1982 DeLorean DMC-12

Guess the car that was built in Northern Ireland, sports a brushed stainless steel body and gullwing doors, and starred in a science fiction movie that spent eleven weeks at #1 in the box office in 1985 (ironically, three years after it went out of production)? Clearly, only one car fits that description—the DeLorean DMC-12. The brainchild of John Z. DeLorean, the man behind Pontiac’s sporty success in the 1960s, the car held a lot of promise. There was the Giugiaro-designed body, chassis engineering by Lotus engineers, and those unmistakable styling features. It seemed to be the car of the future, for the 1980s, but unfortunately circumstances conspired to bankrupt the company before the DMC-12 had a chance to catch on. The DMC-12 was also let down by an engine weaker than DeLorean originally intended, so while it looks great, performance dead stock is less exciting. Decades after the last new DMC-12 rolled out of the Dunmurray factory, however, the unique sportscar has a loyal following and a dedicated enthusiast base that is happy to hop up cars to match DeLorean’s original vision of an unparalleled and unmistakable sportscar.