DeLorean Alpha5 concept revealed

DeLOREAN is back (from the future?) with its newly revealed Alpha5 concept.

As the spiritual successor of the movie-star DMC-12, the Alpha5 is a four-seat coupe offering gullwing doors and a rakish design that recalls Doc Brown’s much-loved time machine from the Back to the Future trilogy.

While there is no flux capacitor or Mr Fusion home energy reactor in sight, this baby is indeed all-electric – and capable of hitting 88mph in an estimated 4.35 seconds (a lot quicker than the original V6 Peugeot-Renault-Volvo powered DMC-12).

The Alpha5 does not require 1.21 Gigawatts to reach full charge, either. DeLorean says the base performance model can be charged at home or via a public high-speed charger, its 100kWh battery pack providing up to 480km range, an estimated top speed of 250km/h and a 0-100km/h time of 2.9 seconds.

“The Alpha5 is for people that love to drive,” suggests DeLorean CEO Joost de Vries.

Penned by ItalDesign – the same firm that crafted the original DMC-12 – the Alpha5 features nods to the 80s original including horizontal-styled LED headlights and taillights, turbine style alloy wheels, gullwing outlines in the lower grille and rear valance, a louvre rear window cover and DeLorean badging stamped into the rear bumper.

The streamlined Alpha5 boasts an ultra-low drag coefficient of just 0.23. DeLorean says the Alpha5 is based on a new chassis structure with a carbon-fibre tub and even hints at other models, namely the Alpha 1, Alpha2, Alpha3 and Alpha4, on its newly launched microsite.

The cabin meanwhile offers room for Marty, Jennifer, Doc Brown and even Einstein in four individual bucket seats and is upholstered in white textile. The minimalist cockpit also features a digital instrument cluster, floating touchscreen infotainment array, separate climate control panel and two-tier floating console.

“There was this enormous responsibility to make sure we honoured the history of the DeLorean brand, but an even greater responsibility in curating its future. I think we did both with the Alpha5,” said DeLorean chief marketing officer, Tony Beetz.

Considerably larger than the DMC-12, the Alpha5 measures 4995mm in length (+728mm), 2044mm in width (+56mm) and 1370mm in height (+230mm). The wheelbase measures an even 2300mm (-113mm).

The model will be produced in Italy with driveline components sourced from the UK. Only 88 examples will be produced, or approximately 8900 fewer than DMC-12’s total production number – however DeLorean says an electric sedan and a hydrogen-powered SUV are planned … sometime in the future.

“We have been given the opportunity to reimagine a brand that has meant so much to so many people from all corners of the globe, for four decades,” said DeLorean vice president of brand and creative, Neilo Harris.

“DeLorean has touched so many lives and set the stage for so many memories. We are all now witnessing a new chapter of this amazing story.”

The DeLorean Alpha5 Launch Edition will make its official public debut on August 21 at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.