How to ship to the UK/EU - A Guide

[flux3d]

Hi all. If, like me, your looking to buy a DeLorean in the USA and import it back to the UK or Europe generally it can be a bit scary. I've just purchased VIN #10719 from Indiana and have created a blog of my experiences at getting it back to the UK. It's not back yet, but I've paid for it, sorted out shipping etc. Some parts were a nighmare to find information on, like the amount of import tax and VAT, not to mention paying for the car and avoiding loads of charges. Hopefully my guide will be useful to any future buyers going through the same process, and help people to avoid paying too much.

You can find it at : http://www.delorean-dream.blogspot.com

I'll be adding to it as the process of importing the car goes on, and then after that with my progress of turning it into my perfect car.

Wasn't sure if this is the best place to add the post, but I'm sure future UK/EU buyers check out this section of the forum, I know I did!

[LEVY]

Hi all. If, like me, your looking to buy a DeLorean in the USA and import it back to the UK or Europe generally it can be a bit scary. I've just purchased VIN #10719 from Indiana and have created a blog of my experiences at getting it back to the UK. It's not back yet, but I've paid for it, sorted out shipping etc. Some parts were a nighmare to find information on, like the amount of import tax and VAT, not to mention paying for the car and avoiding loads of charges. Hopefully my guide will be useful to any future buyers going through the same process, and help people to avoid paying too much.

You can find it at : http://www.delorean-dream.blogspot.com

I'll be adding to it as the process of importing the car goes on, and then after that with my progress of turning it into my perfect car.

Wasn't sure if this is the best place to add the post, but I'm sure future UK/EU buyers check out this section of the forum, I know I did!

Great!

Just your background is kind of annoying, I stopped reading just for that reason.

LEVY

[Shep]

Just your background is kind of annoying, I stopped reading just for that reason.IMHO the background is fine. The white part is a bit too transparent, so the text is a bit hard to read in some spots. Simple CSS change. :wink:

[LEVY]

IMHO the background is fine. The white part is a bit too transparent, so the text is a bit hard to read in some spots. Simple CSS change. :wink:

If you get rid of the picture on the background and leave a solid color as a background, then you should have no problem reading, then pages should load faster.

He should leave that picture as a header only.

LEVY

[Sidaries]

Hi all. If, like me, your looking to buy a DeLorean in the USA and import it back to the UK or Europe generally it can be a bit scary. I've just purchased VIN #10719 from Indiana and have created a blog of my experiences at getting it back to the UK. It's not back yet, but I've paid for it, sorted out shipping etc. Some parts were a nighmare to find information on, like the amount of import tax and VAT, not to mention paying for the car and avoiding loads of charges. Hopefully my guide will be useful to any future buyers going through the same process, and help people to avoid paying too much.

You can find it at : http://www.delorean-dream.blogspot.com

I'll be adding to it as the process of importing the car goes on, and then after that with my progress of turning it into my perfect car.

Wasn't sure if this is the best place to add the post, but I'm sure future UK/EU buyers check out this section of the forum, I know I did!

Nice blog, I may be a frequent reader. I had written my blog since I bought my car and it was in 2008. It's address is delorean.blog.hu, but it is Hungarian, so only the pictures usable for most of you. :)

[flux3d]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I've changed the background colour of the posts to a solid colour. Let me know what you think. Do people think the image should go then? I'm not 100% happy with it anyway, might just do a header version and have a solid colour as a background. I just throw it together in a hurry, just to get something up there.

Is there anything else you would like to see added?

[flux3d]

Completed the re-design of the blog. Ditched the "anoying" background and gone for a simple, yet effective top image. Much happier with the look now.

[LEVY]

Completed the re-design of the blog. Ditched the "anoying" background and gone for a simple, yet effective top image. Much happier with the look now.

Very nice, congratulations.

Very easy to navigate, no problem spending some time at your site. Will visit often.

LEVY

[Shep]

Completed the re-design of the blog. Ditched the "anoying" background and gone for a simple, yet effective top image. Much happier with the look now.Lovin' the cleaner look! Nice job :thumbup:

I see the last post on your page about tapping into the tape input for the radio by hard-wiring something into radio. Have you tried one of these?

http://dmctalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=14369&d=1351299193

You plug it into the headphone jack of your audio player of choice, and the other end goes in the cassette deck. The wire that goes into it can be changed to stick out from either side of the corner (usually just unscrew, move the wire, and reassemble), and the belt on the tape deck doesn't even need to work. As long as the electromagnetic receptor on the tape head works, that's all you need. I've used these on cars with tape decks and no auxillary plugs, and the sound quality is astounding! Do a search for "cassette adapter" or "mp3 cassette" and you'll find a few. Not sure how much they are in the UK, but if prices are equivalent, it's very inexpensive, and completely avoids the possibly of destroying the radio. There's even some mp3 players built directly into the cassette, although these are more awkward to control due to them being self-contained and needing to remove the cassette to change songs and whatnot.

Of course, part of that is inherent design: you're basically transferring the audio signal verbatim. The cassette adapter is wired so the headphone jack drives an electromagnet (solenoid I assume) on the cassette, which directly drives the electromagnetic pickup on the receiver, providing an almost flawless signal. It's just as good as hard-wiring it in in terms of sound quality, and no modifications are required. Simply plug one end into the headphone jack of your mp3 player of choice (or smartphone, tablet, computer, laptop, etc.), and the other end pops right into the cassette deck. Easy as cake. Some of these are directional though, and can only be inserted one way (the one above may be an example of this since it says "this side up"), but if they are, the wire can be switched sides to fix this problem.

[flux3d]

Hi there, and glad you like the new design. Yeh, a friend also said this would make a good fix to crating an aix input, both quick, easy and cheap. Must admit I've never used one before, so was unsure about the sound quality. However your recommendation has put my mind at rest and I'll try to hunt one down. Of course where as they used to be very cheap (you could pick them up for a pound in a pound shop) these days now that most people don't have cassette players in their cars they are harder to come by. However, that's what eBay is for!

I might even consider using it for a more permanent fix, by using the internal wiring for the transfer over of the signal to the tape section of the amplifier. The problem with just using the headphone jacks output directly into the circuit before the amplifier is that the signals power would probably be too great for the circuit, therefore potentially damaging the electronics. The strength of the signal coming out of the headphone jack is far higher powered than the compatible signal from the cassette head pickup. Maybe these units have a simple, but effective way of reducing this signal. Have to look into it.

Either way thanks for the input.

[Shep]

The problem with just using the headphone jacks output directly into the circuit before the amplifier is that the signals power would probably be too great for the circuit, therefore potentially damaging the electronics. The strength of the signal coming out of the headphone jack is far higher powered than the compatible signal from the cassette head pickup. Maybe these units have a simple, but effective way of reducing this signal. Have to look into it.I assume there's a resistor in there somewhere to limit the signal strength, or some intentionally inefficient design (weak coil?) that only transmits a portion of the signal strength. I always put my MP3 player on full volume with the cassette adapter, and so far no damage to anything. It's the same MP3 player that gave me quite a bit of hearing loss when I used headphones with it, so the volume is only as limited as the particular song it's playing. It was made before they started putting in volume limitations to avoid hearing loss, but thankfully in the five years since I stopped listening full volume with headphones (now just one ear at half volume), all the hearing loss has been reversed. None of the three cars I tried the cassette adapter in (two GM makes and one Jag) ever had any damage to their radios, and all three were stock units.

And if you're wondering how I managed to give myself that much hearing loss without noticing, well, I did notice. I just liked it loud so I could hear everything in the song. Still do, but I've learned my lesson and try to keep it at a reasonable volume for most songs. :wink:

[flux3d]

Thanks Shep, yeh I imagin your right, some sort of resistor or other reducing electronics. I might be able to use this circuit and hook it directly into the signal relay thats coming out of the tapedeck before the amp. I can then run the aux cable out the back and probably down the central column to the ashtray, where I can fix a consealed AUX port. Therefore I can use both the tape and radio function as normal, plus just plug in any other device into the aux. Nice and neat. We will see. Have to post it on the blog and here, let you know how it goes.

Most people seem to go for after market unit anyway, but i think it ruins the look of the interior.

Mind you, need the car here in the UK first!

[Dangermouse]

FWIW, I use these all the time too.

Here's one for just over a quid

http://www.amazon.co.uk/iPOD-MP3-Audio-Cassette-Adapter/dp/8229314373/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351772359&sr=8-1

or you can pay a tenner for a Sony one

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-CPA9-AE-Car-cassette-adaptor/dp/B00007EDLW/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1351772359&sr=8-3

[flux3d]

Cheers Dangermouse. Both look the business. I'll have to order one off Amazon and let you know my progress at installing it directly into my stereo, that is when #10719 finally makes it over from the States. As she was booked to leave NY on friday there have been just a few problems and she's still sitting in a garage in Indiana. Mind you, better there than full of seawater at the docks!

EMDF, I've looked a your blog on #559. Looking great mate! I'll be popping back to see your progress. Can't believe how much it'll cost you in the end, but I'm sure its more than worth it. Looking forward to seeing the final results of all that hard work and cash. I've also posted on my blog (for what its worth) about your excellent site, plu linked to it.

Hope all goes well.

Mark