Is it unusual for a late 81 to have a black fender mounted antenna....? could they have run out of the power antennas during a certain time?
Posts: 92
Is it unusual for a late 81 to have a black fender mounted antenna....? could they have run out of the power antennas during a certain time?
Location: Northern Michigan
Posts: 1,147
My VIN: 1880
Club(s): (DCO) (DCUK)
No. It wasn't until December of 1981 that they started using the power antennas mounted in the rear.Originally Posted by gullwingD
Patrick C.
VIN 1880
Location: Duncanville, Alabama USA
Posts: 825
My VIN: 6599
My Nov. 81 build has the rear power antenna.?
George
George.
1974 BMW RS90 motorcycle
1981 DeLorean. Cruise Control, Wings-A-Loft, Eibach springs, Spax shocks, Stage1 exhaust, Manual, Grey and Grooved, LED clock and fixed pulls.
1993 del Sol S (With a Few, Upgrades)
2017 Chrysler Pacifica Limited
Location: Northern Michigan
Posts: 1,147
My VIN: 1880
Club(s): (DCO) (DCUK)
There's no telling what was done later at dealerships, by previous owners, etc.
My car had a windshield antenna until a rock broke the glass while windshield antennas were NLA. Now I have a rear power antenna.
Patrick C.
VIN 1880
Location: Northern Michigan
Posts: 1,147
My VIN: 1880
Club(s): (DCO) (DCUK)
https://support.delorean.com/kb/a49/antennas.aspx
"The earliest DeLorean cars came with a particularly inefficient antenna embedded in the windshield, so somewhere around VIN 3200, DMC switched to a fixed mast antenna mounted on the right front fender. Later in the 1981 model year, some cars were also fitted with a manually retractable antenna also mounted in the right front fender. In December of 1981, DMC abandoned the unsightly fixed radio antenna in the right front fender and started equipping new DeLoreans with fully retractable, automatic, electric antennas."
Patrick C.
VIN 1880
Location: West Sayville, N.Y.
Posts: 1,350
My VIN: 005058 000927
Club(s): (AZ-D) (DMA) (DOA) (DCUK)
As I recall they started using the power antenna in late '81 and did run out at some point until '82 production started. Most, if not all, of the 7000 VIN cars had the manually retractable R/H fender mount antenna such as 7198 which is in the shop now with a plug that the owner installed after converting to the later L/R quarter mounted power unit. I don't recall the exact start of power antenna usage but I'd take a guess around the late 5000 VIN range as a sub 6100 car that's here now has a solid front fender and the power antenna in the quarter panel. Perhaps one of our "historian's" here has better documentation than my recollection. I'm not aware of any parts or service bulletins that made mention of VIN chronology of all four types of antenna's used throughout production.
Rob
Location: Happy Valley, OR
Posts: 1,709
My VIN: 4456 - Owner since March 2011
Club(s): (PNDC)
My car is an Oct. '81 (VIN 4456) and I have a rear mounted power antenna...
Cheers
Steve
Cheers
Steven Maguire
#4456
IT'S A TRAP!!!!!
Posts: 1,027
My VIN: 500 ft pounds torque.
Club(s): (SEDOC) (DCUK)
No that's not accurate. Both of my oct 81 cars had the rear mounted power antenna. I've seen the rear power antenna on vins around 4800 and up....
Soundkillr was here.
Location: Northern Michigan
Posts: 1,147
My VIN: 1880
Club(s): (DCO) (DCUK)
https://support.delorean.com/kb/a49/antennas.aspx
Again, there is no telling what dealerships and previous owners have done over the past 35 years.
Patrick C.
VIN 1880
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Posts: 396
My VIN: 6472
The change from front fender to rear antenna was either in August or September 81. I haven't seen a front fender antenna on any October or later cars. Mine is a Nov build and has the rear power antenna.
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