The Story Of The DeLorean DMC-12, The Dream Car Of Back To The Future

For people like me who spent their childhood in the 80s and 90s, Back to the Future was never just a fun movie. It shaped our games, our imagination, our love for technology, and maybe even pushed some weird kids like us toward electronics, computers, or whatever technological obsession life threw in front of us.

And of course, at the center of that obsession stood one unforgettable machine: the DeLorean DMC-12.

The producers were lucky they chose this car instead of turning a refrigerator into a time machine. Because thanks to that decision, we are still writing about this car today, still talking about it, and still enjoying the movie every time we watch it.

For anyone who somehow still does not know the car, this is the machine we are talking about. Now sit back, play that legendary music, and let’s enter the story of the DeLorean. 

Who Was John DeLorean?

The DeLorean story is not only the story of a car. It is also the story of a highly ambitious, talented, and controversial figure in the automotive world.

John Zachary DeLorean was born on January 6, 1925. In his 20s, he started working for Ford. Later, life took him to Chrysler. After that, he received a strong offer from General Motors and made major design contributions to Pontiac models.

John DeLorean proved himself not only in engineering, but also in model design, marketing, and brand image. Thanks to his success, he became the youngest head of the Pontiac division at the age of 40. That was a massive rise in the automotive industry.

In 1969, because of his achievements, he became the head of Chevrolet. But this is where the story becomes a little complicated. According to rumors, he attracted too much attention and became too prominent, so in 1972 he was pushed into resignation through internal politics. The official explanation was that his work was preventing him from having a social life, which sounds like a pretty weak excuse.

How The Legend Was Born

After General Motors, John DeLorean decided to build his own path. In 1973, he founded DeLorean Motor Company. In the mid-1970s, he introduced a two-seat prototype designed by Italdesign.

Later, DeLorean made a deal with Renault and established a factory in Northern Ireland where around 2,000 people would work. Construction of the factory began in 1978. But things did not move as quickly as planned. Production problems, delays, financial pressure, and various setbacks slowed everything down. After years of trouble, the DMC-12 finally came off the production line in 1981.

On paper, it looked like a very special car. But once it entered the market, it faced a serious problem. The DMC-12 was expensive compared to other sports cars around it, and that directly damaged sales.

In 1982, around 7,000 units were produced, though some sources put the number closer to 9,000. But not even half of them were sold. DeLorean Motor Company could not survive under a debt load of 175 million dollars, and the British government eventually took control of the factory.

So the ironic part is this: the DeLorean DMC-12 had already failed as a business before it became a star in Back to the Future. The car did not achieve its real success on the road. It achieved it in cinema history.

Why Did The DeLorean Look So Different?

The design of the DeLorean DMC-12 is one of the most recognizable designs in automotive history. Behind that design was Italdesign Giugiaro S.p.A.

One of the most striking features of the car was its brushed stainless steel body. This made the car heavier, but it also made it look completely different from most cars of its era.

The DeLorean’s body panels were made from food-grade stainless steel. Many people still do not know that the DeLorean was basically unpainted. The SS304 stainless steel used on the car is the same type of material used in beer kegs and kitchen counters.

If you have ever tried to clean a stainless steel kitchen counter, you already know how annoying fingerprints can be. The DeLorean had the same problem. One of the recommended ways to clean these cars was with a kitchen sponge and gasoline. After all, a time machine should always be clean.

The Space Age Feeling Was Not Just For Show

The futuristic look of the DeLorean was not only about appearance. Some of the technologies used in the car were designed by Grumman Aerospace.

Grumman Aerospace was not an ordinary company. This was the same company behind projects such as the Apollo Lunar Module and the F-14 fighter jet. So it is not surprising that the DeLorean carried that strange “vehicle from the future” feeling.

Except for three gold-plated DMC-12 models, all DeLoreans were unpainted. Some owners later painted their cars, but honestly, painting a DeLorean feels like an insult to the car. The whole point of this machine is that brushed stainless steel body.

But this body structure also had a disadvantage. The steel panels were attached to a fiberglass underbody, and when the panels were damaged, repairing them was difficult. The basic idea was to replace the damaged panel completely instead of repairing it. That meant extra cost for the owner.

How Did The Gull-Wing Doors Come To Life?

When people think of the DeLorean, one of the first things that comes to mind is those legendary doors that open upward. These doors added even more beauty to an already unforgettable car.

But they were not designed only to “look cool.” Upward-opening doors could have created serious practical problems. In narrow spaces, opening a door can already be difficult. With a door this unusual, the problem could have been even worse.

That is why the door design was studied carefully. The goal was to create a door that did not extend too far from the body while opening, while also designing a support system that could handle the weight.

For this, a special system using gas struts was developed. After a long design process, the doors were finalized in a way that allowed them to open with only 28 cm of clearance from the body. That was much less space than a normal side-opening door required.

For safety, lights visible from the front and rear were added when the doors were open. A pull strap was also added so shorter users could reach the door more easily. And that is how those beautiful doors were born. Anyone who remembers the movie knows this too: still, you have to be careful. Sometimes the door can get stuck.

So How Fast Does This Thing Go, Brother?

Do not worry, it can reach 88 miles per hour. That is where the real fun begins anyway.

The DeLorean DMC-12 used a PRV V6 engine developed jointly by Peugeot, Renault, and Volvo. The engine was mounted at the rear. This 2.85-liter V6 produced 130 hp and 176 Nm of torque.

The car was rear-wheel drive. Transmission options included a 5-speed manual and a 3-speed automatic. Like the engine, the transmission was also designed by PRV. The DMC-12 weighed 1,244 kg and could accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 8.8 seconds. If it cannot make it, we can always activate the plutonium. No problem. Average fuel consumption was around 12 liters per 100 km.

The car used 14-inch wheels at the front and 15-inch wheels at the rear. Because the engine was mounted at the back, the weight distribution was 35 percent front and 65 percent rear. The braking system used different-sized discs at the front and rear. As for suspension, the front used double wishbone suspension, while the rear had a multilink suspension setup.

The Interior And The Detail Michael J. Fox Hated

The DeLorean’s interior also had its own unique details. The gear selector in the automatic transmission version was designed in a very bold way. But not everyone liked this gear selector. Michael J. Fox, our Marty McFly, reportedly hated that gear lever during filming. Because during maneuvers, it would cut his hands.

You can find many interesting facts about Back To The Future in this article: [Buraya Back To The Future yazısının linki eklenebilir.]

Inside, the car had quality leather-covered seats and distinctive buttons. From the outside, the DeLorean already looked like something from another world. Inside, it also carried a character that felt different for its time.

What Does The 12 In DMC-12 Mean?

The “12” in DMC-12 represented the car’s targeted sale price of 12,000 dollars. But reality did not quite work that way. By the time the car reached the market, costs and pricing had pushed it above that target. Today, finding a clean DeLorean for under 25,000 dollars is not easy at all.

The DeLorean Was Supposed To Be A Very Safe Car

John DeLorean did not want the DMC-12 to be just a striking car. He actually wanted it to be one of the safest cars ever designed at the time.

One of the names considered for the car was even DeLorean Safety Vehicle.

The company also donated two prototype vehicles to the government. The government used those cars in airbag tests. Of course, we should not mess with the machine too much. Otherwise, we may end up in some ridiculous timeline.

The Giorgetto Giugiaro Signature

The DMC-12 carried the signature of the famous designer Giorgetto Giugiaro. For anyone who has not heard the name before, Giugiaro was not just the designer of the DeLorean. He designed many important cars in automotive history.

BMW M1, Yugo, Lotus Esprit, Lexus GS, and many other vehicles came from his design world. So the fact that this car became so visually unforgettable after Back to the Future was not a coincidence. There was a truly major designer behind it. This is the designer of the car of my dreams. We love you, Giorgetto reyiz.

Why Did The DeLorean Fail In The Market But Become A Legend?

The story of the DeLorean DMC-12 is strange. From a commercial point of view, it was not a successful car. It was expensive, the production process was troubled, the company fell into massive debt, and the factory ended up in a crisis that required government intervention.

I previously explained why this legend failed in the market. You can also read that article here: Delorean: Why Back to the Future’s Legendary Car Failed in the Market >>

But culturally, the story is completely different. Because with Back to the Future, the DeLorean stopped being just a car. It became a machine carved into the memory of a generation. With its connection to time travel, its stainless steel body, and its gull-wing doors, it became one of the most unforgettable vehicles in cinema history. Some cars win on the road. Some cars win on the track. The DeLorean won in cinema.

Final Thoughts

Robert Zemeckis and Steven Spielberg made the right choice by not turning something like a refrigerator into a time machine. They gave us both an incredibly fun movie and one of the most iconic cars in pop culture. Because the DeLorean DMC-12, with all its flaws, failures, expensive production, unusual body, stainless steel panels, gull-wing doors, and role in Back to the Future, became a true pop culture icon.

As the gray-haired, old-but-young-at-heart Doc Brown said:

“Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads.”