Re: [DML] New Frame

["Walter Coe" <Whalt@xxxx>]

> Has anyone one had the new stainless steel frame put in there car?

PDC is in the process of making a SS frame for my car. I realize that to
keep my car as a reliable daily driver, I'm going to have to do something
about the frame. At the very least I would have to strip the old epoxy and
paint it before any more of it flakes off. Then I am concerned about
possible damage that my car may still have from a front end collision that
it was apparently in before I owned it. Then I have broken tow hooks, and
the last straw was having the master cylinder leak brake fluid around the
fuel tank loosening the epoxy and making a mess. Sound familiar Hank?

I can't say this is fact or merely opinion, but I hear that part of the
reason why the epoxy tends to crack on these frames so bad is because the
frames are flimsy. With continued use, more and more of the epoxy cracks
allowing rust to set in. Since I'm planning on eventually doing an engine &
tranny swap, adding more horsepower to the OEM frame is something that I'm
not excited about.

On the other hand, I've had another list member tell me that a stainless
frame would be a really dangerous thing to do because it would rust anyway
and be too strong in an accident. I won't say who he is, but if he wants to
speak up he can. (I will say that this guy REALLY knows his stainless.) I'm
not too worried about the stainless rusting. I thought before that I might
paint the new stainless frame anyway, but considering that PDC has something
like 80K miles on their prototype frame with no rust tells me that paint
will probably just add unnecessary weight. As for being too strong in an
accident, PDC claims that the crumple zones in the front are properly
designed to absorb energy just as well or better than the OEM frame.
Hopefully no one will ever have to find this out the hard way. And the rear
is substantially stronger than OEM in a collision. This is mostly to do
with supporting more horsepower in the engine compartment. The intent was
to design it to adequately handle a 300hp engine. Quite frankly, more
strength and less crumple ability in a frame doesn't scare me. My other
main vehicle is a 3/4 ton chassis GMC truck. Against the typical car on the
road, that truck isn't going to do much crumpling. So why should I
compromise with my DeLorean? You could argue that the DeLorean has less
mass so that more energy will be transferred to the occupants, but I figure
that most of that is something that the car that hits me is going to have to
deal with. Now I might go to a 5 point seatbelt someday.

Sure, a stainless frame is a lot of money. It's costing me around $9K which
includes the new trailing arms that don't use trailing arm bolts. That
little upgrade was another factor in making me go totally stainless. After
removing bent bolts from two cars, I certainly wasn't excited about putting
the same kind of bolt back on. (May God richly bless Toby! That man may be
responsible for saving some lives already.) I don't feel that I am wasting
any money on this car. DeLoreans aren't taking any more depreciation. And
if I were ever to sell this car, I would advertise it with a base price and
then add $9K for the stainless frame. I don't think anyone could argue with
that. Besides, how much does it cost for a new Porsche or BMW or Mercedes
roadster? The DeLorean is a lot more bang for the buck and also less money
even if in addition to the stainless frame you spend another $20K for that
Cadillac Northstar V8 conversion. Even with all that invested it is still a
better value AND less money.

I don't know anyone else besides Bryan Pearce who has one of these frames.
I get the feeling that there are very few if any to date. It is a lot of
money, and it has taken a while for people to start to feel comfortable with
it. I don't think that anyone will mind my saying that PDC is making a
batch for one of the vendors along with the one for me. I consider this an
endorsement that is hard to ignore.

Coolness,
Walt Tampa, FL