German Air Sucker Society (GASS)

SixVolt · Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 8:12 pm Post subject: German Air Sucker Society (GASS)

Anyone remember them? I use to get their newsletter. It seems the newsletter was put together by hand, one at a time. Kind of cool. I have a couple of old t-shirts they printed up back in the early 1990's. Really cool. They were apparently in Salem, Ohio at one point. Seem they had members all over. This was all before Al Gore invented the internet. Smile

Does anyone have an old membership roster they could post? Any info on the originators? Are they still around? In a new club?

Slowlow · Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 9:13 pm Post subject:

I JUST picked up a bay bus with their sticker in the window!

Laughing

Just thought it was cool... and strange to find this post so soon after I get the bus!
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mandysbus · Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 10:15 pm Post subject:

the originator was troy hetzentrager of ohio.i dont know what happened to the club.i know troy had a kid and was spending alot of time on the newsletters.he also at one time owned the guarrano empi car from new york. it was in the gass newsletter when he found it.

obus · Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2007 3:15 am Post subject:

i was a member towards the end of its run. i think the sticker was on the bus i had when i sold it. i used to like that newsletter!
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rgdedge · Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2007 4:55 am Post subject:

I was a member too. Still have a bunch of the magazines/newsletters. Even have a couple stickers laying around. It was pretty good but kinda like German addiction, it just stopped with no refunds or expanations Mad

.

SixVolt · Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 8:26 pm Post subject:

I would assume "the internet" and the responsibilities of life got in the way. The Samba took off from there! Here is a cool T-Shirt from GASS back in the day... (showing both front and back...)

Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.

Now the real cool back...

Anyone know the quote in German??? (I mean English!)

Anyone have any more info on members, events or more details on the origins of the club?

I love the reference to "magazine" on the front of the shirt! While it ws a great publication, it was hardly a magazine. It was put together by hand in a real cool way and was packed with info. If you come accross an old copy you will see what I mean! Great club!

I hate to see all these great pre-internet clubs pass into history without someone recognizing what they were all about. I hope old members post!

Ozzie · Posted: Fri Apr 20, 2007 10:00 am Post subject:

Depending on exactly how "vereinigt" was meant...
Bound, club, association, bregade, band, combined, ect...
by air.

I've got their sticker on my fridge.
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WM971252 · Posted: Fri Apr 20, 2007 4:47 pm Post subject:

"Anyone know the quote in German??? (I mean English!) "

It means United Trough Air (My wife got it for him)

The EMPI car was made in Boston. I was the one who saved it from a guy who bought it to put in a small block Chevy.

Troy is around and has toyed with starting up GASS again.

SixVolt · Posted: Fri Apr 20, 2007 8:15 pm Post subject:

It would be great if we could get Troy to talk about the origins of GASS and some of the early members. All this history is lost if someone doesn't memorialize it here. The countless vw clubs that existed before the internet, that provided info and solace to so many enthusiasts, deserve some recognition. I would love it if Troy starts Gass up again, even if it is just in some 'modern internet way', it would be great.

Anyway, thanks to thesamba, we get to remember and share a lot of this stuff. Here are some of the old 'newsletters' :

SixVolt · Posted: Fri Apr 20, 2007 8:18 pm Post subject:

By the way, could someone post the story of the empi car, of Troy's acquisition of it, of what happended to it, and how it even was created in the first place? Any photos out there? Appreciate it.

WM971252 · Posted: Sat Apr 21, 2007 8:32 am Post subject:

A brief rundown on Small Wonder.
It was made at the same time as Imp pincher and was actually finished first. They did race together once at Indy. Had a Deno style front end. The tranny was a limited bus with a 2180 (I believe) motor. The car was chopped after about a year. Had one of 3 sets of EMPI doors plus seats, hood, decklid, and more. The whole car was gutted so weighed in around 1,000 lbs. The car was built as a show off of empi stuff for the east coast.

The car was then run privately then was banned due to the roof chop. After that it was brought to eastern CT and the trailer was used by a VW shop ( I own it know) and the engine/ tranny went to a guy (I used to work with) for a street car. The body ended up at a guy who had dreams to put a small block in it. I found it at a all car swap meet and bought it for Troy and loaded it on my trailer which latter I found out was the one made for it.

Troy got the engine/tranny and redid it all and put it back together complete with the orange metal flake paint. It was sold to a guy in Belgium.

As far as why Troy started GASS. He wanted an alternative to magazines that was geared to west coast people.

Herbie3Rivers · Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2009 11:32 pm Post subject:

I can't believe I never saw this post or the fact that I'm bringing a two year old topic back up. I was and still am good friends with Troy, though his last name is Heitzenrater. I was a member of GASS for about 7 years or so before the end. I still have a window sticker in my cars, and a few years ago scored a complete collection of Voice of the Enthusiasts from issue 1 to the last. I loved that magazine and would love to see it come back. I also had the opportunity to buy Small Wonder from Troy and I kick myself on a regular basis for not doing so. SW would have been a killer stable mate for Herbie.
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vwjosh6070 · Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2009 12:37 am Post subject:

the shop i worked at in cartersville georgia had a GASS sticker on the front door window. always wondered about it. id join!!
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SixVolt · Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2009 5:57 am Post subject:

Dave · Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2009 8:22 am Post subject:

The EMPI "Inch Pincher 3" split window race car was built on Boston Post Road, in Long Island, New York, at Competition Car Parts of New York, by Richard Guarino, owner of the place.
The car is now in Japan, as part of the collection Mr. Komori, of Flat-4 owns. Richard, just last summer, was able to fly to Tokyo, and visit his car, the first time he had seen it in a VERY long time.
I am good friends with Richard Guarino, and spoke with him on the telphone just yesterday.
At one time, i had traced the history of the car, from when Richard sold it, and the list of owners included Rich Kimball, PRA racer Kris Klingaman, it went to Florida, and, as I said, it's now in Japan.
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Glenn · Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2009 8:25 am Post subject:

Dave, tell the "Old Phart" I say hello.

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bill may · Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2009 10:01 am Post subject:

i have 3 issues of it. may/june 93,nov/dec 93 and jan/feb 94
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germanvw · Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2009 7:26 pm Post subject: GASS

I was a member of GASS for years and I too enjoyed the GASS magazines. I have good memories of the VW shows back then, especially VW Superjam at Maple Grove and hanging out at Looking Glass Campground before the Litchfield CT VW show, when it was still held at the Litchfield Inn...Good times.

volkswagenut · Posted: Wed Jan 21, 2009 6:31 pm Post subject:

I also remember GASS , and with that said, I also remember SOTO was a member and liked there newletters also. Cool

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Dean1 · Samba Member Joined: March 25, 2004 Posts: 339

Seems to me that Troy had his father do a lot of work on the publication during its hay-day. But, I seem to recall, that his father then got sick, and Troy couldn't spend that much time on it any longer. I also recall Troy was in construction as his real job. Troy did an excellent job on that project and it could have become a serious magazine if things didn't change for the worse. I have a great deal of respect for what he was able to do on a shoe-string budget. His coverage of the northeast, and smaller shops was tops. Great format.


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