Posts: 972
I am just finding out about adding more grounds, moving ground locations, adding new positive wires etc.
What are people's thoughts on this? Is it really necessary? I'm seeing videos of guys running #0 ground wires all over the car. Seems a bit extreme to me. Every vehicle I have every seen just uses the frame and or engine for the ground.
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Location: Leonardtown, MD
Posts: 9,008
My VIN: 03572
Wiring is weak in most circuits in the DeLorean. Battery wires are large enough but those "flag" terminals are weak points. Battery, starter and alternator new wires can be made with more flexible wire and larger gauge. I use heavy duty crimp terminals and even solder them after crimping. Fans and blower motor use frame ground. Headlights run ground wires back to relay compartment (I guess they wanted to have a warning light for a burned out headlight but it never got implemented). I did change the front lights to use frame ground. That leaves two large ground wires you can repurpose for power up front if you want. I made a battery 12 volt terminal block so those high current wires don't need to use the alternator and starter to connect to each other. I also added a second engine ground wire on the drivers side just to backup the OEM ground strap on the passenger side.Originally Posted by SupercoolBill
Posts: 448
I couldn't quite tell in the video if you done this already, but last summer I had to bleed my clutch slave and it was difficult to access the bleeder. If I had the access you now have, I would add a bleeder extension and mount the bleeder where it is more accessible.
Ron
Posts: 972
This is something else I have been going back and forth with in my mind.
It's something that is only going to get used once or twice (hopefully) but it costs a lot for what it is and how often it will get used ($85.?)
The entire clutch line is roughly the same price as this little short line.
There is always that "one more thing" and if a line isn't drawn somewhere we could easily spend $80-$90k or more on this restoration by the time we are done. But then on the other hand it's only another $85....decisions decisions.
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Last edited by SupercoolBill; 04-21-2024 at 08:58 AM.
Posts: 1,254
On one hand it?s a PITA to bleed the clutch. On the other hand, In all the years I owned the car, I?ve bled it twice. The fist time I was just running new fluid through the system, so it didn?t really require it. The second time was a new slave. It?s sucks, but it is certainly doable. I?ve not seen the extensions. Is there any possibility of it getting damaged and leak?
Posts: 972
We worked on the car for a couple hours yesterday. Mostly we just switched around the refrigerant lines at the compressor so the are pointing in the correct direction.
We redid the connections at the condenser. I'm hoping these are the correct size o-rings.
We also spent some time talking about the car. What fruit is it producing in our lives? Has this car and project improved the quality of our lives or the lives of those around is? Or is it weighing us down, causing stress and frustration. Is the car an idol working to keep time and money away from our friends, family, those in need, our business, etc. How much money is too much money to spend (waste) on something like this?
If we get the car all done and someone t-bones us at an intersection or a tree falls on the car, how will we deal with something like that? Will we say "Que Sera, Sera," or would we be absolutely devastated?
Several years ago, I made a decision not to let anything "own" me. I don't do any drugs, I don't smoke, I don't drink alcohol unless it is something I can go without at any time, I don't drink coffee or if I do non-caffinated, etc. All things I had a problem with at some point in my life.
If something becomes a problem, I try to cut it out of my life.
So I'm not looking to have this car own me. It seems like my wife generally feels that same.
Something to think about over the next week.
Last edited by SupercoolBill; 04-21-2024 at 01:32 PM.
Posts: 1,254
One thing I do think about when I read your thread is the car will be such a perfect car that you will be afraid to drive it. And, in fact, you will probably be lowering its value to drive it very much. I agree with you to not let something own you. I dont own any garage queens. I also dont want to be polishing something all the time. I have driven mine on several 1400-2000 mile trips. I cant imagine doing that in a car as nice as yours.
You might want to think about finishing the car and selling it at Barret Jackson and then buying a nice driver for half the price. You know you can fix anything that comes up and you wont be afraid to drive it in the rain. I think your car will fetch a premium price. Im not saying you will make money on your time invested, but I think you will get more than your money back. The time invested should be enjoyable time spent with your wife.
Posts: 972
Interesting thought. I restored a 1970 BMW motorcycle during Covid. It was similar to this project in a lot of ways. I bought it because it was cheap. Originally, I was just going to fix bare minimum stuff, but I ended up doing a complete restoration on it. At first, I was worried about something happening and hardly rode it. Eventually, I rode it on a regular basis but was still worried about it and frankly was really prideful about how perfect it was (I even have trophies from motorcycle shows I entered). Then, one night, I left a buddy's house and forgot to put up my kick stand. I came to a left hand bend in the road and couldn't turn left because my kickstand was hitting the pavement. I quickly ended up running out of road, went into the ditch, and did a "Quick off" right over the bars. It didn't mess up the bike too much, but it certainly wasn't perfect anymore, and I was glad. Now I don't worry about it too much.
Here's a before and after of the Beemah
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Posts: 1,254
Those BMWs are cool with the jugs out the side. I knew a guy in PA that lost his leg over a kickstand. I had a Honda with a rubber extension on the stand. When you lean with it down, the rubber would hit first and force it to go up. I tested it once and it worked. Of course it scared the bee Jesus out of me. Might be worth seeing if that could be retrofit on yours.
Posts: 972
Well..not to be a negative Nancy but we decided to get the Miata out as a little morale booster and now that has issues. We stored it in a shipping container on our property this year and because the container isn't insulated, isn't well ventilated, and we had such a mild winter with lots of rain, the car suffered from serious condensation issues. It looks twice as rusty and corroded as it did last year. I put the battery in it and tried to start it. It turned over kind of hard and tried to start then something seemed to happen, it puffed out black smoke, and now it won't even try to start. It seems to turn over too easy now also. Fun...
Enough about Miatas and motorcycles for now. This is a Delorean forum.
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