Hey Dave , buy a DeLorean

[vlad777]

Hey Dave , buy a DeLorean.

[Halcyon]

That's right, DMC has been "rescued" financially (I can't recall who by) but they apparently have enough spare parts on-hand to build "new old stock" models.

As crap as they were, I'd love to see more of these on the road. I'd hate to think how much CTP/Insurance would cost though, in a crash, I don't rate your chances.

 

[meeder]

Do they also have that crap V6 lump from France in stock?

[CJay]

There's a scrapyard/mechanic's in my county that's got two, they're 'not for sale' but they do look rather cool.

Shame about the POS engine in them but I reckon you could get a decent one in there if you're not too bothered about authenticity under the bonnet

[Berni]

There is a guy that swapped the engine in one for a twin turbo V6 that makes 500 hp, looks stock otherwise.

[TheSteve]

Why not keep it authentic - copy DeLorean vin 502 which was a factory twin turbo car.

End of the day the stock 130hp motor is still a blast to drive if you have the 5 speed manual transmission.

[Brumby]

Dave already has a DeLorean.

It has had a hover conversion, too.

[EEVblog]

One in good nick was sold in Australia a few months back for $45k IIRC. Was in Perth though.
Last I checked the price on the new build it would be AU$150k or something once you get it here.
I'd rather offer $100k to the guy in Sydney that owns a fully converted time machine version.

[SeanB]

One in good nick was sold in Australia a few months back for $45k IIRC. Was in Perth though.
Last I checked the price on the new build it would be AU$150k or something once you get it here.
I'd rather offer $100k to the guy in Sydney that owns a fully converted time machine version.

This is the guy who drove a Toyota till even the scrap yard was hesitant to take it.......... I think he would love one though, even if he did have to make a drive in lounge to admire it at home.

[james_s]

That PRV motor really is a turd, Volvo used it for a number of years in some of the 260 and 760 models and it was notorious for being unreliable, underpowered, thirsty, and it had a weird lumpy idle. The 4 cylinder turbo motors were more powerful, more fuel efficient, more reliable, and easier to work on. Supposedly the V6 was a collaboration between Pugeot, Renault and Volvo but I could never find any Volvo influence in it. Looked like a poorly done amateur engine swap in the cars that had it.

DeLoreans are not known for being particularly well performing but then neither were the early Corvettes. That's not really the point though, they're totally cool cars.

[dave_k]

I'd rather offer $100k to the guy in Sydney that owns a fully converted time machine version.

That won't make it go any faster stuck in traffic on the M2 

[W2NAP]

I'd rather offer $100k to the guy in Sydney that owns a fully converted time machine version.

That won't make it go any faster stuck in traffic on the M2 

that is what the hoover car mod is for

[Benta]

DeLorean:
if you like 80s design with absurd features like gull-wing doors that hit the ceiling in underground parking lots or prevent you from getting in/out of the car when someone's parked too close to you, great.

But the vehicle has one great, unique selling point: the body is stainless steel! Goodbye rust, farewell body work.

Also, most of the mechanical parts are from other mass produced vehicles, making spares cheap and plentiful.

All plus points for a collector's car.

Alas, the engine is an abomination, probably one of the sh*ttiest ever designed. French engineering and cost-cutting at its worst.

[Halcyon]

Alas, the engine is an abomination, probably one of the sh*ttiest ever designed. French engineering and cost-cutting at its worst.

Maybe if Volvo alone developed the engine and left Peugeot and Renault out of it, it might have been a success.

[james_s]

Alas, the engine is an abomination, probably one of the sh*ttiest ever designed. French engineering and cost-cutting at its worst.

Maybe if Volvo alone developed the engine and left Peugeot and Renault out of it, it might have been a success.

I suspect it must have had political motivations for selling Volvos in France because I can think of few other reasons for their involvement. If they really wanted a 6 they could have simply extended the B21 or B230 SOHC inline 4 which is a bulletproof engine known for being almost impossible to kill into a straight 6 as they did with the pushrod B18 derived B30.

[TheSteve]

DeLorean:
if you like 80s design with absurd features like gull-wing doors that hit the ceiling in underground parking lots or prevent you from getting in/out of the car when someone's parked too close to you, great.

But the vehicle has one great, unique selling point: the body is stainless steel! Goodbye rust, farewell body work.

Also, most of the mechanical parts are from other mass produced vehicles, making spares cheap and plentiful.

All plus points for a collector's car.

Alas, the engine is an abomination, probably one of the sh*ttiest ever designed. French engineering and cost-cutting at its worst.

You've clearly never been that close to a DeLorean. You'd need a crazy low ceiling to hit it - you'd also be hitting your head. You also need less clearance on the side of the DeLorean to open the door then any car with a conventional door - less then 6 inches!

(proud owner of VIN 5439 for 9 years)

[cs.dk]

Maybe if Volvo alone developed the engine and left Peugeot and Renault out of it, it might have been a success.

The enging isn't that bad - It's not very powerful, but it is fairly strong build.
I'm a frequent user of different Citroën forums, and I can't remember someone with a dead engine. The PRV engine is in the XM as a 3,0 liter @ 170 bhp.
The 24V version however, was dead from beginning. It was in Citroën XM and Peugeot 605 with 200 bhp. IIRC it was lubrication to the cams that failed on them.

[EEVblog]

One in good nick was sold in Australia a few months back for $45k IIRC. Was in Perth though.
Last I checked the price on the new build it would be AU$150k or something once you get it here.
I'd rather offer $100k to the guy in Sydney that owns a fully converted time machine version.

This is the guy who drove a Toyota till even the scrap yard was hesitant to take it..........

It was a Holden (Opal) Vectra thank you very much!
And the term used by the repair guy was "death trap".

I now drive a Toyota Corolla 

[langwadt]

Do they also have that crap V6 lump from France in stock?

as far as I've heard they will use a different engine to meet emission standard

[Towger]

I now drive a Toyota Corolla 

Wait until the SWMBO wants a Toyota Corolla Verso.

[meeder]

I now drive a Toyota Corolla 

Wait until the SWMBO wants a Toyota Corolla Verso.

With two kids that moment can't be to far away in the future
Nothing wrong with a Corolla though, we drove the European hatchback version (called Auris).

[james_s]

The enging isn't that bad - It's not very powerful, but it is fairly strong build.
I'm a frequent user of different Citroën forums, and I can't remember someone with a dead engine. The PRV engine is in the XM as a 3,0 liter @ 170 bhp.
The 24V version however, was dead from beginning. It was in Citroën XM and Peugeot 605 with 200 bhp. IIRC it was lubrication to the cams that failed on them.

It's not so much weak as it is just a poor design. I've only ever dealt with it in Volvos and the main issue was that it was very prone to oil leaks, difficult to work on in place, and hard to get it to idle smoothly. Then it was only 130HP in US-spec emissions compliant form, not much more than the 114HP of the 2.3L I-4 and significantly less than the 162HP 2.3L turbo despite higher fuel consumption. Early versions had a tendency to eat camshafts which come out through the back of the head so you had to pull the heads or the whole motor to replace them. I think the camshaft oiling issue had been fixed by the time DeLorean used them. I'm still not sure why DeLorean chose that specific engine though when other engines more suitable for use in a sports car were available. 130HP is anemic for a car built of relatively heavy stainless steel.

[Benta]

It's not so much weak as it is just a poor design. I've only ever dealt with it in Volvos and the main issue was that it was very prone to oil leaks, difficult to work on in place, and hard to get it to idle smoothly. Then it was only 130HP in US-spec emissions compliant form

I'm with you 100%, it's a p*ss-poor design. The PRV engine was originally designed as a 90 deg V8, but due to the oil crisis two cylinders were chopped off (French cost-cutting style), leaving an unbalanced, vibrating, oscillating, noisy V6. Which was then put into the DeLorean.

And frankly: a measly 131...136 HP from 2.8 l displacement is an insult to real European engine designers.

[james_s]

Ah! Now that's something I didn't know, being designed as a V8 explains the weird oddfire design that gave it a lumpy idle. Seems like it only had a few bolts that hold the intake manifold on too, I remember seeing issues with those stripping out. At least it looks right in the DeLorean, like it's supposed to be there. In a Volvo 760 the engine is perched way forward so the oil pan clears the crossmember, there's a big gap in back between the engine and firewall, something like 8 inches. Handy for getting at the bellhousing bolts but not so much for changing belts, water pumps and other common maintenance items that are now mashed up near the radiator. The first time I saw one I thought some idiot did a redneck engine swap with whatever they had on hand.

Despite my gripes about the engine, I can still forgive the DeLorean because it's just such a crazy cool car. Totally impractical, doesn't even perform that great, but it looks awesome and it has character. I wish more cars had stainless body panels, especially in areas where salt is used to melt ice on the roads, you hardly see any cars more than about 5 years old in the midwest and northeast because they rot to pieces.

[VulcanBB18]

Well, at least you can get some of the obscure spare parts for them right here in Oz! 

https://www.jaycar.com.au/flux-capacitor/p/OUTATIME

cheers,