Looking to buy my first DeLorean, have ZERO experience with these cars. Advice?

[JohnZ]

Welcome!

Advice: double the money, triple the time!

[PB Co]

Regardless of if you're going to work on the car or not, you should at least know your way around. A member here was in my area and agreed to meet up. I asked him to show me the basics inside and out. This way you won't go fumbling to pop the hood, engine cover, or fuse box when you're shopping. Sellers usually want their DMC12 go to a good home, especially when it's been cared for and maintained. Knowing more about the car will not only help you establish a fair price, but also increase your chances of the seller wanting to sell it to you.

Plenty of great resources here, read around and get a feel for the typical work needed. For a not-yet-owner like myself I now believe I know way too much about the DMC12 not to own one.

[jerzybondov]

+1 on above. The biggest tips i can think of: Be open minded and whatever your expectations are as far as performance/quality/etc --lower them. It seems that anyone that knows of these cars "know" are junk/slow/bad, yet in my experience nearly none of them have any first hand experience with them either, the cars get a bad rap from these people. If you come from a car history background of only owning nice new or expensive cars your whole life you may be disappointed with your first encounter with a D, On the other hand if all you have owned is a Yugo or a junk Malaise-era american car then a decent D will be the nicest thing in the world.

My point is to be realistic about expectations: its a 32+ year old low production hand built car that was rushed into production. Lotus did great with the engineering in the time space they had but Im pretty sure Toyota invested more R&D and testing into the armrests on the new Siennas than DMCL did as a whole. Unless you buy a perfect example and just squirrel it away these car's usually require some decent looking after but for many that is half the fun! So as people will say buy the nicest one you can afford, I bought a real junker and the only reason I can afford it is because im a professional mechanic.

However most owners didnt buy a D to drive all the time and do everything, To them and maybe to you it's a weekend toy that is just for show. That brings up another point these cars also come with a fame/popularity generator, trying to go to the store and mind your own business with it becomes difficult as Delorean's can gather alot of attention. If you dont like talking with random people every time you go out(usually answering the same questions over and over and correcting alot of misinformation too), its not the car for you. I got my car because of my love for BTTF too but I think I have heard more Flux capacitor joke than anyone should every be subjected too.

That said im not saying dont go for it, Please try it out and its pretty likely you will love it.

Totally agree with all of the above. Most new owners' issues are expectation related. Get the best you can afford. Don't be surprised when it goes wrong. It's a 33 year old car that was underdeveloped in terms of design & production, hand built by a generally un/newly-skilled workforce and once built was average at best in terms of performance and handling by early 1980s standards, which were pretty low. And while cars have moved on hugely since then, each DeLorean is now 33 years more decrepit. This is why management of expectations is important, even if you buy a 'new-build' from DMCH.

[andyd]

Attachment 26566

[papanoel]

I also bought my D without driving/riding in or really sitting in one also learned to drive stick in my D (everyone thought I was crazy for that one). But unless you have a substantial income or very little to no bills it would be a good idea to get willing to do some or most of your own work. The car may be in good shape to start but on a 30yr old car things WILL break down. Just sayin

Thats funny. The delorean is my first car and I bought it without a license. AND I'm learning to drive stick in it. I do have my license now though.

[D Knight]

It's just like any other car built 30 plus years ago in terms of maintenance/upkeep. If you go in knowing it's not as refined as new cars that benefit from 30 plus years of technological advancements, you'll be fine. I haven't put much into mine for the last few years as far as regular maintenance or repairs. I've done some cosmetic stuff that didn't NEED to be done, it was totally drivable and reliable. But it was severely neglected by the PO. A restored car will make a great reliable driver. Get the best car you can afford. I will say this, I've been restoring Pontiac f cars for years, this car is much easier to restore! Less expensive too! Jump in, and have fun. Just be ready for the BTTF jokes/comments and misinformation about it and it's creator.


-D Knight-

[TheSmokingMan]

I'll echo whats already been said. Buy the best example you can afford. Something with documentation that has been properly maintained would be ideal. The rule of $25k applies here. If you buy a car that's $15k, expect to Spend $20k to make it as good as a $25k car (especially if you are paying someone to do the work for you).

The best advice I can give you is to make friends with a local owner, or group of owners near you. Take someone experienced with DeLoreans along with you when you start looking. I guarantee you'll be glad you did.

[Some guy]

Here are some of the things to look for in my opinion.
1, Fuse box is behind the passenger seat. lift up the cover and make sure it is not a rats nest.
2, make sure the frame is not rusted by the front drivers side tire. (leaking break or clutch fluid)
3 make sure the frame is not rusted by the engine (these are common spots)
4 make sure the coolant bottle is stainless steal. (The original plastic one, i think are past there life.)
5 if you are buying a manual, make sure the clutch line is stainless steal.
6 check the "drive shafts" Make sure the rubber CV boots are not cracked
Other then those, just check the normal stuff. Make sure it runs, looks and drives good.

Once you buy it, be ready for;
Lots of pictures, (i make sure i have sun glasses in the car at all times.)
lots of the same BTTF quotes.
maintenance is on all cars, but take it to someone who knows what a Kjet fuel injection system is.

If you take a girl out on a date in it, down play the car, and let her think all the people looking at the car is because of her.

[Dangermouse]

This is always a useful post, if you haven't already read it:

http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?37...ted%94-threads

[AgentDL]

Hi folks,

First of all, wanted to thank everyone for their input. I'm checking back in now that I've gotten to know the DMC-12 a little better, thanks to Ken at Pedigree Motors in Delray Beach, FL. I've gone up to Ken twice, first to get my first hands-on experience with the car and a ride-along, and again to go for a test-drive once I had a chance to reacquaint myself with manual transmission in between visits (hadn't driven stick in 10 years).

So... I want one of these cars. I know that for a fact, and I'm ready to buy one within the next month or so.

I want a car that is as fuss-free as possible. As I mentioned, I'm not a mechanic or car guy, and I want to minimize to the best extent possible the amount of time it spends being worked on or repaired, or with something not functioning properly. I know that's a tall order on this car but I want to get as close as possible to this scenario, as opposed to "I'll take an OK car and don't mind tinkering with it." I'm trying to figure out, in reality, how much I am going to have to spend to get this type of car. I can afford paying a higher-end price point, but don't want to spend a lot of extra money unnecessarily.

For example, the car that Ken is showing is a DMC-Florida car on consignment. Less than 10K miles, completely restored (whatever that means), stage 2 motor upgrade, stage 1 exhaust upgrade, Eibach suspension upgrade, upgraded exhaust tips, upgraded sound system, M/T, comes with DMC warranty for 6/12 months. An awesome, heavily-upgraded car in amazing condition and supported/backed by DMC-Florida. Asking price is $55K with probably just a little bit of wiggle room.

I checked out another car today at a local exotics dealer that was acquired out of an estate. 25K miles, A/T, pristine interior and exterior, good service history with recent work done, and otherwise stock. Asking $35K. I did not drive it (yet). Being sold by someone that barely knows about these cars and will obviously provide no support whatsoever once it's sold.

So, a $20,000 difference in asking price for two vastly-different cars that both appear to be in the condition I'm looking for. A couple questions:

• Based on the quality level I'm looking for, is there anything specific I should be looking for on the cars I'm looking at?
• Do the upgrades mentioned on the more expensive car add enough value to justify the cost?
• Would you pay a premium to buy a waranteed car from a DMC franchise instead of a private buyer? How much?

And of course, any other feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!