Send to a friendDucati Minor November 22nd, 2007 11:52 AM Link
Irony’s a bitch.
Video: 52-Minute DeLorean Documentary From 1981
Written By: Winding Road Staff
History buffs and fans of the DeLorean legend (both the man himself and the stainless steel DMC-12) will appreciate this long-form find from Google video.
This 1981 documentary by noted filmmakers D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus is a fantastic moment in time, with period-correct synthesized sound tracking to match.The documentary captures interesting day-to-day meetings of DMC, the logistical troubles with Lotus, and also provides some additional perspective on the environment in Northern Ireland (where DMC-12s were built) at the time. The footage spans multiple years, from the construction of the assembly plant to the start of production.
It ends as the cars are just starting to arrive in North America, immediately prior to the downfall of the corporation and one John Zachary DeLorean.Other De Lorean related stories from WINDING ROAD:
+ Video: DeLorean cars arriving in America
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4 Comments
phd_engineer November 22nd, 2007 2:37 PM Link
Worth the time to watch… Happy Thanksgiving!
Ducati Minor November 23rd, 2007 7:06 PM Link
Actually, after watching the film, I came away surprised by DeLorean’s management. With 20/20 hindsight, we can see this was an impending failure. The DMC-12 was promoted as a sports car, but it was really a high-tech grand tourer that was terribly underpowered. Adding to that a Northern Ireland assembly plant made up of desperate and unskilled (in motoring) laborers making a vehicle with a price tag hitting $35,000, and one could easily see this was a doomed effort.
Being an independent carmaker trying to find his niche in the 1970s and ’80s was nearly impossible. When long-running small firms were closing shop and large enterprises were struggling with new government requirements for production, someone like Bricklin or DeLorean was too ambitious for the circumstances of the time. I’m glad the DMC-12 has finally found a place in the hearts of gearheads.
There was one misplaced statement in the documentary. The DMC-12’s gullwing doors were highlighted for their small need of space, “unlike” the Bricklin SV-1. In fact, one of Malcolm Bricklin’s best features was the limited space needed for his gullwing doors on the SV-1.
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