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DeLorean considering all-electric reboot

newdelorean.com

41–50 of 343 posts

Re: DeLorean considering all-electric reboot

#41

TBH I’m surprised Musk hasn’t bought them out yet and “released” a limited edition Model 3 with a DeLorian body kit for like $500,000... if Cyan can release a Volvo P1800 for 500K and you usually need to provide the 50 year old P1800 for them to convert and tune there clearly is a market for these things.

The year Tesla started manufacturing Model 3s got Elon back to the ground from dreaming about special cars, like the new Roadster: to get to a huge company and deliver on sustainability, they have to focus on cheap cars in huge volume, and can't afford many fun projects (except things like Tesla Tequila, that they can mostly outsource :) )

Re: DeLorean considering all-electric reboot

#42

TBH I’m surprised Musk hasn’t bought them out yet and “released” a limited edition Model 3 with a DeLorian body kit for like $500,000... if Cyan can release a Volvo P1800 for 500K and you usually need to provide the 50 year old P1800 for them to convert and tune there clearly is a market for these things.

For a big car maker volume and the efficiencies you get from that is a big deal right?

That would seem at odds with a one off limited edition.

Re: DeLorean considering all-electric reboot

#43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They could even do a stickshift EV if they wanted to, though most car companies seem to not think it's worth the complexity/maintenance, and I get the impression that electric motors are hard on transmissions. Electric motors have a wider power band, so there’s less need for gear shifting. They could get more efficiency with multiple gears, but it’s be a smaller benefit than in an ICE vehicle. One of the big early…

is there some type of clutch that allows the rear wheels to free-spin at higher speeds?

On Tesla cars both motors are physically connected to the gearbox/axles with no clutch. They are doing careful tuning of the motor inverter controls to minimize energy use from motors that aren't under active load. Tesla refers to this as "Torque Sleep"

I imagine the process is basically tuning for the inverter output that minimizes power consumed as well as drag on the axle when the motor is not supplying active torque, or at least supplying less active torque than the other axle.

Re: DeLorean considering all-electric reboot

#44
post #6

Why would I want an electric version of a fat, slow, heavy car? Oh, right, because Back to the Future . And gull-wing doors, let's be honest.

I've driven one, and honestly, it wasn't that fat/slow/heavy. It could have used more power, but it was fairly fun to drive. Not everything needs "five hunnert horsepower" to be interesting.

It was slow compared to similarly priced luxury sport vehicles of the day. Compared to ordinary sedans and the like it was perfectly fine, although obviously far more expensive.

They definitely needed to iterate on the design a few times. The gull wing doors were super cool, but also highly failure prone. The engine desperately needed a turbocharger which was in the works when DMC folded. The electrics were typical British 80s fire hazards. One good thing is that unlike many cars of the era it is not plagued with blistering or peeling paint.

Re: DeLorean considering all-electric reboot

#45
post #27

Some useful backstory on the government regulation to allow low-volume cars like this on the road: https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a34673012/where-is-the... And some history on DeLorean overall: https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a15352382/back-to-the-futu... …and it’s a pretty wild history.

Maybe I'm missing something or I'm too stupid to understand the article but I don't see why anyone should be allowed to sell a new car with old safety standards for road use? I'm not from the US so maybe it is yet "Another US Thing I Don't Understand" (sorry). Where I'm at (in Scandinavia) not only would this not be allowed on the roads but even if I buy an old car and want to upgrade it (modern brakes?) it wouldn't be allowed without a car inspection and it would no longer have a cheaper vintage car insurance, registration fees, etc. etc. It would be very costly if at all possible. AFAIK this is equally so in all of the EU.

Seems to me this is a giant loophole. Like as if Coca Cola re-released an old recipe with real coke in it and everyone just went "Sure! It's authentic!"

Could someone enlighten me?

Re: DeLorean considering all-electric reboot

#48
post #4

Speaking of, Is it ok to own a stainless steel vehicle near the ocean? Should I advise my friend to avoid the cybertruck? (Or Delorean)

Stainless steel will rust when exposed to salt water / sea spray and sunlight. Some grades of stainless steel are resistant but I doubt they made DeLoreans with marine grade alloys.

That said, I can't recall ever seeing a spot of rust on a DeLorean body panel, even after 40 years. Certainly some were parked near the ocean in England or California. You probably don't need full up marine grade alloys for something that only has to deal with salt spray. It's not like you park the thing underwater every day.

I would expect the frame and engine/transmission to be more of a concern. I'd be doubly suspect of the electrical components, since it's a 20th century British car.

Re: DeLorean considering all-electric reboot

#49

TBH I’m surprised Musk hasn’t bought them out yet and “released” a limited edition Model 3 with a DeLorian body kit for like $500,000... if Cyan can release a Volvo P1800 for 500K and you usually need to provide the 50 year old P1800 for them to convert and tune there clearly is a market for these things.

The year Tesla started manufacturing Model 3s got Elon back to the ground from dreaming about special cars, like the new Roadster: to get to a huge company and deliver on sustainability, they have to focus on cheap cars in huge volume, and can't afford many fun projects (except things like Tesla Tequila, that they can mostly outsource :) )

TIL that Tesla Tequila is an actual thing, and it's somehow even more ridiculous than Tres Comas.

Re: DeLorean considering all-electric reboot

#50

TBH I’m surprised Musk hasn’t bought them out yet and “released” a limited edition Model 3 with a DeLorian body kit for like $500,000... if Cyan can release a Volvo P1800 for 500K and you usually need to provide the 50 year old P1800 for them to convert and tune there clearly is a market for these things.

The year Tesla started manufacturing Model 3s got Elon back to the ground from dreaming about special cars, like the new Roadster: to get to a huge company and deliver on sustainability, they have to focus on cheap cars in huge volume, and can't afford many fun projects (except things like Tesla Tequila, that they can mostly outsource :) )

Are you sure about that? Why would Tesla want to compete with Toyota and VW to produce the bottom tier of cars? When at that point they are competing with the best of the best at making the most affordable cars at the largest volumes?

They could also maintain their brand image and sell their mid range luxury models achieving less volume at a higher profitability margin.

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