Special Vehicle Team Owners Association (SVTOA)
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[edit] History
The Special Vehicle Team Owners Association (SVTOA) was established in 2000. SVTOA was launched as a marketing intiative by the Ford Motor Company's Special Vehicle Team (SVT) in response to owners of SVT products who wanted to enhance the experiences in owning an SVT product and driving their vehicles in the manner that they were meant to be driven. With the support of the Ford Motor Company, various Ford SVT dealerships and volunteers who own SVT vehicles, SVTOA came to life.
When SVTOA was created, membership was limited to individuals who owned and/or leased an SVT vehicle. At this time, eligible SVT vehicles included the Ford Mustang Cobra, the Ford F-150 Lighting pickup truck, and the Ford SVT Contour.
In late 2002, membership was opened up to owners of Ford-branded vehicles, in addition to those who owned an SVT vehicle noted above and the Ford SVT Focus.
In 2003, all new vehicle owners and lesses of SVT vehicles were given a complimentary membership to SVTOA National. Membership was still open to owners of Ford-branded vehicles.
In 2004, membership was opened up further to anyone owning a Ford family vehicle (this included any owners of vehicles manufactured by companies owned by Ford: Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, Jaguar, Volvo, Aston Martin, Land Rover, and Mazda).
On December 28, 2006, membership was opened up to any enthusiast of SVT and Ford performance vehicle. Any individual may be part of SVTOA, regardless if they own a Ford family vehicle.
From its creation to 2006, SVTOA was controlled by the Ford Motor Company via various marketing organizations. Hence, it was the only club to be officially recognized as sponsored by the Ford Motor Company. In 2007, the rights and operations of the SVTOA program were transferred to the Specialty Performance Vehicle Clubs, LLC.
[edit] Mission Statement
When SVTOA was created, the mission statement was to "Drive Safe and Have Fun". There are three central ideas that are key:
- Providing fun opportunities to get out and drive (road trips, cruise nights, track days, etc.) with other SVT and Ford Performance enthusiasts
- Promoting learning and education about automobiles and good driving
- Making new friends and sharing common experiences with other like-minded people
In 2007, the mission statement was revised to encompass the current status of the organization:
"The new and improved SVTOA is an independent club dedicated to the enjoyment, care and history of all SVT vehicles produced by Ford Motor Company."
[edit] Organizational Structure
SVTOA operates on a national, regional, and local chapter basis.
[edit] National Level
SVTOA National oversees all the regions and chapters of the organization. SVTOA National also liased with the Ford Motor Company.
From 2001 to 2005, marketing firms were contracted to oversee the operations of SVTOA. From 2001 to 2002, Campbell & Company was the firm contracted to oversee SVTOA.
From 2003 to 2005, operations were transferred to Affinity Development Group in San Diego, California.
In 2006, operations were transferred back to Campbell & Company. Shortly thereafter, the SVT division at the Ford Motor Company assumed operations of SVTOA. At this time, it was the intent to amalgamate SVTOA with Team Ford Racing.
For 2007 and beyond, SVTOA National was assumed by Specialty Performance Vehicle Clubs, LLC. The Specialty Performance Vehicle Clubs LLC also oversees the Shelby American Automobile Club (SAAC, co-founded by Ken Eber and Rick Kopec. Working together with the Regional Directors of each region and Chapter Directors, efforts continue in maintaining the same name, goals and organizational structure that the Ford Motor Company originally intended.
[edit] Regional Level and Chapter Level
The Chapter Level was created to deliver the aims of the SVTOA program directly to SVT owners and enthusiasts on a local level. The goal was to create enthusiasm about the SVT lineup and ownership experience on the grassroots level, as well as interact with fellow owners that are nearby.
The Regional level was introduced in 2004 to assist chapters in communicating with the National level. There are currently seven (7) regions representing the United States, and one (1) region representing Canada.
[edit] Central
The Central Region covers two (2) chapters in the following cities/states:
- Oklahoma - South Texas
[edit] Eastern
The Eastern Region covers four (4) chapters in the following cities/states:
- Boston (Magnolia, MA) - Capital Area (Frederick, MD) - Deleware Valley (Atco, NJ) - Pittsburg (Pittsburgh, PA)
[edit] Great Lakes
The Great Lakes covers eleven (11) chapters in the following cities/states:
- Gateway (IL) (Troy, IL) - Gateway (MO) (MO) - Heart of Illinois (Edwards, IL) - Indy (Fishers, IN) - North Coast (Stow, OH) - Northwest Indiana (Merriville, IN) - Northern Indiana (Woodburn, IN) - Southeast Michigan (Saline, MI) - Twin Cities (Blaine, MN) - Windy City (Wheaton, IL) - Wisconsin (Delafield, WI)
[edit] Great Plains
The Great Plains Region covers one (1) chapter in the following city/state:
- Colorado Chapter (Boulder, CO)
[edit] Southeast
The Southeast Region covers three (3) chapters in the following cities/states:
- Memphis - Nashville (Hermitage, TN) - South Carolina
[edit] Southern
The Southern Region covers six (6) chapters in the following cities/states:
- Atlanta - Central Florida - New Orleans - South Florida - Tampa Bay - Treasure Coast
[edit] Western
The Central Region covers six (6) chapters in the following cities/states:
- Arizona - Norcal (San Jose, CA) - San Diego - Seattle - SoCal - Tri-Cities (Washington) (Irrigon, OR)
[edit] Canada
The Canada region covers all SVTOA chapters resident in Canada.
The SVTOA-Toronto chapter was established in 2001 by Alessandro Cefis, shortly after the formation of SVTOA National. It became the first international chapter of SVTOA. Cefis served as the Chapter Director from 2001 to 2003. In 2004, Laura Querin became the Chapter Director.
Chapters were then established for Eastern Ontario, Alberta and Vancouver.
[edit] Activities
SVTOA activities allowed individuals to have fun with their vehicles while being able to network with their members. Activities include traditional "car club" events, such as cruise-ins, car shows, and cruises.
SVTOA gave owners the experience the capabilities of their vehicles. Through On Track driving school events, participants are able to use their own vehicles and experience the performance and handling aspects of their vehicles with the assistance of trained instructors. In addition, representatives from Ford and its SVT division were on hand to interact with their customers. In many instances, a transport trailer was on site showcasing concepts and upcoming SVT vehicles that were also demonstrated at the events.
In 2003, SVTOA held an event called the "SVT Experience" at the Ford Motor Company world headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan, USA. This event coincided with the Ford 100 events celebrating the centennial anniversary of the Ford Motor Company. The SVT Experience included driving school events at various road courses in Michigan, on-site parking at the Ford 100 grounds, an exclusive drive-in theatre engagement at the Ford Drive Inn, and tours of SVT Headquarters and the Roush Museum.
Many of the tradtional "car club" events have also been supplemented by charity events and social outings, to better allow members and their families and friends to interact and show a human side to the organization.
For 2007, SVTOA's rebirth is being celebrated by a National SVTOA event held in conjunction the SAAC. The SVT Experience 3 will be between July 6 to 9, 2007, and will take place at the Miller Motorsport Park in Tooele, Utah, USA, just 30 minutes from Salt Lake City.
