The Illustrated Buyer's Guide to Delorean Automobiles Review

[DeloreanJoshQ]

The Illustrated Buyer's Guide to Delorean Automobiles Review....

I purchased this at DCS 2012 and read it on the flight home and afterwards to finish it up and thought I would share my review of it since I have completed reading it. I am reviewing it from a Delorean owner's mindset vs. a potential owner, who it is aimed at:

There are 122 pages to it. When I first saw it, I thought to myself, "Jees, that's a small book" and questioned if it was worth the $30.
There are many color photos in it of detailed differences of the car. This is what sold me on the book because I was interested in learning new things about the Delorean.
I couldn't help but continue thinking as I was reading how other people would attack the book or its contributors after seeing the posts on DMCTalk.
However, in my opinion I think the book was carefully written as to be accurate and allow for other opinions and alternate possibilities as the car was never a cookie-cut vehicle in production, making it very interesting to learn more about.

There are so many details to the book. The only thing discussed in the book that I thought could have been expanded on, detail-wise, was the HVAC overlay changes throughout production with more photos of the differences. But this is trivial. Otherwise, I couldn't think of anything from my personal knowledge that was left out or inaccurate and I learned alot more.

Anyhow, I believe it was worth the purchase and was a good read. It was easy to understand, the photos helped explain the differences, and the point of view James uses doesn't give it too much of a "DMCH propaganda"(to drive business to DMC) feeling that some people seem to get excited about.

For someone that doesn't know alot about the car and is looking to purchase one, it would be very helpful to read and easy to bring along with them when they look at a potential purchase.

But you don't have to take my word for it. Read the book yourself and post on here your thoughts.

[Fluxat88MPH]

The Illustrated Buyer's Guide to Delorean Automobiles Review....

I purchased this at DCS 2012 and read it on the flight home and afterwards to finish it up and thought I would share my review of it since I have completed reading it. I am reviewing it from a Delorean owner's mindset vs. a potential owner, who it is aimed at:

There are 122 pages to it. When I first saw it, I thought to myself, "Jees, that's a small book" and questioned if it was worth the $30.
There are many color photos in it of detailed differences of the car. This is what sold me on the book because I was interested in learning new things about the Delorean.
I couldn't help but continue thinking as I was reading how other people would attack the book or its contributors after seeing the posts on DMCTalk.
However, in my opinion I think the book was carefully written as to be accurate and allow for other opinions and alternate possibilities as the car was never a cookie-cut vehicle in production, making it very interesting to learn more about.

There are so many details to the book. The only thing discussed in the book that I thought could have been expanded on, detail-wise, was the HVAC overlay changes throughout production with more photos of the differences. But this is trivial. Otherwise, I couldn't think of anything from my personal knowledge that was left out or inaccurate and I learned alot more.

Anyhow, I believe it was worth the purchase and was a good read. It was easy to understand, the photos helped explain the differences, and the point of view James uses doesn't give it too much of a "DMCH propaganda"(to drive business to DMC) feeling that some people seem to get excited about.

For someone that doesn't know alot about the car and is looking to purchase one, it would be very helpful to read and easy to bring along with them when they look at a potential purchase.

But you don't have to take my word for it. Read the book yourself and post on here your thoughts.

I haven't read any comments on the forum about this book and don't have any vendetta against James. But I will say this with what reading and skimming I did of the book of yours Josh. There did seem to be some vagueness in a few areas could have gone into more depths with. There also was some what of a propaganda to it in directing people to a certified dealer or something of the sort for fixing things (Honestly can't recall if DMCH was recommend or just a vendor in general.) I can't remember the exact wording but just the impression I got while reading. I even pointed out a few of those to someone while reading. I think the book might be more informative or directed to someone who knows very little about the or an insurance agent. So my disclaimer is that it is informative to a lamen if you will. However it seemed to offer very little for me personally. Now I know James has worked hard on this book and those that contributed. I'm also not saying I could do a better job either. $30 seems a bit pricy for what it is for me. Just my 2 cents.

[Michael]

$30 seems a bit pricy for what it is for me. Just my 2 cents.

Look at it from a non-owner, non-informed point of view, if you are in the market for a 25k+ car, 30 bucks is nothing to pay to help you find one that will not end up costing you thousands in repairs. I don't think this book was meant to be a bible for Delorean owners, nor was it meant to be the end all of Delorean buying advice. It's just a primer of sorts, something for people in the market to get their feet wet before setting out on looking seriously. When I was in the market I would have snatched this up and considered it money well spent. This isn't a detailed book, it's a guide, and isn't that what's written on the cover as well?

[dvonk]

Look at it from a non-owner, non-informed point of view, if you are in the market for a 25k+ car, 30 bucks is nothing to pay to help you find one that will not end up costing you thousands in repairs. I don't think this book was meant to be a bible for Delorean owners, nor was it meant to be the end all of Delorean buying advice. It's just a primer of sorts, something for people in the market to get their feet wet before setting out on looking seriously. When I was in the market I would have snatched this up and considered it money well spent. This isn't a detailed book, it's a guide, and isn't that what's written on the cover as well?

+1. ive been reading/learning about DeLoreans for over 16 years, but i havent yet been in the market for one. since there is a pathetic lack of DeLoreans here in NE, all my info has to come to text or photos, the latter of which i find to be much more informative (i.e., "a picture is worth a thousand words").

my first time seeing more than one DeLorean side-by-side was this past weekend at DCS 2012, and it will probably be DCS 2014 before it happens again for me. as such, this guide is an invaluable resource for me, especially with the comparison photos and succinct descriptions of the production changes, upgrades, etc... it also helps to have all the information condensed in a single location, rather than have to search through a multitude of threads specifically dedicated to individual topics.

for me, this $30 is a no-brainer.

[Totally 80s]

But you don't have to take my word for it. Read the book yourself and post on here your thoughts.

Is that a Reading Rainbow reference?

[DeLorean03]

Would this be a good book to have at a car show/cruise in for people that a ask "How much does a typical DeLorean cost?" And I don't mean throw this book at them instead of just saying "Depending on condition, about $25k for a good, reliable DeLorean." - I mean those people that show some real strong interest and you can tell "reminds you of you" before you bought your DeLorean. Would this be a good pruchase for opportunities like that?

[DeloreanJoshQ]

Would this be a good book to have at a car show/cruise in for people that a ask "How much does a typical DeLorean cost?" And I don't mean throw this book at them instead of just saying "Depending on condition, about $25k for a good, reliable DeLorean." - I mean those people that show some real strong interest and you can tell "reminds you of you" before you bought your DeLorean. Would this be a good pruchase for opportunities like that?

I guess...it doesn't specifically tell a price on cars since that would date the book, but does have alot of helpful information for someone who is looking to purchase one...

[Chris 16409]

I was going to order this through Amazon, I assume it is "in stock" and ready to ship?

[john 05141]

I bought the last one at the shoa at DCS.
As an owner, I can say this is not bad as some extra information. I have not completed the reading yet, and yes it is obvious information, but I learned something about transporting the D on a trailer that I did not know.... Not sorry at all I bought it.

John

[DMCH James]

The Illustrated Buyer's Guide to Delorean Automobiles Review....

(snip)

There are so many details to the book. The only thing discussed in the book that I thought could have been expanded on, detail-wise, was the HVAC overlay changes throughout production with more photos of the differences. But this is trivial. Otherwise, I couldn't think of anything from my personal knowledge that was left out or inaccurate and I learned alot more.
(snip)

Josh, the entire story on the HVAC overlays could take up several pages in the book - I briefly cover the topic here on the website for the book:

http://deloreanguide.com/?p=54

In the end, as at the moment there is only one style available and no known breakdowns of which ones were used on which car, I didn't spend a lot of time on it in the book. In the back of my mind, I knew that many things like this would bog down the reader and would be best left to for the web site.

Thank you for the kind words and objective review. I appreciate it!

James