My third DeLorean, which I drove for about 5 years almost daily, was a very early car (VIN 923 I think) which had no provision for a heatshield. There were no brackets. They normally are a part of the lower muffler brackets, but this car definitely did not ever have them. I had no heat related problems with it at all. Please note that I am NOT advocating that anyone leave their heat shield off. But I would like to know if any other owners of very early cars were similarly un-equipped. -- Darryl Tinnerstet McCleary, WA