Without the film “Back to the Future”, the DeLorean DMC-12 would probably be a footnote in car history today: an ambitious but failed car from a company that went bankrupt after less than two years of production. Thanks to Marty McFly and Doc Brown, though, it became one of the most recognisable cars on the planet.
Photo: Lee Haywood / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
John DeLorean
John Z. DeLorean was one of General Motors’ stars. He was the man behind the Pontiac GTO, the car that started the muscle car era, and was seen as a possible future president of GM. In 1973, however, he left to build his own company and his own “ethical” sports car: safe, durable and built to last many years.
For the design he went to Giorgetto Giugiaro, who drew a low, wedge-shaped coupé with gullwing doors. The outer panels were brushed stainless steel, unpainted. It would be the car that never rusts.
A factory in Northern Ireland
The company received large funding from the British government to build a factory in Dunmurry, near Belfast, in an area of high unemployment and political tension. Technical development was rushed, and to finish it the job was given to Colin Chapman’s Lotus, which redesigned almost the entire chassis.
The engine was a 2.85-litre V6 developed jointly by Peugeot, Renault and Volvo, mounted at the rear. In American form it produced only 130 horsepower. For a car that looked like a spaceship, performance was disappointing, and the price, about 25,000 dollars, was very high.
Photo: Jeremy from Sydney, Australia / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
The fall
Production began in 1981. Sales were far below expectations and debts kept growing. In October 1982 John DeLorean was arrested in the USA in an FBI operation, accused of trying to finance his company through drug trafficking. In 1984 he was acquitted, as the court found he had been entrapped by the agents. But the company had already closed. About 9,000 cars had been built.
Photo: Jeremy from Sydney, Australia / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
The time machine
In 1985 the makers of “Back to the Future” were looking for a car for Doc Brown’s time machine. They chose the DeLorean because, as they said, it already looked like something from the future, and its doors recalled a spaceship. The film was a huge success, and the failed car suddenly became the most famous in the world.
Today thousands of DMC-12s are still on the road, and there is a lively parts market. It is not the fastest or best-built classic. But it is one of the few cars that makes every passer-by smile. And if you drive it at 88 miles per hour, who knows.
P.Kefalas