With DMC-12 fans having waited years with barely bated breath for a contemporary follow-up, the DeLorean Motor Company has finally confirmed its newest model will be an all-electric sports car, set to be launched this year.
A successor – ‘spiritual’ or otherwise – to the DeLorean DMC-12 has been heavily speculated since John DeLorean’s eponymous outfit went out of business in 1982. Now, the DeLorean Motor Company in Texas – helmed by Briton Stephen Wynne, who acquired the rights to the name in 1995 – has published an official teaser video stating that a new electric sports car, dubbed ‘EVolved’, will be launched this year. No specific timeframe has been revealed though, adding an ironic weight to the video’s tagline, “The future was never promised.”
Though almost no details have been released, the teaser does suggest that the EVolved will be more focused on luxury than its predecessor. There are also no clues as to whether a hood-mounted fuel filler cap, a louvred engine cover, or stainless steel bodywork are part of the new design, though, mercifully, there are gullwing doors!
Having shared the same video teaser across its own social platform, it looks likely that Italdesign will be involved with the new EV’s aethetics. To celebrate 40 years since the launch of DeLorean in 1981, the Italian design house last year published what it called a “sneak peek [sic] of the (near) future,” a teaser image that showed what appeared to be a modernized DeLorean in silhouette. Revered Italdesign founder Giorgetto Giugiaro was responsible for the design of the original DMC-12, John DeLorean having been impressed with the Medici I and Hyundai Pony prototypes Italdesign showcased at the Turin Motor Show in 1974.
DeLorean EV from ItalDesign
Details regarding the electric drivetrain similarly remain a mystery. Last April however, Italdesign signed a deal with Williams Advanced Engineering – the engineering arm of the Williams Formula 1 team currently developing the all-electric TE-1 with legendary British motorbike manufacturer Triumph – for, what is calls, a ‘turn-key’ electric architecture. Based on WAE’s lightweight EVX platform, the base is built using a blend of aluminium and recycled composite materials. Notably, the casing for the battery pack (ideally ranging from 104 kWh to 120 kWh) is integrated into the main body of the architecture while the front and rear chassis structures are mounted to this carbon-composite case, a design WAE states provides greater torsional rigidity but is still flexible enough to underpin GTs, crossover and sedans. The architecture was also designed specifically for independent manufacturers with low production runs “up to 10,000 units,” and would thus be ideal for a returning DeLorean EV. Providing the architecture can also handle being struck by lightning.
C’mon on, you seriously didn’t expect us to include at least one nod to the films?
