Just a little bit about who we are and why we formed WASMA.
WASMA was born out of an idea and a need to create a peak motoring body to represent the needs and concerns of the modified vehicle cohort in Western Australia to the government, government departments and the public in general. After a meeting held in the Eastern suburbs of Perth, a committee was formed and WASMA was created in August 2020.
The committee comprised a variety of members representing some of the larger car clubs and groups as well as engineering and vehicle restoration businesses and members of the public interested in, and modifying vehicles at home. Our initial efforts focus on vehicles that are pre-1990 (in line with the date cut off for Concessions for Classics). We envision expanding to encompass later model vehicles, i.e. the modern-day street machine.
Initiatives
In its first year WASMA established a regular meeting time with the Engineering Department of the Department of Transport (DoT) This allows us to focus on vehicle modification rules and allowances.
Having the opportunity for dialogue with the DoT is important in helping to put forward and receive constructive dialog on the issues put forward at the regular WASMA meetings.
C4C has been a great success since its release, but like all initiatives, there are some aspects that could be improved. WASMA’s C4C committee is working on this now and will keep working on this into the future, working towards initiatives that will make C4C even better for users and hopefully give a little more freedom of use and eligibility.
These strategic changes will take time and planning and that is what WASMA is here to do..
WASMA has also developed a mobile phone “App” for use with Concessions for Classics (C4C) that has grown to become a vital tool for car club members and car club administration.
The WASMA App and its ongoing development (With the greatest thanks to Redhot Internet Solutions Pty Ltd), is not only a place to log your C4C use, it has two sections for events (one public and the other private, so clubs can have club-only events) that make finding a classic car events very easy. Member clubs are able to add their events which work to promote these events to like-minded enthusiasts. The more clubs that do this, the more events are available. Having the events in the public section makes the event a WASMA sanctioned event, and available for all members of WASMA affiliated clubs as a ‘club day’ under C4C.
The WASMA App also has a number of features built into it to assist the individual club registrars with reporting aspects for C4C, such as membership management to comply with C4C regulations.
More information can be found here.
Our Mission
After holding our first meeting together it was clear we all have a passion for improvement, whether it be how the club operates or mutual benefits for the wider street machine enthusiasts. Our priority will be to represent our member clubs in an inclusive and informative manner. We will listen, and where needed we will act on initiatives brought to us by our member clubs. We have many things which require attention, this is in no way a legacy from the previous executive, but a shift in becoming a prominent and professional association in the eyes of Local Government, other Associations and our member clubs. We will work closely and collaboratively with other associations who share our passion for improvement in the street machine arena. We will adapt and find ways to promote WASMA to prospective car clubs in order to grow our voice and become relative to the Government.
Many individual members of WASMA put their hand up to join at the very beginning. We are keen to provide opportunities to individual members to contribute to the organisation and be involved in shaping the organisation over time, creating a vibe that people want to be a part of. We believe there are skill sets among this cohort that could be utilised for improved street machine conditions and wider awareness of WASMA’s goals whilst having fun at the same time. In order to achieve this we are required to holistically review our internal workings within the club, this includes the constitution, risk profiles, form depository, bi-laws, record keeping depository, formal agreements and IT. This is not the complete list as there will be further items which come from the review, as and when we review each item. Other information. It was decided that the meetings open to member clubs would be bi monthly, this topic will be discussed at the Management Meeting (Executive and Management Sub Committee) on 17 Aug with a view to change the frequency back to monthly. At this stage the next meeting for Member clubs is 21 Sep 23 at the PCSM Club Room. All meetings will see changes in the form of attendance lists, agenda items, actions and updates. The way in which these meetings run will be formalised. The person addressing the quorum will talk without interruption. This is in order to have the meeting flow and be as economic to time as it can be. It may take a couple of meetings for members to understand the sequence, however it shouldn't be hard to follow. There is time for discussion on each action or motion, bearing in mind that only one person speaks at a time. We are looking forward to the challenges ahead of us and do not underestimate the work required to make progressive steps to WASMA becoming a more relevant and strengthened voice for all our members.
Jeff Bonser
President
Hello, I am presenting this Bio to help you understand a little about myself, my relevant work experiences and my interests. I joined WASMA in August 2021 and it wasn’t until July 2022 where I became actively involved by attending my first meeting, during this meeting I was asked, and accepted, to become part of the Management Sub Committee. My past experiences with Non-Public money accounts and committees were gained from my Military career, where I spent 22 years in the Australian Army. I held positions on committees which included Social, Bar Member, Property and Secretary, I was also appointed as an auditor to conduct audits and investigations of other various committees. This experience puts me in a good position to manage the affairs of WASMA. I have keen interest in the cars from Australia’s history and love seeing all types of older cars on our roads, race tracks and drag strips. My parents told me one of my first words I spoke on this earth was “Car”, taught to me by my older brother. At 17, I was torn between manufacturers when buying my first car. It was either a XB Ute or HQ station wagon, this would set my allegiance to either Blue or Red. It turned out to be the latter, and a Holden man I became. I owned several over the years and share in the sentiment we mostly all have “I wish I never got rid of.......” Today I own a 1971 HG Kingswood running a SBC and manualised glide, a 1988 VL Calais 5 litre and a 2016 VF Redline. My VL and HG are both on C4C. I love motorsport and will often be watching it somewhere, and it doesn’t matter what it is. My other interests include caravanning, our three dogs, tinkering in the shed and adding to my collections of 1:18 scale Bathurst winners, Jack Daniels and other memorabilia. I have a vision and goal for WASMA and will ensure that my first interest is in representing the member clubs and wider motoring enthusiasts to create a relevant and viable association.
As an active member of a few car clubs in Perth, I got involved in WASMA to try and make a difference in the local street machine scene. I own and operate Ormsby Guitars in Canning Vale. The business is a successful international guitar manufacturing venture which specialises in custom looks and builds. Having operated this business since 2003 it gives me the experience needed for the role of treasurer. Currently building a blown HK GTS Monaro, my collection also includes some modern muscle and European sports cars. On my wish list is an XB Coupe, and a '68 Charger. I would like for WASMA not to be focused on just C4C but larger agenda items bringing fairer rules for all street machines in WA.
I have held various roles with the Cobra Car Club WA with 20 years as a member and stints as Vice-president and Secretary and created the role of Journalist, interviewing members. I was the founding president of the Gorgon Car Club 2008-2012, the INPEX Car Club 2013-2016 and the Conoco Car Club 2017-2020 (which had international members). As an executive governance professional with over 12 years of experience as a risk manager, I've worked on two of the largest LNG projects in the world, built here in Australia. Also as a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, I've sat on several committees and boards. My dad (who was a fitter and Turner) worked on the cars and I would help when I was a little kid so mechanical work is familiar to me even to this day. All the work on my first car, a HB Torana was done by me. I was keen to know how, plus I was pretty broke. My mechanical mind was very useful when I worked Underground for 7 years as I could fix the gear I operated including the twin boom jumbo. I am also a qualified shift boss. I've owned about ten cars, 7 would be considered classic, custom or street machines. I've also owned half a dozen bikes, four of which were large tourers, including an FZ750 I did a 16,000km trip on solo around Australia in '93. I taught rider training for a while but didn't really enjoy it. I rode with the Southern Cross Tourers in Tassie where there are some of the best roads in the country, we'd go rallying every second weekend. My current street machine is a '69 Camaro big block (476ci) with a 5-speed Richmond box, in Bumblebee colours which I have drag-raced, club-trialed and done autokanah. I sold my last motorbike a year ago. Always, I wanted to rebuild engines, but it just never happened. Cars, bikes, MotoGP and club racing have been a large part of my life, and in particular over the last 10 years as I've been able to enjoy it more and more, therefore I feel privileged to support any initiative that makes these activities inclusive to all parts of the community, which I why I put my hand up to be a part of the WASMA committee.
I was the Vice President when WASMA originally started but had to step down to concentrate on my own health issues. Im 64 years old and the owner of Klassic Automotive Performance in Bibra Lake, we specialise in repairs and modifications to classic cars. I am a very active member within the street machine scene and member of a number of clubs. I am a big Ford fan, but have a genuine love for all classics. Being a qualified mechanic I am familiar with ADR and VSB 14. I take a very keen interest in the speedway and have pitted for a number of competitors in the past, especially in the sedan category, these days I sometimes help out in the Street Stock category. You will often see me driving my blue and white XM ute embossed with the workshop logo around Perth. In my spare time (what’s that?) I like to get away with my partner Vicki camping in our specially appointed bus as well as making improvements around our property. I am hoping to get back into the operations of WASMA to get it flowing better for the street machiners of WA.
