|
|
About
My Infrequently Updated Blog. The web-based journal of M. Forde, computer nerd, endurance athlete, and DeLorean owner
contact
Subscribe
Subscribe to a syndicated feed of my weblog,
brought to you by the wonders of RSS.
Flavors
There's more than one way to view this weblog; try these flavors on
for size.
index
circa 1993
Sections
main
musings
running
DeLorean
code
unix
album
TBM
Archives
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
Disclaimers, Copyrights, Privacy, Etc.
ToS
Copyrights
Links
olix0r.net
netmeister.org
Giraffes
Eat. Run. Sleep.
|
|
|
Time Travel?
A few months ago I happened to snap a photo of the DeLorean on Main
Street in Boonton near the Darress Theatre. It's probably one of my
favorite photographs of the car and certainly one of the best I've ever
taken.
The theatre was built in 1919 and has remained largely unchanged since
then. A lot of Boonton still has a very old "look and feel" to it, and
this section of Main Street served as a perfect backdrop for the
DeLorean.
[/dmc]
[permanent link]
Fun Conversations
The DeLorean often leads to conversations one wouldn't normally expect.
Case in point: today I had to call my auto insurance provider for an
issue with my daily driver. After taking some info to pull up my account
the conversation went something like this:
Agent: Which car is this?
Me: The Pontiac.
Agent: Am I reading this right?
Me: Reading what?
Agent: I'm sorry, do you have a DeLorean?
Me: Yes.
Agent: I never thought I'd see someone with a policy on a DeLorean.
Me: Well, you've insured both of mine...
Agent: You've had two DeLoreans?
Me: Yes.
At that point there were a few more questions and then we got back to
the issue which my phone call had been about originally.
[/dmc]
[permanent link]
Normalcy
I realized that if and when I have children, they will grow up thinking
it's normal to have a DeLorean.
[/dmc]
[permanent link]
Christmas Eve
On Christmas Eve, I headed out around 7:00PM to take a look at the
Christmas lights and decorations around town. There was a snow storm
predicted for around 9:00PM, so I decided to take the DeLorean out for
one last drive before the Wonderful Winter Weather(TM).
The snow started much earlier than expected. The snow was light and
slow, and despite the car not handling well in slick conditions, I kept
going for a while.
As I was driving I had the realization that I was having an experience
no one else in the world has ever had. I was driving a DeLorean through
my town on Christmas Eve, admiring Christmas lights and listening to
Christmas music as snow fell.
I looked over at the empty passenger seat and wished there had been
someone, anyone there to share this with. So for now, until
circumstances like this arise again, I will continue to be the only
person to have experienced this.
When I got home, I took this photograph.
[/dmc]
[permanent link]
Updates!
I realized I haven't updated this section of my blog (that no one reads
anyway) in over a year. A lot has happened since then.
I sent my DeLorean (#6291) to DMC Houston to have the frame replaced.
(A quick note to anyone buying a DeLorean from a private owner: Have a
mechanic you trust get the car on a lift before you buy it). The
guys at DMC found a lot more wrong with the car that had been covered
up. After many conversations with Steve Wynne about the car, I decided
to cut my losses and sell it for parts. I tried to live the dream, and
it turned into a small nightmare.
It was then that Steve told me about a DeLorean they had just taken in
from an owner in Indiana. This DeLorean was a month older than mine
(built in October of 81) and had the grey interior and 5-speed manual
transmission just like mine. Everything was in great condition and it
only had about 9,900 miles on it. He offered me a trade-in value for my
car, far more than I thought it would be given its condition.
After some deliberation I decided if I didn't take it, I'd never have
the car and my childhood dream would be dead. I agreed to the trade-in
and then I began working with James Espy about all of the details of the
purchase. I continued working with Steve in regard to the work being
done on the car.
They replaced the leather on the seats. While the original leather was
not cracked, it was almost 30 years old and a bit dry. They replaced the
headliners and the radio, and performed a full maintenance on it. They
even took it to some local car shows.
When I took delivery of the car in early September, it had just over
10,000 miles on it.
After a year of owning the vehicle, I've put about 1000 miles on it. And
I've enjoyed every one of them.
[/dmc]
[permanent link]
Bing!
It has come to my attention that searching bing for pictures of closed doors yields
pictures of my DeLorean.
[/dmc]
[permanent link]
It exists
As part of the DeLorean's restoration, I've been considering a backlit
dash. I had considered sticking with the stock dash with the white light
bulb in front of the gauges, but I thought a red backlit display would
be better for night vision.
Then came the issue of whether or not something like that exists. Turns
out it does. Speed
Hut carries a line of customizable gauges for the DMC-12 as part of
the EL-Glo line.
[/dmc]
[permanent link]
DMC Houston
It looks like the DeLorean needs some non-trivial work done on it. The
mechanic I had taken it to found an issue he's not equipped to deal
with. My first call was to DMC Houston where I talked to Stephen.
He was friendly and incredibly knowledgeable. He said he'd work with me
and Dave at their facility in Chicago to figure out what the extent of
the work would be and the best way to approach it. Odds are the car is
going to have to be shipped to Chicago for a few weeks.
[/dmc]
[permanent link]
Highway driving
On the way to the mechanic yesterday, I had the DeLorean out on 287
South. Near one of the Boonton exits, a guy in old Stingray pulled up
next to me on my right. I looked over, he looked at me, and we gave each
other a nod. I sped up a bit to keep with the flow of traffic and he
moved as if exiting soon thereafter.
This was my longest trip with the DeLorean thus far, and also the
fastest I've ever driven it. And no, I still haven't gotten it to
88mph.
[/dmc]
[permanent link]
It's like I'm 16 again
You'd think I would have learned to drive by now. I've had the DeLorean
for a month now and I'm still a little shaky coming off stop lights and
signs but over all I'm better. I've only driven it a handful of times
and I should really be driving it more often if I want to get better.
I'm thinking of adding a separate section to the site dedicated to the
DeLorean and every step in the process of acquiring it. I found a lot of
useful information on the websites of other owners that helped a lot.
[/dmc]
[permanent link]
"Why the hell don't the plugins have proper documentation"
I had to pick up something in Fair Lawn for a friend this evening. It
was later in the evening, well after rush hour but there was still a
good amount of time before the sun went down so I decided to take the
DeLorean out.
I got her out on Rt 80 and she handled beautifully. The turns on the
entrance and exit ramps felt better than in my Pontiac. I was a little
nervous about over-steering because of the rear mounted engine, but it
wasn't an issue.
When I arrived at my destination, I got some looks from a woman walking
her dog and some guys across the street working on something in their
garage/driveway. I had a bit of an issue getting back on to 80 due to a
construction vehicle and an a-hole in a BMW, but everything else was
fine. I'm getting much better at driving it.
On the way home at the 80/23/46 interchange a minivan pulled up beside
me and beeped their horn. I looked over and they gave me a thumbs up.
It was most triumphant.
[/dmc]
[permanent link]
"Because you will be approached by people with questions and stupid jokes."
I took the DeLorean when I went to the bank this morning. I pulled into
the parking lot and found a space. As I got out of the car a guy around
my age came running over before I could shut the door.
He said, "I can't believe it, this amazing. I've always wanted to see
one of these. Man, I was just watching the movie last night. Can I take
a picture?"
I said, "sure" and let him know that it still needed some work so it
doesn't look as good as it could. He said, "It doesn't matter; it's a
DeLorean."
Later in the afternoon I went to get some more gas. I pulled into the
station, shut off the car, got out and opened the hood to get to the gas
cap. Neither of the attendants on duty had seen one before and both came
over to see the car. They had some questions about the body construction
and the engine.
[/dmc]
[permanent link]
|
|
