Are you telling me that you built a time machine... out of a DeLorean?

November 25, 2009 10:21 PM

Black Friday is almost upon us and in less then a month it'll be Christmastime, and you're still wondering if you'll get your jetpack, hoverboard, or time machine? Well you're in luck, because you can get started with a new old DeLorean! It's the return of the DeLorean The DeLorean DMC-12 was the creation of John DeLorean:
John DeLorean never cared to fit the mold of a typical Detroit auto executive. He was a young, free-spirited maverick that revolutionized the auto industry as the major force behind America’s first muscle car– the Pontiac GTO.... As the young DeLorean’s star rose, he supposedly walked away from his $650,000 salary at GM and decided to go it on his own.

Although nowadays his car may be considered a modern marvel unfortunately his motor company was a huge failure. Delorean died in March of 2005 (prev) but not before he started plans for a new car. Also, you may need to ask some questions and keep up on all the news after you buy your 24k Gold DeLorean.

Okay, so you've previously seen some game mods and you are excited to build your own time machine? Perhaps DIY, or just order the parts pre-made?
Not so happy with a time machine? Perhaps you should talk to Rich Weissensel

Oh, and if you can't afford the payments on your new toy(s), perhaps I could suggest some unorthodox tactics when the repo man comes.

posted by P.o.B. (37 comments total)

It's still a piece of shit.
posted by Burhanistan at 10:38 PM on November 25, 2009

Well, at least it's not a Bricklin.
posted by Sys Rq at 11:06 PM on November 25, 2009

I don't care I want one.
posted by Navelgazer at 11:13 PM on November 25, 2009

Christ that 24k gold DeLorean is the tackiest thing I have ever laid eyes on.

But come on...flux capacitor people! FLUX CAPACITOR!
posted by Salvor Hardin at 11:14 PM on November 25, 2009

On one condition - those doors have to be wings and fly.
posted by Cranberry at 11:27 PM on November 25, 2009

Ever since I was five and BTTF came out, every time I see a DeLorean on the road, it gives me a sense of joy and well-being.
posted by anazgnos at 11:36 PM on November 25, 2009 [2 favorites]

I'll take a triple black '68 GTO* Convertible 4-speed manual with the Ram Air package and a key of coke** over that any day.


*Also by DeLorean in case you didn't know.
**Sometimes by DeLorean in case you didn't know.
posted by vapidave at 12:00 AM on November 26, 2009

patricio's boring fact of the day: The failure of Delorean also led to the British government suing its auditors, the then Arthur Andersen, for failing to reveal the fraud in the company (the government had pumped cash in to the Northern Irish company). It took 12 years before being settled, and the government had by then speant nearly the entire settlement in legal fees...
posted by patricio at 1:03 AM on November 26, 2009

I love that there's a company churning out Delorean reproductions, but seriously, if I'm going to drop $60k on a fake, it's going to be from these guys.
posted by bpm140 at 1:08 AM on November 26, 2009 [2 favorites]

There's also a surprisngly good concept album.
posted by Shepherd at 2:12 AM on November 26, 2009 [1 favorite]

They're not reproductions, and they cost in the neighborhood of 25 to 35.
posted by P.o.B. at 2:20 AM on November 26, 2009 [1 favorite]

Once upon a time I was looking at used cars on e-bay, mostly seeing what was close to home. Through a series of odd links and search drift (hurray for ADD) I realized it would be a lot of fun and not cost all that much or be that hard to get a couple old somewhat ruined DeLoreans and make a like new DeLorean out of them.

Then I remembered that I don't live out in the middle of nowhere and that my neighbors would probably take a dim view of my rendering down half a dozen old DeLoreans in the back yard.

I'm glad someone out there is doing it.
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 4:26 AM on November 26, 2009

These are built mostly with stock parts leftover from the original Delorean company. The assembly is done in my city, so it's not uncommon to see one here. The usual response is to snicker or shrug.
posted by Burhanistan at 4:58 AM on November 26, 2009

“First you separate the eggs; then you beat the whites.”
posted by a non e mouse at 5:10 AM on November 26, 2009 [1 favorite]

There is a DeLorean parked down the block these days, right next to the recently sold mansion.
posted by stargell at 5:47 AM on November 26, 2009

My life would be richer if I had a DeLorean parked in my driveway. (If I was richer, I would have a DeLorean parked in my driveway).
posted by Atreides at 5:49 AM on November 26, 2009

I want this DeLorean. Twin turbo rotary from a Cosmos? 6 speed gearbox with LSD from a 911? Yes... yes, this will do nicely.
posted by threetoed at 7:55 AM on November 26, 2009

The coke hits faster if you snort it off the hood of a 24k Gold DeLorean.
posted by Nelson at 8:29 AM on November 26, 2009

@P.o.B. Yup, the cars on the right-hand side are as you describe. Mayhaps you'll move your eyes ten inches to the left?
posted by bpm140 at 8:48 AM on November 26, 2009

There are about a dozen impractical retro one-offs I'd rather have before the DeLorean. Fairly high on that list is a DeTomaso Pantera—one of the few cars that actually looks as bad-ass as its name.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 8:58 AM on November 26, 2009

Sadly, even I could outrun a DeLorean, in comfortable shoes. Still one of the best looking cars, standing still.
posted by tommasz at 9:17 AM on November 26, 2009

The DeLorean is a gutless piece of shit. The coke goes a long way in explaining what John DeLorean was thinking.
posted by basicchannel at 10:37 AM on November 26, 2009

Mayhaps you'll move your eyes ten inches to the left?

Yeah I know, but the veracity of my wrongness is whether you would like to spend the extra thirty grand to have the speedometer read zero or not.
posted by P.o.B. at 11:05 AM on November 26, 2009

That flux capacitor impressed me. I can make zero photo-realistic Back to the Future props.

It was a fun diversion this morning, imagining all the BTTF devotees waiting for their 100 % autentico TFC Circuit ($349, paypal only, 'MY MASTERPIECE') this holiday.
posted by mrdaneri at 11:05 AM on November 26, 2009

I don't know why people consider DeLoreans to be beautiful. With the squared off bonnet, I've always thought the car looks like a Ford Pinto with delusions of grandeur.

Give me something that at least looks elegent and sporty, like a classic Porsche 911s; not something that looks like Soviet engineering's attempt to do a sport car.
posted by happyroach at 11:24 AM on November 26, 2009

Reading his Wikipedia entry was interesting. I never realized that DeLorean was a talented engineer before he was an executive. From the way he was portrayed in the media, I always thought he was just another empty suit.

And, looking at the article, it seems like GMs epic management problems were becoming clear even in the late 1960s. Sad to see nothing has changed at all since then.
posted by wuwei at 11:31 AM on November 26, 2009

wuwei: He was a boy genius and rightly earned his "Legend" status. The fall from grace almost feels mandated and perfunctory.
posted by basicchannel at 11:39 AM on November 26, 2009

I don't care if the DeLorean is actually made out of metal as thin as a Pepsi can and can only reach the top speed of a house cat. As a child of the 90s, I've learned from movies broadcast on TV that the DeLorean was the only car worthy of leaving the 80's for bigger and better things. That is until the damned thing runs out of gas or electricity. Add in the scarcity of the company going out of business almost instantly, and you have a thing people like me will freak out over.

I think that's probably why I talked my mom into buying a Prius when her Camry died, come to think of it.

Besides, if the DeLorean didn't win my heart, I'd be going for the regional favorite and cooing over classic Pontiac Firebirds, complete with Screaming Chicken.
posted by mccarty.tim at 3:11 PM on November 26, 2009

How much would it cost to buy the rights to the aesthetics of the DeLorean from whoever got possession of them in the whole bankruptcy? If GM or Chrysler were to buy those rights, rebuild the car with modern materials so that it's lighter, and basically make it into a medium milage, low cost small sedan/compact with gull-wing doors and a metal exterior, you'd have a bunch of basement dwellers at your door. Even if a regular compact would be cheaper, people would still go for it, because, hey, 88 MPH!
posted by mccarty.tim at 3:16 PM on November 26, 2009

I ended up leaving out a couple of links, but if anybody is wondering there are people who have converted them for more power. And here is another article about the updated DeLorean he was designing.
posted by P.o.B. at 4:04 PM on November 26, 2009

"Give me something that at least looks elegent and sporty, like a classic Porsche 911s; not something that looks like Soviet engineering's attempt to do a sport car."

I've always thought the 911 looked kind of awkwardly melted. I liked the DeLorean even before BTTF, would love to have a modern version today. Can't imagine we'll see a mass market mid engine car any time soon though, even without gull wings.

"The DeLorean is a gutless piece of shit."

Everything in the late 70s early 80s was gutless. Even the Porsche mentioned above had a paltry 200 hp in a 3000lb car.

"Reading his Wikipedia entry was interesting. I never realized that DeLorean was a talented engineer before he was an executive. From the way he was portrayed in the media, I always thought he was just another empty suit."

His book On a clear day you can see General Motors is pre-DeLorean but still is a good read if you are interested in his time at GM.
posted by Mitheral at 6:17 PM on November 26, 2009

Liking the DeLorean probably indicates a certain mind-set, and if you think you have it then you'll probably like this car, owners of which address themselves with their chassis numbers. It's a steady item on mobile.de and I've been watching the linked one in particular for years. It used to be offered for less than 50k euros and I wonder why nobody picked it up yet. Perhaps not user friendly enough?

In the same category, I guess, is the Hummer of the 80's, the Lamborghini LM002, ridiculed covered on Top Gear and apparently also for sale.

And seeing a couple of DeTomasos barrelling down the German motorway on their way to a meet-up is something to remember. Of course, I might be influenced by a matchbox model of the Pantera I had when I was a kid in the 80's.
posted by Laotic at 3:21 AM on November 27, 2009

Cripes that Time writer is a twit. They simultaneously complain that the 440 in the 71 imperial is "silly big" while lamenting the inability to lay rubber in the Prowler, something I'm not even sure is true.
posted by Mitheral at 8:54 AM on November 27, 2009

As a child of the 90s, I've learned from movies broadcast on TV that the DeLorean was the only car worthy of leaving the 80's for bigger and better things.

As a child of the 80s, I've scoff in your general direction.

10 Cars from the 1980s That are Better than a DeLorean

1. Lotus Esprit Turbo
2. Ferrari 308
3. Mazda RX-7
4. Dodge M4S
5. Ferrari Testarosa
6. Lamborghini Countach
7. Porsche 959
8. Aston Martin V8 Vantage
9. Corvette CERV III
10. BMW M1 (technically 79-81)

posted by Civil_Disobedient at 9:05 AM on November 27, 2009

nods in agreement to Civil_Disobedient's list
posted by maortiz at 9:54 PM on November 27, 2009

every time I see a DeLorean on the road

On the where?
posted by DU at 7:14 PM on November 28, 2009

On the where?

Maybe you live in the sticks, but I see one every month or so (and different ones at that). But they're nothing work looking at other than cheap novelty value.
posted by Burhanistan at 8:16 PM on November 28, 2009