Re: [DML] DAILY DRIVER DMC

[Louie Golden <louie@xxxx>]

hey adam,
well what i suggest is before you do anything, get into contact with your area owners! go to events! i am a college sophomore myself, and have been involved in the delorean community for a little over a year now. i am finally looking for my ideal delorean. i can't tell you how much you will learn by just meeting your local owners and going to delorean events. you get to hear all the problems and things they deal with owning deloreans, and through this you start to learn what you need to look for in a D. they will teach you how to look for all the necessary updates, and what questions to ask when checking out a perspective buy. here are a few things i have learned over the last year-
1)deloreans are money pits. the general delorean "rule" is the price of the car + repairs= $20,000. i have found out that really often that the total cost of ownership can be more like $25,000 even $30,000. no matter how much money you put into a delorean, it is still only a $15,000-$20,000 car at best.
2)when looking for a delorean, you want one that is kept running. sitting deloreans=disaster, and incredible money to be spent. i looked at a D a couple of weeks ago that had $18,000 in mechanical reciepts, all of this was spent over the course of only 3 years! so for a daily driver, buy a delorean that has THOUSANDS of dollars in documented reciepts. otherwise you just don't know what you are getting in to.
3)of course there are lots of specific things to look out for, like all the necessary cooling and electrical system updates, and know to run away from cars with frame rust. this is a potentially VERY expensive problem.
like i said before, the best thing you can do is to meet as many owners as possible, and they will teach you so much. after a year of being around the delorean community, i now think i am getting an idea of what to expect from delorean ownership. although all the things i have learned have scared me a little, i want a delorean more than ever. i have been around cars all my life, i truly think deloreans are the most unique cars on the road. they have the biggest personality i have ever seen in a car. so if you really do your homework, a delorean works out great as long as you have the money and patience. as a delorean friend of mine always says: just be prepared for the worst possible situation, and you'll never be dissapointed! just know this, don't buy the first D you see, and learn to be skeptical. good luck in your search. -Louie

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