Car-boy. That's what my girlfriend, Sarah, calls me. I hate it, but thing is, she's correct. I love cars, and all sorts of them. German cars, American muscle cars, pompous British cars, Japanese cars, and of course, BMWs. I have a number of old BMWs and over the past couple of years I’ve added a 1964 Mercedes-Benz 230SL, a 1994 Dodge Viper, a 2010 Jaguar XKR and a 1990 Honda Prelude 4ws to the garage. 

In the 5 years I’ve been a BMWDCM member, I’ve met lots of fellow club members who like me, have a diverse car collection. The sad thing is that we rarely get to see them. It made me think: how can I gather all my Club friends in one place with their "other" lovely machines? The answer was obvious: Cars & Coffee. I've always wanted to host an event for the club, and I figured why not do something a little different and break the mould, why not host a BMW Drivers Club Melbourne event and ask members to bring a non-BMW car or bike.  

I asked our members, what else is in your garage? Come bring something different and join me for a coffee and a chat. And the BMWDCM "What else is in your garage cars, bikes & coffee" was born. 

This was my first official club hosting event and I wanted to make sure it worked for members. I needed to find somewhere with plenty of parking, preferably undercover, easily accessible with lots of foot traffic and most importantly, close to a caffeine source. I searched far and wide for venues, but the ideal spot was just around the corner from my house (shamefully convenient). 

I was walking my girlfriend’s dog, Raffy, one evening and still racking my brain about where to host the Cars & Coffee event. As I was walking towards Murrumbeena train station, I suddenly found it. This is the spot! It ticked all the boxes: it was easy to access (many of our club members live within 10kms), there was plenty of parking and undercover area, a busy thoroughfare nearby with people jogging, walking, biking and scooting, and most crucially, multiple amazing cafes within 50m of the spot. 

So, I had my event and location decided. Now I thought, ‘how am I going to attract members to this event?’ This is the hardest part. Social media is such a strong advertising tool, and I figured if I continuously promote the event (without being annoying) on our Facebook page then I have a strong chance of a great turn out.

My plan was simple: a single weekly post in the month prior and then in the week of the event, I upped the promoting. I received an email from Vice-President Jo Mawson advising me that 50 people had registered to attend, so I was confident that we would have a good showing. 

Then it was showtime. It’s not often that I can bring more than one car to a BMWDCM event without the help of a friend or family member to drive the second car, but in this instance, I didn't need one. The venue was so close to my house that I could literally walk home and drive over another car.

Just as I was walking back to collect my second car, my phone began to ring - "Where are you? We're here". It was only 8:45am and there was still 45 minutes to go until the scheduled start time.

I knew then that it was going to be a great event for club members.

9:30am came around very quickly, and by then we had 20-or so cars in the car park. And for the first time, BMWs were outnumbered by 5-to-1. I was completely gobsmacked at the variety of cars and bikes our members own. From a F100 Pickup with 500Hp, to a stunningly maintained Datsun Bluebird station wagon to exotic McLaren and Aston Martins. In total, we had 54 cars turn up - from marques including Honda, Dodge, Jaguar, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Alfa Romeo, Ford, Subaru, VW, Peugeot, MINI, Holden, Audi, and bikes from Vepsa, KTM. and Yamaha. 

Who knew our members would have such a vast array of cars tucked away? When I sat back and reflected on it, we all love cars in different marques, in different shapes, sizes and cylinders. We just happen to be a member of a BMW affiliated Club. We're car-people.

This is what I love about our club: it doesn't matter what you drive, be it BMW or otherwise, we all love and respect all cars. 

People are already asking me when the next one will be happening. This has been so encouraging to hear. I must admit I was quite nervous about throwing myself into hosting duties, but it has been so worth it. I encourage anyone who wants to host an event, to just go for it. 

Thank you to all the Members who turned out for our first ever "What else is in your garage" cars, bikes & coffee event. Stay tuned for the next one!

Mark McDermott | Member #50
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne