DeLorean Alpha 5 marks new EV future for classic brand
The car made famous by Hollywood has been relaunched as the DeLorean Alpha 5, an all-electric sports coupe designed to take on Porsche, Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Tesla.
The DeLorean Alpha 5 is only the second model from the company that created the hero car from the 1980s Back to the Future blockbusters and contributed to the demise of its founder, former General Motors executive John DeLorean.
For now, the Alpha 5 is a one-off designed by ItalDesign, but the car created by the born again DeLorean Motor Company (DMC), now based in Texas, is planned to enter production in 2024.
The Alpha 5 borrows some design cues from the original DeLorean that went into limited (and troubled) production in Ireland.
That includes its gullwing doors – albeit much larger in its modern interpretation – and futuristic wheels, as well as the louvred rear window.
But rather than an undernourished Renault engine driving the rear wheels, the new car will be powered by an electric motor (or two).
The company hasn’t detailed what’s beneath the skin, other than to say the EV propulsion will launch the car to 60mph (96km/h) in 2.9 seconds.
That certainly suggests all four wheels are being driven by at least two electric motors, but no doubt more details will be released soon.
The EV range is claimed to be more than 480km fed by a battery pack larger than 100kWh.
At almost five metres long (4995mm) and 2044mm wide the Alpha 5 is a sizeable machine with four doors.
The most obvious contender for the Alpha 5 is Porsche’s sleek and sporty Taycan while it could no doubt come up against competition from the Tesla Model S and the Lucid Air.
Inside, there’s no flux capacitor or abundance of buttons. Instead, the Delorean Alpha 5 has a pair of display screens across a futuristically-styled dashboard.
For a car that sold only about 9000 vehicles the original DeLorean made a big impact, largely because of its starring role in the Back to the Future trilogy as well as the colourful backstory of its founder.
Some of those older cars now are being converted to EVs to keep them running – and boost their performance credentials.
READ MORE: Converting classics to electric: how to do it and how much does it cost?
READ MORE: Planning a DIY electric car conversion? Read this first
