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DeLorean Motor Company
The DeLorean Motor Company (DMC) was an American automobile manufacturer formed by automobile industry executive John DeLorean in 1975. It produced just one model, from early 1981 to late 1982—the stainless steel DeLorean sports car featuring gull-wing doors. Its history was brief and turbulent, ending in receivership and bankruptcy in 1982. In October 1982, John DeLorean was videotaped in a sting operation agreeing to bankroll drug trafficking, but was acquitted at the subsequent trial on the basis of entrapment.
The DeLorean was featured in the Back to the Future film trilogy (1985, 1989, and 1990) as the car made into a time machine, although the company had closed before the first film was made.
In 1995, Liverpool-born mechanic Stephen Wynne founded the DeLorean Motor Company (Texas), an entirely new company not related to the original, located in Humble, Texas, and shortly thereafter acquired the remaining parts inventory, and registered his own stylized version of the "DMC" logo.
John DeLorean founded the DeLorean Motor Company in Detroit, Michigan, on October 24, 1975. He was already well known in the automobile industry as a capable engineer, business innovator, and youngest person to become a General Motors executive. Investment capital came primarily in the form of business loans from Bank of America and from the formation of partnerships and private investment from select parties, including The Tonight Show host Johnny Carson and entertainers Roy Clark and Sammy Davis Jr. Capital was also raised through a dealer investment program in which dealerships offering DeLorean's cars for sale were made shareholders in the company.
DeLorean also sought lucrative incentives from governments and economic organizations to pay for manufacturing facilities by looking to build his first factory in an area of particularly high unemployment. Initially considering Ireland, he proposed using a site in Limerick, but the Republic's then Minister for Industry and Commerce, Desmond O'Malley, decided not to support the project, later describing it as "all too good to be true". A deal in Puerto Rico was about to be agreed when DeLorean took up an offer from the Industrial Development Board for Northern Ireland. Besides some early seed capital from Hollywood stars, the DeLorean Motor Company relied on the British Government for about $120 million of its $200 million startup costs according to The Times. The British Government was keen to create jobs in Northern Ireland to reduce sectarian violence. DeLorean was under the impression that the British Government, as part of this offer, would provide his company with Export Credit financing. This would provide a loan of 80% of the wholesale cost of the vehicles (US$20,000) upon completion and delivery for shipping.
In October 1978, construction of the six-building, 660,000 sq ft (61,000 m2) manufacturing plant began in Northern Ireland. It was designed and managed by Gerald Mooney, of Brodie & Hawthorn Architects of Belfast, and constructed in 16 months by Farrans, McLaughlin & Harvey. A test/proving track was also constructed next to the factory. Officially known as DMCL (DeLorean Motor Cars, Ltd.), the facility was located in The Cutts in Dunmurry, a suburb on the south-western edge of Belfast.
Unit production was scheduled to begin in 1979, but engineering delays and budget overruns caused the assembly lines to start only in early 1981. Workers at the factory were generally inexperienced; many never had jobs before joining DMC. This may have contributed to the reported quality issues attributed to the early production vehicles and the subsequent establishment of Quality Assurance Centers (QAC) located at various delivery locations. QACs were set up in California, New Jersey and Michigan where some of the quality issues were to be addressed and resolved before delivery to dealerships. Some of the issues related to the fitting of body panels, higher-output alternators, and gull-wing door adjustments.
The combined efforts of quality assurance improvements at the factory and the post-production quality assurance done at the QACs were generally successful, although workmanship complaints still occasionally arose; the 1981 DeLoreans were delivered with a 12-month, 12,000 mi (19,000 km) warranty. By 1982, improvements in components and the more experienced workforce meant that production quality was vastly improved. Disputes between dealerships and customers arose later because many dealerships refused to do warranty work because they were not reimbursed.
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DeLorean Motor Company
The DeLorean Motor Company (DMC) was an American automobile manufacturer formed by automobile industry executive John DeLorean in 1975. It produced just one model, from early 1981 to late 1982—the stainless steel DeLorean sports car featuring gull-wing doors. Its history was brief and turbulent, ending in receivership and bankruptcy in 1982. In October 1982, John DeLorean was videotaped in a sting operation agreeing to bankroll drug trafficking, but was acquitted at the subsequent trial on the basis of entrapment.
The DeLorean was featured in the Back to the Future film trilogy (1985, 1989, and 1990) as the car made into a time machine, although the company had closed before the first film was made.
In 1995, Liverpool-born mechanic Stephen Wynne founded the DeLorean Motor Company (Texas), an entirely new company not related to the original, located in Humble, Texas, and shortly thereafter acquired the remaining parts inventory, and registered his own stylized version of the "DMC" logo.
John DeLorean founded the DeLorean Motor Company in Detroit, Michigan, on October 24, 1975. He was already well known in the automobile industry as a capable engineer, business innovator, and youngest person to become a General Motors executive. Investment capital came primarily in the form of business loans from Bank of America and from the formation of partnerships and private investment from select parties, including The Tonight Show host Johnny Carson and entertainers Roy Clark and Sammy Davis Jr. Capital was also raised through a dealer investment program in which dealerships offering DeLorean's cars for sale were made shareholders in the company.
DeLorean also sought lucrative incentives from governments and economic organizations to pay for manufacturing facilities by looking to build his first factory in an area of particularly high unemployment. Initially considering Ireland, he proposed using a site in Limerick, but the Republic's then Minister for Industry and Commerce, Desmond O'Malley, decided not to support the project, later describing it as "all too good to be true". A deal in Puerto Rico was about to be agreed when DeLorean took up an offer from the Industrial Development Board for Northern Ireland. Besides some early seed capital from Hollywood stars, the DeLorean Motor Company relied on the British Government for about $120 million of its $200 million startup costs according to The Times. The British Government was keen to create jobs in Northern Ireland to reduce sectarian violence. DeLorean was under the impression that the British Government, as part of this offer, would provide his company with Export Credit financing. This would provide a loan of 80% of the wholesale cost of the vehicles (US$20,000) upon completion and delivery for shipping.
In October 1978, construction of the six-building, 660,000 sq ft (61,000 m2) manufacturing plant began in Northern Ireland. It was designed and managed by Gerald Mooney, of Brodie & Hawthorn Architects of Belfast, and constructed in 16 months by Farrans, McLaughlin & Harvey. A test/proving track was also constructed next to the factory. Officially known as DMCL (DeLorean Motor Cars, Ltd.), the facility was located in The Cutts in Dunmurry, a suburb on the south-western edge of Belfast.
Unit production was scheduled to begin in 1979, but engineering delays and budget overruns caused the assembly lines to start only in early 1981. Workers at the factory were generally inexperienced; many never had jobs before joining DMC. This may have contributed to the reported quality issues attributed to the early production vehicles and the subsequent establishment of Quality Assurance Centers (QAC) located at various delivery locations. QACs were set up in California, New Jersey and Michigan where some of the quality issues were to be addressed and resolved before delivery to dealerships. Some of the issues related to the fitting of body panels, higher-output alternators, and gull-wing door adjustments.
The combined efforts of quality assurance improvements at the factory and the post-production quality assurance done at the QACs were generally successful, although workmanship complaints still occasionally arose; the 1981 DeLoreans were delivered with a 12-month, 12,000 mi (19,000 km) warranty. By 1982, improvements in components and the more experienced workforce meant that production quality was vastly improved. Disputes between dealerships and customers arose later because many dealerships refused to do warranty work because they were not reimbursed.