Monday, February 18, 2019
1970 Ford Torino GT clone
You see this kind of thing a lot at car shows. Someone has taken a regular Torino coupe and added GT trim. But you can tell it's not an authentic GT because it doesn't have the GT grill with hideaway headlights. So it's what's known as a clone or "tribute" car. The most common clones are Pontiac Tempests made to look like GTOs and Oldsmobile Cutlasses made to look like 442s.
Sunday, February 3, 2019
1982 Delorean DMC-12
I guess it really is a time machine. An apparently unrestored DeLorean sitting in rush hour traffic? These cars were so unreliable that they could barely be kept running when they were new. This must be a visitor from the 80s.
Update, 9/15/2020:
So when I first posted this, I got beat up in the comments by DeLorean fans for suggesting that this car was unreliable. Let's see what some automotive enthusiasts said:
Motor-vision.co.uk: "only 9,200 were made in total made by employees that were poorly trained in the assembling of cars, which led to the well-known quality control issues of the famous car. Failing electrical systems, sticking throttles, suspension issues, instruments playing up, batteries dying prematurely, leaky doors as mentioned before, incorrect wheel alignments."
hotcars.com:
* "it wasn't uncommon for a DeLorean to get an electrical or fuel fire. Electrical fires were usually contained to the fuse box area. DeLorean's were known to have fuse box to meltdowns." "Fuel leaks near the engine fuel distributor or fuel accumulator under the car... have led to massive fuel fires" "Fuse boxes are notorious for melting down in these cars as well as some of the relays"
* "A series of chassis grounds that run in both the front and rear of the car can be a source of major headaches for DeLorean owners. Over time these grounds become corroded and this causes all kinds of electrical gremlins. These gremlins have been known to produce all kinds of fun stuff. From overcharging alternators blowing up batteries (which are behind the passenger seat) to cars dying in the middle of traffic. If you don't know much about electronics, it's best to have it checked by a professional."
* "When it came time for DeLorean to buy his version of the PRV, he specced out the cheapest version he could. The Aluminum alloy for the engine block has the most amount of filler PRV would allow in order to cut down on the price of aluminum. This, unfortunately, would lead to "block rot" in later years whereas the degraded purity of an aluminum alloy will oxidize and eventually rot. Other cost-cutting, included paper gaskets at the bottom of the cylinder liners where Volvo specified steel in the exact same location in their engine."
Update, 9/15/2020:
So when I first posted this, I got beat up in the comments by DeLorean fans for suggesting that this car was unreliable. Let's see what some automotive enthusiasts said:
Motor-vision.co.uk: "only 9,200 were made in total made by employees that were poorly trained in the assembling of cars, which led to the well-known quality control issues of the famous car. Failing electrical systems, sticking throttles, suspension issues, instruments playing up, batteries dying prematurely, leaky doors as mentioned before, incorrect wheel alignments."
hotcars.com:
* "it wasn't uncommon for a DeLorean to get an electrical or fuel fire. Electrical fires were usually contained to the fuse box area. DeLorean's were known to have fuse box to meltdowns." "Fuel leaks near the engine fuel distributor or fuel accumulator under the car... have led to massive fuel fires" "Fuse boxes are notorious for melting down in these cars as well as some of the relays"
* "A series of chassis grounds that run in both the front and rear of the car can be a source of major headaches for DeLorean owners. Over time these grounds become corroded and this causes all kinds of electrical gremlins. These gremlins have been known to produce all kinds of fun stuff. From overcharging alternators blowing up batteries (which are behind the passenger seat) to cars dying in the middle of traffic. If you don't know much about electronics, it's best to have it checked by a professional."
* "When it came time for DeLorean to buy his version of the PRV, he specced out the cheapest version he could. The Aluminum alloy for the engine block has the most amount of filler PRV would allow in order to cut down on the price of aluminum. This, unfortunately, would lead to "block rot" in later years whereas the degraded purity of an aluminum alloy will oxidize and eventually rot. Other cost-cutting, included paper gaskets at the bottom of the cylinder liners where Volvo specified steel in the exact same location in their engine."
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