My Delorean VIN 3305 - coming to Italy!!

[JohnZ]

Hi there guys! With much pleasure I finally decided to share my joy with all of you!

:grouphugg:

After six long months of deep hunting and researching I found my Delorean! VIN 3305, August '81, manual transmission and grey interiors! The car comes from Indiana, mr. Jason from the Indiana Delorean Club gave me the opportunity to purchase this DMC. I have to thank him VERY much, I will always remember his kindness and support from the beginning of my adventure! It seemed a kind of a destiny to buy the car from him, since he was the first american guy I contacted in early January!

Then the second BIG thanks goes to my Greek friend ALEXAKOS! He has proven to be so brotherly with his advices and he definitely gave me the strength to achieve this wonderful purpose! I hope I will be able to return all of this, but after all I'm just at the beginning!

:rock_on:

Now the car. It's in pretty good conditions, it needs clutch and brakes to be serviced, as well as the fuel accumulator. Gas struts are to be changed as well as the coolant bottle and all of those little but important things that a stock car have. Interiors are neat, no eye brows on the fascia and the engine starts and revs like a charm with just 21.000 miles on it! So I'm happy with it.

At the moment the car sits in Georgia waiting to be shipped to Italy (I come from north east of Italy), I think these are going to be the longest months of my life! But I feel so confident knowing that I've got you all as a support; moreover I'm a member of the Italian Delorean Club (there are more or less 50 DMCs in Italy) and they are supportive as well.

Here you have some pics:

21257 21258 21260

Loading 3305:
21259

Well... This is where the fun begins!!!

:race:

[Dangermouse]

Congrats.

Let the fun begin Luigi :)

[JohnZ]

Ahah actually my name is Giovanni (which is "John"), but I used to love super Mario on the old NES so I appreciate "Luigi"!

:D

[silverhair01]

Congratulations on your new purchase! I'm super excited for you.

[Dangermouse]

Ahah actually my name is Giovanni (which is "John"), but I used to love super Mario on the old NES so I appreciate "Luigi"!

:D

Oops. Sorry about that. One of the problems of tapatalk is that you can't see members signatures.

[pezzonovante88]

Congratulations! Very nice looking DeLorean.

[louielouie2000]

Looks to be a very clean, totally original car; perfect for a full mechanical restoration. Congratulations on your purchase!

[Josh]

congrats on the purchase! Let the fun begin!

It took me a month to receive my car as well, it is definitely a difficult wait!

[JohnZ]

Yeah thank you my friends! What fascinates me now is that despite the fact that I've read tons of notions and features about our car (as well as James Espey's book, Stainless Steel Illusion and the latest Nick Sutton book which I literally devoured) I feel like there is still a world to learn! And I'm willing to do, and try, and test all that I can perform on the Delorean car by myself!

It's like now I'm into stage II of the whole thing, ready to become more and more skilled!

:rollin:

[NightFlyer]

AWESOME!!! :nana1:

I just did a full brake job on #1798 - get the car up in the air, remove wheels/tires, pull all calipers, fully disassemble, meticulously clean all parts (I used lacquer thinner, brake cleaner, 300 & 400 grit sandpaper, green scotch bright pads, and several different sized/shaped brushes), replace corroded cylinders with new or decent condition used, reassemble with new pads/rubber/pins/shims (using the front/rear rebuild kits), replace all four soft lines with new, remove master cylinder and reservoir, clean reservoir, purge the system with compressed air to get as much of the old fluid/crap out of the lines (do this only after changing the soft line hoses, as if your soft lines are anything like mine were, they're probably packed solid with gelatinous crap and won't otherwise purge before changing), replace master cylinder with new and reinstall reservoir, install rebuilt calipers, fill the reservoir with new fluid, bleed each line separately until new fluid free from air bubbles purges from the caliper bleed valve, install new rubber bleed valve dust caps (included in the rebuild kit), install wheels/tires, get car back on the ground, enjoy your new brakes!

NOTE: I didn't need new rotors, as the originals were at 99% of spec or better and in good shape (didn't need to be turned), but you may need to pull your rotors as well and either have them turned/shaved-to-true or replaced with new.

All in all, what I did took me around 30 hours, including a trip to Crystal Lake to purchase the necessary parts from DMC-Midwest (I actually pulled an all nighter and worked straight through).

I also just changed the fuel pump, fuel accumulator, fuel filter, fuel distributor, soft-line fuel hoses, spark plugs, ignition distributor cap/rotor, coil, mounted/balanced new tires, ..... 11 days of nothing but straight work on the D (including 3 all nighters).

Best of luck and welcome to the wonderful world of D ownership! :biggrin:

[SteveyP]

Very well done John. Many moons ago I think I advised you on the UK owners site to import a US D, rather than hunt around Europe for one? By the looks of it you have found a bobby dazzler.

Steve

[JohnZ]

You're right there Stevey! I clearly remember your advice! I have to say that I had the chance to purchase a Jan 1982 here in Italy in April! Too bad the seller changed his mind about the selling so he still owns the car today! What a painful experience! I almost had it in my hands and a just second after it was gone!

Now I'm satisfied with this international purchase and I keep my finger crossed for everything to come!

:wink:

By the way, let me thank a lot mr. Dick "Rad Dad" Ryan too! Despite our heavy age gap he's been friendly and supportive in these months of search!

:wiggle:

[Domi]

I'm happy to read you finally found your DeLorean dream!
Congratulation on your purchase, and enjoy the car when it will comes to Italy.
You have a lot of owners out there whom will be able to help you without any problem.

[Rad Dad]

Hey Giovanni, no need to thank me. It was my pleasure to get to know you. There will be days when you may think " what the heck have I done?". But, those days pass (as does your money) and then you grin all over again. We will all be watching for your updates. Oh, there are only 50 or so years separating us - - no big deal!

Dick Ryan, The Rad Dad
Vin 16867

[OverlandMan]

John - Very happy for you. You've been lurking around here for a while and it's nice to see all your hard work and dedication pay off. You'll have to keep us all posted on the shipping process. I seem to recall ALEXAKOS's car took months to finally receive. Hopefully yours doesn't take that long.

The pictures of the car look good. Looks to be a very original car as some of the other members have mentioned.

Wow! 50 cars in Italy?! That seems like a lot to me. I thought there were only about 200 cars in all of Europe. I don't recall where I heard that so don't hold me to that.

I think you made the right move getting one in the United States. I imagine it was a more lucrative move for you with a larger selection of cars.

:cheers:

[Jimmyvonviggle]

Congratulations for taking the plunge. I have to admit I thought you were one of those that would lurk here and never buy one. Hope you enjoy her.

One piece of advice I would give you if possible, is before I imported my car into Canada, I wanted to send it to pj Grady to be fixed up before I got it. Unfortunately Rob didn't give me the time of day and told me he was too busy for me. At that time I wasn't aware of all the other great vendors. So if at all possible try to send the car to a DMC facility in the usa first before shipping it out and let them inspect it and fix anything you don't want to handle yourself.

Btw do,you have a name picked out for her yet?

[JohnZ]

Ahah Jimmy I was about to give up (I was struggling to search my car) but in the end it all came naturally!

Dick: I start to realize that Delorean ownership is like a good love story, isn't it? I mean... lovely days, but on the other side I've got doubts and there will be a time when I will ask myself "why?" like you said... but love will still be there I think!

Jim do you mean a name for the car?? mmmmm, let me see it in person first (like the real babies) and the name will spring immediatly out of my head!

:giggle:

[JohnZ]

One piece of advice I would give you if possible, is before I imported my car into Canada, I wanted to send it to pj Grady to be fixed up before I got it. Unfortunately Rob didn't give me the time of day and told me he was too busy for me. At that time I wasn't aware of all the other great vendors. So if at all possible try to send the car to a DMC facility in the usa first before shipping it out and let them inspect it and fix anything you don't want to handle yourself.?

That's a good point. You see, here in Italy there is a guy which has been one of the first italian Delorean owners and he developed important skills concerning the car. So he does work on the car just like a trained Dmc mechanic (years ago he worked for Ed Uding in the Netherlands too). He's put his signature upon a lots of Delorean here in Italy, so the very first step is going to be this: bringing the car to his workshop for a complete inspection!

Moreover, I live in Veneto and the higher concentrations of Deloreans in Italy is... in Veneto! I've got 3 friends that owns the car and they're just 100 miles far from me! And they did A LOT of job on their cars since 2007. So I feel very confident about servicing the car here in Italy!

:)

[delornut]

[QUOTE=JohnZ;116714]Yeah thank you my friends! What fascinates me now is that despite the fact that I've read tons of notions and features about our car (as well as James Espey's book, Stainless Steel Illusion and the latest Nick Sutton book which I literally devoured) I feel like there is still a world to learn! And I'm willing to do, and try, and test all that I can perform on the Delorean car by myself!

It's like now I'm into stage II of the whole thing, ready to become more and more skilled!

:rollin:[/Q

I'm happy to see you finally got your Delorean. You've put up with a lot of rejections in your search, including mine, when I had mixed feelings about parting with the car. You'll enjoy this car on the roads of Italy and I envy you that opportunity. Here in Minnesota the "Delorean season" is too short with our long winters.

Bruce Benson

[JohnZ]

Yes I definitely picked up a lot of rejections but you don't have to worry, that is how things go in life!

Anyway, I don't really feel like a Delorean owner at the moment... I mean, the car is 4000 miles away and don't believe I actually own a Dmc by now!

Weird situation.... :umm:

[Andy]

Congratulations on youre purchase! I know you've been looking for a long time now and I'm glad you can finally start 'living the dream'!

Andy

[JohnZ]

Andy too bad we did not catch up months ago! Anyway I'll probably be needing your support too!

:)

I can't wait for the car to come!

:smashfreak:

[ALEXAKOS]

I don't like it!
What were you thinking boy?

[ALEXAKOS]

HA!! Messing with you GIO!

Here are my public Congratulations on a much anticipated moment! Love your double digit vin. Great sale Jason!

WOW! This thread feels like a "Congratulations party":drummer:

All of the Delorean's "creme de la creme" owners are here!!
Two pints of beer at this table please!!!!



PS Happy delivery! And do keep us updated on the status of the D. (http://marinetraffic.com/ais/)

[JohnZ]

Ahah I almost had an heart attack reading your first post Alex!

:D

Anyway I'm expecting to receive an ALFA ARNA, so with these low expectations when the D will arrive I will not be disappointed at all!

:headbang:

[Andy]

Ahah I almost had an heart attack reading your first post Alex!

:D

Anyway I'm expecting to receive an ALFA ARNA, so with these low expectations when the D will arrive I will not be disappointed at all!

:headbang:

An Alfa Romeo Arna? I think these are even rarer than a DeLorean ... Not many of those around, are they?

[JohnZ]

Yes my father says that he used to see many of those around in the 80s here, but now they disappeared completely!

Anyway I meant that I'm in the mood of receiving an ARNA instead of a Delorean! They were crappy cars, so when I will see that it actually is a Delorean I won't be disappointed!

It's not that I really purchased an ARNA, that's a trick of my mind to feel better when the Delorean will arrive!

Less expectations, more happiness!

:thumbup2:

[ALEXAKOS]

I am sure your happiness will exceed that of the till now closed eyes driving an Ypsilon pretending its a D! :sleep:
And less dangerous!:rock_on:

Like I said several months back, I was sure you would be driving yours long before I get to drive mine.


Oh Wait! I drove mine on and off the road side assistance truck! hahahaha

[JohnZ]

Ahahah! You're right ! Too bad for you we didn't bet on it! :giggle:

Anyway, I'm getting used to a two seater car by constantly reclining the back seats of my mother's car! :hihi2:

[JohnZ]

little new: the arrival is scheduled for september the 17th!

:headbang:

[NightFlyer]

AWESOME! :aniclap:

[JohnZ]

Actually tomorrow is the real arrival date! I'm thrilled... then I'll have to pay taxes and sort some paperwork and then pick it up!

Let us pray for the best! I'll keep you updated!

:)

if everything goes right... :drunk: :drunk:

[Silverbullet]

Pics when you get it or it does not count.... LOL.... Congrats!

Craig

[OverlandMan]

Actually tomorrow is the real arrival date! I'm thrilled... then I'll have to pay taxes and sort some paperwork and then pick it up!

Let us pray for the best! I'll keep you updated!

:)

if everything goes right... :drunk: :drunk:

I'm looking forward to seeing this thread blown up with pictures very soon. The anxiety is probably driving you crazy about now.

[Dangermouse]

And hot Italian models!!

[Domi]

Tomorrow, you'll be very happy!
Don't forget to share some pictures of your car with us :)

[JohnZ]

Wait, I'm not going to pick it up yet! But I will be pleased to know that it finally touched Italian land !

Some days will pass before I will be able to take the baby to my place...

:clown:

[ALEXAKOS]

Tick tock Amico!! :)
Every set of that sound brings you closer to that dream! :hihi2:

And for GOD's SAKE!!! Be sober when you go to pick up you car! :chairfall:

[JohnZ]

Ahah don't worry, at work and in my things I'm always stone cold sober and extremely serious!

:wiggle:

[Delorean02378]

Wait, I'm not going to pick it up yet! But I will be pleased to know that it finally touched Italian land !

Some days will pass before I will be able to take the baby to my place...

:clown:

Some days have passed, let's see the pictures! :nana1:

[Josh]

Some days have passed, let's see the pictures! :nana1:

x2!!!

[JohnZ]

Yes you are right there but please let me find the time to write a full report! I'm happy as you can imagine, but I want to tell you everything with calm!
Hopefully tomorrow I will provide story and photos!

:wiggle:

[ALEXAKOS]

when will your beloved one be at your home?

[JohnZ]

HERE I AM!

Phew lately I've been too busy to even think about writing a report for you! You know, I'm known to be a hard worker (otherwise I wouldn't have been able to buy the baby! :D ) but anyway it's saturday and now I'm free! :)

First of all: the Delorean is here safe and sound as this shoot can confirm:

22227

When I first saw the car on wednesday at the docks my heart was burning with joy and desire! Yet I was sad to see her completely covered with dust and with a low tyre. Someone had stolen not only my 4 valve covers but all the cars in there were missing that piece! By the way we borrowed an air compressor and started to blow up the tire until it was brand new!

I did my first drive on 3305 toward the truck while my dad and my brother were pushing the car... what an emotion! I have troubles with the transmission and the battery was down so that was the only way to load the car. A part from the Delorean being in a semi-abandoned state (dust and everything), the employees were kind and supportive. There was an old man that claimed that his Dino Ferrari was similar to the Delorean!

And when I first opened the door I knew that the struts were to be changed but HELL! What a heavy door! The struts had absolutely no charge, so we had to sustain the door with our hands! Real PITA there, and so impractical to get in and out! My first purchase will be related to this.

The journey back home was incredible! Everybody were staring and yelling and pointing at us! I collected my first BTTF jokes! And the alluminium ones, and the car was confused with other cars (the Beta Montecarlo or the Matra) and my fellowship could not believe all of this! Then we put the car into a small garage at my grandma's house, which has not been inhabited by years now. The car fitted prefectly and there I found my cousin, who is a trained Renault mechanic, that was totally surprised of finding such a piece of history there! I will surely need his help.

Great emotions! The first thing I will do is to wash it carefully (I don't want to scratch the steel) and then replace the struts and so on! There is so much to do! Even though it is in great conditions you know how it works with Deloreans! The car is 30 km far away from my living place, so I will have just little amount of time to work on it! But I have to say that my father is retiring from his job, so he will surely be more free than me!

Here it is a complete photo album of the experience: http://www.flickr.com/photos/103358720@N03/ just relax, see and smile! :)

I hope I will enjoy my ownership as much as I enjoyed that day. Apart from the money, I'm dealing with feelings here. And isn’t that what it is all about?

:)

[ALEXAKOS]

Dream Realized:)
Well done amico! Remember all those PM's of anxiety asking me when the day will come?
Not only it happened, but it happened smoothly with a lovely D!

Enjoy pampering it cause the BEST feeling after picking it up from the port is the first drive.

You look good in it and I just love the one where you are being pulled up the trailer and you're leaning out to see if the tire is on the right track! ;)
It expresses your temperament, looking carefully for your favorite D.

Drive safely!:smoke1:

[DL4567]

Big congratulations JohnZ!!! The pictures are great. These are exactly the kind of pics we love to see. It lets many of us live the experience of getting our D's all over again. (my arrival pictures are very similar)

Also, even though it's dusty, your car looks very nice. It'll look perfect after a wash! I can see you had a bunch of friends and family enjoying the event with you, and that everyone had a good time. Enjoy the car and keep posting pictures when you have time.

:thumbup2:

[Michael]

Congratulations! Those pictures really capture your excitement :thumbup2:

[ALEXAKOS]

OH OH!!!

The DeLorean has eaten Giovanni!!!!

He is so focused on his new baby, we probably won't come back to this forum for a few months!!
hahahahaha

By that I mean, until something needs fixing...:histerical1:

[ALEXAKOS]

22227
Hey Govanni! Finally a car that fits and you can open the driver's door in that squeezy garage. Aside of course the old Fiat 500.
Reminds me of Mr. Bean's Garage. He got out of his Mini and pushed the car in to his garage!

[JohnZ]

Ahah I'm here Alex don't worry! Yesterday I washed the body of the car with high pressure water and careful (and straight) sponge work! I have been told by a woman that was there (in fact my grandma's neighbour) that it seemed like I was caressing the car rather than cleaning it! But the result is outstanding: it's just another car! Well actually I'll have to work on it underneath but at least it shines now!

Yes the garage is very tight, but there is no need for me to open the door inside the garage (in that photo I could easily do it anyway), so I decided to store it like mr. Bean's minor! It fits perfectly! Next days I'll clean a bit the interiors (which seem perfect) and then replacing the struts (still to order) because it's so dangerous to get into the car with out struts! As well as the louvre and the hood they definitely won't stay up!

:)

apart from those little works... HARD DAYS WILL COME!

:hihi2:

[Dangermouse]

I waited til this morning to look at the photos full-size on the computer - great pics, Giovanni, you look very happy, naturally.

Give your baby a bath and check all it's bits and pieces and keep on posting those pics.

[JohnZ]

Today I went to the car's place with a friend of mine to check out some things and to become more familiar with the car itself. This guy was a body shop mechanic back in the nineties, and he's got that practice experience that I honestly lack, even though I'm willing to achieve it with this ownership. After a few checks we went for the battery, plugged it in (the date in the battery was 6/13, so brand new thing there) and decided to give the car a first go!

10... 9... the moment was so exciting... 8.... 7... ready to go... 6.... 5... shield your ears buddies... 4... 3... I and II key position... 2... 1... ignition... *click* bzzzzzzzz!!! nothing happened there :paranoid: at least we heard that the damn buzzer was working and there was power in the system! After having disconnected the buzzer I tried once again to start the engine, but I could only hear the relays activating without result.

So we checked out the relay compartment focusing on RPM relay but everything was ok. Then we had the illumination! We found out the "starter relay" with the help of the wonderful James Espey's book (fuses and relay page), pressed it down a bit while I turned the key and... TA DAAAH! The whole spaceship started!! Yes it coughed a bit, but revving with care made the engine's idle smooth and clear!! We were so happy! :D :D And what a sound! WROOOOM! My old neighbour came out of her house yelling "everything is shaking here! It's the earthquake!" "don't worry ma'am... it's just the Delorean!!" :) :) :)

Then we tried lights and everything, and a part from the front turning signal everything was working right! With the hazard switch on all the signal works, but they're not working if I use the lever on the wheel! It worked with the left one, then I tried the right light and after a few crack noise it didn't work anymore. Then the left one was gone too... but with the hazard on everything works fine. Any suggestions?

So it turned out that the starter relay does not really make its contact, since to turn on the car my friend had to push it a bit down to his location. Any suggestions (2) ? After a bit of musical idle, we found out that the infamous fuel pump relay was getting hotter and hotter so we turned it down. I will have to do the alternative wire solution to solve that, but in a far future (when I will need the car to run effectively).

So a part from the technical matters, it was a very exciting day. My friend was happy too, and he was surprised to find out that within a matter of minutes I had been able to track down the problem and to solve it! Well I told him that I read, and read, and read soo much before getting to this... and moreover he is much more practical than me! He recognized with ease some feature that he could see in old italian cars (that are probably common in every 80s car...:) )

...any way I left the place after a few hours with a smile on my face! :) :)

[ALEXAKOS]

Lovely moment.:partyhat:

Spray some DW40 on all the contacts of the relays just to get those all lubed connected correctly.

[JohnZ]

Ok I'll try with the WD! Anyway, inside the car I have to say that it's very confortable! We also tried the window motors (original) and yes... they go, but they're noisy as well!

:)

[Jonathan]

Congrats John!! Looked like a terrific day for you and your family. Looks like your Mom/Aunt in the last photo or two was pretty impressed as well... I can imagine you were really excited to tell her all about the car and it's features! Hard to sleep that first few nights, eh?

With your turn signals problem, does the horn work if you press the button in on the left stalk? Do the windshield wipers or high beam headlights work if you use the right stalk? You can double check the electrical connectors to that steering column switch assembly under the footwell there.

Looking forward to seeing some more photos when you get time. Especially the interior, and engine bay, trunk, fuse/relay area, etc. You have lots of eyes on the forum here to help you figure things out.

Tutto posto Giovanni!! :)

[JohnZ]

The one touching the Delorean is actually my aunt! She touched the car with her nails as soon as it landed in the yard, and I told her "stop with those nails!!" :smashfreak:

:) :)

Anyway, the horn, wipers and so on work well, I'll check out all the connections under the steering wheel next time I'll reach the car! I wish I was on vacation! :swear1:

:D :D

[JohnZ]

Yesterday I installed (all by myself!) the door and hood struts! I was a bit ill so I didn't manage to get to the louvre struts! Those door struts were hard to take away! The funk of 40 thousand years was there! Anyway I did it!

Now the door they don't really go all the way up (Ed Uding's struts) but if you help them they will stay up! I found them to be a perfect first set of struts! As time will pass I will get Hervey's one I think.

:)

[Lukas]

If your doors don't go all they way up by themselves, but will stay up if you do it manually, then you may need a torsion bar adjustment. I had the same issue after installing new struts, and a torsion bar adjustment fixed the issue.

[ALEXAKOS]

you may need a torsion bar adjustment.
+1

[JohnZ]

This is what I fear.

Consider that my car has been unused for about 8 years. Spark plugs and fuel system and so on has been renewed so no trouble there (at the moment), but imagine what can happen to the bars after 8 years of constant torque... I have to say that driver's door need some pushing (from the inside) to even start to raise, and when I was without struts I did the "torsion bar test" and the door did not reached the 20 centimeters opening.... :( I think that my driver's door need some horizontal adjustment too.

And I use the word "fear" because I read about re-torquing the bars and it is not funny, and moreover it seems dangerous too!

:rolleyes1:

One of these days I'll replace louvre's struts too and will take some photos, I promise! 8)

[ALEXAKOS]

And I use the word "fear" because I read about re-torquing the bars and it is not funny, and moreover it seems dangerous too!

Not really. Just have a second pair of hands with you!:Headspin:

[Delorean02378]

This is what I fear.

Consider that my car has been unused for about 8 years. Spark plugs and fuel system and so on has been renewed so no trouble there (at the moment), but imagine what can happen to the bars after 8 years of constant torque... I have to say that driver's door need some pushing (from the inside) to even start to raise, and when I was without struts I did the "torsion bar test" and the door did not reached the 20 centimeters opening.... :( I think that my driver's door need some horizontal adjustment too.

And I use the word "fear" because I read about re-torquing the bars and it is not funny, and moreover it seems dangerous too!

:rolleyes1:

One of these days I'll replace louvre's struts too and will take some photos, I promise! 8)

Before you adjust your torsion bars, check out this thread and notice the difference between door struts. Mine weren't going all the way up either and a different set of door struts made all the difference. The thread was labeled "door struts"

Both sets of struts are new and the videos were taken within 30 minutes of each other. Temperature was about 83 degrees. I remembered to show the label on the first video however due to the mosquitos and limited sunlight left, I forgot to show the second.

The first video is of the strut from Delorean Motor Company.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WzCQJgRjSw

The second video is of the strut from PJ Grady's. I believe this is the same strut that John Hervey sells.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6web11mYG0s

Amazing how much difference there is, one is too soft and the other is a little strong. Before adjusted your torsion bars, try another door strut.

PS - Yes, I know my front light is out and fortunately, I have extra bulbs. I'll be switching that out this weekend.

Thanks to Kyle for opening the doors.

[ALEXAKOS]

Good points!

Also pray grease them door hinges. My drivers door wouldn't go up all the way and both the strut and the torsion bar were struggling to lift the door.
When I removed the door, the front hinge was impossible to move per hand! I was amazed it even worked with the torsion and strut.

[JohnZ]

I was thinking EXACTLY the same thing! I started to think about this hard lift and before jumping to frightening torsion bar conclusions I came to this speculation too! That's telepathy! :) :)

Moreover my struts were difficult to take out, I think that it was full of dirt, so I guess that every joint in the car could possibly be "blocked" by some filth or lack of grease... I'll try that way!

[JohnZ]

Hi folks! Just a LITTLE update about me... In these weeks I've been moving from a house to another, so my home now is a mess and little by little I'll sort things out! But I have no internet at the moment so I can't really read you with continuity... :(

This Sunday, as I try to do every week, I'll go to my baby and this time I will take some pics! I want to show you in detail miss 3305! How I enjoy to take her out from the garage!!

:) :)

BYE

[ALEXAKOS]

That is the lamest excuse I have ever heard!!!!!

Just be upfront about it and tell us...
"YES, I have been sleeping/living in my D these past weeks and I don't have an internet connection yet set up in my D to chat!:facepalm:

[JohnZ]

Ah ah Alex you old geezer! :)

Today I've been there and I glued a portion of the hood carpet back to its place. It was just a little thing that I could do since I still have to order the transmission stuff that I need. Anyway I fould my driver's door to hit its left side and then its right side, and it is not right. And when I raise it, I hear a kind of a "SKONK" noise in the t panel / struts area. That door certainly needs alignment.

Then I've got the starter relay trouble. Once again I had to push it down to let the car start, I suppose that a general relay / fuse update kit would solve this problem. What do you think? I had not the chance to go back to the old threads to see if the matter has already been discussed.

now... PICTURES!

a nice total:
http://img801.imageshack.us/img801/2347/70gc.jpg

a nice total 2:
http://img707.imageshack.us/img707/7418/m2vf.jpg

console:
http://img854.imageshack.us/img854/1470/2t8q.jpg

relay compartment:
http://img819.imageshack.us/img819/8343/9xqb.jpg

relay compartment 2 (Jason disconnected all the wiring to door lock modules):
http://img10.imageshack.us/img10/396/25b5.jpg

ugly t panel bending:
http://img41.imageshack.us/img41/6058/d5tl.jpg

I wonder how I will fix it:
http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/1474/i6kz.jpg

it hinders louver's opening:
http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/366/ci4x.jpg

I suppose that the fan fail module has been modified by Jason for safety reason, as I saw something like that in other Deloreans here in Italy:
http://img96.imageshack.us/img96/3559/s3o9.jpg

a nice total 3:
http://img708.imageshack.us/img708/5176/tcl2.jpg

Well that's that, Let me know what you think about it and if you've got some advices... I'm here!

:)

THANKs bye!

[sdg3205]

The louver/t-pannel friction is really annoying, but quite easy to fix.

The rear of the t-panel uses tabs to hold onto the finisher piece that screws over the rear torsion bar ports. There is some room for adjustment between the 3 screws and bending the tabs a bit more to grab the finishing piece. This should at least level your t-pannel properly.


The rest of the adjustment will come from the louvre hinges. Loosen all nuts at the louvre hinge and lift it up and slightly back. Its hard to describe, but this adds clearance to the T panel. It's obvious when you're working on it. Best to have someone help. Tighten when you've got it in place.

Now you may have to adjust the fore-aft location of the rectangular clasp on the lower engine cover so the release mechanism on the louvre catches it properly.

[Domi]

Your car seems to be in good shape.
Glad you're finally able to work on it.

[ALEXAKOS]

You have minimal issues to tackle amico! No worries:devil:
That is one tight exit from your garage there Gio. Must be a challenge every time o get in and out...:paranoid:

[Dangermouse]

The louver/t-pannel friction is really annoying, but quite easy to fix.

The rear of the t-panel uses tabs to hold onto the finisher piece that screws over the rear torsion bar ports. There is some room for adjustment between the 3 screws and bending the tabs a bit more to grab the finishing piece. This should at least level your t-pannel properly. .

Or you may be missing your finisher piece. Item 24:

http://store.delorean.com/images/Category/large/8-3-0.gif

[JohnZ]

Ok I understand! I'll go and check out this bit next time! Even though I don't think I miss that n. 24 item...

:D

Thanks!

[JohnZ]

TA DAAH! First unwanted inconvenient! :partyhat:

My brother fully lowered the side passenger window (I was telling him not to do that, but it was too late) and now it's stuck down! :( anyway, with ease I removed both inner door panels to discover that predictably one of the glass brackets went off from left track, while the right one is correctly mounted (the rear part of the glass). Sadly, I was not able to fix it because it's totally impossible to reach that point!!! How in the world I am suppose to get to the carrier and set it right? I'll search for answers here, but if you got some advices feel free to share!

By the way I had fun working on the delorean, and to face one of its countless weak points made the car more... human! :) And I did not cut myself with those sharp edges!

:thumbup:

[ALEXAKOS]

enjoy...AND WEAR HAND PROTECTION!!!!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQy6sNQWdxY

[JohnZ]

Hi there boy! I whatched that video even before removing my door panels, 'cause I wanted to see what's inside the door! But the problem is that my window is completely stuck in its "down position", so I can't unbolt it from the central track the way Josh do it! Let's say that the bolts are way much hidden from the opening in the steel that allows Josh to loose them! Anyway I'll try something out next time!

Josh's Delorean is just 2 units away from my 3305! He's 3307, isn't it?

:smoke1:

[sdg3205]

If the motor still works and it's just jammed, try loosening the 4 bolts for the tracks and seeing if you can free it up enough to move up.

[JohnZ]

Yes I'll try and unbolt the carrier, even though is going to be very difficult because it's down toward the floor and it's difficult to reach... I'll keep you updated! Basically my aim is to raise the window just to keep it closed, no priority of swapping motors!

Anyway the window motor does an odd sound... but maybe that's normal.

:)

[JohnZ]

Ouch! Yesterday I've spent two hours trying to apply Josh's method to separate the carrier from the middle track, but I only got to unbolt one of the two bolts there. The other one is stuck into a position that definitely keeps it from being unbolted! And I assure you that is completely IMPOSSIBLE to deal with! Luckily I secured my wrenches to my hand with some tape, otherwise the inner door would be full of tools by now! If the window was in the middle of its course it would have been MUCH easier to reach!

Anyway next time I'll come up with some more ideas I hope!

:)

[ALEXAKOS]

My moto is:
IMPOSSIBLE is UNACCEPTABLE!:race:

[JohnZ]

I agree! My motto is "impossible means very hard!" So I've got the whole Sunday to fix that damn window, never give it up! Just turn on my little transistor radio, bring some food to the place and go on with the works!

:strongman:

[JohnZ]

Yesterday I had dinner with a friend of mine and she said "I want to see the Delorean!" so we went there to the place and when I raised the shutters she went ":eek1: what a spaceship!".

She loved the car and the feel of it, and the doors, and the steel, and the leather interiors... and she said that the front appearance of the car (headlights, grille with logo) resembles... my face! I've got rectangular glasses so basically she saw the front of the Delorean into my eyes! Must be the rectangular-shaped lights...

... or am I turning into a D?

:giggle:

[ALEXAKOS]

Are you sure she was referring to the vehicle? Maybe you missed the chance to score amico mio!!


Sent from a mobile device. Please excuse typos etc

[JohnZ]

Ah ah yes she said that my eyes were just like the Delorean's headlights! If the car does this effect while it's standing still, imagine what will it do when we'll be running on the roads together! (and we'll accidentally end up into a uncrowded place...)

:D :D

[Dangermouse]

And I did not cut myself with those sharp edges, yet!

Fixed

[ALEXAKOS]

Ah ah yes she said that my eyes were just like the Delorean's headlights! If the car does this effect while it's standing still, imagine what will it do when we'll be running on the roads together! (and we'll accidentally end up into a uncrowded place...)
:D :D

http://stream1.gifsoup.com/view5/2223580/oh-boy-o.gif

Okay... you are head over heels with your D!
But I think you have overtaken your chance for some fine pouuuuseeyyyy!!!
:bash:

[JohnZ]

Ah ah Alex better luck next time then! :giggle:

Hey Dermot, thin hands can do miracles!

:sissy:

edit: that high center console seems to bo so unpractical when you get to some... how can I say... "tongue work"! With the Lancia I was much more free to reach, let's say... the other seat! :D

[ALEXAKOS]

how can I say... "tongue work"
Tongue work??
http://www.muumuse.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/cheryl-eek-gif21nkua.gif
Please don't ever call it that to anyone..outside this forum!

[JohnZ]

ah ah I call things as they are! Need a drawing? :stp: :D :D

any way, forget about the Ducellier, forget about the angle drive, fuel pump, rpm relay.... that center console-wall is the car's most annoying flaw!

:D

[ALEXAKOS]

Most of us are married so WE PRAISE THE LORD (John Z DeLorean) for it!!!:giggle:
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b392/blondychik1/GIFs/GLEE/Ep5/willHurray.gif http://www.clarkecomposition.com/gifs/andy_hurray.gif

[JohnZ]

Here I am! Today I've been busy with the car and with the aid of a friend I did some works:

T panel alignment. My t panel and the driver's door were too close, and as long as I don't trust myself in messing with the doors we decided to adjust the T panel position. It went good, as now the driver's door does not hit the panel anymore. :race:

Then we pushed the louvre a bit more in the back, and now it raises with no effort as it used to hit the T panel. I noticed I've got a horrible but light fracture in the louvre that will surely get worse as the louver will be raised more often. We thought about reinforce that bit with some steel or iron, because every time I saw that crack moving I felt like dying! :bigcry:

Third: we finally raised that damn power window, my friend really got into this "mission impossible" and together we accomplished the goal! We also discovered that the white plastic tunnel in which the central rail goes into got broken, so when the power window was put down, the rail went away from its position and everything was basically unable to move. I'll arrange that in the future, at the moment I'm just happy for the window to be up again! :monkeys: Now I know I will have to literally FIGHT against door's handle screws that go into the bracket, hopefully God will give me the ability to sneak into the panel and put that hell of a lower trim panel back on. :strongman:

Ad maiora!

[ALEXAKOS]

Lovely walk through!!! I am sure you'll get around you minor issues amico!;)

BUT!!!! You know what we are ALL missing from your posts?

PICURESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!

WE all love em and we ALL want them!:flamed:

Cause it makes the essence of the matter better to gasp and we may even be able to give you more help on how to solve your problems. As well as see what our fuure problems may look like:)

I know it takes time but... What would a technical vehicle forum be without images?
"Today I untightenend that bold under the window that jams by the green wire after burning the middle top left fuse above the alternator relay with the yellow cap"
:umm::umm::umm::umm::umm:

Looking forward to them:)
GRAZIE!

[JohnZ]

Oh man you are right there! I still gotta learn that lesson! The fact is that I'm so into trying to achieve a nice result that I just forget to capture my actions... I wish I had someone to shoot pictures for me! Anyway next time I'll provide photos for every single action I did yesterday, I promise!

1 image -> 1000 words, isn't it?

:)

[ALEXAKOS]

1 image -> 1000 words, isn't it?
:)

hat is the saying but it it were true I must have written a whole encyclopedia by now~:confused2:

[JohnZ]

I want to put some antifreeze into the car, so I'm going to drain all the coolant fluid out of the vehicle. Do you know how many liters does the whole cooling system contain?

I'll search in the archive if there are some hints on how to do it anyway!

[NightFlyer]

I want to put some antifreeze into the car, so I'm going to drain all the coolant fluid out of the vehicle. Do you know how many liters does the whole cooling system contain?

I'll search in the archive if there are some hints on how to do it anyway!

11.0 liters / 2.9 gallons

Mike Carollo and Dave Swingle did a write-up on DMCNews that isn't too bad, although not the way I personally do it (I don't touch the radiator hoses at all).

http://www.dmcnews.com/Techsection/cooling.htm

If you want the procedure that I use, just let me know and I'll post it.

[JohnZ]

Ok thanks Night! I already took a look at that procedure, but if you want to show me yours... you're welcome!

:)

[NightFlyer]

Ok thanks Night! I already took a look at that procedure, but if you want to show me yours... you're welcome!

:)

http://store.delorean.com/images/Category/large/1-3-2.gif

Instead of pulling the hoses off the radiator, I prefer to pull the hoses (9 and 16) off the pipes (5 and 18 ) in the engine bay. If you still have a stock/OEM radiator with the plastic side tanks and flanges/collars like I do, the less you pull the radiator hoses off and on, the less problems you'll have later on down the road with the radiator - at least that's my take on it. I then proceed to drain and back-flush the radiator (by using a spray nozzle on a garden hose on the opening to pipe 18, and using the nozzle with a rag wrapped around it to build up some moderate water pressure) and heater core / engine (using the aforementioned method of pushing water through the disconnected top hose of the header bottle) separately. Up to you if you want to pull the block drain plugs - sometimes I do, sometimes I don't.

If you're trying to collect the old coolant, as opposed to simply discharging it onto the ground, then you'd run compressed air through the system during the catch phase, followed by your back-flush with water. Be careful not to put too much pressure through the system, but a moderate amount is necessary to do a good job and won't hurt anything.

After the back-flush, I like to blow the system out again with compressed air, using the air to dry the water from the back-flush, as my garden hose water is quite hard and I want as little of it left in the system as possible before refilling. I refill the system only after it's completely devoid of liquid/fluid, or at least as empty as is reasonably possible.

I then put the drain plugs back in the block and reattach the hoses to their pipes, leaving only the top hose of the header bottle still disconnected. Note that I don't remove any of the hoses near the thermostat / water pump.

I then prepare my coolant mixture in a clean 5 gallon plastic bucket. 40% distilled water, 60% concentrated Prestone DexCool Antifreeze, and a bottle of Prestone Cooling System Treatment (it's a combination corrosion prohibitor and lubricant). I prefer mixing it myself as opposed to buying the premixed 50/50 stuff (no good reason for this - I just do) and always mix up about a half gallon more than I'll actually need. Yeah, I use DexCool (the orange stuff) and have been doing so successfully for the last 12 years, despite what others on the forum have said about it. DO NOT use any kind of sealant tabs or a liquid sealant product unless you want a mess and a plugged up cooling system.

I then use an old (previously flushed) fuel pump and prime it with my coolant mixture in the 5 gallon bucket. Once primed (free of air), I hook the fuel pump up to the still disconnected top hose of the header bottle, using a simple barbed coupler and a couple of hose clamps. I then activate the pump and allow the system to fill until the header bottle is practically full (don't worry about overfilling, as the system will purge whatever it doesn't want).

I then reattach the hose to the top of the header bottle and place whatever mix remains in my 5 gallon bucket into an empty antifreeze jug.

I then jack the rear of the car about 3 feet into the air and position jack stands in the regular locations. Set the HVAC mode switch to the heater or vent positions. I then start the car with the rear end in the air and allow it to get up to temperature (thermostat opening and cooling fans engaging). But always be sure to watch the temp gauge and immediately shut the engine off if you believe you're on the way to overheating. You'll want a bucket under the purge hose from the header bottle unless you're just discharging onto the ground, although the first warm up should result in most of the excess coolant in the header bottle being sucked into the system. After the fans have run for a minute or two, kill the engine. Check and top off the header bottle if needed. Repeat running the engine up to temp, stopping, and checking/topping off the header bottle until you no longer have to top off the header bottle or the header bottle starts dumping a significant amount of coolant out the purge hose and into your catch bucket / on the ground. You should only need to repeat once. Doing this with the rear end in the air purges all the air from the cooling system via the header bottle without having to mess with any of the bleed valves.

I don't run any kind of self-bleeder kit on my car - all 100% stock/OEM (with the exception of the heater control valve - original one developed a leak at the pivot).

Put the rear end back on the ground and take the car for a good 10-20 minute drive, being mindful of the temperate gauge. At the end of the drive, check the header bottle and top off if needed, but you should be done.

So, that's what I do and it has worked great for me over the years. My car has always run nice and cool (almost too cool).

Best of luck and have fun! :)

[JohnZ]

Thanks man, very precise and technical! I like that!

Anyway, there is something that I'm missing at the moment. Since I did not had the chance to check it out yet, I'm not sure if the liquid into the car is already mixed with antifreeze. The car was serviced before I purchased it, so the oil is new, the battery is new (June 2013) and so on. I will verify that with the seller or with a hydrometer... anyway the procedure you explained will surely be useful!

:)

[JohnZ]

After a long time, the other day I came back to my car full of good intentions and to do something useful rather than just fire it up and enjoy her sound!! :wiggle:

I wanted to swap the front left wheel with the spare one because I've got a faulty pressure valve in the old Goodyear, so every time I go there I spend ten minutes to pump it up with a foot-pump! I'll change all the tires before really using the car, but at the moment I wanted just to avoid this procedure by having a fully functional front tire. :Headspin:

Anyway, after having repaired the spare tire I decided to take out the LFW. The bolts were VERY hard to unbolt, and I had to apply an energy equal to Hulk's. We helped ourselves with a long and heavy pole linked to the spanner in order to succeed in this operation. After many efforts the wheel was free. :rock_on:

Actually... it LOOKED free, as it was supposed to be! But we tried to take the wheel off and nothing happened! It seemed like the rim was literally glued to the hub! We tried everything but nothing could move that damn wheel out of its place! What in the world can it possibly be??! I understand that it had been there for 32 years but hell... it was just damn firm!! :eek5:

However, the darkness was coming so we put everything on and sprayed (with out much confidence) the whole thing with WD 40 and left the place with some concerns... next time I'll be luckier! :wrenchin:

...at least I learned how the jack works! It ain't friendly but it's effective! :hihi2:

[ALEXAKOS]

Silly question but are you sure you got all the bolts?
Having the car sit on its original jack doesn't not give you the security to tug and poll on that wheel as you like.
I suggest you have the car sit on something more secure. Make sure the wheel is totally lifted and the give it a couple of kicks on the tire around.
hat should get it off the hub. WD40 is a joke of a lube. Ask for ICE penetration lube or mix 50-50 acetone with Auto transition oil. By far the best lube!!!!

[Dangermouse]

It's fairly common for the wheel to "weld" itself on, if it hasn't been off in years and years. Usually some persuasion with a rubber mallet on the wheel/rim will break it free.

Bad cases involve putting the lugs back on, but not tight, putting the car on the ground and rolling it back and forth

[JohnZ]

Ok thanks I'll try with a little mallet and a piece of wood if needed, and a bit of more sun! :D

Meanwhile I'm starting the registration procedures... So near and yet so far!

[JohnZ]

I want to do a Relay Compartment refresh as well. I was thinking about the Relay Upgrade Kit by DMC EU (http://www.delorean.eu/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=158008). What do you think about it? I know that some relays are highly recommended (like Dave's RPM or fan fail) but for an initial refresh maybe that kit is worthy. My relays are dirty, I think it's oxide, and I don't want to catch on fire just because I use old relays.

There in America I think you have a Upgrade Kit Improved isn't it? Anyway, let me know what you think about it. In the meantime I'll search for some old threads regarding this particular subject.

24275

The picture is dark, but you can clearly see the dirt on my relays.

:D

[ALEXAKOS]

Gio!
A dirty relay is not necessarily a not working one.

I was too tempted to do an overall. Dave gave me a simple solution to the issue:

"If it is not broken, don't fix it yet"

I just polished my relays as a first aesthetic step. Further down the live, if I see trouble, I will tackle it as I go.

[JohnZ]

OK. I'm wondering if there is some kind of danger using old relays. If faulty, will they ever spark and go up in flames? Unlikely event, but possible isn't it?

Anyway the question remains: are the DMC EU relays some sort of "modern relays", more reliable and less power consuming, or are they just "new 80's" relays?

:headscratch:

[Bitsyncmaster]

I've pulled apart a lot of new relays that are available on the market and don't see much difference in quality of construction. Most all of them are rated for 30 to 40 amps on the normally open contacts and less on the normally closed contacts (which we don't use). I used the Tyco 0-1432785-1 relays until I replaced all with my solid state units.

The Fan relay is the one that runs at maximum current if you still run OEM fans (40 amps). The Blower #4 is the next high current (22 amps). Most all the relays consume 60 to 80 ma. of coil power when turned on.

[JohnZ]

Ok thanks Dave for your answer! I'll keep up with my old relays for a while! :)

Today I managed to go to the car for a half-day work session, and I achieved some interesting results! I usually go there with a friend of mine that worked in the automotive area back in the nineties. We were satisfied at the end of the day! :rock_on:

First of all a general view of the car as it sits now. Nothing really different from when it came, but it's always a good sight to see. The hood is left open for... "cable safety reason" :hihi2:

24367

We pulled apart the damn wheel that was definitely stuck into the hub! After long struggling and with the aid of an axe (reversed) and a wood block (along with several kicks) the rim finally revealed himself. The moment I saw the wheel coming off I was the happiest man on Earth! Pics includes my friend hitting the wood with the axe, the freewheeling rim, the newly fixed spare tire mounted in. Yes at the moment I still use the factory jack! :thumbup2:

243692437024368

So my unquencheable thirst of knowledge led me into doing (for the very first time) a visual trip into the darkest moors of my car's 'suspensions and brakes' area. I knew that I could easily find some rusted parts and I was not disappointed. I also knew that the frame is in good conditions, and basically from what I gained from that angle it is true. So I think rust just hits common parts in my case, isn't it? Let me know if what you see is something that I would not have to worry about, at least in my first months of driving. On the other hand I would like to know if there is something dangerous or that needs to be replaced right away, I don't want to mess up with suspensions until I notice a real risk. :) As for the brakes, I guess the pads are more than adequate as you can see, but I will replace them as soon as I will "revitalize" the old rotors by braking some times with the old ones. :rollin: The torsion bar is superficially rusted, and the frame is linked with the front by a kind of metal arm per side. Is it a factory spec or is it some sort of recall? I don't think the suspension recall kit is there, isn't it? There you go with the pictures! Any random comment will be appreciated!

2437224373243742437524376243772437824379

Then we moved to the rear louver. I had had the louver being repaired because it was breaking near the mounting. Everytime I raised it I was in pain because it felt like cracking more and more. So I reinforced that zone with two stainless steel brackets. The work went well as you can see from the pictures, but we had to file a little bit the steel zone around the hinge in order to let the louver go up and down smoothly. With the new thickness the bracket added to that part it was more difficult for the louver to just fit its place. By smoothing the plate underneath the seal now the louver closes perfectly, it does not rub anymore on the T panel and most of all it is a joy to raise since you'll never break it by raising it! I will have to smooth the seal too, but just a few millimeters to let the louver go up and down sweetly. Now pictures! :Headspin:

2438124382243832438424380

The last thing we wanted to to was playing with the driver's door striker pins as if I close the door from the outside it's noisy but effective, whereas from the inside is much more hard. Let me explain. When I pull the door from the inside I have to push the whole thing forward (toward the trunk) to let the door close properly. That probably means that the rear striker pin needs to be shortened (by removing the washer or something). It is noticeable by looking at the head of the pin itself which is rather consumed as if the door latch was rubbing on it heavily. You can close with success, but you have to know how to do it. Anyway, we'll deal with that next time. Our enthusiasm was soon beated down by a hot and spicy steak with beans. :clown: Too bad that time runs out so quickly!

We are waiting for some longer daylight to begin the dirty works (clutch hydraulics and so on) and by now we are just fixing small things! But's always a pleasure.

Please let me know your advices! Thanks!

Cheers

:deedledee:

[Rich]

The torsion bar is superficially rusted, and the frame is linked with the front by a kind of metal arm per side. Is it a factory spec or is it some sort of recall? I don't think the suspension recall kit is there, isn't it?

Thanks for the progress report and the photos.

About "the frame is linked to the front by a kind of metal arm per side" I think you refer to your Photo #11. That brace forward of the frame is factory OEM. Not a recall part.

The stabilizer bar mounting recall kit is not there. SC-03-01/82. Kits are available, safety campaign docs are in Resources section of the forum.

LINK: http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?2866 (http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?2866)

Add SC-03-01/82 recall/repair to your to-do list. Easily accomplished with normal tools + the kit.

[Rich]

So I think rust just hits common parts in my case, isn't it? Let me know if what you see is something that I would not have to worry about, at least in my first months of driving. On the other hand I would like to know if there is something dangerous or that needs to be replaced right away, I don't want to mess up with suspensions until I notice a real risk.

Yes, it looks like the corrosion in the front suspension/frame is more or less normal.

At least 3 front suspension items to check/replace before first drive:
1. Outer tie rod ends. The boots have failed and you don't know whether the joints are any good. Renew them. It will be followed with adjustment of front toe-in, which is a good idea anyway.
2. Ball joints. Have a mechanic check the stability of the front end unless your seller assures you the ball joints were replaced already. Not able to tell by photos, it's just good basic practice with old cars that have ball joints.
3. Front suspension recall kit. See other post on that.

You asked about suspension, but did not show us photos of the rear suspension. TABs come to mind there.

Brakes and the rest of the car are not part of the particular question for now. You already have some plans about that, of course.

[JohnZ]

Thanks Rich, appreciate that!

I only took pics of the left front suspension because I just loosed the left front wheel on purpose! Right front suspension and brake should be more or less in the same conditions! Next time I'll take a look at the rear train!

Tied rod ends seems just a little dirty, of course I'll check them carefully as I'll do with the ball joints. I'm planning to install the suspension recall kit but at the moment I think that it can be delayed!

:D

[ALEXAKOS]

Yeah!
I second the tie rod ends need immediate replacement!
Best ones are from the eurotech forum!
All the rest looks safe and fine;)
Check the brakes (fluids) for servicing;)

[JohnZ]

Little update.

Yesterday we did the dirty job of replacing the clutch master cylinder. Shall we say that it was a pretty easy job to do! At first we drained the DOT 4 fluid from the bottle and the reservoir hose with a syringe because there was no need to bleed the whole system from the slave, so when we will replace both the line and the slave cylinder of course we will bleed everything. The clutch master is simply a bolt / unbolt, screw / unscrew job as you know so nothing special to report. Pictures include: me trying to loose brake master cylinder access cover, reservoir's draining procedure, the old master, the old master's hole, the new master in its position. :wiggle:

24782247832478424785247862478124787

Now when it came to replace old reservoir hose with brand new Tygon hose by DPI... what the hell! I mean, we discovered that the old hose's hole is much larger than DPI's one. How can I fit the hose into the master AND into the reservoir if the hole is that small? Can someone explain me how in the world I can make that hose to fit? So you see my friend trying to enlarge it but with out much result! Some pictures of the rusty brake master cylinder are included! :o

2478924790247912479224788

Then I easily installed the DPI's wonder self bleeder kit with out any troubles, I just thought for a while about the path of the hose itself but I think I found the peace of mind as you can see. :yoda:

2479524794

Last but not least: I realized that I had not any "fancy" pictures of me and me car together so... here we go! :cool:

24796

Fun day!

[NightFlyer]

Great progress - it looks like you're really enjoying your car :thumbup:

I'm baffled as to the DPI tygon reservoir hose - I hope that someone with some experience with this hose can provide some guidance. Are you supposed to heat it up maybe, before attempting to slip it on? I don't know. I'll be curious to see what the solution is.

Anyway, looking good!

[JohnZ]

I think I found the solution! I was almost sure to have all the hoses that I needed, it might be that we were picking up the wrong one! As far as I discovered, tygon is transparent and I actually do have a transparent hose into the package. Since it was packed together with the self bleeder kit I thought that it was some sort of a "service hose" for occasional radiator draining/bleeding. I will try that one on the reservoir, even though it might be shorter... but my memory perhaps serves me bad.

:rock_on:

[Delorean Industries]

John,
Got your email this morning. The picture you posted comparing the two lines was actually the stock line with the aeroquip fuel line from the accumulator kit ordered. The clutch res. to master line is the clear section with clamps. This is the only clear section in the order.

Hope this helps!

[JohnZ]

John,
Got your email this morning. The picture you posted comparing the two lines was actually the stock line with the aeroquip fuel line from the accumulator kit ordered. The clutch res. to master line is the clear section with clamps. This is the only clear section in the order.

Hope this helps!

You are right there Josh and thanks for your precise answer! You see, I never saw any tygon hoses before so I got a little confused there! Luckily we did not put too much effort trying to make the other hose to fit! It's always better to ask!

Thank you now I'll check it next time!

;)

[JohnZ]

Here I am with other marvelous adventures! This time we got rid of the old slave cylinder and the old clutch line. This week I have free afternoons, so we decided to do the dirty work knowing that we had just three hours of clear vision. :meditation:

First of all I removed both rear louver and engine cover. I read mixed thoughts about replacing the slave cylinder from underneath or from above, but we did it from above. I have to say that it was “easy�, but it took 1.5 hours just to unbolt those hard 'n' rusty bolts that hold the cylinder into place. If they were new, that time would probably have been saved due to my skinny hands! So I jumped on top of the engine (don't worry, I'm just 120 pounds!) and started to unbolt the clutch pipe. With a little help from my friend (his name is Ringo:hihi2::drummer:) we disconnected the clutch pipe with out twisting it, then I unbolted the first bolt to free the slave and when it came to the second one... TRAGEDY! :cry:

The bolt snapped in two. I managed to take off the slave, but a piece of the second bolt is still there. I think someone is still traveling with just one bolt, but I hope this will be a temporary solution for me. Moreover, that bolt is specific and you don't find it in my town. Anyway, we were sad but loosing the clutch line so easily made us smile once again. Nothing difficult there, now that is something you definitely have to do from under the car. So now the Delorean lies with out those two pieces, but we plan to return and finish the job in two days (when this f@#%§ rain stops:swear1:). Any suggestions there? I read a couple of times the old threads, but I think it's just a matter of placing the cylinder in the right way..:o

Pictures now. I'm including some pictures of the letf rear brake caliper and suspension... pretty clean frame I find! :yoda:

And please don't find any sexual references regarding my position on the car! :cowboy:


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[OverlandMan]

25541

Man, if I got my fat ass on the rear fascia of my car like that, I'd probably break the darned thing.

[JohnZ]

Actually I've been very careful not to apply forces on the grey rear fascia, so legs are just laying on it! But I suppose that I'm so skinny and light that I could even jump over that thing without conseguences!

:hihi2:

[ALEXAKOS]

Some serious working there Gio!
A job well done.
I also noitced you are still wearing GOOD YEAR NCS's!!:shocked:
Smooooth! Too back you will have to change those soon.

[OverlandMan]

Actually I've been very careful not to apply forces on the grey rear fascia, so legs are just laying on it! But I suppose that I'm so skinny and light that I could even jump over that thing without conseguences!

:hihi2:

:D Keep up the good work.

[JohnZ]

Horray! Today I put the new braided clutch line, it was easier to connect it to the clutch pipe rather than on the other side, on the master cylinder! :screwy:

Tomorrow I plan to put the slave cylinder into position and bleed the whole thing (this time with my friend)!

[JohnZ]

Giant steps here! Yesterday for the first time in my life I actually drove a Delorean on its own wheels! And it was MY Delorean! Well... I have to say that I just did 2 meters forward and backward, but I was so excited!

That means that we finally replaced the slave cylinder, bleeded the entire things and everything was working! To put the slave back to its position my friend slipped the gasket from the slave and inserted it into the pivot, then putting the slave in there with the pivot in was much easier! Slipped back the gasket into the slave, bleeded the whole system and voi-lÃ*! :nana1:

Almost the whole village went there to see what happened and to see the car finally moving with out external push! Then wine and sausages came to commemorate the event! :cheers: We did not take pictures, but I have two videos that proves that little but important movement I did with the car! I was so impressed that everything worked well! You know, my expectations on that car are very low and when something works... I'm happy!

Here you are!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rL6Njgj2Wo

You find the second one among the related videos!

...not that much of a mileage... but still try to imagine my thrilling!

:grouphugg:

[NightFlyer]

SWEET! You'll be driving it all the time soon :smile:

[ALEXAKOS]

This is a great video! Not because it shows something exciting....


But because I can read victory in your eyes and in your heard!
You marked the date and set a beginning of it all!
I truly wish you this excitement remains for the rest of your "life" together!

Enjoy amico mio!

[ALEXAKOS]

hahahahaha!
just saw your second video! It sounds like you invented the wheel! hahahahah
Doc Brown!

PS...okay I see you'll be ordering some front lowering springs:)

[robvanderveer]

Buon! You look so happy!


Rob

[JohnZ]

Ah ah I thank you all... let us pray for this "toy" to last for years to come! :)

And I must say that I don't usually wear that kind of fluorescent 80's stuff... that's just my work outfit! :wrenchin: :biggrin:

(...I generally dress seventies 8):hysterical: )

[JohnZ]

Today we started working full of good intentions, but the rain caught us like a thief in the night... at least we located the fuel accumulator and now we are prepeared to swap it with the new one. We removed the centre console for a better perspective of the hoses and everything, but like I said we soon gave up to the rain.

But look what I found! 1 cent! Thanks, PO! :thumbup2:

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Now the funny stuff! That is me taking out the car from my garage-batcave, my friend did not think that I could ever be able to slip into the car, shift from the passenger seat to the driver's and take her out! You can hear him say "you look like a monkey!" :monkeys:

PS my brakes are shot (master cylinder) so we had to keep a piece of wood at hand so to stop the vehicle in case of emergency, and that is why the video is suddendly interrupted! When the Delorean is sliding back I am actually braking... oh dear! :jawdrop::tongue2:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9mB6jsHE7s&feature=share&list=UUvMGq9FqVeOZ3dFpJ25dagQ

[ALEXAKOS]

Yup those coins! I have restored over 4 vehicles and all of them had hidden coins. I once read a report that about 4 million euros get lost in coins every year in the global economy:)

[ALEXAKOS]

Ps
Just watched your video. You might want to buy a battery switch instead of lightly bolting on that terminal. At ignition the connections need to be very well attached else you will get sparks that are not that good to have.

[JohnZ]

We had a wonderful morning the other day! I want to overhaul the original braking system, I already know that I have to replace the master cylinder and the lines, nonetheless I want to do a complete check up of the brakes. Since I can't legally drive the car by now, I decided to take a look at the whole system. Rotors are good, pads also are in great shape. We removed front calipers, I still have to divide the two parts and take a look at the piston. I think I will place o-rings and clean and paint everything. :wrenchin:

The brake lines were a pain to slip off their brackets! In fact, they are still there since we weren't able to get them :( . I read from the threads that this is common with old lines, do you have any suggestions? We did not want to hit them with a hammer because the bracket (which as you know is welded on the frame) was starting to bend. :eek1:

Pictures now! In the last one, me and my cousin are looking for a spot in which we can stamp the VIN on the frame, that is required on Italian roads.

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[ALEXAKOS]

Try ICE lubricant. Sort of like WD40 but it comes out at a very low temperature that shrinks the metal that you spray it on and helps the lube get into the joints.

If you thought the front ones are hard.... wait to see the surprise the rear calipers are preparing you! heheheh:deviltail:

[JohnZ]

Oh no don't say that! For a moment, I even thought about having the brake lines being pulled out by 100 oxes! :mechbull:

We were going mad about it, I'll definitely try that lube.

[Domi]

Pictures now! In the last one, me and my cousin are looking for a spot in which we can stamp the VIN on the frame, that is required on Italian roads.


You can see the VIN on the frame trough the engine compartment on the left side.

[JohnZ]

You can see the VIN on the frame trough the engine compartment on the left side.

That is probably because your car had it already stamped! In fact, one of the best places to have it stamped is that one, but I think I'm going to do it in a more hidden point.

Among the other italian owners, they stamped it on various places so basically there is not a "rule"!

:D

[Mark D]

Here is a good thread that should be helpful for removing the brake hoses from the frame/trailing arms:

http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?9039-replacing-brake-hoses

[Dangermouse]

You can see the VIN on the frame trough the engine compartment on the left side.

That's the Frame Number, rather than the VIN. Unfortunately, there is not correlation between the two - see mine in my sig.

[Domi]

Whoops, yes that's right my mistake!

[ALEXAKOS]

May I suggest simply exchange those breaking hoses with stainless steel ones. Not too expensive and you can knock hose old fkrs out with the hammer!:rant:
I got mine here along with the stainless steel clutch line
http://www.deloreans.co.uk/shop/carparts/index.html
happy shopping

[JohnZ]

What do you mean exactly? Of course I'm going to put on the ss brake lines (I already have them, I bought them from Julian Eurotec) and that is the main reason I have to get rid ot the old ones! :rant:

Thanks Mark I'll give that thread a go! WE WILL DO IT! :D

[ALEXAKOS]

Oh...:jawdrop:
I thought you were trying to preserve the old ones. I missed the part where you bought those:neener:

[JohnZ]

Yes actually I want to clean the original system rather than improve it... of course master cylinder and pads and lines will be replaced, I think that my driving style does not requires some sort of "super brake system", thus the original one I guess is adequate!

:D

[ALEXAKOS]

Yeah you're very good off with the stock version.

[JohnZ]

All right I'm proud to say that we removed rear wheel calipers! :partyhat: It was more or less a straightforward kind of job, it was fun because we worked on both wheels at the same time, I was on the driver's side and my friend Simone was on the other side and we proceeded step by step! This cut the whole working time, even though the good old fashioned rusty 'n' hard bolts in the end made us reach two ours totally. :meditation:

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We then dedicated our time to disassemble the calipers and try to remove the pistons to check them out. I have to say that, top and inner part aside, the pistons are in GREAT conditions! No rust, very smooth surface. I plan to put new o-rings and seals and clean all up. We managed to pop out three of four pistons, and the day after I myself managed to pop out two out of four in the front calipers. Some are currently stuck into the caliper, and we tried to apply some force to take them out but we did not succeed. Any suggestions? As you can see from the video below (forgive us, we both work on the same TV station... we just have a thing for shooting! :mallet:), we took the pistons out by means of my air compressor. That was amazing! And don't worry... everything was under control! :strongman:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEQSM_c6Zxo

Now I want to clean the calipers before having them zinc-painted... I'll surf old threads, but have you got any suggestions about it? Should I use some FEROX? Should I use gasoline? Should I use sandpaper? That is completely new experience to me.... I don't want to mess all up! :)

My calypso calipers :D:

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[NightFlyer]

If compressed air isn't popping the remaining pots/pistons out of the calipers, the next best method is to use two decent sized flat blade screw drivers, positioned across from each with the blades wedged into the lips of the pots/pistons, and the shafts (fulcrum) of the screwdrivers working against the body of the calipers. With the caliper on the ground, and you in a kneeling position, you can place your knees on the handles of the screwdrivers and slowly balance the full weight of your body equally across the handles of both screwdrivers. The pots/pistons should slide out, but may require that you exert some additional force by 'bouncing' your body on the screwdriver handles. This is the method that I used when rebuilding my calipers, as compressed air wasn't budging them.

When reinserting the pots/pistons into the caliper cylinders after putting new seals in the cylinder, I first applied some of the new brake fluid into the cylinder, on the new seal, and on the pot/piston, as a lubricant. I then used a large flat blade screwdriver, with the shaft laid across the diameter of the pot/piston, put my knees on the handle and on the blade, balanced the weight of my body on the screwdriver, and proceeded to rock from side-to-side until the pot/piston was embedded in the cylinder, with the lip of the pot slightly elevated above the caliper's horizon line, so that you can then assemble the dust cover, snap rings, etc.

Best of luck!

[JohnZ]

Thanks Night useful as usual! :)

Also, I found this thread http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?1939-Rebuild-Your-Brake-Caliper&highlight=caliper sounds interesting!

:bigclap:

[Mark D]

Once you get the pistons out of the calipers I'd recommend sand blasting them to get all the rust off. I used aluminum oxide blast media and it made pretty easy work of cleaning up the external surfaces. Brake cleaner spray is also helpful to remove the rusty grime from old brake fluid.

For the inner bores I used a red scotchbrite pad. For the external surfaces of the pistons I used a white (very mildly abrasive) scotch brite pad so I wouldn't scratch the sealing surfaces. When sand blasting I masked off the inner bores of the calipers and the outer surfaces of the pistons.

If there is any pitting on the piston sealing surfaces the pistons will need to be replaced...not too expensive. It sounds like you're already planning on getting the seal rebuild kits for when you reassemble everything.

After everything was cleaned up I shipped the caliper parts off to be zinc plated with a yellow dichromate conversion coating (AKA yellow zinc). For the pistons I painted the inner/raw cast surfaces with clear high temp ceramic caliper paint.

Here is a progression of photos so you can see how it all went.

http://dmctalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=26171&d=1395931375
http://dmctalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=26168&d=1395930529

Inner bore cleaned with scotch brite pad before & after:
http://dmctalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=26167&d=1395930529

After Sand Blasting
http://dmctalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=26169&d=1395931220
http://dmctalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=26170&d=1395931220

After Zinc Plating
http://dmctalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=21837&d=1378704013
http://dmctalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=26172&d=1395931725

Overall this was one of the more fun projects I've done on the car and the difference in braking feel was greatly improved afterwards.

[JohnZ]

Nice! I see you disassembled the whole parking brake bracket/unit... I just did that too with one of those, but I found springs and pieces and a little bracket with a little nut that fell out before I had the chance to look and remember how these things were put together! :banghead: Now I'm afraid not to be able to re-insert everything correctly as it is a precise mechanism (like a clock)... luckily I still have the other bracket to disassemble. But unluckily the screw became mad and I can't unscrew the lateral piece of metal to reveal the inside... :boxface: oh dear...

Will I find a kind of scheme (or explode-a-view) that shows how that mechanism works? I bet it's extremely simple yet I'm not able to figure it out by myself...

More over the whole thing was covered with slimy green grease... I slimed myself like good ole Ray Stantz! :vomit_3:

[ALEXAKOS]

my before
http://i821.photobucket.com/albums/zz135/alex-akos/delo%20resto/DSC00088_zps3f5d843d.jpg

after
http://i821.photobucket.com/albums/zz135/alex-akos/delo%20resto/DSC00262_zps45c3713a.jpg


I also sand blasted them (still assembled so the internal piston parts do not get rough), replaced all rubber parts and "gold" plated them

[Mark D]

Nice! I see you disassembled the whole parking brake bracket/unit... I just did that too with one of those, but I found springs and pieces and a little bracket with a little nut that fell out before I had the chance to look and remember how these things were put together! :banghead: Now I'm afraid not to be able to re-insert everything correctly as it is a precise mechanism (like a clock)... luckily I still have the other bracket to disassemble. But unluckily the screw became mad and I can't unscrew the lateral piece of metal to reveal the inside... :boxface: oh dear...

Will I find a kind of scheme (or explode-a-view) that shows how that mechanism works? I bet it's extremely simple yet I'm not able to figure it out by myself...

More over the whole thing was covered with slimy green grease... I slimed myself like good ole Ray Stantz! :vomit_3:

Looks like you already saw my response to your parking brake question in the other thread you started. Hope that helps!





my before
...
after
...
I also sand blasted them (still assembled so the internal piston parts do not get rough), replaced all rubber parts and "gold" plated them

Awesome job! Those really look great :wrenchin:

[JohnZ]

Today I started cleaning the calipers with a kind of a steel brush which was linked to a drill (there must be a name for such a tool :biggrin:). Here are a couple of pics, not bad considering that before that they were brown/black... :)

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The inner part is much more complex to handle with that tool. Hopefully I'm doing it the right way... despite reading all your experiences, I'm still scared about ruining something......:dead:

[Domi]

You just have to paint it and the job will be done right ;)

[JohnZ]

Here I am! In these days when I'm free I keep on cleaning my calipers!

I have to say that I'm performing well! The calipers are now free from rust and dirt once again! I'm so happy with the result! I still have to deal with bolts and other parts of the system and then I'll send all that for zinc plating!

And I still have to clean the piston's housing... now that's delicate, some gasoline with scotch-pad should do it!

:tongue2:

Here you can see some before-and-after shots!

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[Domi]

Nice job ;)

[JohnZ]

Here I am! While my calipers and brake stuff has been sent for zinc plating (hopefully they'll be ready in a couple of weeks), I'm proud to say that today I replaced my old NCT Goodyear tires with brand new Vredestein Sportrac 5! 195 on the front, 225 on the rear! :)

So here's the story. I bought the tires and brought them to the shop, I was going to let my car hanging on stands for a couple of hours with out wheels because I needed the old rims to fit the new tires. So ok I was going to do that in few hours but... That is not how it went! :bawling:

They called me and told me that they were having troubles with the valves on the old rims, and under my permission they replaced it with new ones... but this meant that the wheels would have been ready the day after! I was nervous because I did not want to leave the car 25 kms away from me, outside, on stands... and it was going to rain too! :ohcrap:

So I took a large piece of cloth, wrapped the back of the D (I'm with out lower engine cover at the moment) and I kept the engine from being covered with water! Then today I took the new wheels and put it back on, and the rain was still going on! Anyway I was happy that nothing happened to the car, but you have to know that I keep her in a little village with no one ever around... 8)

Here you have some pictures! And of course another useless start-up video, but I wanted to do it so when I'm sad I listen to that PRV music! (sorry for the mess inside the car!) :D


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

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[NightFlyer]

Here I am! While my calipers and brake stuff has been sent for zinc plating (hopefully they'll be ready in a couple of weeks), I'm proud to say that today I replaced my old NCT Goodyear tires with brand new Vredestein Sportrac 5! 195 on the front, 225 on the rear! :)

The Vredestein Sportrac 5 is the current 'cadillac' or 'rolls royce' of tire for the DeLorean - you'll enjoy them very much! Plus they're Giugiaro designed just like the car and proudly proclaim that on the sidewall - I personally love that, but I'm admittedly a nerd :biggrin:

[JohnZ]

Going forward with the works! While my calipers have been sent for zinc plating, we devoted our time to remove the brake master cylinder and to other works. It sounded like an easy task, but rusty bolts and tabs made us swear a lot! :gunfire: In the end we managed to take it apart, but the nut securing the rear pipe to the master cylinder is killed. As you can see from the photos, it is now impossible to put a wrench on it (it was hard to unbolt, my friend had to take the pliers and pray God :eek7:).

Now I'm stuck between two visions. I can put on the new master cylinder and put on the same wasted nut in some way, I think that there ain't no problems. But what if I wanted to replace that nut? Is there a way to remove it and swap it with out replacing the whole brake line? mmmmm gotta think about that, what do you think? :)

Then removing the brake fluid reservoir was another PITA. The retaining tabs were so rusty that we had to use hammers and screwdrivers and brute force to remove them, with a lot of care for the plastic piece. It worked, but the second one had to be cut.

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Then we tried to take out those damned brake hoses but with out much success... I want to find the right ball joint remover before attempting once again to beat the whole thing down with rage! :bash: Next time we'll surely deal with it.

After replacing the glove box hatch that was missing, we simply replaced the tie rod ends and that was a pretty straightforward job. The only thing I cared about was to keep the bolts in the same positions as they were before. Of course I will perform wheel alignment but that should be enough to keep the car on the road! :D

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[ALEXAKOS]

Love those tires!!!! Couldn't you send the wheels of for sandblasting and powder coating while you're at it? Some of those paint chips look nasty:(
May I advise using extra support when lifting up your car. That one hydraulic lift in the front center may create imbalance when adding and removing a tire plus it may also start loosing its lift. It has happened to me, you can see the jack stick moving up and down like a ghost was at it...

Amazing effort of the calipers and breaking cylinder:)

[Mark D]

Now I'm stuck between two visions. I can put on the new master cylinder and put on the same wasted nut in some way, I think that there ain't no problems. But what if I wanted to replace that nut? Is there a way to remove it and swap it with out replacing the whole brake line? mmmmm gotta think about that, what do you think? :)

You should be able to cut the flare off the end of the hard line, remove the old end fitting, slide on a new fitting and re-flare the end. Before attempting I'd make sure you have found a source for both the correct fitting and correct flare tool.

Otherwise it's about $55 if you just want to replace that whole line. If the line itself is starting to rust you may be better off going that route.

http://store.delorean.com/p-7511-line-frt-main.aspx

[JohnZ]

Powder coated wheels: I thought about it while replacing the tires, but you have to remember that at the moment I can't leave the car with out wheels for a long time, since I don't have a large garage where I can lift the car. So I'm going to do the rim job in the future, when the car will be at my home and there's no need to leave the car outside on stands! :)

Jack + stand: I never noticed neither a weird balance nor a "self moving jack", but I have to say that I never left the car lifted up with out wheels (just once), and I put the jack on the front end on purpose (less weight). Everytime I always rely on both the stands and the jack, but I appreciate your safety hint! ;)

Calipers and cylinder: the calipers are off to zinc plating, so I'm not really controlling this procedure :( whereas the cylinder is off (how can I clean the reservoir bottle? fuel I guess...) and it will soon be replaced with SAAB 50 / 50 unit. :cool1:

Brake hard line: unluckily the brake line I'm talking about is one that goes to the rear. Things would have been much simpler if I was dealing with the front one (which makes a twist and connects near the suspension)... replacing the whole hardline I think would be nonsense, I will do a research about the possibility to slip out the connector and get that little border redone. I wonder if I will ever find the right size nut...:question:

Now this: I tried to fire up the car since a friend of mine came to me (he owns a Delorean too, we're both members of the Italian Club) and checked out my D. While the first time the car fired up instantaneously (as usual) after 5 seconds... it died! So I tried again but all I could hear was the cranking noise. So we checked the fuel pump if it was making any noise but it was not. After having jumped the RPM relay (I think it's the original one) we could hear the fuel pump priming, but there was no way to get the car started. We disconnected the CSV and nothing really changed. I have some gallons of fuel in the tank.

My opinion is that it's something electric (loose connectors, bad grounds) and the RPM relay for sure left me. To be honest I never really noticed the fuel pump bzzz since then, but you know these are things that you get used to as time goes by! :) There are plenty of cold stard threads out there, I'll check them out for sure!

:thankyou:

[JohnZ]

WE GOT EM!

We finally slipped out those damned brake lines! We did both front and rear, for the front lines we used a special ball jount remover as suggested by John U (I owe you a beer :cheers:) and for the rear one we did that by simply hitting with care with a hammer and securing the other side with pliers. It was hard but satisfactory! :nana1:

Then we put the new stainless hoses and there you go with pictures!

PS we removed the bottom rear plates, the screws were rusty as hell (as usual)! You can see them in the pictures lying in the door sill.

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And of course the obligatory video, you can see in the first part how we managed to put the line out by means of the remover!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LMq-xSHdCc

HORRAY!

:cool1:

[ALEXAKOS]

Congrats!!!!! Now throw those damn things up on the roof!!!!:devil:

Whats best about your work is that you have a "tool" buddy making his process fun.

Keep it up.:elmo2:

[JohnZ]

Oh he's more than a funny guy! He helps me sometimes doing the hard stuff... he's the strong one (I'm thin and weak) but I can fit under the car much more easily!

Let's say we do the perfect pair in automobile restoration! :histerical1:

[Domi]

Keep up the good work :)
It is not an easy task to remove the brakes lines when all of them are rusty :banghead:

[NightFlyer]

Excellent progress! You'll be driving her in no time :biggrin:

[ALEXAKOS]

It is not an easy task to remove the brakes lines when all of them are rusty :banghead:

Oh mine were so rusty.. they fell apart!~:screwy:

[JohnZ]

While I'm waiting for my license plates I'm going on with brakes overhaul. I noticed that the servo's surface was rusty and corroded, and there was some oil and dirt... I took him out to clean it and paint it black (just like the old Stones said)! I'm not going to touch it internally.

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Then I took some acetone and by means of a syringe I cleaned the brake pipes from old oil, in the beginning brown oil flushed from the other side, than the clear acetone started to poor! :D

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just little works, enough to be happy on a sunny saturday morning!

:wink:

[BABIS]

good work ;)

[JohnZ]

Remember this? (I bet you do)

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Well after some anti rust solution, fresh paint, new brake master cylinder and stainless bolts there you go with my brand new brake assembly!

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I think it should last for quite some times!

:)

[ALEXAKOS]

yup good job.
That should look new for another 30 years! :)
Unlike me and you... in 30 years:what_the:

[Domi]

Congratulation, nice job :wink:

[JohnZ]

Put back on the brake booster and rear brake hard lines, and removed sway bar for refurbishing! I will also replace bushings with brand new DPNW ones and install the recall kit... hopeful that the sand blast man will do his job quickly! This car is a hell of a waiting game! :angry: :frantic:

pics :) :

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And from the inside of the front frame:

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Cool! :cool1:

[SS Spoiler]

Buy some jack stands!!

[JohnZ]

Buy some jack stands!!

Oh, you don't see them in these last pictures, but I always use two (2) of them! Add the jack permanently there, and I think that there is enough stuff to be safe!

;)

[ALEXAKOS]

good effort replacing those few tiny but important jobs.

Good to see that your frame is at that condition. That is the weakest point right there and if that looks so smooth then the rest will be good too.:hippo:

[JohnZ]

I gotta be the ONLY ONE IN THE WORLD whose calipers, after proper cleaning and sand-blasting, cannot be zinc plated AT ALL! :shameful:

I got a call from the... zinc-coaters (big facility, not really dumb guys :shyshy: ) and they told me that the zinc would not adhere in the surface! I told 'em... "that's nonsense!" but they tried twice and there was nothing to do! :jawdrop:

Now, the time is ripe for me to get everything back in the car and finally test it for the first time! I'll do that next week (I'll be on vacation!), otherwise I would have to wait another month or so. So I need the calipers to be ready for the next week.

Let's forget about this inexplicably failed zinc plating, how do I go safe with some sort of coating? I thought about high temperature spray-paint, is it correct? Must I apply some sort of transparent paint after that? Protecting the piston's bore it's obvious. And being the calipers sand blasted, is there any bond problem between the alloy and the paint itself? :)

...weird... weird... weird.... I can't help but wondering "why that????" :mallet:

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gray on gray... just to simplify the viewing :biggrin::biggrin:

[ALEXAKOS]

Don't worry! Have them gold painted with high temp color;)

[JohnZ]

In these two days we managed to put the calipers back on the wheels, and I have to say it has been a quite long job! At first we rebuilt the brand newly painted calipers with new seals and o rings:

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Then put on everything back in the car:

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I don't know why, it has been hard to connect the hard lines with the SS braided lines that come from England... like they had slightly different thread sizes... :blackeye: any way we secured everything with little patience :thumbup2:

Put on the new master cylinder and reservoir, with custom retaining tab that I did (I did not like the "mallet" tabs that came with the master cylinder):

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And while we were there we replaced the old steering column bushing with the new one... now putting the column back on was a real PITA! :evil3:

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Bled everything and looking forward to put the sway bar back on with the recall kit!

:)

[ALEXAKOS]

Fun pics amico;). You think the steering column reassembly is hard to do with help! Try it by yourself..., it's real fun .... Laying in the footwell holding up the heavy column with your head and knee while you try to guess where the fastening bolts are located at... More fun when you have forgotten to add the binnacle shims and you need to do the whole charade all over again. But if you like this job, I suggest you try and remove the transmission.... ALL BY YOUR SELF! Hehehegege (evil laugh)

[JohnZ]

Fun pics amico;). You think the steering column reassembly is hard to do with help! Try it by yourself..., it's real fun .... Laying in the footwell holding up the heavy column with your head and knee while you try to guess where the fastening bolts are located at... More fun when you have forgotten to add the binnacle shims and you need to do the whole charade all over again. But if you like this job, I suggest you try and remove the transmission.... ALL BY YOUR SELF! Hehehegege (evil laugh)

Ah ah just while doing it I thought "man these are jobs that you just MUST do with 2 people!", and I wondered how you managed to do that all alone :)

The bleeding procedure also falls in this one... how do you do that with out machines or another guy??!? :banghead:

the transmission... can wait :tongue:

[ALEXAKOS]

For brake bleeding I will take my 4 year old son to pump the pedal! He will love me for it;)

But yes, a second pair of hands is always more help, and a friend even more fun;)

[robvanderveer]

For brake bleeding I will take my 4 year old son to pump the pedal! He will love me for it;)

But yes, a second pair of hands is always more help, and a friend even more fun;)

no need for spare hands. What you need is a very long leg, or somebody else's leg operating the pedal.

[ALEXAKOS]

no need for spare hands. What you need is a very long leg, or somebody else's leg operating the pedal.
I will PM you on what other long feature you can use for that pedal ;)



Oops, this isn't eurotech! No place for European humor! Sorry mods:p

[JohnZ]

Hi there buddies! This week has been very busy and it was a crucial one. Instead of going on holidays I spent the days working on the car and finally getting it operative!

Brakes and steering column bushing aside, we put the sway bar back on with the brand new poly bushings by DPNW and the front suspension recall. We did it by looking at pictures, reading manuals and forums and service bulletins. Please tell me if there is something odd or uncorrect! :) I will replace upper and lower ball joints too, the LCAs are a bit rusty but I think they can last for a while.

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Then I finally managed to do my first test drive of the Delorean! Brakes are good, but we think they need another bleeding and of course I will put EBC redstuff pads after the first driving experiences. They currently have the original pads, which are thicker than I expected.

Anyway it was a blast!! :) I felt comfortable with the car, I have to say I have new Vredestein tires, new poly bushings and the recall kit so I guess it has a much greater handling, but it was something very emotional! I can tell you that we were so satisfied and people around us (you will see no one because the village is very small :) ) exulted with us!

It was a triumph! (no, a Delorean :giggle: )

Have fun!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPNIBCBbv2o&feature=youtu.be

Er.... don't ask about the lack of license plates....... :tongue2: :tongue2:

[Rich]

Nicely done! Congrats on getting another D back to life. The front end work looks OK. Neat video.

And you even have proven that some of the safety gear is OK - all 4 brake lights look good and the horn is working, too.

[NightFlyer]

Oh SO SWEET!!! :thumbup:

That really is great to see, and I'm sure that what we don't see in the video is an ear-to-ear non-stop smile on your face :biggrin:

Regarding EBC Redstuff pads - if you're looking for performance braking, then they really are the best out there.

However, unless you're going to be performance driving the car, they're overkill and won't provide as much performance when cold as a set of standard organic, ceramic, or semi-metallic - especially if you use the brakes as they were designed/intended to be used, by pumping them (which allows pulsed cooling in-between actual application) as opposed to standing on them .

As I really don't performance drive my car on anything but a 1/4 mile straight dragway, I'm currently running a set of ceramics on my car, and they perform as expected (good braking with low dust), but they're going to cause some rotor wear. However, if I hadn't already bought and installed the ceramics, I'd probably end up opting for a set of organics (even though they're a dirty pad with the most dust, they're not as bad as they used to be in such regard). Stock/OEM pads were organic (asbestos), and while they were dirty pads (lots of dust), they provided great stopping power and were so soft that they didn't wear the rotors at all (which is the benefit I most like) - when I removed the stock/OEM pads at about 15,000 miles, the rotors were still 100% in factory spec and weren't warped at all.

Semi-metallics really aren't recommended for a few reason - 1) they cause the most rotor wear and warpage of the currently available options, and 2) If there's extended periods where the car sits, they can rust/fuse to the rotor. They also produce about as much dust as ceramics do, thus there's really no reason that one would want to run a set of semi-metallics vs a set of ceramics (other than that they're usually a little cheaper than ceramic pads, but a few euros shouldn't be the basis of your pad decision on the DeLorean).

Not trying to dissuade you from the EBC Redstuff - only wanted to give you something to think about. Think about how you'll actually be driving the car and what benefit you most appreciate from a set of pads and that will lead you to choosing the best pad for you :smile:

[JohnZ]

Always good to see a Delorean in motion, isnt' it? :)

Regarding the Redstuff pads, I already own them and I'm looking forward to try them. I knew that warming up thing, but I have to say that I can be considered as a "sporty driver", since I don't do races but I enjoy to shift gears and feel the road when I drive. You know that brilliant kind of driving ;) So redstuff pads could eventually suit me... they were recommended by my friend (also Delorean owner) and well... let's give 'em a try!! they will surely be better than my 30 years old pads (that are unexpectedly thick anyway...)

:wave:

[NightFlyer]

Always good to see a Delorean in motion, isnt' it? :)

Regarding the Redstuff pads, I already own them and I'm looking forward to try them. I knew that warming up thing, but I have to say that I can be considered as a "sporty driver", since I don't do races but I enjoy to shift gears and feel the road when I drive. You know that brilliant kind of driving ;) So redstuff pads could eventually suit me... they were recommended by my friend (also Delorean owner) and well... let's give 'em a try!! they will surely be better than my 30 years old pads (that are unexpectedly thick anyway...)

:wave:

Definitely - give them a shot.

Be sure to report back on your impressions of them.

I was going to put them on my car, but didn't know how they were on the rotors, which is why I went with standard ceramics (that and DMCMW had the ceramics in stock and I didn't have to wait for any shipping - nice when a vendor is close enough that you can just hop in the car and pick up some parts instantly, not to mention that Dave and Julee really are the BEST).

I intended on wearing out the ceramics before changing them, which given the way I use the brakes, will probably take a LONG time, and then check the rotors - if the wear isn't bad, then I'll stick with them (because I like low dust), but if I start noticing wear/warpage, then I'll definitely be going back to organic (too bad they don't allow asbestos pads anymore).

Have fun and keep us updated :thumbup:

[Dangermouse]

Great Job Giovanni. Must be very satisfying

[ALEXAKOS]

So I ein antobet bet with you amico!
1st: I bet you would find your D in less than 6 months
2nd : I bet you that the one nightflyer had on offer back the WOULD BE YOUR DELOREAN

and finally that you would drive your D long before I would!!!!


Enjoy the rides and wear diapers the first few tours!!! The excitement may be bigger than expected creating a mess.... :p


If you are not driving your d with a radical attitude, avoid green and red stuff pads. Those take longer to heat up and to have their 100% effect. ( had them on my Porsche 928)

I think you will be fine with stock like releases. It's a joy mobile. Not a performance vehicle;?

[JohnZ]

Ah ah the diapers, that's funny! :hysterical:

Our vendors should think about that! Stainless diapers, with the DMC logo in the front... keep your leather clean the first drives! :histerical1:

[JohnZ]

While I got my plates :cool1:

28735

I installed DPNW headlight bypass kit with no troubles at all (God bless detailed instructions!!)

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I'm having harder times installing the trunk auto pop up. No problems in mounting the actuator and the whole "mechanical" stuff... very easy, though I miss the whole electrical part! I guess I need something to wire up the actuators (green and blue). I think I need some sort of controller (I want it to be remote controlled)... but I have to surf the net for some infos, that's completely new subject to me!! :)

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[robvanderveer]

While I got my plates :cool1:

28735

I installed DPNW headlight bypass kit with no troubles at all (God bless detailed instructions!!)

28737287382873928740

I'm having harder times installing the trunk auto pop up. No problems in mounting the actuator and the whole "mechanical" stuff... very easy, though I miss the whole electrical part! I guess I need something to wire up the actuators (green and blue). I think I need some sort of controller (I want it to be remote controlled)... but I have to surf the net for some infos, that's completely new subject to me!! :)

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I've done that very thing this week. Check here (http://www.deloreaneurotec.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=436&start=570#p56524) and here (http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?9926-Door-lock-solenoid-REPLACEMENT-with-actuator&p=149051&viewfull=1#post149051)

[ALEXAKOS]

lovely!
You got an 81 on your plates;)
EV is also cool like the electrical Ev delorean.

so Where are you sleeping on tonight? I see the plates have taken your pillow:P

Have not gotten to the headlights wiring part.
What is that for?

[robvanderveer]

lovely!

Have not gotten to the headlights wiring part.
What is that for?

there is a design flaw in the headlight, all the current goes through the switch, and it might melt. The mod uses a relay so the current no longer goes through the switch and stop it from burning/overheating.

[ALEXAKOS]

there is a design flaw in the headlight, all the current goes through the switch, and it might melt. The mod uses a relay so the current no longer goes through the switch and stop it from burning/overheating.
Hmm...
My headlights are equipped with ballasts. (Xenon) Will that improve or burden the switch?

[robvanderveer]

Did you have to add an extra wire from the battery to the headlights? then you're probably safe.

For comparison, in Holland all roads are lighted, so i never need to drive with high beam on. The chances of melting the switch with low beam only are very low.

[ALEXAKOS]

Did you have to add an extra wire from the battery to the headlights? then you're probably safe.

For comparison, in Holland all roads are lighted, so i never need to drive with high beam on. The chances of melting the switch with low beam only are very low.

That is actually the method I have seen be done. With a direct wire. Now I know why. Mine is yet to be done. I am modifying it.


Sorry for the THREADJACKING amico!:8ball:

[Project Vixen]

Then I finally managed to do my first test drive of the Delorean!

Congratulations!!!

[JohnZ]

Congratulations!!!

Thanks! :)

And thanks Rob, I'll deal with that as soon as I figure out how to complete the job! ;)

Today I bled again the brake circuit, with the aid of an automatic bleeder! That's far more easy and safe! To be honest, just few air bubbles came out from the bleeding screws, meaning that the "pedal bleeding" was performed correctly in the first place! That's satisfying! :partyhat: But now I'm sure that the system is completely sealed.

...I know, I know... "pics or it did not happened"... but this time is more like "it didn't happened to take pics" :biggrin:

[JohnZ]

It's an odd period, I do only find the time to dress my lady for the roads with the license plates + european bezel!

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Now she definitely has another flavour!

:nana2:

[Domi]

Fits perfectly :)

[robvanderveer]

In Holland, we are allowed to use the US plates if it says so in the title. So I'm driving with US-style EU plates :D

[BABIS]

have you had to remove the rear fascia to screw in the plate bolt?

[JohnZ]

have you had to remove the rear fascia to screw in the plate bolt?

No, I just removed the tail lights in order to be comfortable with the bolts behind the fascia... I had to remove the rivets where the old screws were screwed and enlarge the holes for the new bezel, hence the drill you see in the picture! The license plate anyway it's just pressed in by the bezel's bolts... the more you tighten them, the more the plate is firm. No other screws are required.

Overall it's a boring job but very straightforward... and it's a HUGE satisfaction!!

:yesss:

[ALEXAKOS]

Not bad...
But as soon as you are sitting behind her wheel... You'll forget all about how different that plate looks back there! hehehehe

OR you can BUY and have this size plate (http://www.ebay.de/itm/300x150-Motorradkennzeichen-Kennzeichen-ohne-EU-/400750549610?pt=Motorrad_Kraftradteile&hash=item5d4e981a6a) printed with your Plate's details... add an "I" sticker with the EURO flag on it...


Enjoy amico!

[JohnZ]

Today I had a little kind of a clutch issue... I was not able to shift into gear, I felt like "oh my God I just replaced the whole transmission.. what's wrong now? :( :( ". I soon checked for leaks and there weren't any, the slave cylinder was doing its job properly so this made the clutch itself to be the real trouble maker...

I suspected that it was someway sticked into position (pretty common after years of inactivity) and so it probably was! We made the car rolling down a slope and in the meantime some starting attempts were performed, then after some hand shifting and tries... TA-DAH! The shifting was smooth and clear again! :nana1:

So don't forget to use your cars as much as you can, you'll prevent these kind of inconveniences! :goatee:

[ALEXAKOS]

I am afraid this is not just an inactivity issue. There is something wrong with your transmission or shift linkage.
I fear you will experience this again soon and I hope it will be in your garage and not on route somewhere far off... Have it looked at;)

[JohnZ]

I am afraid this is not just an inactivity issue. There is something wrong with your transmission or shift linkage.
I fear you will experience this again soon and I hope it will be in your garage and not on route somewhere far off... Have it looked at;)

I hope you're wrong, but I fear you're right! Especially because I did not really found a real cause and a real solution... it was just a matter of speculations!

Any way I'll let you know how it goes!

;)

[ALEXAKOS]

Just read a post in the UK forum of a member with gear change problems. He Is replacing clutch n fork.

[JohnZ]

Just read a post in the UK forum of a member with gear change problems. He Is replacing clutch n fork.

My clutch hasn't got more than 22k miles on it! Let's hope it's just a matter of forced hibernation!

:)

[ALEXAKOS]

My clutch hasn't got more than 22k miles on it! Let's hope it's just a matter of forced hibernation!

:)

Mine had only 17k... Want a picture of it?
Trashed it right away. All the component were seized together. It's not so much if the disc has miles on it to go. It's more of a question how the components work smoothly together. There is a lot of movement friction and temperatures going on there.

If you have just taken it out for a few drives, the heating up and cooling hat get some joints into freezing.

How long was the D sitting before you bought it?

[JohnZ]

Mine had only 17k... Want a picture of it?
How long was the D sitting before you bought it?

About 7 years or so. The engine and other components were refreshed before the sale, but the brakes and the transmission were left untouched (which, as you know, I renewed).

:D

[ALEXAKOS]

7 years us not too bad... But not if we are talking about a 30 year old system

[JohnZ]

7 years us not too bad... But not if we are talking about a 30 year old system

But the commercial said "crafted for long life"... I thought it would last a lifetime at least!!

:biggrin:

[DMCMW Dave]

But the commercial said "crafted for long life"... I thought it would last a lifetime at least!!

:biggrin:

It did. Just not YOUR lifetime. The car lasted the lifetime of the car.

[JohnZ]

It did. Just not YOUR lifetime. The car lasted the lifetime of the car.

I admit it, that's very clever, sir!

:D :D

[ALEXAKOS]

The car lasted the lifetime of the car.
... And beyond

[JohnZ]

Got a little inspection from THE italian official Delorean technician! Quality assured!

30165

:approve::approve:

By the way, no clutch troubles this time... it was clean shifting right away!

[NightFlyer]

Got a little inspection from THE italian official Delorean technician! Quality assured!

30165

That's the boss :thumbup:

[ALEXAKOS]

Lucky you! You have a delorean expert! My technitian is a glass expert:(

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/08/19/91fd0a34136ec1ea30a7424f7735573c.jpg

[JohnZ]

Helloo there! It's been a long time since I last updated my thread!

Lately I've been doing plenty of things! I randomly tell you about it:

New wipers! Wonderful Bosh aerotwins, really plug and play kinda stuff... even though it takes a while before you realize how to install them correctly! :dead: Look good though:

307823078330784

New fuel sender! Inaccurate as hell, but at least I know MORE OR LESS when it's time to fill her up! sorry, no pics... but you already know how it look like :biggrin: Really easy installation.

Black floor mats! I like black-gray contrast, so I took black mats instead of gray ones to give that feeling with my gray interiors! Purchased from Deloman:

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After that, I decided to take a trip with my brother outside the village! I'm allright with the law now (insurance and license plates) so imagine my happiness running down state roads with the D! Finally that moment! It was mainly a test drive, so I concentrated on heating (I tested the fans and the otterstat before that) and brakes and all this stuff! Well it was a blast anyway! :partyhat: We did about 3.6 miles. The whole trip was recorded by my brother (madman) and there you go! You can hear him shouting "slower, slower!"... I just wanted to feel how it drove! And it never missed anything! I had the impression of a solid rock engine! Surprising feel with the gas too... in other words: IT GOES! :rollin:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0g7aCbUNHc

Now the bad news. As you know I had an hot start issue since I purchased the car. I was told by Jason that he replaced fuel pump, PPR o ring but the accumulator was up to me. After some time I finally managed to replace it. It was fairly easy, it took us two hours and we were surrounded by the comforts of... THE HOLE! :wink: My uncle has the hole, so we went there with the car and did the job really well! Some pics:

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BUT THE FREAKING HOT START ISSUE IS STILL THERE! :gunfire: I was pretty sure about that (you know how it goes with the Deloreans) and after all I was quiet. But we are still wondering what the hell is going on! To be honest, something has changed. Now when I prime the fuel pump I hear a noise that can resemble the noise of a spring loading. I never heard that before. Is it correct? I guess it is the telltale sign of the accumulator that works correctly, but you tell me! I also heard (a couple of times) a kind of a lound "STEK!" noise while starting the car... WTF?!? My suspects now are pointed to the fuel pump check valve. I for sure don't have the latest Houston combo unit, and I don't know what kind of pump I have since it was replaced by the PO. But I got a picture for you:

30794

I can't really recognise if I ever have a check valve in there, but what about putting an in-line valve as most of you already have? Just to be sure about it and take it out of the equation. Please tell me what you think about it and what in the World is going on with the hot start circuit! :) :)

Thanks and let's keep it up!

:race:

[Bitsyncmaster]

You will hear a clunking noise as the accumulator loses rest pressure. Hopefully you don't hear that very often which would indicate how fast you loose rest pressure.

[JohnZ]

Ok thanks. Tonight I took her for a ride and did not hear the clunking noise... maybe I hear it when I try to start it from hot. But I hear the spring loading, I guess this is a good sign!

I'm worried about the volt gauge! I have the old Ducy and the car goes well, I have to say that. But the volt meter is constantly below 13, or between 8 and 13, in the orange zone. It never reads a full and powerful 13 / 14... When the fans kick in it stays just below the orange line :dead: Probably there is something wrong with the gauge or some electrical connections regarding the gauge as I never noticed a problem with the electrical load. The battery is 12 volt every time I measure it with the meter...

I would be glad to solve this psychological trouble! You don't drive happy when you read 10 volts even though the car is fine! :(

I'll surf old thread for this! ;)

[Rich]

I'm worried about the volt gauge! I have the old Ducy and the car goes well, I have to say that. But the volt meter is constantly below 13, or between 8 and 13, in the orange zone. It never reads a full and powerful 13 / 14... When the fans kick in it stays just below the orange line :dead: Probably there is something wrong with the gauge or some electrical connections regarding the gauge as I never noticed a problem with the electrical load. The battery is 12 volt every time I measure it with the meter...You don't drive happy when you read 10 volts even though the car is fine!

12 volts? A good battery should read >12.5V at room temperature and no load. How old is the battery?

Next, let's look at your voltage when driving. You are looking for 13.8-14.5V at low loads. Ducy's are known to have trouble at high loads, which is why the factory upgraded to the Moto 90. But if it won't pump

Keep in mind that a bad battery is, by itself, a significant load on the alternator.

To roughly load-test a battery be sure it is charged (with a garage charger if need be), pop the interia switch (kills the fuel pump for testing purposes) and crank the engine for 10 seconds while reading voltage. Should remain above 10.5V on the volt-ohmmeter (not the dash meter) if battery is OK. Otherwise check connections and/or get new battery. An option is to take the charged battery to a shop with a battery load-tester.

Driving the car with a true 10 volts means you are very close to the point where the fuel pump will not perform properly. The car will seem fine - until the moment it isn't....

[JohnZ]

Ok thanks you all! I'll mess with it then!

In the meantime, as I mentioned in the "good / positive stories" thread I went to my local cinema to watch Back to the future 3, and there I found a coworker of mine that did this funny report on the local newscast!

http://www.telebelluno.it/wp/16067

Lots of bttf references, but that's that! I work in that same television, by the way!

:D

[ALEXAKOS]

Awesome. You are now Belluno's pride and joy;)
Btw did not know that back the future 3 was an Italian movie ! :p

[JohnZ]

Awesome. You are now Belluno's pride and joy;)

You bet'cha! Now I'm getting stopped much more than before! (I play music and I'm exposed, so from time to time I got to be recognized) Now everyone is going nuts about me and my car! Guess I have to take it with the Delorean package... :( ;)

Anyway, I keep on having the hot start issue. Dave's hot fix feature on the RPM relay doesn't seem to help, and the new check valve for the fuel pump (I installed an inline valve even though I don't have Houston combo unit) doesn't really change the story.

On cold starts the car is a champion, but after 5-10 minutes it looses pressure and bye bye quick start! (and welcome plug swap :tongue2: ).

Moreover, after something like 100 miles driven and coming from 8 years of hibernation I'm starting to develope some good old freaking noises! Now the car idles and revs like an old tractor (exhaust gasket related? :confused: ), giving that constant "spat-spat-spat" noise... like the old John Deere machines! It does not keep me from going around, but it's annoying and uncool. I feel like it is getting louder everytime I pick up the car.

:reading:

[ALEXAKOS]

If it revs with "phat" noises then you bet you got an exhaust gasket blown. And I hope that is your trouble. Doesn't it sound like a chopper bike now? Coolness. You got delorean looks with Harley sound.

[AugustneverEnds]

Sounds like an exhaust manifold gasket leak what you are describing. When mine was leaking people thought I had a V8 with much more power :nana2: Almost didn't want to fix it!

Does the battery warning light turn on when you turn the ignition on? If not the charging system will not work to its full capacity. All that needs to be done is to replace the bulb. Had this problem before

Congrats on your car and being the toast of Belluno!

[JohnZ]

Actually the battery light comes on, but it goes off after I turn on the car! I think it's pretty normal, isn't it? When I drive every dash light is off, except for the door ajar when the door is open, the brake light when the brake light is engaged or the low fuel light when I'm down with fuel... so everything is normal there!!

I think it's just the volt meter that is "in a daze"! If I wiggle fuse nr 5 the gauge dances to the rhythm! :nana2:

Anyway back to my works! Now here's a picture of the brand new fuel pump in-line check valve, which sadly did not solved the hot start problem that I suffer from. I'm pretty sure is fuel pressure related since the plug swap joke makes me go home, but I'm going mad about it! :ehh:

31038

Then lately I've been dealing with strange stuff: I noticed that while driving, the fans kept on turning on even though it was stone cold! And still they did not turned off after a long time, not to mention that if I turned on the engine in the morning (me rattling and shivering from frozen weather) the fans would come on with out no reason! :boxface:

So I made my brain work, and I checked from oddities under the car and TA-DAH there I found a coolant leak! Drops were slowly dripping from the otterstat flowing thru the wires and presumably closing the circuit! :sniper: It was like the current was constantly going from the battery to the fans, no matter what the temperature was or if the otterstat worked or not! The water was creating the connection between the wires and the feed was constant! :spank:

Indeed, if I dried the spades connections and everything, as if by magic the fans would turn off! Of course after some time the water poured and there we go again! So lately I have been driving with the otterstat wires disconnected! (short trips, late in the evening :) ).

BUT this morning I finally replaced the otterstat! The seal was kinda raw and snapped in my hand, and I had a shower with the coolant :shower:, so I rapidly put my hand in the hole and there I was in a Tarantinian kind of mexican standoff... I can not stay there forever, but if I remove my hand the coolant goes out, and I can't even put back the old otterstat... luckily I had put a bin under the pipe, so I just let the coolant flow until it was finished, put the new seal and otterstat (Volvo switch, kicks on earlier ;) ), zip tied and iron-wired it, then turned on the car and put the old coolant (previously filtered) in the circuit. I've got the self bleeder installed, so I guess there is no air in the sistem. Doubt: I put a plastic zip tie around the pipe and the otterstat, between the spades... is there any danger of melting it? Must be pretty hot around there...:hmm:

I waited until the fan came in, then they came off, then after a while they came in again, and then came off... no drops, no leaks, all right, all tight!

:bigclap:

The old otterstat works, so I kept it. Nevertheless it has a crack on one side!

Definitely a one person job.... but man if it flowed profusely!! pics!

3104131039310403104231037

[jmpdmc]

JohnZ,

Just to confirm for you the zip tie will not melt around the otterstat pipe and is great insurance for the clip to hold the otterstat in. I have used it for several years. Keep up the good work.


Jeff
01678

[JohnZ]

Just to confirm for you the zip tie will not melt around the otterstat pipe and is great insurance for the clip to hold the otterstat in. I have used it for several years. Keep up the good work.

Ok thanks! :)

[JohnZ]

Latest news: after three days of heavy car usage (approx 120 miles) I have been able to feck up the first and second gear! :facepalm: At least I made it home with the third gear and the others, but I think that the linkage got "out of tune" there! No problems with the other gears at all, it's just 1st and 2nd that don't go in even with the car shut off! :bash:

I saw Martin Gutkowsky video about the gearshift linkage... that's interesting! I must check all that stuff If I want to keep up on being the coolest guy in Belluno! :approve::approve:

[ALEXAKOS]

If your reverse is still good then it is not a linkage problem.
If your gears grind then you need new sync cones.
If you can't find the gears then probably the safety pin cracked.
Either way that bloody tranny has to come out,., and while you are at it, get your self a new valeo clutch.

Sorry buddy. This fix ain't easy.

[JohnZ]

If your reverse is still good then it is not a linkage problem.
If your gears grind then you need new sync cones.
If you can't find the gears then probably the safety pin cracked.
Either way that bloody tranny has to come out,., and while you are at it, get your self a new valeo clutch.

Sorry buddy. This fix ain't easy.

The fact is that Martin could not go into fifth gear because the shifter was too "righty", hence the reverse gear was ok but could not stay on because it was slipping down, So basically I guess I've got the exact opposite issue. My shifter is too "lefty" and I can not go into first and second, but third, fourth and fifth and reverse are fine!

Well this is just a speculation, I can't really talk that confident until I take a look by eyes! You may be right too.

:) :)

[ALEXAKOS]

The linkage can not just loose alignment with a long drive. If your stick can move all the way to the reverse position, then you have no problem at 1&2 shift.

Now if you are lucky, the external linkage bridges snapped. So no tranny removal.

My guess is the pin broke as in many manuals it is an issue.

Opening up my tranny I was at awe how badly the gears looked inside for just 17k miles. It was like a kid was trying to drive it. Well or an adult with no stick shift experience. Back then it was only race drivers and Europeans that could use stick. Consider your tranny as badly handled in the past:(

[JohnZ]

This is a picture of how the stick rests in neutral position:

3115531156

Seem a bit too on the left to me, what do you think?

I hope it's just a matter of crossgate cable adjustment......:(

[ALEXAKOS]

The lever sits in neutral between 1and 3rd gear.
Seems fine.

[Dangermouse]

JohnZ,

Just to confirm for you the zip tie will not melt around the otterstat pipe and is great insurance for the clip to hold the otterstat in. I have used it for several years. Keep up the good work.


Jeff
01678

btw, you can get Stainless Steel zip ties also

http://www.amazon.com/Snap-Strip-Stainless-Steel-Pack/dp/B004C3CALS/ref=sr_1_5?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1413208083&sr=1-5&keywords=Snap+Strip+Stainless+Steel+Zip+Tie





(http://www.amazon.com/Snap-Strip-Stainless-Steel-Pack/dp/B004C3CALS/ref=sr_1_5?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1413208083&sr=1-5&keywords=Snap+Strip+Stainless+Steel+Zip+Tie)

[ALEXAKOS]

As Dave correctly said, I am also steering clear of any stainless on aluminum connections. The corrosion of aluminum is a sure thing. There was also a idea of a complete engine bolt set in stainless.. How nuts is that?

I'd also expect the zip tie to hold the max 99degrees Celsius. The only yhing hotter than that would be the all the exhaust components that run under there and could raise the temperatures significantly.

[JohnZ]

Just to update my thread, I solved the gearshift problem by adjusting the crossgate cable from the stick to the transmission! The nuts that kept the linkage adjusted were kinda loose and the shifter slowly lost its balance, moving little by little to the left portion of its housing!

My new adjustment made the shifter get back in the center, thus allowing perfect shifting!

Problem permanently solved? Only time will tell!

:meditation:

[robvanderveer]

lol, there will be other issues!

[JohnZ]

lol, there will be other issues!

Of course there will! Otherwise where's the fun??

:biggrin::biggrin:

[robvanderveer]

I do not understand the concept 'fun' you speak about. (Looks like Data)

[refugeefromcalif]

I do not understand the concept 'fun' you speak about. (Looks like Data)

The game is afoot!
We must find the understanding on the concept of 'Fun'.

31211

George

[JohnZ]

Here I am! After about 1500 miles trouble free and joy full (more or less :lol:) it was about time to get dirty once again!

We aimed to replace the exhaust gaskets, remove the cat and the whole exhaust system and check everything! We did it at 70%, then the sun went down like the old Level 42 used to sing :D

It was hard as hell to remove all the nuts and stud and so on, particularly the M10 ones... we succeeded in destroying everything! :eek1: luckily I have the new ones. NOT a single bolt was saved, and the cat was GLUED to the crossover pipe... it was harder to take everything out than working on the manifolds and remove the nuts with out breaking the M7 studs!

We used a blowtorch for working on the manifolds, and that was a good idea! They simply slipped out with no problems!

329113291232915329163291732918

Now I plan to replace the cat with a simple pipe, I want to overhaul the manifolds since as you can see they're not really smooth as they should be. I'm afraid that the gasket will not stick correctly down there... what do you think?

3291332914

I will of course replace the other gaskets too, put on the new heat shields. Then I want to upgrade the tips to the late style... hopefully a blacksmith will do the job!

:) :)

thanks for your inputs, let's go forward!

PS: here's how VIN 3305 sounds with out the muffler... sorry but it was the first time I removed a muffler and I wanted to hear that kind of music! :biggrin::biggrin:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxNnZLiGD8A

[BABIS]

nice works! yes I think the manifolds need to be resurfaced...

[ALEXAKOS]

Is that water pump / alternator belt put on backwards or is it just me???:smoke1:

That is sort of what mine sounds like with the custom exhausts.
I am at 85 decibels when reving up to 2500 rpm..


Nice work Amico!