Service in Ontario

[pezzonovante88]

I'm in Oakville (about 50km from Toronto). I'm looking into getting a D in the next little while and am wondering if anyone had some good suggestions of where I could get it serviced within a reasonable proximity to my location.......

Ps. I visited Sam at Cross Avenue Auto in Oakville who has worked on a few. When I told him I was looking to get a DeLorean, he coughed up his drink and told me he hates working on them, but anyway.......

[sdg3205]

I'm in Oakville (about 50km from Toronto). I'm looking into getting a D in the next little while and am wondering if anyone had some good suggestions of where I could get it serviced within a reasonable proximity to my location.......

Ps. I visited Sam at Cross Avenue Auto in Oakville who has worked on a few. When I told him I was looking to get a DeLorean, he coughed up his drink and told me he hates working on them, but anyway.......

Consider the possibility of doing your own work, or at least most of it. Between the workshop manual, expert advice from DMC techs, the resources here etc etc it's never been easier to troubleshoot your own car.

DMC Midwest and DPI are your closest "official" shops. Just because they're over the border doesn't mean they're out of reach. I live in Vancouver but call up Toby and John down in Seattle when I run into trouble or need help with something I don't have the tooling to fix.

EDIT - don't forget you're also among the largest club in Canada. I know guys like Cory (North Bay) and Jonathan Mann (Guelph) are very knowledgeable and close by.

[Cory W]

Hey, you'll make his day by not taking it there. Yours too. Without getting into too much detail, I've been working out the kinks in a car that was "extensively serviced" there. Nobody was happy in the end.

Really, I can't say much more than what's already been said (except maybe Thanks for the plug!)

Working on it yourself is definitely the best avenue, based on time, money, and ability. There are people close enough to you who would likely be willing to help. I travel down there occasionally to tackle projects as well, and my rates have never drawn complaints. ;) The car could also come up here....not that far away in the Big Picture, and stays within the country.

Larger jobs, different custom endeavours would likely be best at the DeLorean facilities that are still remarkably close to you:

-DMC Midwest (Chicago area)
-DeLorean Performance Industries (Akron, Ohio area)
-Dave Bauerle, Ohio
-PJ Grady, Long Island NY

Don't forget the power of this place right here. Rarely do people pose a question that goes unanswered for longer than half an hour. The more information is here, the more likely you'll find your answer with a search.

[Jonathan]

Thanks for the vote of confidence Dave :) My general rule of thumb is that I'll try to tackle anything that I feel I can do safely. And that applies to me staying safe from a car falling on me perspective as well as me staying safe after I go for the first drive after some sort of repair job. That being said, I don't do a ton of work on my car that requires me to get directly underneath it (i.e. fuel accumulator). And if it requires some sort of specialized tools or expertise, then it's going to a shop (exhaust manifold gaskets).

When I was living in Guelph (I'm in Port Elgin now), I used a guy named Peter Hettinga at Guelph Import Service. I felt he did some really good work the times I took the car to him. Most of that was the 1st year I had the car when I didn't have a clue what I was getting into. He was a Bosch guy and did a lot of Volvos. So ya, no DeLorean experience, but when I was "interviewing" mechanics, I wanted a guy that treated the car like my baby, but at the same time recognized that it's just a car. 4 wheels, brakes, steering rack, exhaust, etc. To him it's business as usual... once I knew he had the right attitude around the car. If there was real specific DMC stuff to do like stainless repairs or door adjustments, those were saved for times around other owners. I would recommend Peter if you're in the Guelph area.

In Port Elgin, it's a small town and I guess I got "lucky" finding the guy I did. His shop is about a 10 minute walk from my house and coincidentally he has the best reputation in town. Again, no DMC experience, but the right attitude of wanting to fix things the right way and ask questions when he needs to. I took my fuel accumulator job to him as well as the 2nd time I went he did the exhaust manifold gaskets (which required drilling out some metal and other fun stuff that was WAAAY out of my area of expertise) and he rebuilt/cleaned my entire rear drive axle and boots. I was really happy with his work.

Like I said, I will tackle just about anything I can while working from your feet or with normal tools. This means pretty much anything interior as well as electrical. Lots of switches and odds and ends. I plan on doing some winter things like a replacement stereo and speakers, possibly my front brakes, some rear fascia work, and a few other things here and there. I tackle all the trivial little things that are more time consuming than difficult and then I put the tough stuff in the hands of the experts. You take the fuel accumulator part... I think the whole bill (I supplied the new accumulator) was about $220 and that included a pin hole leak in a fuel line that he repaired. I say that's a pretty good use of a couple hundred bucks. Now if I paid someone to put my new DIN radio bracket in, stereo, speakers, etc. it might be several hundred dollars for something I would rather just do myself.

Hope that gives you some ideas. I think we are up to about 61 DeLorean's "unofficially" in Ontario, so there's usually plenty of help out there if you get stuck. Like Cory said, if you post a problem on the forum here, you'll notice it's almost like a race to see who can help out first, so ya, if you can wait 30-60 minutes with your issue, you'll have lots of ideas on what to do next. The internet is your best friend with fixing DeLoreans IMO.

I think we are planning a BBQ (gull) Wings and Beer lunch in the next couple weeks up around the northern parts of Toronto. I think it is open to owners and enthusists alike, so maybe you'd like to join us for that? Guys aren't likely to bring their cars, more just themselves to talk about DMC stuff. Email me at canadiandelorean3937 (at) gmail (dot) com and I'll make sure you're added to the email distribution.

Good luck!!

[pezzonovante88]

Thanks guys! I'm by no means a technical guy when it comes to working on cars, but I'm willing to spend the time trying. You're probably right about fixing the smaller odds and ends on your own and leaving the specialized stuff the shops. Anyway, I've got to work on selling my Jag so I can make room for a DeLorean. God I can't wait! I'll see you all around, I'm sure!

[sdg3205]

Here's one for sale locally (http://wwwa.autotrader.ca/a/DeLorean/DMC-12/CURVE%20LAKE/Ontario/25_11707618_/).

Looks like it might have some interesting history.

'Local' is a relative term. hah.

[pezzonovante88]

Here's one for sale locally (http://wwwa.autotrader.ca/a/DeLorean/DMC-12/CURVE%20LAKE/Ontario/25_11707618_/).

Looks like it might have some interesting history.

'Local' is a relative term. hah.

I know, I've seen that ad. Its a nice one. Trouble is I think he's asking about $5-$10K too much when compared with what's available in the US. I'd love to buy one in Canada to avoid all the importing hassles, but the variety in the US is so much greater, while the expense is so much less on average. That one's a nice looking car, though. I must have a 5-speed and I prefer (just slightly) the black interior.

[17076]

There are a few others for sale in the Province. One is on the ODOC site at www.odoc.ca

There have been a few cars sold in Ontario in the last few months in the $20-$25K range.

As far as shops locally I have heard nothing but complaints about Cross in terms of workmanship and especially pricing. I would suggest Ultimate Auto as the owner is an ODOC Member and has been working on his own Delorean for 7 years. Another Toronto shop is Toronto Brake where O'Neal and Dan have become fans of the cars over the last 5 years or so. None are specialists to the extent that Delorean Midwest or DPI are... but they are not completely new to the cars like most shops would be.

[pezzonovante88]

There are a few others for sale in the Province. One is on the ODOC site at www.odoc.ca

There have been a few cars sold in Ontario in the last few months in the $20-$25K range.

As far as shops locally I have heard nothing but complaints about Cross in terms of workmanship and especially pricing. I would suggest Ultimate Auto as the owner is an ODOC Member and has been working on his own Delorean for 7 years. Another Toronto shop is Toronto Brake where O'Neal and Dan have become fans of the cars over the last 5 years or so. None are specialists to the extent that Delorean Midwest or DPI are... but they are not completely new to the cars like most shops would be.

Okay, cool. Thank you!

[Delorean Industries]

Okay, cool. Thank you!

We offer a very affordable transport option from the border back to our facility here in Ohio. The meeting place is at the Rainbow Bridge crossing in Buffalo NY.

[John U]

The importation is not a hassle if you do your homework. I imported my car from Michigan two years ago. I brought it back on a U-Haul trailer that I rented for $85. I saved big $$$ buying a US car. I got an all original 18,000 mile example in very good shape for $15000.

John

[17076]

Two for sale in Quebec right now.. $14,500 and $17,000.

Look on autotrader.ca

[Kukem]

Two for sale in Quebec right now.. $14,500 and $17,000.

Look on autotrader.ca

If you look at the phone number to call them, one is for a hotel and the other is for an office building. The one for the Hotel is showing a picture for a car that is for sale in Missouri. KB Motorsports DeLorean (http://www.kbmotorsportsinc.com/newandusedcars/7896/1590422/e7ec9d2c-785c-4bc8-a782-6463550aabfd/none/1981-DeLorean-DMC12-Ozark-MO-65721.aspx) That listing seems sketchy to me. As does the other one.

[ccurzio]

If you look at the phone number to call them, one is for a hotel and the other is for an office building. The one for the Hotel is showing a picture for a car that is for sale in Missouri. KB Motorsports DeLorean (http://www.kbmotorsportsinc.com/newandusedcars/7896/1590422/e7ec9d2c-785c-4bc8-a782-6463550aabfd/none/1981-DeLorean-DMC12-Ozark-MO-65721.aspx) That listing seems sketchy to me. As does the other one.

An ABSOLUTE ONE OF A KIND. :rolleyes:

[pezzonovante88]

If you look at the phone number to call them, one is for a hotel and the other is for an office building. The one for the Hotel is showing a picture for a car that is for sale in Missouri. KB Motorsports DeLorean (http://www.kbmotorsportsinc.com/newandusedcars/7896/1590422/e7ec9d2c-785c-4bc8-a782-6463550aabfd/none/1981-DeLorean-DMC12-Ozark-MO-65721.aspx) That listing seems sketchy to me. As does the other one.

Yeah, I saw that one in Missouri, as well. I knew the picture looked familiar. I emailed them about the one "in perfect conditions" about whether it was auto or manual, and they said auto. But, I wonder if it is just a scam...

[17076]

That's weird.. but not uncommon. I see so many sellers using photos of other peoples cars... looks like they figure "You've seen one Delorean you've seen them all"

Odd about the phone numbers though. Wonder what the scam could be...sending a
deposit to "hold" a non existant car maybe?