John Z. DeLorean quickly rose through the ranks at General Motors, becoming the youngest head of a GM division (Pontiac) at only 40 and eventually reaching a vice president level. However, his flashy lifestyle did not fit with the conservative culture of GM’s upper management. Seeing the presidency was likely out of reach, DeLorean left GM in 1973. A talented engineer and salesman, DeLorean set out to pursue his dream of building his own sports car. Enter the DeLorean Motor Company.

Manufactured in Northern Ireland, the DMC-12 was styled by Giorgetto Giugiaro of Italdesign. It features an iconic design with distinctive gull-wing doors and outer body panels of brushed stainless steel. The chassis and suspension were largely based upon the Lotus Esprit while the powerplant was a PRV 173-cubic-inch. V-6. The DeLorean DMC-12 was built from 1981 to 1983, during which time it is estimated some 9,000 examples were produced.

This DeLorean DMC-12 left the factory in November of 1981 with a Gray interior and a five-speed manual transmission. It was shipped to the United States aboard the Orange Ace destined for the Wilmington, Delaware port of entry. It was then transported via truck to official DeLorean dealer, Tomsic Oldsmobile & Cadillac Inc. in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. The pre-delivery inspection was completed on 9 February 1982 with 13 miles on the odometer. Side striping, mats, car cover, car care kit, and “s/inspection” (possibly indicating a safety inspection) with gas and sealer were all added at the dealership, giving the car a final price of $26,795. The new sports car would remain at Tomsic’s dealership until it was purchased by Mr. Vaughn Crile on 4 November 1982 for $13,034, less than half the MSRP, likely a direct result of DeLorean’s personal legal troubles and the company filing for bankruptcy just over a week prior.

Mr. Crile would own the car until April of 2009, when it was purchased by the consignor with only 35 miles on the odometer. Today, the DeLorean remains very much in the way it left the dealership in 1982, having covered just 174 miles from new at time of cataloguing. The interior is finished in Gray and features bucket seats, power windows, air-conditioning, and factory radio with cassette. Still accompanied by the original set of Goodyear NCT HR60 radial tires, it currently rides on DMC-recommended modern Falken ZE912 tires mounted on the factory wheels. Additionally, the DeLorean is accompanied by its pre-delivery inspection form, window sticker, dealership rolodex card, copy of sales invoice, copy of first title, bill of sale between the first and second owner, owner’s manual in pouch, promotional pamphlet, DMC Technical Information Manual, and the rare DeLorean roof rack still sealed in the factory box.

With less than 200 miles and just two owners from new, this DeLorean DMC-12 is a true time capsule, one that would allow its next discerning owner to truly “Live the dream.”