In the Frequently Asked Questions section below we answer the full range of "regular to no-holds-barred" questions received through enquiries, and we also try to address what is sometimes left unsaid: "The Frequently Unasked Questions"

This is a great idea where did it come from
It came from logic meeting a changing world. It makes sense so it emerged when its time had come. To a person with an urge to drive a Porsche but who cannot afford one, or who does not wish to make the investment, it works. To a person who has dreamed of owning a Porsche it is a logical first step to acquisition. To a person who drives another make of sportscar this is your chance to try the good stuff, to persons who own one or more Porsches, this is a logical way to have access to many more.

You guys are out in the boonies, why didn't you do this in San Francisco, Miami or NY
If this is the boonies, then pass more boonies. We are located very strategically at a major crossroads in the mountains of Western North Carolina, in the middle of the best driving roads in America, and are less than 2 hours from Charlotte, Asheville, Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Mooresville, Concord, Huntersville, Davidson. North Carolina’s biggest city, Charlotte, is the second largest banking center in the U.S. Two of the country’s biggest banks, Bank of America and Wachovia, are headquartered there. We are less than half an hour from Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, Beech Mountain, Sugar Mountain, Linville, and Boone. It is arguably one of the finest regions of America by all yardsticks that matter and perhaps today one of the wealthiest. The good news is that the area is probably almost as sophisticated and diverse as any major urban hub, minus the bad news. If you are unfamiliar with the area, come give it a spin. You will find on this site a wealth of information on the area and we invite you to explore at length.

If I can afford the 2,900 initiation fee, and 5,900 membership fee, I can afford to buy my own Porsche.
Perhaps you can, and by all means do. We prefer our members own a Porsche if possible. Our logic answers another need. Would you like instead of one Porsche to have one of each? Can you afford 10 Porsches? Even if you could, what useful purpose can be derived by one person owning a considerable number of vehicles which spend most of their time parked in a garage depreciating and costing considerable sums to maintain. While we can understand the logic of collecting classic cars as investments, purchasing a number of new or late model vehicles for immediate use can be considered inefficient and wasteful when other alternatives are available. All things considered, when one thinks that our Boxster S alone cost over 80,000, meaning it will depreciate at least 8,000 as it leaves the showroom, that a set of tires and minimal cleaning and maintenance costs 1,000 a year, that insurance is likely even for an excellent driver to be over 1,000 a year, it means in dollars and cents that one Boxster S will cost you over 10,000 for that year. When you consider that for 3,900 a year you can drive our Boxster S, Our Cayman S, and our Cayenne S for most likely the same time you would be driving the Boxster you own then you have a rational basis for making a choice. When you consider that for 5,900 a year, you can use the 3 cars above, plus a 911 Carrera 4, a 911 Turbo S, a 911 Turbo 993, and a Cayenne Turbo S, then the advantages and benefits of this model become even more evident. When you further consider that it is much less wasteful of all types of resources, and is a more efficient model, then it makes even more sense still.

It's too expensive
What we propose is truly a bargain in relation to what we provide and our model probably the most financially efficient in the industry in terms of costs to members compared to operational cost and overhead. In other words, we are mighty reasonably priced. In fact it probably ends up being about 70% less expensive than trying to rent these types of vehicle for the same amount of time and mileage, if you can find them.

Why are you offering so many types of discounts
It is a club and we seek a membership profile in which the more experienced members support the less experienced members. We are seeking a specific clientele mix of people who understand and appreciate Porsche at its just value, who are in the Motorsports industry, and who know how to drive at high levels of safety and competence. These categories benefit from discounts so that we make our proposition even more attractive to those categories of clients. This includes:

Members Of The North Carolina Motorsports Association (NCMA), Members Having Received Advanced Driver's Education Training, Members having taken the specialized Porsche performance or safety driving skills courses, Members having taken those courses after becoming members, Members having taken the specialized high-performance or safety driving skills courses at other high-performance driving schools, Members Of The Porsche Club Of America Located In North Carolina, Porsche Dealers In North Carolina, Porsche Owners, Porsche Classic Owners, Members Of The Porsche Club Of America Not Located In North Carolina, International & US Porsche Dealers Not Located In North Carolina, Staff And Employees Of Panorama And Excellence Magazines, Porsche Related Enterprises, Members Of Other Automobile Sharing-Clubs And Tracks.

What those categories of members bring in value benefits all members, more especially those not as experienced, and as such the more experienced members are rewarded in kind though lower rates. It seems fair.

Why are you so inexpensive compared to the other clubs?
We do expect to be among the most reasonably priced clubs in the long-term because of the following reasons

a) Our financial model is highly efficient,
b) We pay for all the vehicles up front and have no interest charges and/or financial stress
c) We have almost no overhead, you are paying for the car not for the infrastructure
d) We are using cars that while expensive to acquire are highly durable, reliable and robust. Their quality makes them inexpensive in the long-term, and our approach is long-term.
e) We may be 15-20% under-priced at this stage, because small is beautiful. As we grow prices may increase a bit but not much.

How do I know this is not a situation where the Club uses member funds to buy the vehicles and if insufficient members sign up you simply fail to deliver.
All the cars in question are already at Club Ferdinand, come see them and inspect the title and receipts.

No offense but what happens if your cars get repossessed and I am left holding the bag. In this case a membership card but no keys.
As stated above all vehicles were purchased outright so fully paid and the Club's operating expenses are insignificant relative to the cost of the vehicles. While it is possible that the burger place goes belly up between the time you place your order at the take-out window and obtain delivery, because the electricity to run the intercom used up all their funds, the likelihood of that occurring is reasonably slim.

Who needs to drive a Porsche.
While it is true no one needs to own or drive a Porsche, they sure are nice to own and drive, if you can afford it and are so inclined. That argument that no one needs a Porsche taken to its logical conclusion, could also mean there is no need to do anything but drink water, sleep in a hut, and walk barefooted in the grass picking berries. If you enjoy excellence, things well-made, craftsmanship, attention to detail, marvel at truly innovative engineering, and want to drive the finest car there is, in some of the finest countryside in the US, when all things are considered, then while you may not need to drive a Porsche, if you do, you will probably not regret it, nor have wasted your money or your time using this approach. Some people appreciate fine machinery, craftsmanship, tradition and heritage, others are happy with plastic. And that is perfectly normal and fine. Our Club is designed to serve those who do care.

Those cars are loaded guns, you are going to get someone killed
In our opinion if anything we will help keep people safer, help them become better drivers, if possible help them discover greater respect for others sharing the road. Keep in mind

a) We provide serious orientation
b) these cars are small and no one driving them wants to find himself buried under one of the huge SUVs, Trucks and Pick-Ups common to American Roads.
c) One could argue that the driver of a sports-car is more awake and alert because the car, the road, and the interplay of those two elements solicits and require his or her undivided attention. If nothing else the pleasure of driving and the modest size among gargantuan vehicles is highly likely to produce the opposite effect than what you imagine above.
d) If what you seek is conformity, so that all the loaded cannons on American Highways are of the same weight and caliber, then lets just say some may prefer to get out of the way rather than to shoot back a 3 ton cannonball in self defense.

What happens if I have a terrible accident
While we cannot discriminate other than by driving history and records, as you can see from the special allowances and discounts available in our pricing schedule we encourage active safety by creating privileges and benefits for persons regarded as having excellent driving skills and those willing to undergo advanced driver education. The question above is a question no one can answer but the law and as relates to specific incidents with a specific history, context, timeline, and profile. We provide insurance as secondary coverage, your regular insurance is primary. While providing several levels and layers of coverage compared to the customary level you may currently have; this does not mitigate the fact that if you act irresponsibly and create through said irresponsibility significant liability you may find yourself responsible for significant damages. This being said, there is no particular reason to believe that by becoming a member, and by driving a high-performance car, that you are more at risk than you would ordinarily be. The opposite may be true:

a) If you are a member of Club Ferdinand your driving history and record has been scrupulously evaluated, as has your personal history because you provided two solid references who have responded to our enquiries and affirmed they believe you a responsible adult fully cognizant of your responsibilities towards your fellow drivers, pedestrians, the general public, and property. When compared to the auto-rental industry where the only thing you need provide is a license, we believe ours is a significantly more socially responsible model.
b) People often drive cars which are not their property much more carefully than they drive their own.
c) Our cars corner, brake, accelerate, and get out of harms way in truly superior and exemplary fashion. They are icons of active safety, and with the racing history of Porsche comes many innovations in safety not found in cars less tested in grueling adversity under severe stress and pressure in a wide variety of contexts and road conditions.
d) As a rule our cars are smaller in size and weight and likely to do much less damage than SUVs, compacts, full sized cars, pick-up trucks, vans and trucks. Even the Cayenne SUVs are modest in size compared to other SUVs.
e) Persons who drive sports-cars regularly often possess superior driving skills because the cars are more connected to the road, the feedback more immediate, and the driver more generally in synch with the vehicle, the environment and immediate context.
f) Statistics show that many accidents occur because of excessive drinking and speeding so the more you refrain from excess the less your chances of getting yourself and others into trouble. Our own rules, regulations and policies on that score are based on zero-tolerance levels.

I dislike them uppity Germans and German cars, who the heck do they think they are
Well, what can we say other than the fact that:

a) they are real and normal people just like you and me
b) Stereotypes are just that and generally people benefit greatly by looking beyond the surface, getting better informed, and by looking more objectively and deeply into things
c) that some people are afraid of excellence in themselves or others and prefer not to look.
c) Jealousy is a real, legitimate and understandable emotion, but should not induce an aspiration towards lowest common denominators. Let us instead praise a bit those who go the extra mile to do things right.

Your cars are too ordinary, I want more exotic cars, gimme some spice
I see you have yet to drive or look closely at the Carrera GT, 911 GT3, 911 Turbo S, Cayenne Turbo S, Cayman S or Boxster S. Critics agree that other than perhaps in appearance where in some cases the competition looks meaner or sexier they are the finest in their class bar none. Porsches are about substance and effectively if the lines are more subdued than some of its more exotic brethren, you need have no concern about performance. Be that as it may there are a considerable number of exotic car clubs featuring other manufacturers and each has their place and value. But we believe, trust and have faith in Porsche as being the best touring GTs for the High-Country of Western North Carolina and any other mountains we have driven. It is by design not by accident that Porsche consistently wins mountain climbs, rallies, and endurance races. We also believe the Carrera GT compares very favorably in the good looks department with the Enzo. You are right though, red beats silver in the Mama Mia department. That's OK. While we like to look at those sexy Italian ladies, we prefer not to touch, having once been burned mercilessly reaching into the engine compartment, in our finest linen suit, in stalled traffic, to re-attach hoses :-)
While we do not yet have a Carrera GT, GT2 or GT3, all the others are here, and we will resist the urge to acquire those 3 models until our members request them and we have verified they can handle them.

OK, I would love too join, but rather than find more excuses let me admit I simply can't afford it
That is a question only you can answer but we encourage you to work harder, make more money, save more, because with all you have to manage in your life, if you can afford it, driving these cars through the mountains of North Carolina is not too bad a response for your longing for a bit of freedom from time to time.


“Club Ferdinand in Valle Crucis, North Carolina,
is the first “Fleet-Sharing Club” in the World composed exclusively
of the legendary Porsche Automobiles.
Three surprisingly affordable membership options
enable Members to benefit from the use of the club’s
“Luxury Sports Car Fleet” of new Porsches,
using a reservation and points system which assures equitable-share
usage of the fleet by all club members.
Explore North Carolina behind the wheel of your collection
of new Porsches and discover a whole new level of freedom.”


ClubFerdinand
1644 Broadstone Road
Historic Valle Crucis
Banner Elk, North Carolina 28604
Telephone: 828-963-5857, 828-963-2626
Fax: 828-963-6404, 626-608-3594
Toll Free: 1-888-963-5857
www.clubferdinand.us
info@clubferdinand.us

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