Re: A Few Quickies ... Clutch, Brakes, Springs and Lights

["therealdmcvegas <DMCVegas@xxxx>" <DMCVegas@xxxx>]

--- In dmcnews@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, "the_great_gazoo.rm <delorean@xxxx>" <
delorean@xxxx> wrote:
<SNIP>
Now the question, which clutch kit 
> should i look into? What experiences have other owners had? I noticed 
> the major parts dealers having either OEM or Centrefoce. <SNIP> But what 
is better? the 
> OEM clutch kit or the Centerfoce clutch kit or something else all 
> together? As well, is the only way to tell if you need a new 
> flywheel is inspection upon removing it?
<SNIP>

Which clutch kit you want is going to depend upon you. For light sunday 
driving, or even modest commutes to work, the OEM will indeed work just fine. 
But, if you're a bit harder on the car with more frequent "rabbit starts" and/or 
you encounter hills on a regular basis, I would reccomend getting the regular 
Centerforce. Light use, you won't notice anything. But when you start putting 
harded loads on the clutch, it certainly does grab alot quicker.

It is also correct that you won't know if the flywheel needs to be replaced once 
the clutch is dropped. But indeed, it does need to be ground, and resurfaced. 
My mechanic said that you can safely regrind the flywheel on the DeLorean 
up to 3 times with no worries. So that shouldn't be a problem. What I would be 
more concerned about is the hydraulic system to operate the clutch. If you 
don't know the history of the car, or have doubts that the previous owner(s) 
changed the clutch fluid as perscribed, then bite the bullet, and replace 
everything. Clutch Master Cylinder, Slave Clinder, Clutch Fluid Line, and 
possibly the Adjustable Linkage as well. Granted my car was fubard by the 
guy who owned it before me (he had the Clutch M/C rebuilt, and the rod 
welded back into place along with other little "surprises" I found), but I didn't 
replace the hydraulics and ended up toasting a brand new clutch @ a little 
over 2500 miles! So spend a little money now, and save yourself some time 
later.

<SNIP> 
> The brakes... mine have lots of pad left, but squeal like a truck 
> whenever I use them... ALL THE TIME! its very embarassing, and would 
> like any suggestions to fixing this,... so far I have figured the 
> best way is probably replacing them, but then I worry about what kind 
> of pads I should use... As well, I was given the option to cross drill 
> my rotors on the car from a local shop, would this help, not only 
> with the squealing but also with the brake dust problem on the rear 
> wheels especially?
<SNIP>

Brake dust is gonna happen, believe me. I have a full set of X-drilled rotors on 
my car. The purpose as you've seen is to cool down the brakes to prevent 
fade. The do NOT improve regular braking! The only time that I've ever seen 
brake fade on my car is if a push the brakes when doing over 100 mph. 
Otherwise, I just coast or engine brake. Otherwise, the main purpose is for 
both show, and to make that cool turbine noise when you slowdown. :) But if 
you want the X-drilled rotors, just buy them from a D vendor. You'll get a brand 
new set, and don't have to worry about any screw-up made by some unkown 
shop, and you'll be supporting a vendor.

For brake pads, just stick with the regular organics offered by all the vendors. 
I've run semi-metallics, and have not seen a difference. Except of course that 
they just made my brakes squeal by glazing them. Besides that, you should 
only use semi-metallic pads with rotors that are specificly designed for them. 
Otherwise, they'll eat the rotors quicker. Trust me on that one. Otherwise, 
make sure that you get some anti-rattle springs. PJ Grady has them, and they 
cover both the front, and rear calipers.

<SNIP> 
> As for the springs,... My car is still at the factory height and sits 
> nose high... i saw the 2 major spring kits, the one from Housten and 
> Grady's... does the kit from Housten come with ONLY the springs, and 
> Grady's comes with springs AND shocks??? Which ones make the car look 
> better? I would like to improve the way the suspension handles and 
> also at the same time have the car sit lower to make it appear more 
> aggressive! I dont want it to look stupidly low, I would just want 
> to have it be as low as possible without sacraficing anything!
<SNIP>

Interesting question, and one I've had too. I spoke with PJG, and Rob said that 
the swapping of springs on the back isn't nessisary. But, his rear shocks come 
equiped with adjustable shock collars to lower the rear end. Plus his shocks 
are adjustable for what ever kind of ride. I would love to hear DMCH's side on 
their suspension kit too, and why they replace the rears. It would make sense 
if they wanted to lower the rear of the car w/o the use of an adjustable shock 
collar. But the only problem with that is there are no longer any stock shocks 
available. Are they using custom made, or altered ones? On their website, 
you and see a picture of a stock hight car vs. one with their suspension kit 
installed. It does look more uniform with no gap in the back, but I can tell you 
that the car does look a but "meaner" with just the front lowered. If you want to 
see what it looks like, try throwing some heavy sacks, or somthing else into 
the trunk, and see how you like the look. It definatly does allow you to see 
more of the road too.

<SNIP>
> The last question is about the interior lights... I know that they 
> are supposed to dim and then turn off when you close the door, mine 
> are kind of screwy... they will turn off right away sometimes, or 
> other times stay on, other times they dim, Then sometime they turn 
> off and turn on while driving! I figure the white relay in the back 
> of the passenger seat section is shot....As well the door ajar light in the 
instrument cluster stays on ALL THE TIME!
<SNIP>
Sounds like the switch on the door isn't being fully pushed down by the door. 
This is a simple fix. Just go to the autoparts store, and get some Vacuum 
Nipples of cap off engine vacuum lines. Slide one over each of the switches 
on the doors to extend their reach, and that should keep them from randonly 
turing on.

The delay circuit is controlled by a capacitor, NOT a timer. So you can open 
and close the door, and the lights will dim. This is becaus they are now being 
powered by the reserve power in the capacitor, not the battery. Once the 
capacitor is drained, they turn off. Open and close the door again, and you'll 
see that they shut off right away. That's because the capacitor hasn't yet had a 
chance to charge back up fully. As an example, turn off one light, and you'll 
see the delay time for the remaining light has been extended.

As for the door light being stuck on, wait until after you install the extensions 
onto the striker switches. If the condition still happens, replace the fuse, and 
clean the contacts on fuse #12. If the fuse is missing, then it will cause the 
Door Ajar light to stay constantly on. Perhaps you have a poor/corroded 
connection.

Hope this all helps you in getting off to a good start!

-Robert
vin 6585 "X"