If you dig DeLoreans?

[Magnumcharger]

Then you'll definitely groove on this!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdvk_Ubmbes
http://www.delorean.com/
http://soniq.wordpress.com/2007/08/01/back-to-the-present-delorean-going-back-into-production-gizmodo/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_i-XBgwEKZM

[moparstuart]

they will never rust   LOL

[BB1]

No 

[chargerboy69]

They are a sweet looking car. The new Deloreans do have several improvements over the cars made several years ago. However, the engine still sucks. A nice 310 hp Northstar will drop right in there.

[Magnumcharger]

There is one local to me here in Halifax. I saw it up close and personal last summer at a car show.
I guess seeing it on Kijiji tonight kinda got me interested in knowing a bit more about it.
This local one is twin turbocharged....not an option as far as I can tell?
Of course, I like the unusual cars. And gullwinged doors is just freakish enough for me to take an interest!
http://halifax.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-classic-cars-1981-DeLorean-DMC-12-W0QQAdIdZ86874738

[PocketThunder]

My favorite Hollywood car is the General.  but the Delorean is a close second, tied with ECTO-1...   

[Finn]

A guy at my school has one and my dads friend has one that's been in his backyard for about 5 years now.
Gotta love those gullwings  .

[Nacho-RT74]

there is one being sold down here

[Nacho-RT74]

ooops, searched for the link and didn't find anymore on the for sale website... maybe already sold ?

[bull]

A guy at work has one and at first I was excited about it. But after seeing it about 50 times it does nothing for me now. Second-gen Chargers, however, still give me a thrill every time I get near them.

[Drache]

Is it just me or do they look funny without a bunch of crap on the ass end? 

[Mike DC]

Agreed.  The BTTF gadgets on the car looked goofy, but the overall silhouette of the car that those gadgets create seems more right than the stocker now.



It's cool to see the McFly-mobile up close at a Universal Studios lot.  They've still got the ones from the movies scattered around their theme parks & properties.  And they've built at least one or two more copies just for display purposes since then.  (Same with Vinnie's black & blown Charger from F&F#1.)

But in general those stock old DMCs are serious letdowns in real life.  The gullwing doors don't do ANYTHING right, the build quality of the whole car is ass, and it's slow as dirt even by early 1980s standards.  It made a much better trendy toy & movie star than a real consumer vehicle. 

[Ghoste]

Just for arguments sake, do you think DeLorean would have corrected those perofrmance issues if he had been able to stay afloat or do you think he was content with an exciting body holding a lackluster powerplant?

[Mopar2Ya]

Run for it Marty! 
Nice, but I'd rather have this:
a Chevy crushing Plymouth. 

[Charger_Fan]

Just for arguments sake, do you think DeLorean would have corrected those perofrmance issues if he had been able to stay afloat or do you think he was content with an exciting body holding a lackluster powerplant?

I think the performance issues would have been corrected as the car evolved. Wasn't John DeLorean one of the main guys behind the GTO? I forget.

The timing of this thread is funny...two nights ago during the hellish commute home, I saw a DeLorean merging onto the freeway. It's just one of those cars you just don't see anymore in normal traffic, ya know? I had to slow down & let him get closer...I could tell the guy drives it a lot, it looked like it could use some tlc.

[Ghoste]

The GTO part was kind of why I asked.  I've never been able to make up my mind whether he was actually a performance fan, a crafty salesman, or he just got off on thumbing his nose at rules.  His ego was enormous enough that it could have been any or all of those things.

[bull]

The GTO part was kind of why I asked.  I've never been able to make up my mind whether he was actually a performance fan, a crafty salesman, or he just got off on thumbing his nose at rules. 

Yea, he probably didn't know which it was either and the result was a confused mess.

[Brock Samson]

  So whatever happened to Alex?.. 
Mauibarber...

   http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,46003.msg503297.html#msg503297

My understanding from reading the material when we were discussing his, was the irish gov. offered him a deal on the plant he coudn't really refuse and the underpowered engine was a deal too.

[Mike DC]

Some of the signature DMC traits were also some of the biggest problems with the car. 

Can you imagine trying to maintain and repair your car's bodywork when it's stainless like that?  It means NO body filler, or primer, or even serious sanding.  One ding = one replacement panel to purchase.




And the gullwing doors . . . man, don't even get me started on that bit of lunacy. 

Weathersealing:  Start with the problems of the 1970s F-body T-tops.  Then add worse build quality than the GMs themselves had.  Then multiply it by the fact that the roof seal was being used as often as the driver's door is used. 

Gas struts:  They were always leaking and not holding the doors up.  And when they did have enough gas pressure to hold the door up, that meant it was usually difficult to pull down the door again and shut it once you're in the car seat.

Dimensions:  They didn't allow enough room in the lower door for a side window glass to slide down into.  So there was just that little tiny mini-framed glass on each side moved.  And when you pulled into a typical parking spot, the gullwings often didn't clear the car on either side when you tried to raise them!

[Ghoste]

Don't forget that they basically only fit one size driver.

[Magnumcharger]

Some of the signature DMC traits were also some of the biggest problems with the car. 

Can you imagine trying to maintain and repair your car's bodywork when it's stainless like that?  It means NO body filler, or primer, or even serious sanding.  One ding = one replacement panel to purchase.
The Stainless steel were easily unbolted from the space frame. A dent could easily be removed by force from the backside. Standard metalworking skills including stretching/shrinking would remove most defects. To replicate the finish, a course sanding pad (non-metallic) applied in the correct orientation would suffice. Either way, a new quarter panel (for instance) is only $900 US (approximately).

And the gullwing doors . . . man, don't even get me started on that bit of lunacy. 

Weathersealing:  Start with the problems of the 1970s F-body T-tops.  Then add worse build quality than the GMs themselves had.  Then multiply it by the fact that the roof seal was being used as often as the driver's door is used. 
Most T-tops were installed by subcontractors (ASC for instance) as a kit, which caused undue flex in the unibody structure, negating the effectiveness of most of the kit's seals.

Gas struts:  They were always leaking and not holding the doors up.  And when they did have enough gas pressure to hold the door up, that meant it was usually difficult to pull down the door again and shut it once you're in the car seat.

Gas struts on mini-vans can last for the life of the vehicle. Technology with regards to struts has evolved considerably. That being said, weather conditions (hot/cold), and the effects of grit can decrease the life of any pneumatic cylinder.

Dimensions:  They didn't allow enough room in the lower door for a side window glass to slide down into.  So there was just that little tiny mini-framed glass on each side moved.  And when you pulled into a typical parking spot, the gullwings often didn't clear the car on either side when you tried to raise them!
As stated on a Delorean page in the links above, operating room for the gullwing doors was only 10 inches per side. Less than the operating arc for most conventional doors.

[Ghoste]

Having taken a few DeLorean doors in the head at auctions I'm afraid I have to side with Mike on the crappy struts.  You did add a caveat but they really were junky.

[BlueSS454]

Don't forget about the wonderful electrical systems on them.  I think they look cool, but a total lemon in reality.

[Mike DC]

 
The second "Back to the Future" movie production spent like $100,000 building some miniature DeLoreans for scenes where the car flew.  They were like 1/6th scale or something, about 3 feet long.  The cars were accurate as hell, they had correct lighting, detailed figures inside that moved, etc. 

I'd like to have one of those DeLoreans. 

[Khyron]

I would own one in a second.


wouldn't give up my Charger for one, but I would own one. There is only one ca I would ever give up my Charger for.