New D owner as of today just saying hi. vin 16xxx

[artisticent]

Finally I own one. So happy. I definitely need some interior work done. New black dash top, knee pad, seat covers, cluster surround but I love the gray black combo. The wheels and stainless steel panels are 100% perfect. Not a ding, dent nothing. I need a few hoses that are horribly corroded and some help with a few connections but I will post pics ASAP.
I would love to know the D owners in CA near 93021. I have been a Porsche 911 guy and also owned a GMC syclone, and a nice close support system is life saving. I do plan on keeping this car so I'm not just asking questions to flip the car.
Thanks all

Nathan

[Chris Burns]

Congrats man! :thumbup2:

Sounds like a nice 83 Delorean you have there.

[artisticent]

It was interesting to learn that the 83 car was just re-vin'd 10xxx and 11xxx cars. Its all a weird story with these cars but dam do I love it lol

[Ryan King]

What city are you in? I live in Fresno, 93720

[Martyn]

Sounds like my car.
People ask what happened inside then.
I tell them that was kickning off in Belfast the day the car left the factory and a petrol bomb went through the window.

[TTait]

Finally I own one. So happy. I definitely need some interior work done. New black dash top, knee pad, seat covers, cluster surround but I love the gray black combo. The wheels and stainless steel panels are 100% perfect. Not a ding, dent nothing. I need a few hoses that are horribly corroded and some help with a few connections but I will post pics ASAP.
I would love to know the D owners in CA near 93021. I have been a Porsche 911 guy and also owned a GMC syclone, and a nice close support system is life saving. I do plan on keeping this car so I'm not just asking questions to flip the car.
Thanks all

Nathan

Welcome Nathan. I'm Tom, up in Santa Clarita.

RE: your cooling system work you can run down to DMC-CA or you can order the hoses and go to American Radiator in Sylmar (ask for David). He's a good guy, and has been very helpful with my cars (an 81 auto and an 82 5 speed). If the hoses are that corroded, you may want them to drop out the radiator, pressure test it and clean it out.

They can handle general mechanical, AC, tune ups, brakes etc. too. These guys are good, old school, affordable and honest to a fault.

Drop me a PM if you need any help.

Tom

[artisticent]

Hey Tom,

Thanks for the response. I actually just bought this car from Santa clarita lol. I will PM you.
I thought when I bought this that I could finish the few minor hose connections and hookups myself but I realize its a bit harder than I thought. I really want the car running. It was running a few weeks ago before the PO took off a few of the rotten hoses, cracked vacuum, lines and cleaned it all up. This is what I think still needs to be done.
Replace hose from the back of the water pump to toward the front of the car, re install fuel distributor and connect all fuel lines to injectors and reinstall idler pulley and belts. Then the heat shield, muffler and it should stat right up.
The reason for this is that someone who owned it let it sit for 8 years, then he sold to a guy a few months ago that started it up and discovered all the issues that a sitting car would have so he started to get these repairs done. But then he got in to a situation of needing more e and now I have it. The work he did looks amazing. He took his time and care and I'm so happy that he did these repairs. But now I need the car running. I'll post pics of the engine to get some pointers.

Thanks
Nathan

[kings1527]

Hey Nathan,

I'm Alex and I'm a new owner too. I live in Hermosa Beach but work in Hollywood. It's nice to know other Delorean owners in the area. I'm doing a lot of the work on the car myself to get it updated and up to speed if I wanted to use it as a daily driver, but it's also nice to know about Tom's connection in Sylmar. Some stuff I'm currently working on in a cramped, tiny garage in Hermosa:

1) New radiator
2) New fans (Toby's)
3) New water pump and first time taking out the intake manifold. Pretty easy to break down and get out of there. Putting it back together? I'll let you know when I get there.
4) New alternator
5) Repainting valve covers, intake manifold, W-pipe, and thermostat housing on the WP.
6) Removing the front and rear fascias for repainting. The rear wasn't so bad. The front is a total pain.
7) Oil change and new oil sending unit
8) Wouldn't mind taking off the timing chain cover and redo the seal and gaskets and a new paint job on the cover, but we'll see if I'll tackle that on this job.
9) Installed Joe Cool (just reissued by DMCMW)
10) Complete relay update

Next up after all that gets done: rebuild the front brakes.

Have fun with it and take your time if you do some stuff yourself; that's key right there. I have a habit of wanting to get things done quickly and start enjoying the car but if you're doing stuff that'll last you another 20+ yrs if done correctly, then do it right. I'm new to all this but taking a total crash course in a very short period of time. Let me know if I can help.

Alex
6575

[artisticent]

Hey Alex,

Sounds like most of your list was accomplished on my car recently by the PO. I also need to fix the front and rear bumper covers. So is yours running now or did you buy it non running. I would have held off on buying this one if it hadn't of just been running a few weeks ago. I would love to see the engine compartment of a perfectly running one and take a load of pics to compare. However I am VERY VERY tempted just to take it to someone to get the last few little things done just to get it running even though I can't afford it. I don't have the room here to have a non running car parked. I'm not sure if I should take it somewhere or pay someone knowledgeable about these cars to come over and assemble the last few things....

[jackb]

I'm a bit farther away from you, but if you head north, I live in San Luis Obispo (101 exit 200) and there is another owner here in town too.

[Jonathan]

I would love to see the engine compartment of a perfectly running one and take a load of pics to compare...

Hey Nathan,

Welcome to the cult... er, club ;) Sounds like you've got a good group of guys near you in California. You're right, the support group is really important, both local members and the forum.

While I don't try to use the word "perfect" in anything I do describing things DeLorean, here's a video of my engine bay after I had my exhaust manifold gaskets done. It might help you see a running engine bay like you mentioned. If you have any questions, just ask!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPhH_NowHh8

[DMCMW Dave]

I find all the new California activity pretty fascinating. I've been on the old DML and here forever, and up to about a year ago you would swear that most of the state of California had not been wired for the internet yet (other than Tom Tait). For a state with a pretty car-crazy reputation it seemed very strange.

What has happened? Did all the old DOA people finally sell to a younger generation?

[artisticent]

Oooooo, good to know jack. I actually have a house on the corner or buchon and Johnson. I know San luis quite well. Unfortunately I can't drive the car yet but I may have it towed to garden grove DMC to have them assemble the last few small things. Still on the fence as to who to have help me.

[dmc6960]

Curious why you are obscuring the last 3 digits of your VIN?

[kings1527]

Hey Alex,

Sounds like most of your list was accomplished on my car recently by the PO. I also need to fix the front and rear bumper covers. So is yours running now or did you buy it non running. I would have held off on buying this one if it hadn't of just been running a few weeks ago. I would love to see the engine compartment of a perfectly running one and take a load of pics to compare. However I am VERY VERY tempted just to take it to someone to get the last few little things done just to get it running even though I can't afford it. I don't have the room here to have a non running car parked. I'm not sure if I should take it somewhere or pay someone knowledgeable about these cars to come over and assemble the last few things....

You're way ahead of the game if you've already had all of that done, particularly the water pump. As I'm sure you know, the cooling system on the car was pretty subpar but with a lot of the updated componentry with today's technology (such as updated fans drawing far less current and much higher CFM, dependable RPM relays (I'll get there, Dave M), non-plastic radiators, updated fan and door lock modules, etc), there's no reason why you can't have a solid running car with the B28F engine that was used for years by Volvo.

Mine's running great but just not right now. I bought it running. I'm in the middle of all that work and ran into a bolt that was broken off in the engine that mounted the water pump. I had to drill that out but it was so rusted in there that I actually killed the threads. I'm just going to put a washer and nylon nut on the other side and do it that way rather than boring it out even more and re-threading it.

Since I had to take the intake manifold out, now I'm looking at the valve covers, dirty valley, distributor cap, rotor, plug wires, etc. So now that I'm in there, I might as well get all that done. That's the nice thing about doing it yourself - you can take the time to do that rather than have a shop do it where the "meter's running" on a daily basis. You also get a great sense for what-part-is-what-and-what-it-does.

This site is an invaluable source of info with great resources; some guys here have owned their cars for years and are very experienced. If you ever take the intake manifold off, you definitely have to download the "how to remove the intake manifold" manual out of the "how-to" section. I've read a lot of stuff before and that thing is so well done. That guy should get an award for that. It's done in such a way that, seriously, probably a 13-14 yr old could do it. Like I said before, I'll let you know about reassembling it.

My thoughts would be this: if you have the tools (right there, probably 70% of the difficulty of any job) along with the space and time, I'd say go ahead and tackle it yourself. If not, Danny at DMC CA is great and will take care of it for you. From what you've described, I'd expect a $500-$700 bill if you take it to DMC. But believe me, I know exactly what you mean by wanting to get the car running again. I haven't driven mine in about 3 weeks and I'm chomping at the bit but all of my stuff has to be done the right way.


I find all the new California activity pretty fascinating. I've been on the old DML and here forever, and up to about a year ago you would swear that most of the state of California had not been wired for the internet yet (other than Tom Tait). For a state with a pretty car-crazy reputation it seemed very strange.

What has happened? Did all the old DOA people finally sell to a younger generation?

Yeah Dave, I'm not really sure why the sudden influx of CA owners. Historically to my knowledge, there have been more owners in CA than any other state (or at least delivered here) but it's been rare to run into CA owners on this site. The climate in Southern Cal coupled with no salt is a great environment to own one. Maybe as things improve with the economy, Delorean ownership in CA will follow. Having the car turn heads in CA sure hasn't changed.

Alex
6575

[artisticent]

Wasn't concealing anything, I just wanted the forum to have some general info on my car but I didn't even have the specifics yet. But now I do so everyone is happy. I'm trying to post pics of the current status of the motor but I'm having trouble finding how to attach.

[artisticent]

I called Danny at DMC earlier today and he sounded very nice. He said that he would back next Monday so I'll have the car towed to him to handle whatever I don't get to by then.

IM SO EXCITED TO DRIVE A DELOREAN FOR THE FIRST TIME

[kings1527]

I called Danny at DMC earlier today and he sounded very nice. He said that he would back next Monday so I'll have the car towed to him to handle whatever I don't get to by then.

IM SO EXCITED TO DRIVE A DELOREAN FOR THE FIRST TIME

Danny's customer service is great. He'll treat you right. You'll love driving the car! And keep the horn stock! People don't expect such a poor sounding honk when you drive by and give them some horn after they wave at you! That's always good for a laugh!

Alex
6575

[artisticent]

Lol, once I figured out where the horn control was, I did notice it was a bit weak.

[jackb]

Oooooo, good to know jack. I actually have a house on the corner or buchon and Johnson. I know San luis quite well. Unfortunately I can't drive the car yet but I may have it towed to garden grove DMC to have them assemble the last few small things. Still on the fence as to who to have help me.

What a small world- I live at Johnson and Mill! Next time you're in SLO you, the other owner and I will have to get together.

[artisticent]

Pics

[Chris Burns]

Pics

WOW! That is a clean engine:rock_on:

[artisticent]

Lots of new parts, and existing parts cleaned, preped and painted with paint from DMC. The vacuum lines are blue so that I could know what id replaced while changing them. I want to re wrap the electrical and replace all hoses. But its all being done the right way

[artisticent]

Off to Dannys are DMC on Monday.

[jfirios]

congrats on your D purchase. I remember getting my baby last year. Danny is the best. He is always available to help out with questions or problems just over the phone too. Probably some of the nicest mechanics and people i have ever met. They are definitely passionate about their cars.
I am in San fernando. Pacoima specifically. I know there is another owner in simi valley and I see a D driving around sometimes in Reseda.
Once I finish this power issue, going to finish up the interior. It has been 6 months since I have really driven it. You will love driving it. One thing i have noticed. She will not win any speed competitions, but she is great to cruise in and definitely will turn heads. Be prepared to have people take pictures of you and your car where ever you go :)
Its funny, my friend has a new ford Raptor. Great truck. He was saying how every time he talks to someone about it, they say how cool it is. Meanwhile I am having people take photos of my car in the pepboys parking lot as we are talking about his truck. :)
Life is funny that way.