[DML] Re: Chevy Engine swap

["ryanpwright" <dmcnews_list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Joe,

> I'm all for better modifications to the Delorean, but when people 
> start basically ripping it apart to make it something it isn't. 
> Basically a chevrolet engine, porsche tranny, then specialized 
> plumbing & electricals to make it work, plus all the custom 
> fabrications needed to make it all work, then it isn't really a 
> Delorean anymore.
> 
> Makes for a fun maintenance & upkeep for anyone who inherits or buys 
> a vehicle like this.
> 
> Rich, the scale of vehicles you just mentioned, best scenario to 
> worst, sounds about right for modded cars. I'm not just for 
> Deloreans that have been stripped of the systems that make them a 
> Delorean. 

Again, I must disagree. The systems that make a DeLorean aren't the
goodies under the hood. It's the recognizable stuff. The body, the
doors, the interior, etc. 

For example... Replace everything under the body, drive it anywhere
and people will still say, "Oh look, a DeLorean!" If it's not really a
DeLorean anymore, how come everyone who sees it still recognizes it as
such? This "not a DeLorean" idea is a very tiny minority. The DMV
still says it's a DeLorean, as does your insurance company and
everyone you would ever meet on the street. I'd say that makes it a
DeLorean.

> Just imagine if your car had a chevy vortec engine, a custom 
> transmission, it's own fuel delivery & plumbing setup, how useful 
> would the DML have been then? 

Plenty useful. I could still ask questions relating to the brakes, the
body, interior, doors, seals, glass, most heating & A/C components,
the mode switch, the louvers, audio systems, etc. Need I go on? 

If I've got the ability to drop in a custom engine, tranny, etc, do
you think I need the DML's help in that area? I ask questions about
the PRV because I'm unfamilar with it. If I tore it out and dropped in
a Chevy engine, I wouldn't have to ask questions about that part of
the car. If I paid someone to do this work for me, then I'd go to him
for support. Really, I don't see this as being an issue unless you
bought the car that way and have no idea how the swap was done.

> That is my main beef when people 
> mainly cutomize or butcher just for a minimal speed gain. It is a 
> touring car, and for people that realize that, then this is the car 
> for them, for some it isn't.

Woah - minimal speed gain? A proper engine swap can take this car to
60mph in the 3 second range. I've seen Fieros that run the quarter
mile in under 9 seconds, and the same could easily be done to a
DeLorean. I wouldn't call being able to smoke any car on the road,
Lamborghinis and Ferraris included, a "minimal speed gain".

Even a regular old V8 would drop your 0-60 times down to 5 seconds.
Still not "minimal". 

> repairs & fixes are great. Maybe I gave the wrong impression when I 
> made the first post, the main point was for people not to destroy 
> the car just for a faster 0-60 time, or a faster street drag.

To you the car is destroyed. To me, it's reborn. A stock DeLorean is
slow as molasses. My SUV has better acceleration. Building a custom
DeLorean with the power to suit it's looks is not destruction, it's an
improvement.

But then, I don't see my car as an investment. It's a toy. Something
fun to drive around in - so fun, in fact, that it's my daily driver.
If it was worth $0 today I wouldn't care, because I don't intend to
sell it. I keep it parked in the garage and I baby it, but only for
the purpose of it's lasting for many years to come - not to keep it's
value high. If it were faster, it would just be that much more fun to me.

Besides - if someone swaps out his PRV, that's good for the rest of
you. He won't be needing any of the PRV's parts, leaving more for
everyone else, and a few people might get a great deal on a used
engine, transmission, or other engine component.

-Ryan








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