I thought this would be a fun adventure to document my DeLorean project. I found the car, VIN 5510, on Craigslist doing my normal weekly search. It was listed for $19,500 firm, and looked really really great. I contacted the seller, went back and forth, and due to the COVID-19 situation going on, I bought the car without even sitting in it. I got a lot of pictures and videos, and was able to stalk the owner enough to know they were real. On 4/20/2020 we signed the bill of sale, on 5/4/2020 the car was picked up and put in an enclosed trailer and shipped over 3,000 miles from roughly Boston to Seattle. Cost was $1,450 for the trip, and the car arrived on Saturday 5/9/2020 in the morning.

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She looks beautiful!! I wash her off, blow off some leaves, do a quick drive around the block, and realize that - in addition to the automatic transmission slipping under load - the cars brakes are completely unassisted, which means I have to use both feet to push the brake to stop. I also haven't driven a manual steering car this millennia. Also, this is the first time I have ever touched a Delorean, sat in one, or driven one.

Before moving on, let's take a quick note of the car's current condition. The car's body is great, there is a little ding in the T panel, a small dent in the left rear quarter panel, and a nearly invisible ding on the right front fender flair. Doors hold open, but gas struts may be a bit weak. Driver's side door rubs on the T panel when fully open. All the plastic bits are great, the vinyl decal stripes are good. The 'D' metal insert from the bumper is sitting on the center console.

The interior is decent - lots and lots of little issues, though. Seats need to be recovered, binnacle leather is ripped, steering wheel leather is ripped. Door sliders are rusty, and thus the carpet is rusty. Door cards don't seem to fit well, lots of gaps, the panel on the driver's door with the handle doesn't stay. None of the lights seem to be working on the interior, but that might be me not knowing how they work. All of the seals on the doors are terrible, brittle, and falling apart. The steering wheel shakes around when you steer.

The driver's door-closed sensor is bad, and also falling out. The parking brake sensor is sketchy. Speedometer hits ~22 and stops going higher. Tach seems to be working, oil pressure and gas gauge work. Battery voltage looks good, same with temp.

The gas strut that holds the sunshade is weak on the left side, but still holds fine, and the engine cover latch works well. The engine looks, for it's age, really nice. Fuel lines have all been upgraded to braided stainless steel. There is basically no visible rust anywhere in the engine compartment. The exhaust looks to be new, the asbestos panels have been replaced. The engine starts up perfectly and quickly every single time. Under the car, it's leaking. Definitely leaking red transmission fluid and some kind of black oil from a few inches rear of the transmission fluid, so I think it may be the final drive oil or perhaps the rear main seal.

Under the hood, the rubber gasket looks like it was replaced but didn't quite stick in some areas. Otherwise it looks nice, a few rust spots. Spare tire is there and in good shape. The jack is in the little cubby. Carpet and thin wood panel thing are there and in good condition, though there is evidence is moisture on the wood.

The tires look fine and have some tread left, wheels look good. Suspension feels a little rough and hard, but not terrible. Brake pads and calipers look a bit rusty, along with the rotors where the pads can't rub them clean. I'll need to do a closer inspection on suspension and brakes later.

Phew, that was a lot....