in my 2nd year of GOLD membership and will sign up again next year. I think all Forum users should support the Club in this way, it's a small price to pay for the wealth of information available.

[Rodders_UK]

It's easy-peasy

Step 1. Work out what you spend in Lexus dealers in a year.

Step 2. Work out what 15% of that amount is

Step 3. If the answer to step 2 is more than £25 say "hooray" and go to step 4.

Step 4. Join gold and get free money.

[simonskippy]

I originaly joined LOC by chance after doing a google search as I was looking for information on engine upgrades and induction kits for my new IS200. I joined the forums not expecting too much as I have often seen similar forums turn into a verbal battlefield, LOC proved to be very much the exception. Soon after joining the Gold section was opened with the promise of discounts and a members area, after the ammount of info that I had been given by helpful members I thought that £25 was very little to part with to support the running costs of the club even if I received nothing back from the Gold membership. The discount area was initially focussed on Lexus Dealers and some companies that had already supplied LOC members, I was lucky enough to live next door to one of the first dealers to sign up to the discount and promptly saved the £25 membership fee on the purchase of some kick plates and some clothing from the dealership. With the info that I had gleaned and requested from the members I started off on my first modification campaign, initially a supercharger conversion some suspension work and a few other goodies were ordered, with my Gold Membership I saved c£1000 just on that first purchase, add to that the work that is taking place, the bodywork, the paintshop, the wheels and the tyres oh and the insurance company recommended by another member I will have saved in excess of £3000 by Xmas 2003 and have outlayed only £50 for the 2 years Gold Membership.

I have heard mention that people don't want to spend £25 to become a Gold Member as they don't want to modify their car or their dealer is not yet offering discounts. I would say that even had I not saved any money from purchases I have made, the value of the information and advice that I have had is superb and on top of that have met some fantastic people I am now proud to call friends.

[JMRussell]

If you run a Lexus out of your own pocket then joining Gold is a no brainer.

Bought my LS two years ago and found out about the club about 4/5 months later. Joined Gold almost immediately as £25 is nothing to support the club and as an Accountant I like discounts. My car has no modifications and is unlikely to have any but I do have services and other normal running costs. Even one basic service a year will win back £25 but in the last 12 months I've had my 63K service with plugs and cam belt and just had 72K service including new front discs and pads all round. Those two services alone was a saving of nearly £400!

Best of all was the extended warranty. Mine came up for renewal before LOC had finished negotiations and I renewed. Imagine my surprise and shock when the my dealer sent me a cheque for the discount a couple of months later because the club had subsequently negotiated a discount.

If the dealers like the club that much and you own a Lexus you must go gold.