LINC400 Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Yesterday I went to attend the AACA show at the Volo Auto Museum. I have been to this show before with my friend, and we have shown a car. For $10, the car is entered in the show and the driver and passengers get into the museum for free. Yesterday, my mom decided to go with at the last minute. When we got there, they charged $10 for the car, driver, and 1 passenger, and then wanted to charge $15 for me as the third person in the car. So I would have to pay more for just myself riding in my friend's car, than for the entire car and 2 people. I could have gone home, gotten my car, picked up a hitchhiker, and gotten in cheaper than riding in my friend's car that was being shown. We were even there with other friends showing cars, and they had to pay $9 for each child in the car because mom and dad got in free with the car, but they had to pay for the kids since they were additional people in the car. I thought these were supposed to be family friendly events encouraging children to attend??? I could see maybe charging $5 for each additional person, and kids free, but $15 and $9 was just ridiculous. Since I had no interest in seeing the museum, I refused to pay the $15. However, they would then not even allow me anywhere near where my friend's car was parked. So I could not get my sunblock, jacket, umbrella when it started raining, aspirin when I got a headache, or anything else out of the car. Last year a newer Chrysler 300 with scissor doors, 22 inch wheels, and tons of bolt on bling won a trophy at this same AACA show. I thought AACA was for stock antique cars??? That didn't bother me quite as much as the admission BS this year. But between the 2 things, I don't think there is any need for me to attend the AACA Volo shows in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MCHinson Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 That is not a national AACA event. It appears to be an event put on by a local AACA Chapter and the Volo Auto Museum. National AACA Meets are free to the public. There are no admission charges. I did a bit of searching on the internet and found the flyer for the local show that you were talking about. The flyer for that indicates the following: Show Car Registration is open from 9 - 12, no cars allowed in after 12. Cost is $20 for sale or $10 for show only. Includes car and 2 people. Additional people are subject to general gate admission. General Gate Admission to the show and museum are $14.95 Adult $11.95 Senior $8.95 Child No passes or coupons accepted during this special event. Museum open 10 - 5 No Outside Food or Beverage. It looks like they charged you what they advertised. It looks like they charged the regular admission price to the museum for anybody above two people per car. The flyer that I found was on the Museum site at: http://www.volocars.com/event.php?evid=645#sthash.VRTr3mj9.dpbs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LINC400 Posted May 25, 2015 Author Share Posted May 25, 2015 (edited) I was fine with not being allowed into the museum. But they would not even allow me to go to my friend's car that I rode up in, and was outside the museum. So I can't even get in the car to go home? And I still don't understand a newer highly modified Chrylser 300 winning a trophy even at a local AACA chapter event last year. Edited May 25, 2015 by LINC400 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
61polara Posted May 25, 2015 Share Posted May 25, 2015 Local AACA Chapters do not have to follow National AACA Classes or Judging rules for a local show. The are mostly able to do as they wish, which is what was done at this show. Since you refused to pay the admission charge and apparently did not ride into the show in the show car, I'm not surprised they did not let you in. Sorry, but that's life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesBulldogMiller55Buick Posted May 26, 2015 Share Posted May 26, 2015 (edited) That's right.It would have cost less to enter a second car and a fourth person. Seems like they were trying to encourage more cars to enter the show Edited May 26, 2015 by JamesBulldogMiller55Buick (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plymouthcranbrook Posted May 26, 2015 Share Posted May 26, 2015 I live not too far from Volo and ask you to remember that they are a for profit business. They sell most of their display cars on commission and to me the prices are extremely high. Cars are very nice but. They also do appraisals and their costs are about twice what an independent would charge. These are not unfriendly people. They have answered questions for me several times about various things without a fee. I feel they are car people but they do place a premium on profits. Several years ago they had two Kruse Auctions per year that I often attended. Of course they did charge admission and it did include free run of the museum area. But after a few years they discontinued this because it was interfering with the operation of the museum/store Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted May 26, 2015 Share Posted May 26, 2015 (edited) First, Volo isn't a museum, it's a car dealership. With that in mind, it shouldn't be a surprise that the cars at their show cover the entire spectrum. Much as I'd love to feature only CCCA Full Classics in my showroom, as a dealer I have to have a bit of everything in stock if I want to capture a larger market and excluding modified cars would empty my showroom. Or perhaps it was put on in conjunction with the AACA local chapter as a fund-rasier. That's what we do locally in our CCCA region, we have a large car show that shares revenues with the venue that hosts it. We get the registration fees, they get the gate. I'm guessing that's how it works and that's why it's priced like it is. Secondly, this wasn't a trick they played on you, the admission fee was published and advertised that way. You were surprised only because you didn't pay attention, not because they did something underhanded. They didn't want you going to your friend's car after you refused to pay admission for obvious reasons, you can't blame them for that. How could they know you were going to get your stuff and leave immediately (would you have?). We do the same thing for the very reason Bulldog mentioned--to get more cars in the gate. Each registered car @ $24 gets two people in the gate, and the club gets to keep that money. Otherwise it's $15/person and the club gets zero. More cars = more money for the club. Finally, the car that won the big prize doesn't seem like everyone's cup of tea, but they probably have some kind of guidelines that determine which car wins and that car won. People's choice, probably, and if there's one thing I've learned, it is that the general public has pretty poor taste in cars. Edited May 26, 2015 by Matt Harwood (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LINC400 Posted May 26, 2015 Author Share Posted May 26, 2015 (edited) Sorry, I guess I am used to car clubs where the same rules apply for all chapters. I belong to a car club that generally has very low attendance based on the types of cars recognized. We could get way more cars to show up if we threw the rules out the window and allowed in cars that go against the club's bylaws. But we don't do that because we think it is more important to remain faithful to the club's purpose than to generate profits. I guess that isn't the case here. Also, I keep hearing all the time on this forum about getting kids and new members involved in the club. Just because I have a second car that I could have brought, does not mean that everyone does, especially kids that cannot drive. Charging way more for additional kids and adults in the car does not seem to be the way to go about doing that. I personally did not receive a flyer about this show to examine, I just heard about it by word of mouth, and my friend invited several other friends to go with as part of a weekend of events. However, I do now see that it says on the flyer that cars must be 25 years or older, and that AACA and Volo has the right to refuse any car that does not meet the collector car requirements. But I guess that can be thrown out the window if you want to maximize profits, and give trophies to blinged out new cars. I see no need to attend this event in the future since it is more about profits than it is about antique cars or being family friendly. I see nothing about anything being donated to charity from this event either. Edited May 26, 2015 by LINC400 (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesBulldogMiller55Buick Posted May 26, 2015 Share Posted May 26, 2015 (edited) "keep hearing all the time on this forum about getting kids and new members involved in the club. Just because I have a second car that I could have brought, does not mean that everyone does, especially kids that cannot drive. Charging way more for additional kids and adults in the car does not seem to be the way to go about doing that"Good point,with which , I agree Edited May 26, 2015 by JamesBulldogMiller55Buick (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AlCapone Posted May 26, 2015 Share Posted May 26, 2015 Even though. I think the prices were rather high, the museum was upfront with their advertising . It was incumbent upon. The poster to read the rules prior to attending as most people would. As far as the winning car goes, that is a very secondary issue. The fault in my opinion rests with the poster for not researching ( reading the show rules ) before he attended. Just my opinion! Wayne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restorer32 Posted May 26, 2015 Share Posted May 26, 2015 Sorry, I guess I am used to car clubs where the same rules apply for all chapters. I belong to a car club that generally has very low attendance based on the types of cars recognized. We could get way more cars to show up if we threw the rules out the window and allowed in cars that go against the club's bylaws. But we don't do that because we think it is more important to remain faithful to the club's purpose than to generate profits. I guess that isn't the case here. Also, I keep hearing all the time on this forum about getting kids and new members involved in the club. Just because I have a second car that I could have brought, does not mean that everyone does, especially kids that cannot drive. Charging way more for additional kids and adults in the car does not seem to be the way to go about doing that. I personally did not receive a flyer about this show to examine, I just heard about it by word of mouth, and my friend invited several other friends to go with as part of a weekend of events. However, I do now see that it says on the flyer that cars must be 25 years or older, and that AACA and Volo has the right to refuse any car that does not meet or car requirements. But I guess that can be thrown out the window if you want to maximize profits, and give trophies to blinged out new cars. I see no need to attend this event in the future since it is more about profits than it is about antique cars or being family friendly. I see nothing about anything being donated to charity from this event either. Have you ever attended an AACA National Meet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry W Posted May 26, 2015 Share Posted May 26, 2015 They call themselves Volo Auto Museum and yet they're not a museum? Sounds pretty deceptive to me! I visited that " museum " on a few occasions and noticed that a lot of the cars were for sale, but assumed that it was because they liked to display fresh material. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LINC400 Posted May 26, 2015 Author Share Posted May 26, 2015 Have you ever attended an AACA National Meet?Yes, I have. My car has won a Historic Preservation award. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LINC400 Posted May 26, 2015 Author Share Posted May 26, 2015 They call themselves Volo Auto Museum and yet they're not a museum? Sounds pretty deceptive to me! I visited that " museum " on a few occasions and noticed that a lot of the cars were for sale, but assumed that it was because they liked to display fresh material.Yes, you basically get to pay to see the cars they have for sale, and they call it a museum. But I was already expecting that. I just went to see the AACA show. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marty Roth Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 Yes, I have. My car has won a Historic Preservation award.Congratulations on your HPOF award Yes, you basically get to pay to see the cars they have for sale, and they call it a museum. But I was already expecting that. I just went to see the AACA show.Regrettably, this local show seems not to have reflected the true nature of a National AACA MEET. While it may have been an enjoyable show, what you got to see was admittedly a local show, co-hosted by a Dealer and an AACA Region. Certainly, any show can be a worthwhile experience, but not necessarily what you were hoping to visit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScarredKnightfan Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 Wondered if anyone from the area had attended this meet ... as I hadn't seen anything posted on these forums about it ... unless I missed it, which is entirely possible. That noted ... seems VAM was more in charge of this than the local chapter, since many types of cars were entered. So, not sure the correlation between that show & the national organization is completely fair ... if that makes sense.... Cort www.oldcarsstronghearts.com1979 & 1989 Caprice Classics | pigValve, paceMaker, cowValve"This can't be the end" __ Bertie Higgins __ 'Key Largo' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ted sweet Posted May 28, 2015 Share Posted May 28, 2015 Saratoga auto museum spring car show does the same, 15 bucks to go in as a spectator. it results in a lot of daily drivers in the show area. and very few spectators 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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