DeLorean I'm considering

[aipri]

Hey everyone, as I mentioned in a previous post, I am in the process of DeLorean shopping in the NJ/PA area. I found this one for sale on the DeLorean Mid Atlantic site, and wanted to get some feedback from you guys. It's an 83 so I know it's not from the ideal time period as things were getting crazy at the time in 82 when it was probably built. That being said it has the black interior I want, and I'm fine with auto. The interior looks to be in great shape as well. Thoughts, suggestions? Anyone wanna come look at it with me? :eek5:

http://delorean83.wordpress.com/delorean-1983-information/

[Jimmyvonviggle]

Hi Anthony, I don't think the 83 is a bad thing. It's funny how he included a stock photo of someone else's 81 by the ocean. Car looks clean, but engine bay is taken very far away, and has the old water bottle. For 25k it better be in excellent shape. You really have to see it in person.




Good luck with the search.

[Delorean02378]

Looks like a nice car for a decent price. You definitely need to view the frame. Ask for the receipts from PJ Grady 's and see how long it's been since any work has been done and how much has been done. Rob does great work so that's worth a lot right there. I'm sure someone will disagree but the 83s are some of the best built Deloreans.
Not a fan of the automatic but I can understand why you'd want one in a high traffic area. Those look like the original tires so expect to purchase new ones.

[aipri]

Thanks for the quick replies guys. The PJ Grady reference is what piqued my interest in this car, so I definitely want to explore that more and see what was done and when. The owner says it is a garage car, and obviously has low miles, so I need to see if it has the fuel tank contamination issue I've read about with cars that weren't driven very much. Good call on the tires.

[louielouie2000]

The '83 automatic black interior cars are the rarest combination you can find on a DeLorean- only about 50 were built. It's been a while since I've seen one come up for sale. So if having a DeLorean that's a bit different from the pack interests you, this one is as good as it gets. For what it's worth, this would pretty much be my dream DeLorean if I were in the market. The fact that they have the lighter grey carpets & headliners really makes the interior pop against the black leather & vinyl pieces. These cars aren't as dark inside as the '81 black interior cars as a result. I think the '83 black interior cars are the best looking of the bunch, but that's a personal preference.

Don't let the 1983 model year bother you- they are the best built DeLoreans. The cars were tweaked throughout production to address assembly/quality/reliability issues. The '83s are buttoned together pretty darn well. I think the price is fair on this car if you can confirm it has a clean frame. '83 cars are undercoated, so you're probably safe in this regard.

A couple of things, though: the car is completely original. It's still riding on it's original 30 year old tires. It still has the original coolant bottle which will likely burst if you start putting some miles on the car. With these things being original, I'd be willing to guess none of the electrics have been updated, or anything else for that matter. This car will need a fair amount of money put into it to make it reliable & safe. Keep that in mind when you are negotiating.

[aipri]

The '83 automatic black interior cars are the rarest combination you can find on a DeLorean- only about 50 were built. It's been a while since I've seen one come up for sale. So if having a DeLorean that's a bit different from the pack interests you, this one is as good as it gets. For what it's worth, this would pretty much be my dream DeLorean if I were in the market. The fact that they have the lighter grey carpets & headliners really makes the interior pop against the black leather & vinyl pieces. These cars aren't as dark inside as the '81 black interior cars as a result. I think the '83 black interior cars are the best looking of the bunch, but that's a personal preference.

Don't let the 1983 model year bother you- they are the best built DeLoreans. The cars were tweaked throughout production to address assembly/quality/reliability issues. The '83s are buttoned together pretty darn well. I think the price is fair on this car if you can confirm it has a clean frame. '83 cars are undercoated, so you're probably safe in this regard.

A couple of things, though: the car is completely original. It's still riding on it's original 30 year old tires. It still has the original coolant bottle which will likely burst if you start putting some miles on the car. With these things being original, I'd be willing to guess none of the electrics have been updated, or anything else for that matter. This car will need a fair amount of money put into it to make it reliable & safe. Keep that in mind when you are negotiating.

Great points Louie, thanks! I really like the interior too, that is part of what sold me. I spoke with the owner and am going to look at the car tomorrow. He said that they really only take the car out for shows and meets and that everything is original. I plan on getting a bit more use out of it, so I am sure I will have to replace some old parts as you mentioned, especially the tires. But I agree with you, it is a really nice looking car, and I am excited to check it out tomorrow! If anyone else has any advice for me when I go look, please chime in!

[ccurzio]

Don't let the 1983 model year bother you- they are the best built DeLoreans.

I've heard the exact opposite. Since they knew the company was all but dead, they were pretty much sloppily throwing the cars together.

[Ryan S.]

Looks to be in good shape. As others have pointed out, get ready to spend some money on new parts and labor (for non DIY). Make sure recalls are done, otherwise you will spend some money on that as well.
Recommend reading that Delorean handbook which might come in handy. Good luck

[Shep]

If anyone else has any advice for me when I go look, please chime in!If you're serious about buying it, after you've gone over the rest of the car, insist on a test drive right before making an offer, if not sooner. Especially with the low miles it has, this can be an expensive mistake if you find out it's not running and need to get it to the point where it will run reliably (ask me how I know). If it's been sitting for too long, the rule of thumb is $1,000 in parts (not labor) for every year it sat in order to get it back up and running. If he's serious about selling, he'll let you drive it. And if he won't, take that as a red flag. If it drives, that'll be a huge bonus for both parties involved, and should "seal the deal" so to speak.

Just remember, it's a 30-year-old car, so it's going to drive like a 30-year-old car. That means it'll take some muscle to steer and brake (the former only below ~35 MPH, the latter still very doable, just with more force than modern cars), will make squeaks and odd noises, handling won't be as sporty as today's two-seaters, it's 30-year-old technology and it shows. But it's still fun as hell to drive. :biggrin:

Best of luck! :thumbup:

[louielouie2000]

I've heard the exact opposite. Since they knew the company was all but dead, they were pretty much sloppily throwing the cars together.

This is the first I've ever heard of the '83s being poor build quality. Did you hear this from people who own '83s, or from Nick Sutton's book? Personally, I've always been impressed by the build quality of the '83s. Their panel fitment is the best of the lot, their doors operate perfectly, and the '83s I've driven have seemed to be more solid than the countless '81s I've driven. The 20,000 series cars were supposedly built by the plant managers, so in theory they should be nicely put together. Not to mention the later cars incorporated the lessons learned from the earlier ones, things like the upgraded alternator, antenna, coolant routing, door guides, undercoating, etc. The people I've known who have owned '83s seem to agree with all of this.

The one bad thing I have heard about '83s is that some of the earlier "problem cars" which were sidelined from much earlier production dates were thrown back onto the assembly line & cobbled together. Obviously, there's almost no way of knowing if the car in the thread is one of those.

[Soundkillr]

I've heard the exact opposite. Since they knew the company was all but dead, they were pretty much sloppily throwing the cars together.

All the 83's I've seen haven't really stood out to me as better build quality either, and I look at that stuff. My 81 on the other hand looks well fit, as far as panel gapping. I have seen some cars that look great and some that don't. Years didn't seem to matter. Mostly hit or miss.

[aipri]

Thanks for all of the input guys! I went and checked out the car today, I must say it is in very good condition. The couple that owned it have had it since 93 and are the second owners. They showed me all of their records from PJ Grady's which included a lot of regular maintenance as well as draining and cleaning the fuel tank recently. I checked under the car and it is undercoated, the frame looks very good and I couldn't find any rust. The owners said it is a garage queen and hasn't even seen rain. From what I saw of the car, I am inclined to believe them. While it doesn't have many miles on it, they said they do periodically start it and drive it around the block, so it's not just sitting, additionally they drove it to shows, meets, etc. It really looks like they babied this car. That being said, they only did regular maintenance, it does not appear they upgraded anything. As you can see in the pic, it does have the original overflow bottle, but as seems to be the theme with this car, the bottle is in great condition, no cracking and barely even discolored. Obviously to be safe I will replace it anyway. The only real issue I saw was that the speedometer was definitely a bit shaky going up to 25. I am assuming this is from the angle drive, dust shield, etc issue. I'm fine with this as obviously this is a 30 yr old car, and I am prepared to do work to it, I just didn't want to walk into a land mine, which I do not believe this is. So in a nutshell, I was very impressed, the car will definitely need some upgrades, but the core of the car is in great shape, as well as the body for that matter, and I did not see any of the major issues outlined in the Buyer's Guide. I gave the owner a deposit to hold the car while I work out financing, my first stop is J. J. Best Banc. Thanks again for all of the input! Hopefully I will be joining the community officially soon! Oh also for what it's worth its a DD016 VIN

[uhhair]

Just to add my two cents, I think that $25k is a lot for a car still rocking the original overflow tank, VERY low miles (indication of not being used much in recent years, if at all), etc. Just my opinion though. I'd be more inclined to pay closer to $20k than $25k for car.

What did you see in the service records besides the fuel tank being cleaned? When were the belts last replaced? Plugs/wires? How did the fuse box look?

The cosmetics are nice, but for that price, any car you find should have great cosmetics.

Just my thoughts on it. I'd get an experienced D owner to go take a second look at it with you to be safe.

[aipri]

Belts and fuse box looked good. I made them come down to 23k

[jawn101]

Also, for what it's worth - I wouldn't give a dime for a car with an undercoated frame. That's opinion, since here in CA the cars don't have rusty frames anyway, but that undercoating is kind of a gross mess if you ask me. Especially if you start spraying chemicals around down there (I'm a fiend with the brake cleaner) and it starts melting and coming off. I've heard that can happen but never experienced it.

[aipri]

Also, for what it's worth - I wouldn't give a dime for a car with an undercoated frame. That's opinion, since here in CA the cars don't have rusty frames anyway, but that undercoating is kind of a gross mess if you ask me. Especially if you start spraying chemicals around down there (I'm a fiend with the brake cleaner) and it starts melting and coming off. I've heard that can happen but never experienced it.

Point taken but I'm still digging this car lol

[Jimmyvonviggle]

Point taken but I'm still digging this car lol


It kinda sounds like even if you found a dead body in the car you'd still love it. So I think your mind is pretty set. Good luck, and let us all know when you bring her home.