My 3 year cost totals to own(and drive) a Delorean

[Michael]

I'm coming up on my 3 year anniversary of owning 5609, and after organizing my latest batch of receipts from glove box to file, I decided to total them up just to see how much I have spent on my car(I really didn't want to know, but decided to anyway).

First a little backstory. I had been looking off and on since 2007 for a Delorean, the search really got serious in 2009(new Years Resolution, soft market, etc.) and no more than a few weeks later I found 5609 for sale in S.Fl. It was an immaculate remanufactured car from DMCH completed in May or 2006. From May 1, 2006-Feb 25, 2009 the original buyer drove it only 1,700 miles. The spotless frame and almost new Michelin Pilots pretty much confirmed the mileage as accurate and quenched any fears of broken angle drives in it's past. I bought it and on Feb. 25th 2009 drove it almost 1,000 miles back home. There were one or two things wrong with it that needed work due to just sitting, and I promptly fixed.

First I have broken my totals into 3 catergories,
1: Normal repairs and maintenance. I grouped these two together as sometimes repairs and scheduled maintenance were on the same visit and it was hard to separate them.
2: Work needed prior to purchase, this was easy as its just one repair, a rear shock had locked up due to sitting. I was hoping it would free up after driving some, but never did and I replaced the pair later on(600.00 parts and labor)...that is the only thing that was wrong at purchase
3: Things I have done to the car as upgrades such as door launchers, stainless label kit, appearance enhancements, etc....this does not include what I have spent on my Delorean office shrine(2 left fenders, 1 right fender, 3 pairs of Delorean Dunks, model cars, t-shirts, etc.) This only covers accessories I bought and actually put on the car.

Consider this as well: Over the last three years I have driven a little over 14,000 miles,(about 6k the first year, and 4k a year after) so the car sees the road often enough to consider it a weekend cruiser or pleasure vehicle. I also do not work on this car very much, the only things I do are light repairs such as replacing the alternator, I fixed a loose window guide once, installed the door launchers, replaced a angle drive and cable myself, but nothing major...but I still do not do oil changes, fuid changes, etc. ALL maintenance is done by a shop.

1: Maintenance and repairs: $3,287.00...the big ticket items here were tires, a full 30k service when I first bought it including all fluid changes and trans service, and replacing the steering rack in 2010.
2: Shocks 600.00..I could probably count this as a repair, but since it was like that when I bought it I figured I would keed it separate
3: Upgrades, 909.00. Most of this was the door launchers with additional lock actuators, stainless air box, and Tamir's stainless label kit.

I didn't figure in the following items: washing supplies and chemicals like towels, tire dress and stainless polish, or anything else needed to keep her spotless.

Actually I was a little suprised the upkeep was that low, If I were to figure in repairs only, the bill would probably be around 2k in repairs. Although this car is a remanufactured car from DMCH, I bought it secondhand, so I have no idea of how life was her first few years from Houston but with only 1,700 miles , it's safe to say she mostly sat in a garage.

So there you have it, a refurb costs a little scratch to keep on the road too, but I have to say, I have it 100% right now and she is ready for Spring. I haven't encountered any problems in the last year or so of driving other than very minor repairs and it's been very reliable and fun to drive since. The majority of the repairs popped up in the first year of ownership, probably sitting for the first 3 years of her "rebirth" didn't help it any, but now she gets out on a regular basis and has been pretty much trouble free for the past 1.5-2 years.

[hassyfoto]

Interesting break down. Especially since the car was refurbished in the past.
I just acquired my car after sitting for two decades. Guess I'll need to keep a log as well.

Glad to see the last year or two has been the joy of driving.

[Chris Burns]

You got off easy man! Getting a car that's been taken care of well to begin with certainly helps.

[DMCMW Dave]

Michael's number is interesting. We usually tell people that once the car is up to date on maintenance (a big IF) you can drive one routinely for about $1000 or so per year in ongoing maintenance. This can be two years of nothing but oil changes but the third year you'll lose something big etc. This is assuming a shop does much of the work, if you are mechanically adept, value your time at $0 and just buy parts, it can be quite a bit less. If the car isn't as up to date as you thought it was, it can be more. If you keep the car parked outside it will be more.

The other corollary is that if you ignore the car and/or maintenance for a long time, it still holds. I.E. park it for 10 years and it will be $10,000 behind. That's why a car that has set for 25 years can have pretty close to zero value (as a restoration candidate) unless everything was drained and it was stored in a dehumidified vault.

There are always exceptions, especially if something bad happens, for example a catastrophic engine-melting overheat, (which usually happens due to lack of maintenance!).

[Michael]

To be fair, I am an "overmaintainer" which is why I had a 30k service(and then some), done at the onset even though there was only 1700 miles on it. The car, like I said has been trouble free for the past year and a half or more. I think the last thing I had done was a steering rack replacement which was back in summer 2010 I believe. Remember that 3,300 dollar number is preventive maintenance and repairs all preformed by a shop, not my labor. The cost is solely my number and should in no way be considered average. If I were to drop the first year off the number, service and repairs for the past 2 years would be around 1200-1400 dollars. If I did my own work, that number would no doubt be at most half of that.

[opethmike]

I'm an over-maintainer AND over-modder. My car is excellent as a result, but it has been rather expensive. Add in the fact that my transmission exploded at one point and.... Well, let's just say I added up the numbers about two years ago, and won't be doing it again!

[DMCMW Dave]

I'm an over-maintainer AND over-modder. My car is excellent as a result, but it has been rather expensive. Add in the fact that my transmission exploded at one point and.... Well, let's just say I added up the numbers about two years ago, and won't be doing it again!

Yeah - mods don't count. But the over-maintained cars are the nicest to own because they will seldom leave you stranded.

[opethmike]

Yeah - mods don't count. But the over-maintained cars are the nicest to own because they will seldom leave you stranded.

Very much agreed, Dave. The only thing that has ever left my car stranded was my transmission incident.

[Michael]

I was searching the forums and came across this old thread and thought I would update with another years figures. Last year I spent next to nothing on my car, I had a suspension bushing break and replaced that(about 100.00 parts and labor) and I'm sure there was an oil change in there. However, this year I just had the waterpump replaced, along with the associated hoses, etc.(I noticed it at the begining stages of weeping last fall and just wanted to nip it before the driving season) I will replace the window switches in a day or so with LED switches....the ones I have now are dirty and I just decided to upgrade rather than clean. Even though last year was cheap, I have already spent 700.00 bucks on mine this year with the waterpump...(no I didn't do it myself)

I only put about 2,500 miles on it in the past 14 months, so no I didn't drive it too much..still I have to think the average number of 1k a year holds pretty close to true for those who drive their cars on a more regular basis, (and pay someone to do the work)

[vwdmc16]

I just hit my 4th anniversary the other day, Havent added up my receipts in about a year, need too, but scared too...