DeLorean reveals Alpha 5, a performance EV with Back to the Future vibes

DeLorean released fresh details and images of its Alpha 5 EV, a gull-winged electric vehicle that the company’s owners hope will resurrect the long defunct brand and possibly set the direction for more electric models.

The company’s — and the EV’s — big public moment won’t come until later this summer at the Monterey Car Week. But the brand’s owners, anxious to capitalize on interest in EVs and perhaps spur a little momentum ahead of the event, released images and specs that reveal the Alpha 5 retains the gull-winged, two-door frame featured in the “Back to the Future” trilogy, but features a curvier, sleeker silhouette and room for four passengers.

So far, the company’s intentions for reviving the DeLorean brand after a long hiatus — as well as how and where it will fund and built the Alpha 5 — are not clear. DeLorean CEO and former Karma Automotive executive Joost de Vries, who joined the company in December, is scheduled to speak Friday at the Electrify Expo EV festival in Long Beach, California. The expectation is that de Vries will share more information about the company’s wider ambitions for electrification.

DeLorean said Tuesday that the Alpha 5 sports car will post figures typical for a performance EV, zipping from 0 to 60 mph in just under three seconds on its way to a top speed of 155 mph. The company estimates that the car’s 100kWh battery will be able to travel more than 300 miles on a full charge.

The original DeLorean Motor Company, maker of the time-traveling DMC-12 that starred in the 1980s “Back to the Future” trilogy, was founded in Detroit in 1975 by John DeLorean, the Pontiac designer behind the GTO and Firebird. It went defunct seven years later.

The revived DeLorean Motor Company that designed the Alpha 5 is owned by a Texas-based DeLorean restorer that bought rights to the brand in 1995 and appears to be focused on electric models.

The EV was designed by Italdesign, which also helped shape the original DMC-12 four decades ago. Looking at the released images, the Alpha 5 retains the gull-winged, two-door frame from the movie but features a curvier, sleeker silhouette. It also gains two seats, a pair of infotainment screens and a frunk — but loses the flux capacitor.

The car will rely upon a mix of “artificial support” and human control, according to the company’s website. This seems to suggest there will be some kind of advanced driver assistance system, but it’s unclear what the specific features will be.

DeLorean has not released details on its price, launch or production run. It will premiere at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in Pebble Beach, California, on August 18.

The company did not immediately respond for comment Tuesday.

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