What have you done to your DeLorean today?

[DMC5180]

Went for a nice drive this evening and dodged a couple DEER.

[DeLorean03]

Last week:

Installed a new ported vacuum switch.

Installed a plumbing clamp on the rubber hose that goes from a barb on the back of the driver's side intake manifold to the vacuum modulator.

Installed new fuel injector boots.

This week:

Installed Bouicord plug wires from DMCMW.

Adjusted the fuel to air ratio so it idles with very minimal idle hunting when first starting the car.

Got my new KJet gauges and properly measured my system, control, and rest pressures. Determined with instructions from DMCMW-Dave that my fuel pump/sender combo is faulty, and I will be exchanging it for a new one at DMCMW's open house under warranty .

Been learning how to properly adjust the linkage arm that connects the "hammer" of the idle speed microswitch to the throttle spool. Here, I'll explain:

My idle was starting to stick at 1500 RPM in park, so I adjusted the linkage arm once verifying that a gentle push on the hammer that engages idle speed microswitch brought my RPMs down. After adjusting the arm appropriately, the idle was solid and steady at 750 RPM, and it came down to and stayed at 750 RPM no matter how soft, hard, or gradually I applied the brakes. But then....

I was having a wacky issue where when my transmission would downshift, the RPMs would go down to nearly 500 RPM before catching and holding on going back to 900 RPM and finally settling at 750 RPM. Turned out my car doesn't like to idle at 750 RPM in drive. Once I started adjusting the idle to remain at 1000, my transmission downshifted and the RPMs went up as they should with each downshift, keeping the engine strong and healthy instead of that wild oscillation from 500 to 900 to then 750 when braking. It was nutty, and I definitely didn't like it.

All part of owning a DeLorean

[NightFlyer]

Determined with instructions from DMCMW-Dave that my fuel pump/sender combo is faulty, and I will be exchanging it for a new one at DMCMW's open house under warranty .

As I'm thinking about ordering one of the pump/sender combo kits from DMCMW, I'm curious as to what exactly is faulty with the product - is it the check valve, as has been reported in other threads?

[DeLorean03]

Yes, it is typically the check valve. The "bad batch" of these units should hopefully be exhausted by now. The way to find out:

Hook up a set of K-Jetronic Fuel Pressure Gauges to your control pressure regulator and fuel distributor. Start the car and make sure you have 78-80 psi main fuel pressure.

Have someone in the driver's seat with the car running. Get a strong C-Clamp or vice grips with padding or wrapped electrical tape to keep the jaw's teeth from digging into the rubber fuel line. Place the clamp/vice grips over the FEED rubber fuel line that connects the fuel pump to the metal fuel line. When the help in the driver's seat turns the key to stop the engine, immediately clamp down on the rubber fuel line with the vice grips or C-clamp.

Now go back to your fuel pressure gauges in the engine bay. Your rest pressure should be somewhere around 43-45 psi. Now go release the pressure on your vice-grips/C-clamp. Once you do that, go check your gauges. If the gauge starts plummeting, you have a bad check valve. Good example with my car today:

Started the car, let it sit. Rest pressure was 43 psi. In 12 minutes, I had 0 rest pressure. I started the car back up, and then stopped the engine and applied vice-grips to my feed rubber fuel line. All of a sudden, my fuel pressure stayed at 41 psi for 12 minutes. Then, I disconnected my vice-grips, and in 8-9 minutes, I went from 41 psi to nearly 21 psi, and within a total of 15 minutes I was at 15 psi. To put that in perspective, you should have 25.5 PSI as a minimum after 10 minutes.

Bottom line, I was dropping rest pressure pretty quickly - the check valve was starting to give out or it was not engaging all the time as it should.

[OverlandMan]

I put a replacement upper LH side door trim piece on my car this evening. Looks 110% better!

[Mark D]

Be camera flash as those two strips contain reflectors.

Yup thats the camera flash reflecting. Would be cool to get the whole light that bright instead fd just the bulb in the center. In that other thread about the LED marker lamps it looks like the side facing LED's do a pretty good job of this.

[jawn101]

Drained the oil, disconnected the mounts and hoisted the motor up to remove the oil pan yet again and install a third gasket. This one is holding MUCH better (thanks, Josh!!)

Resealed the passenger side valve cover gasket. Started her up and cycled to operating temperature. Not a single drop of oil so far!

Tomorrow I will reinstall the fascia and such to get her road legal again and then I think a proper shakedown is in order.

Thanks to David, Clint and Ryan for all the help!

[Jonathan]

You should pull out the mechanism to lean it forward and back if you can and it's saveable. Those are NLA.

If salvageable, save the slide release bars too as they are also NLA.

http://store.delorean.com/p-9991-slide-release-bar.aspx

I paid $100+ five years ago for the pair after realizing my car didn't come with any. Slightly important to be able to move the seat if you need it all the way back cause you don't fit!

Took 2953 for a quick spin around town, came home, and changed the oil. I have to say, I feel a heck of a lot better now that the car is running and not collecting dust in my garage.

Nice. Looks like all the same pieces for my last oil change (including the style of drain plug you have). Not sure if that is oil splashed a bit on the frame (the section going across the width and right behind where the drain plug hole would be)? You can have good luck getting the oil coming out to go down instead of out and on to the frame, by using a piece of cardboard or something similar to kind of angle it just as you release the plug and it shoots out at the cardboard and then down into your catch container. Saves having to wipe the frame off afterwards

[DMCflux]

I have tried to drive it everyday with the exception of bad weather (rain). I have over 2k miles on it so far this year. The only problems I have encountered since my winter restoration were, steering column bushing and a blown evap to compressor a/c hose. So far so good, but with literally everything being gone thru and/or replaced. Hopefully im in the clear for awhile (fingers crossed)

[DMC5180]

I have tried to drive it everyday with the exception of bad weather (rain). I have over 2k miles on it so far this year. The only problems I have encountered since my winter restoration were, steering column bushing and a blown evap to compressor a/c hose. So far so good, but with literally everything being gone thru and/or replaced. Hopefully im in the clear for awhile (fingers crossed)

WOW, 2K already. That's great to here. I'm about cross 1K for the season.

Which Hose blew as seen at the Compressor TOP or BOTTOM? (Assuming 32 year old Original Hoses). I would expect the HIGH Side Hose to Fail (COMP to CONDENSER) before the LOW side hose gives up (EVAP to COMP)