1983 DeLorean DMC 12 - Not so Quick Lap

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#11

01-09-2010, 10:02 AM

jammer96

Teamspeed Junior Member

Join Date: Jan 2010

Posts: 70

Delorean

They did have their flaws as they were rushed to production with an inexperienced production line. Now that owners have had all these years work out the "bugs" you can have a Delorean that is pretty reliable. LED lights are avaiable for the doors so you don't drain the battery at car shows. My friend had them installed in his Delorean. At a car show his door was open for 8 hours and after the show the car started right up. The 1st cars that came out had a weak 70 amp alternator. Later they changed to a 90 amp alternator that worked better. If you alternator needs changed now DMC TX and Special T Auto carry higher ouput alternators that work quite well. The best one is the 110amp by Special T Auto. The struts on the doors typically need replaced, and the torison bars need adjusted. An Eibach suspension package is avaiable to improve both handling and ride. DMC TX offers a Stage 2 performance upgrade with 80 more horsepower than the stock engine. DPI (Delorean Performance Industries) in Ohio offers a 3.0 liter turbo upgrade with 300hp. 0-60 should around 4.5 seconds. If you come across one that's been neglected and sitting for awhile you'll be spending some money to get it roadworthy. Remember these cars are almost 30 years old, there are bound to be some flaws. My friend bought his from the original owner. His car sat from 91-08 in storage. After cleaning the fuel system, changing the belts, hoses, and charging the battery he was good to go. He has put 9k miles on it since then with no problems. To me reliability is more important than performance. Don't get me wrong fast cars are fun as I've been in a few of them, but reliability comes first.

#12

01-11-2010, 10:49 AM

Siegrist

Teamspeed Member

Join Date: Feb 2008

Posts: 217

Quote:

Originally Posted by Josh

Had one. It broke every time it was driven. Getting hit in the head with the door was a common occurance, as the door shocks would only last a year at best. The build quality was quite poor as the car was a shadow of what John Delorean originally intended it to be. The front facia is taken directly from a 1980 Chevy Cavalier. The engine makes a whopping 130 hp, which might get you to 88mph with a strong tail wind. The car is a death trap in an accident due to the gullwing doors.
When they started building new Deloreans from old parts, it destroyed any chance of the car being worthy anything, so some clown that wanted to turn it into the Back to the Future car for his 50th birthday bought it. He offered to send me pictures of the car as he converted it, I told him I'd rather get venereal disease than ever see that thing again.
The only car I've driven that was a more miserable experience was a Ferrari 308.

They made them in black?

#13

01-24-2010, 09:28 PM

jammer96

Teamspeed Junior Member

Join Date: Jan 2010

Posts: 70

Painted cars

Some were painted to cover up dings and dents in the stainless. Other people painted them just to be different. None were painted at the factory.

Here's one selling for 50k at BJ.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsyHnNl06hk

Here's a painted one in South Fl.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LVlL3XH4dY