Topic

Just noticed, nice helmet Leigh.

John Newey wrote: wrote:

Well, we're upto 550 entries so far and in answer to previous questions, we need 850 entries to complete the draw.

We've just launched a new website www.summitgarage.co.uk and recently started on Facebook and Twitter.

I'd like to thank everyone who has already entered the competition and to ask those who have not yet got round to it yet...get on the phone, 01384 259555 (option 4), email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or by post to Summit Garage (Dudley) Ltd, 413-415, Himley Road, Lower Gornal, Dudley, DY3 2RA.

I've donated £1000 to Macmillan Cancer Support as part of the proceeds and you are all welcome to have as many entries as you like. Cheers John Newey

John posted this less than 3 hours ago. It answer a lot of the questions asked here and elsewhere. Hopefully, he'll keep us updated with any significant changes. Maybe facebook and twitter will make the difference required. Good luck.

Clearly then, any less than 850 tickets sold and the draw cannot / will not occur.

The words 'caveat' and 'emptor' immediately spring to mind.

bryan young wrote: wrote:

John, you can make your comments, we wont hold them against you.

Ok, its difficult to be frank: having the 'skill' question takes it out of the game of chance/raffle realm and makes it a competion. Which should really have a fixed win date. There is around ten grand of other peoples money sloshing about somewhere, hopefully safe? Invested? Interest? As a fund raiser myself for cancer research and associated charities I applaud the donation, but has this come from ticket sales to date?
The honourable solution in my opinion? Suck up the loss and hold the draw as soon as possible.

Absolutely agree John and phrased more eloquently than I ever could.

Ta. An announcement of an imminent draw date may even prompt a last minute surge in sales.

I would suspect the donation to Cancer Support would be tax deductible, so that can benefit the business. Maybe the tickets will be sold in enough time to make it importable to Canada under our 15 year old rule!!

Some very valid points being made regarding the uncertainty surrounding this event.

However, I would just like to point out one or two things.

John Newey is a true MG enthusiast, owning an MG SV-R, MG ZT 400SE, MGR V8, MGF 1.8i and MG6 GT 1.8T TSE. He has displayed cars at MG events and won prizes with some of those MG's. He has been involved with MG for over 28 years and is an extremely knowledgeable man regarding most aspects of MG history and cars.

The car at the centre of this draw is not just a limited edition car, it is a historically interesting car being the first car off the production line when MG production restarted in this country after the collapse of MG Rover. It is No. 1 of 500 bearing the VIN ending 0251, an MG tradition of using the telephone number of MG on the first car of a model. This car will be a good investment for the future for the person who is lucky enough to win it.

I personally believe that John Newey, along with many, many other people, believed that selling 850 tickets at £20 for such a good prize with 'fixed' odds would not have been a problem. The draw, with some co-operation from the MGCC, was originally envisaged to take place at MG Live this year. It was always stated that the draw would take place after the 850 tickets had been sold.

Sheefag wrote: wrote:

...The raffle was originally to be held in June and was then inexplicably changed to a date in the future that even the organiser can't accurately predict.

So it is unfair to say the date of the draw was 'inexplicably changed'. At MG Live John Newey also made the donation of £1000 to Macmillan Cancer Support he had promised as a part of this draw.

When he was unable to sell all the allotted tickets at MG Live and had to postpone the draw, John offered anyone who wanted a refund of their £20 an immediate refund. He has since attended various MG events in an attempt to sell the remaining tickets and I'm quite sure no one would like this draw to go ahead more eagerly than John Newey.

He does however have every right to try and make some money on this event and should not have to 'give away' at a loss this car.

Quite frankly if someone didn't buy a ticket, why are they having a go at John and if they did buy a ticket but now feel they don't want to wait, he has offered a full refund.

This whole episode has undoubtedly already cost him a great deal of time, effort, money and quite a bit of adverse publicity, especially over on .org. I have been extremely dismayed at some of the ridiculous comments and insinuations made against John Newey. This was not some big money making exercise by a large faceless multinational, this was one MG enthusiasts attempt to make a bit of money and advertise his family run business to the 'friendly' MG community.

I sincerely hope that people see this event for what it was intended and that the remaining tickets are sold quickly and that this event goes ahead as soon as possible.

PQD44 wrote: wrote:

Some very valid points being made regarding the uncertainty surrounding this event.

However, I would just like to point out one or two things.

John Newey is a true MG enthusiast, owning an MG SV-R, MG ZT 400SE, MGR V8, MGF 1.8i and MG6 GT 1.8T TSE. He has displayed cars at MG events and won prizes with some of those MG's. He has been involved with MG for over 28 years and is an extremely knowledgeable man regarding most aspects of MG history and cars.

The car at the centre of this draw is not just a limited edition car, it is a historically interesting car being the first car off the production line when MG production restarted in this country after the collapse of MG Rover. It is No. 1 of 500 bearing the VIN ending 0251, an MG tradition of using the telephone number of MG on the first car of a model. This car will be a good investment for the future for the person who is lucky enough to win it.

I personally believe that John Newey, along with many, many other people, believed that selling 850 tickets at £20 for such a good prize with 'fixed' odds would not have been a problem. The draw, with some co-operation from the MGCC, was originally envisaged to take place at MG Live this year. It was always stated that the draw would take place after the 850 tickets had been sold.

Sheefag wrote: wrote:

...The raffle was originally to be held in June and was then inexplicably changed to a date in the future that even the organiser can't accurately predict.

So it is unfair to say the date of the draw was 'inexplicably changed'. At MG Live John Newey also made the donation of £1000 to Macmillan Cancer Support he had promised as a part of this draw.

When he was unable to sell all the allotted tickets at MG Live and had to postpone the draw, John offered anyone who wanted a refund of their £20 an immediate refund. He has since attended various MG events in an attempt to sell the remaining tickets and I'm quite sure no one would like this draw to go ahead more eagerly than John Newey.

He does however have every right to try and make some money on this event and should not have to 'give away' at a loss this car.

Quite frankly if someone didn't buy a ticket, why are they having a go at John and if they did buy a ticket but now feel they don't want to wait, he has offered a full refund.

This whole episode has undoubtedly already cost him a great deal of time, effort, money and quite a bit of adverse publicity, especially over on .org. I have been extremely dismayed at some of the ridiculous comments and insinuations made against John Newey. This was not some big money making exercise by a large faceless multinational, this was one MG enthusiasts attempt to make a bit of money and advertise his family run business to the 'friendly' MG community.

I sincerely hope that people see this event for what it was intended and that the remaining tickets are sold quickly and that this event goes ahead as soon as possible.

This is all fine, but John did specify a draw date of 24th of June, he said the draw was limited to the first 850 entries he did not say that the draw would not be made until all 850 tickets where sold. I spoke to him at MGlive on the Saturday and he said at the time that he had sold just over 500 tickets, we are are now in December and he has only sold 550 tickets. if sales continue at this rate then it will be another 3 years before the draw is made. I suspect with all of this adverse publicity, sales will slow down even further and he will never sell all of the tickets.

I would agree that in years to come this car will prove to be a good investment, but with Fs selling for £350 on eBay that day is a long way off, in fact we are celebrating 50 years of the MGB this year and it has only been a few years since these started to fetch good money. I'm 48 at the moment I will probably be 70, 80 or even 90 before these cars become collectable. John initially tried selling this car for £25,000, this is the original advert, from May 2011.


New Unregistered MG TF LE 500 2dr Convertible....NUMBER 1 of 500 !!!

Registration Year: 2011
Registration Number: 11 PLATE
Colour: Vibrant Orange
Transmission: Manual
Fuel: Petrol
Mileage: Del Miles

Air conditioning, Alloy wheels, Alarm, Immobiliser, Passenger airbag, Radio/CD, Front armrest, Sports seats, Full size spare wheel, Service indicator, Leather seat trim, Heated door mirrors, Metallic Paint, Reverse parking aid, Front head restraints, Steering wheel rake adjustment, Remote central locking, Front electric windows, Electric door mirrors, Drivers airbag, Body coloured bumpers

THIS VERY SPECIAL AND UNIQUE MG IS LIKELY TO BE THE MOST SORT AFTER CLASSIC OF THE FUTURE.

THIS IS THE FIRST NEW PRODUCTION MG TF LE 500 BUILT AT MG BIRMINGHAM...........

IT CARRIES THE USUAL MG FIRST CHASSIS NUMBER 000251 WHICH IS A MG TRADITION DATING BACK TO THE 1920'S

THIS CAR BEARS THE PLAGUE INBETWEEN THE FRONT SEATS WITH THE NUMBER 1 OF 500

THIS CAR IS AVAILBALE TO THE HIGHEST BID OVER 25K


So far as John Newey is concerned the car has devalued by £8000 between May 2011 and January 2012. I don't think anyone is interested in the investment side of this, it is mealy the kudos of owning the first off the line.

I seriously think that the longer this goes on the more damage he is doing to his reputation which took him 28 years to build up but only a few months to ruin.

He needs to cut his losses and do the Draw.

I remember the excitement, which quickly turned to frustration when the draw was not made at Silverstone ..

Quite a few people had gone to the event purely for the draw..

My reason for not buying a ticket is simple, I do not feel comfortable with the 850 tickets needing to be sold ..

However if he did announce a Definite draw date, I would, and I think there are a few people who feel the same ..

Andy, John and Shefag have made some very good points, Paul it is admirable that you continue to defend John Newey, but the truth of the matter is that this has caused bad feeling and he needs to sort it out as soon as possible for damage limitation purposes if nothing else ..

Paul, I too think it's admirable that you continue to defend John and not for a moment do I believe he is anything but an honest man and a true enthusiast.
However, whilst the donation to Macmillan was a laudable act of philanthropy, the LE500 isn't, it's simply a car for sale by other means.

The goalposts for those means have been shifted without all of the players being notified, essentially, if you weren't at Silverstone then you probably wouldn't have realised that it had changed from a raffle with a fixed end date to a competition with no defined end date, in short, it sows confusion and uncertainty.

The whole thing has been ultimately mired in controversy when .Cult, who were happy to advertise this event when John was paying them good money to do so, deleted the thread thus showing that their loyalty was to the forum and not the members - this has always been common policy and ignores the fact that the members are the forum.

So, instead of telling the posters to shut up and go away when the posters voiced concern, clearly they should have extended an open invititation to John, asking him to pop in to clear things up, they happily took his money and promoted this raffle / competition after all, to now claim no involvement is disingenuous to say the very least.

I run a small business and John has my sympathy but sometimes you just have to take a hit when a deal doesn't quite work out as planned.

This car is bad PR now, an Albatross, I'd cut my losses and move it on.

I think that if he had an e-method of buying a ticket, that he would have sold all the tickets by now. It can't be that hard to set up a paypal payment option.

I can't be the only one who would buy a ticket by that method but don't want the fuss of actually phoning someone and passing over CC details.