DeLorean's DMC - 12 Sports Car

The DMC-12, most famous for its role in the “Back to the Future” film series, was a famous sports car produced by John Z. De Lorean. After spending his early career with Packard, Mr. De Lorean moved onto General Motors to work on some of the 1960s Pontiac vehicles including the GTO, Firebird and Grand Prix. While at General Motors, the Detroit native worked with Mr. Bill Collins and soon approached him in the early 1970s about the possibility of designing and building their own car together. DeLorean ventured from General Motors in 1973. In October 1974, Mr. Collins joined the De Lorean automotive team. The De Lorean Motor Company was founded in 1975.

The DMC-12 model was produced on a 72 acre site in Dunmurry, Northern Ireland. Employees on the assembly line within the DeLorean plant performed several different tasks. Work toward assembly on the DMC began in October 1978, however, engineering problems and budget overruns delayed production until early January 1, 1981. The vehicle offered gull wing doors and a stainless steel one piece body with a rear engine compartment design. To save weight and increase overall strength, the DMC-12 had integral or monocoque construction, in which the body also serves as frame. Its lower structure was composed of two main elements bonded to each other: a full length floor pan, a superimposed layer forming the front trunk area, cockpit shapes, and engine bay. To this base structure, the exterior body parts are attached and bonded. These body and frame components were made of fiberglass.



Famed designer Giorgetto Giugiaro, born in Garessio, Cuneo Piedmont, was responsible for the DMC-12 design. At an early age, the Italian car designer developed a great talent designing automobiles. In 1999, Giorgetto was named car designer of the century and was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 2002. Giorgetto was also involved with Ford's 2008 Mustang concept design. The Glugiaro concept model was introduced throughout many auto shows around the world.

The realization of a vision also comes with costs. DeLorean required $175 million dollars to develop and build the De Lorean Motor Company but unfortunately, the company went bankrupt in late 1982. Because of unique style and short production run, the DMC-12 is still one of the most popular models among collectors today. The DeLorean had appeared in several films and on television, most notably, as the time machine in the movie "Back to the Future" cementing it as one of the most iconic automobiles in American film history.



A special thanks to Robert Tate, Automotive Historian and Researcher, for donating his story to the MotorCities Story of the Week program. DMC-12 images are courtesy of Robert Tate. Please do not use any photographs without the permission of MotorCities/Robert Tate. For further information contact Robert Tate at btate@motorcities.org

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