This will be a quick little guide to all owners of the Delorean DMC-12 who are looking to sell. Now I am not an expert by any means but more importantly, I'm a buyer with cash in hand waiting for the right one. I have looked at dozens and dozens of ebay auctions in the past year and have seen many I would have considered if only the seller would use a little common sense in their auction.

First: Pictures..I dont need 10 pics of an exterior, one fuzzy pic of the engine bay and one pic of the interior. I want close up pics of the panels, the grain should be visible...How they match up with the bumpers and adjacent panels. How they look at low angle(scopeing down the side to see any dents or uneven panels) Don't get me wrong, I want pics of the whole car too, I just don't need 50 of them from every possible angle. As a serious buyer I want...make that MUST see good clear pics of the FRAME!! Go to a garage and put it on a lift and post good pics. A seroius buyer needs to see pics of the engine bay, all undercarriage parts such as suspension components, cross members , shock mounts, crumple tube, everything. You will have to post at least 20-25 pics to fully document the condition of the car. It may cost a few extra dollars for the pictures on your ebay ad, but if you want my money I have to know what I'm buying when a personal inspection is not an option.

Description: Anyone looking for a D most likely knows what they are buying, so a book report of the Deloreans' history is not necessary, I know about Deloreans, what I don't know is YOUR Delorean. Tell me about YOUR car, previous owners if known, how long you have had it, how many miles you have put on it, how often do you drive it. I want to know how the engine runs and sounds. I cant tell you how many poor descriptions I have read in auctions. One to 4 sentances, maybe a paragraph, are you kidding me?  I asked a seller who wrote a few paragraphs "How does the car run" and he wrote back "fine" I said I needed a little more than that to which he replied "cranks good" Needless to say he did not get my money. I once asked a seller for pictures of the frame of a D he was selling and he actually got smart with me! There I was with 25k cash money in my pocket and he just lost a possible sale. Just so you know if someone asks for pictures of your frame...they are SERIOUS BUYERS. Do you have maintenance records? In your opinion how does the car drive? How does is start cold, how does it start hot? I need to know what (if any) updates have been done. Good or bad I need to know to make a more informed decision on what I'm willing to pay. Is the fuse box original, any Zilla upgrades, If you have an early model, have the factory updates been done? Have the fans been fixed or are they original? What does the volt gauge show with the a/c and lights on? This is the info a D buyer wants, not a 6 paragraph history of the Delorean Motor Company, or a 3 sentance description of the car being sold.

Lastly, be realistic in your reserve. Now it's Your car, you have the right to ask anything you want for it, but if you want to sell it, and I'm guessing you do if your putting it up for auction, you need to realize the economic crisis does not skip over the Delorean. Houses lost 15-25% of their value since late 2008. Car sales are off to the point of dealerships are closing daily nationwide, unemployment is rising, and the just about every business is suffering. My guess is that group of people seriously looking to pay cash for a underpowered and problematic vehicle that never was given "collector car" status has shrank substantially.

Update: I bought my DeLorean in March and I'm thrilled with it! I got a DCMH factory rebuild w/stage II and only 1,700 miles since rebuild and only 30k on the clock total mileage at price less than most drivers sell for. I found the car right here on ebay from someone who was willing to send me pictures that I asked for. Vin#5609 is now in my garage!