Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

[Pat F.]

At Carlisle this year I took out a yearly subscription to the Corvette Enthusiast Magazine, only to find out a couple of days later the Magazine folded. I find that very strange that they were willing to take new subscriptions and then fold.
I contacted Corvette Enthusiast and requested a refund as I do not want any other magazine. I was told that there is a no refund policy. I then told them that I had not even received one magazine.
This is there response, you make your own conclusion:


I am getting back to you in regards to your request below.

I understand your frustration; however, all subscriptions are
non-refundable.
At this time, you are scheduled to receive 15 issues of Auto Enthusiast
(subscription is $19.99 for 12 issues -- you paid $25) beginning with the
very first issue mailing October 29th. You may want to see an actual issue
before making any further decisions; however, you do have the option of
transferring the subscription to any of our other publications or to another
person.

As I had stated in our initial phone conversation, the "new" magazine will
be 200+ pages and is essentially a magazine within a magazine.
Everything that is in Corvette Enthusiast will be included in the
Corvette/Chevy section of Auto Enthusiast --- feature car articles plus more
tech articles.

If I may be of further assistance, please feel free to contact me. My
office hours are Monday through Friday, 8am-5pm EST.

Patty Wheeler
Amos Hobby Publishing
Customer Service Representative
PH: 1-800-572-6885
Email: pwheeler@amospress.com

[Dick W.]

Re: Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

Did you pay with credit card, if so contest the charge.

[Michael G.]

Re: Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

My subscription ran out last month. With my final issue, there was the form to renew subscription to "Corvette" enthusiast magazine. No mention of the new replacement magazine. It just doesn't seem ethical. Fortunately, I had read the artical in previous issue and was aware of the change. New subscribers should be made aware of what they are purchasing.

[Tom H.]

Re: Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

I will say this. I know Mark from Amos Press personally. He was in Carlisle as the new ad director. When he sold you the subscription, he had no idea the hammer was about to fall.

Kind of a bad deal. I think a refund should be in order for people who subsribed before receiving the first issue though.

The people at CE were a good bunch. Hate to see the mag and the people go away.

[John H.]

Re: Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

I will say this. I know Mark from Amos Press personally. He was in Carlisle as the new ad director. When he sold you the subscription, he had no idea the hammer was about to fall.

The people at CE were a good bunch. Hate to see the mag and the people go away.

Tom -

That's correct - nobody on the CE staff knew anything about the change at Carlisle; it came down from the parent company (Amos Publishing) the end of the following week.

Mark is still there in his previous position, and Andy Bolig, who was the CE Editor, is the only Editor of the six automotive magazines who survived - he's the Technical Editor of the new magazine. Great guy.

[Joe L.]

Re: Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

At Carlisle this year I took out a yearly subscription to the Corvette Enthusiast Magazine, only to find out a couple of days later the Magazine folded. I find that very strange that they were willing to take new subscriptions and then fold.
I contacted Corvette Enthusiast and requested a refund as I do not want any other magazine. I was told that there is a no refund policy. I then told them that I had not even received one magazine.
This is there response, you make your own conclusion:


I am getting back to you in regards to your request below.

I understand your frustration; however, all subscriptions are
non-refundable.
At this time, you are scheduled to receive 15 issues of Auto Enthusiast
(subscription is $19.99 for 12 issues -- you paid $25) beginning with the
very first issue mailing October 29th. You may want to see an actual issue
before making any further decisions; however, you do have the option of
transferring the subscription to any of our other publications or to another
person.

As I had stated in our initial phone conversation, the "new" magazine will
be 200+ pages and is essentially a magazine within a magazine.
Everything that is in Corvette Enthusiast will be included in the
Corvette/Chevy section of Auto Enthusiast --- feature car articles plus more
tech articles.

If I may be of further assistance, please feel free to contact me. My
office hours are Monday through Friday, 8am-5pm EST.

Patty Wheeler
Amos Hobby Publishing
Customer Service Representative
PH: 1-800-572-6885
Email: pwheeler@amospress.com

Charlie------


This is very typical in the automotive magazine publishing business----when one magazine is "merged" into another any subscriptions existing in the defunct title are transferred to the surviving title. I had it first happen about 40 years ago when Car Life magazine was "merged" into another magazine and, subsequently, that magazine was "merged" into Motor Trend. That's how I became a Motor Trend subscriber and I still am today.

Most recently, my Corvette Fever subscription, which I had just renewed, was "merged" into Vette Magazine, which I had just dropped after being a subscriber for about 25 years. So, now I have a subscription again to a magazine that I had just made a conscious decision to drop!

I look at it this way: for the price of the subscription I'll let it run and it will give me a chance to evaluate the new magazine, just as I first did years ago when Car Life ended. Who knows, I might like the new magazine? If not, at the end of the year, or so, I can drop it. You can bet that the publisher of the new magazine knows that, too. They know that they might have you as a "captive audience" for a year and they better show you and the other "captives" a product that you consider worthwhile during that limited period, especially knowing the "bad taste" that might be left in your mouth after having been "forced" to subscribe. If not, they know they'll experience a "precipitous" drop in circulation when that year, or so, is up.

[Clem Z.]

Re: Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

patty wheeler was with NASCAR and ran the TV end for a while if i remember correctly. i wonder if she is related to the wheeler who used to manage charlotte motor speedway ???

[John H.]

Re: Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

This is very typical in the automotive magazine publishing business----when one magazine is "merged" into another any subscriptions existing in the defunct title are transferred to the surviving title.

Joe -

Here's the story behind the CE "merger" (along with all their other automotive titles) into "Auto Enthusiast" magazine.

Amos Publishing has LOTS of magazines besides automotive. Last year they "merged" their separate titles that dealt with craft/hobbies like stamp collecting, coin collecting, fabric/stitching crafts, etc. into one new, much larger combined magazine, and the new magazine got higher circulation (subscriber and newsstand) than the sum of the previous individual magazines. It also costs a LOT less to produce/mail/distribute than all the previous separate titles.

They have now done exactly the same thing with all of their automotive titles, with the same expectations in terms of circulation for the new, much larger magazine.

Personally, I don't think it's going to work for them the same way. Although the new magazine will be larger, both in terms of physical size and page count, I don't see Mopar, Chevrolet, Camaro, Corvette, Mustang, Pontiac and the other enthusiasts caring one whit about all the "other" guy's cars and paying for a subscription to a magazine where only 10% of its content is about the car they care about. Corvette guys generally could care less about any other marque, unless they own one.

I think the new "Auto Enthusiast" magazine will get "lost" in the sea of automotive titles on the newsstands, and the only benefactor of the change will be the new "Vette" magazine, which will be just about the only Corvette-only magazine left.

I could be wrong, but that's my take on it.

[Tom H.]

Re: Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

Joe -

Here's the story behind the CE "merger" (along with all their other automotive titles) into "Auto Enthusiast" magazine.

Amos Publishing has LOTS of magazines besides automotive. Last year they "merged" their separate titles that dealt with craft/hobbies like stamp collecting, coin collecting, fabric/stitching crafts, etc. into one new, much larger combined magazine, and the new magazine got higher circulation (subscriber and newsstand) than the sum of the previous individual magazines. It also costs a LOT less to produce/mail/distribute than all the previous separate titles.

They have now done exactly the same thing with all of their automotive titles, with the same expectations in terms of circulation for the new, much larger magazine.

Personally, I don't think it's going to work for them the same way. Although the new magazine will be larger, both in terms of physical size and page count, I don't see Mopar, Chevrolet, Camaro, Corvette, Mustang, Pontiac and the other enthusiasts caring one whit about all the "other" guy's cars and paying for a subscription to a magazine where only 10% of its content is about the car they care about. Corvette guys generally could care less about any other marque, unless they own one.

I think the new "Auto Enthusiast" magazine will get "lost" in the sea of automotive titles on the newsstands, and the only benefactor of the change will be the new "Vette" magazine, which will be just about the only Corvette-only magazine left.

I could be wrong, but that's my take on it.

I have to agree. I wasn't real excited about the change. I did continue my monthly ad in the new mag to try and keep it alive. Best of luck to all who work for them. You still gonna do some tech stuff for them, John ??

I know my good friend Bob Stevens lost his job there during all of this. One of my favorite writers.

[Joe L.]

Re: Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

I have to agree. I wasn't real excited about the change. I did continue my monthly ad in the new mag to try and keep it alive. Best of luck to all who work for them. You still gonna do some tech stuff for them, John ??

I know my good friend Bob Stevens lost his job there during all of this. One of my favorite writers.

Tom and John-----



Like I say, it will "sink or swim" on its merits. For a year, or so, they will have a large "captive audience" from the carry-over subscribers of the other magazines. However, if those other subscribers become disenchanted because of minimal coverage for the marque of their interest, which I agree is a likely outcome, then their circulation is going to plummet. In this case, trying to be "all things to all people" might very well end up being "nothing to nobody".

[John H.]

Re: Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

You still gonna do some tech stuff for them, John ??

Tom -

I don't know - haven't heard anything from them; after 153 articles since 2003, I was running out of technical subject matter to write about that I hadn't already covered. We'll see.

[William M.]

Re: Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

...and the only benefactor of the change will be the new "Vette" magazine, which will be just about the only Corvette-only magazine left.

I could be wrong, but that's my take on it.

You're forgetting the best one (IMHO)
Corvette Magazine

[Jim D.]

Re: Corvette Enhusiast Magazine

You're forgetting the best one (IMHO)
Corvette Magazine

That is THE WORST RAG on the news stand. Nothing but ads and made up, dumb ass tech questions.

Jim

[Peter J.]

Re: Corvette Enthusiast Magazine

John, Thanks to your post I knew about the demise/transformation so I found it funny that I just got a renewal letter last Friday. That's cutting it a little close.

[Pat F.]

Re: Corvette Enthusiast Magazine

Pete, what was the date of the subscription letter?

Strange isn't, that we knew on this forum in early September that the Magazine had folded?