What Car Was Used in Back to the Future? DeLorean DMC-12 Facts

The car used in Back to the Future is the DeLorean DMC-12, a stainless steel sports car with gull-wing doors that Doc Brown turns into a time machine. CNN reports that only three cars were built for filming, and that the lead “hero” car is the one now displayed at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. This guide covers why the filmmakers picked it, how many road cars were built, the hero car’s restoration and what the DeLorean Motor Company in Texas does today.

What Car Was Used in Back to the Future? The DMC-12

The time machine in all three films is a DeLorean DMC-12. In the first film Doc Brown uses plutonium to create a nuclear reaction strong enough to produce 1.21 gigawatts of electricity, according to CNN Style (Oct 21, 2015, updated Jan 29, 2016), and in the third film the car has to be pushed by a locomotive up to the 88 mph it needs to travel in time.

The DMC-12 was the only car the original DeLorean Motor Company built, according to CNN Style (Oct 21, 2015, updated Jan 29, 2016). It was manufactured in a suburb of Belfast, Northern Ireland, mainly for the American market. CNN Style (May 15, 2019) says the unpainted stainless steel body, the gull-wing doors and the rear-mounted engine were the features John DeLorean knew would set it apart.

Why the DeLorean Was Chosen: From Refrigerator to Car

The car was not the first idea. Bob Gale, co-writer and producer of the trilogy, told CNN that the first two drafts in 1981 had the time machine as a stationary device in Doc’s lab, which he would put on his pickup truck and drive around. CNN adds that the original script had Marty travel through time in a refrigerator.

Gale said the change came in 1984, when the film finally got off the ground. In pre-production, director Robert Zemeckis asked how he was going to shoot a stationary machine. He thought it would be better if the machine were mobile, or in a car, and that is when he hit on the DeLorean.

The choice was unusual. Gale said that while the film was being worked on, John DeLorean was on trial for cocaine trafficking and was in the news pretty much every day, and then his company went bust. Even so, in Gale’s words to CNN, there was something dangerous, counterculture and gorgeous about how beautiful the car was, and the filmmakers loved the gull-wing doors.

Directors of the films have also said the gull-wing doors and brushed stainless steel body gave the car a spaceship-like look that suited the story, CNN reported in October 2023. Smithsonian magazine (Oct 19, 2017), citing a writer for Tokion, says that by 1985 the car was already so dated that it made a perfect time machine.

The DMC-12 Behind the Movie Car

Knowing what the real car was helps separate the film from the facts. CNN Style (May 15, 2019) gives this short history:

• John DeLorean left General Motors in 1973 to start the DeLorean Motor Company.
• Italian designer Giorgetto Giugiaro shaped the car, basing it on a 1970 Porsche concept called Tapiro that had a stainless steel body and gull-wing doors.
• The planned fiberglass chassis was dropped for a more conventional process, and the engine moved from the middle to the rear to fit a V6 developed by Peugeot, Volvo and Renault. CNN says the move affected handling.
• The first cars rolled off the line in January 1981 at a plant in Dunmurry, near Belfast, with a reported $120 million in government grants behind it.
• The car retailed for $25,000 in 1981 against a $12,000 target, and CNN lists a 130 horsepower engine and a 0 to 60 mph time of over 10 seconds.
• In October 1982 John DeLorean was arrested in an FBI sting, and the company filed for bankruptcy a week later. DeLorean was later acquitted after a jury decided the FBI had illegally entrapped him.

Stephen Wynne, CEO of the present-day DeLorean Motor Company, told CNN that the DeLorean was the Tesla of the 80s, breaking all the rules at a time when the automotive environment was quite boring.

For the specifications of the road car itself, see our guide to the Back to the Future car and the real DMC-12.

How Many DeLoreans Were Used in the Movies? What Happened to Them

Two numbers matter here: how many cars were used for the films, and how many road cars were built in total. For the first, CNN Style (May 15, 2019) says three cars were built for filming, and that the “hero,” or lead vehicle, is on display at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. CNN does not say what the other two cars were used for or where they are now.

The second number varies by outlet. Each figure below is as that outlet reported it on the date shown:

Source	Date	Road cars built	Production period given
CNN Style (Great Scott!)	Oct 21, 2015, updated Jan 29, 2016	About 9,000; an estimated 6,000 remain	Production ceased in 1982
NBC News	Jan 27, 2016	About 9,200	January 1981 to December 1982, Belfast
Smithsonian magazine	Oct 19, 2017	About 8,900	In the space of less than a year
CNN Style (Prisco)	May 15, 2019	Around 9,000	Production lasted until 1983
CNN (via WTTW)	Oct 19, 2023	About 9,000	Manufactured 1981 to 1983

The figures agree on roughly 9,000 but not on the exact count or the end date, so treat any single number as an estimate.

The Time Machine in the Sequels

The 2015 CNN piece ties the sequels to real dates. October 21, 2015 was the date to which Marty and Doc travel 30 years forward in time in the second film, and in the third Marty goes back to 1885, to America’s Wild West, to save Doc, who is trapped in the past.

The car’s last role in that film is the locomotive scene: it is pushed by a train to reach the 88 mph it needs to travel in time. Back to the Future: The Musical also features a DeLorean; the official franchise site describes the UK tour’s show-stopping DeLorean as one that defies the laws of theatre, quoting the Guardian.

The Hero Car: Decline, Restoration and Museum

The official Back to the Future site tells the story of the hero car in its page for the documentary OUTATIME: Saving the DeLorean Time Machine. It says decades of harsh weather and souvenir hunters reduced the car to a shadowy reflection of its former self, that fans frequently disregarded signs, and that souvenir hunters stole numerous pieces, including the Time Circuits and the Flux Capacitor. By 2010, it says, it looked as if the car would not survive.

Step	What the official page says
The decision	Bob Gale and Universal Studios decided to take action rather than let the car decay
The team	Instead of a car company or prop house, Gale brought in a group of Back to the Future fans, led by Joe Walser, head of the restoration
The goal	Restore the car with 100% accuracy, every bolt and every detail exactly as in the movie
The timeline	An intense, year-long restoration
The record	The documentary runs 63 minutes and was released on 7/19/2016

The same page calls it the biggest fan-led prop restoration in movie studio history and says the Back to the Future Time Machine has been voted the most famous car in film history. That is the franchise’s own claim, not an independent ranking.

As for where to see it, CNN’s May 2019 report says the hero car is displayed at the Petersen Automotive Museum. Museum displays rotate, so confirm with the Petersen before a trip.

DeLorean Motor Company in Texas Today

A company of the same name exists today but is not affiliated with John DeLorean’s original business, according to CNN. Its CEO, Stephen Wynne, told CNN in 2019 that he acquired the DeLorean inventory in 1997 and that the firm holds over 4 million original parts left over from unmade cars, which it uses to refurbish old DeLoreans to near-factory condition. He said refurbished cars sell for between $50,000 and $60,000, after he spends about $25,000 to $30,000 on each.

NBC News reported on January 27, 2016 that the Humble, Texas company would be allowed to build only 300 more cars under a low-volume manufacturing bill, at a price of at least $100,000 each depending on the engine, and that Wynne had set up shop in Texas in 1995. CNN’s 2019 report says he had been unable to proceed because the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had not yet released legislation on low-volume replica cars. The two outlets give different years for his start in Texas, 1995 and 1997.

DMC’s own website says the DMC-12 was never meant to be a static interpretation of the brand, and that the brand would constantly evolve.

Used cars still draw attention. CNN, in a story carried by WTTW on October 19, 2023, reported a 1981 DeLorean DMC-12 with only 977 miles found in a Wisconsin barn, and noted that the car used for the time machine can resell for up to six figures.

Related Guides

• The Back to the Future car and the real DMC-12
• Cars in pop culture: why some vehicles become icons
• How many cars were used in The Dukes of Hazzard
• What car is Doc Hudson
• What kind of car does Columbo drive
• Where is the Bonnie and Clyde car

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the name of the car used in Back to the Future?

It is the DeLorean DMC-12, the only car the original DeLorean Motor Company built, according to CNN (Oct 2015, updated Jan 2016). It has an unpainted stainless steel body, gull-wing doors and a rear-mounted engine.

How many DeLoreans were used in the Back to the Future movies?

CNN reported in May 2019 that three cars were built for filming, and that the “hero,” or lead vehicle, is on display at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. CNN does not break down what the other two cars were used for.

Why was the DeLorean chosen for the movie?

Co-writer and producer Bob Gale told CNN that the car had something dangerous, counterculture and gorgeous about it, and that the filmmakers loved the gull-wing doors. CNN also reports that director Robert Zemeckis wanted a mobile time machine and the DeLorean was the car he landed on.

How many DeLoreans were made in total?

Sources differ by a few hundred cars: about 9,000 (CNN), about 9,200 (NBC News), and about 8,900 (Smithsonian magazine). The table above lists each figure with its date.

Where is the original Back to the Future DeLorean now?

CNN reported in May 2019 that the hero car is on display at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. Displays change, so check the museum before you plan a visit.

Is the DeLorean Motor Company still around?

A company of the same name, run out of Texas by Stephen Wynne, is not related to the original manufacturer, according to CNN. It refurbishes old DeLoreans using leftover original parts.

What This Guide Does Not Cover

• Insurance, valuation and purchase advice for a DeLorean; ask a specialist dealer or appraiser.
• Technical specifications and repair of the road car; see the DMC-12 guide linked above and the maker’s own service information.
• Any breakdown of the other two filming cars; CNN does not give one.

Summary

The Back to the Future car is a DeLorean DMC-12, chosen in 1984 after earlier drafts had a stationary lab device and the original script a refrigerator. CNN reports three cars were built for filming, with the hero car on display at the Petersen Automotive Museum, and road car totals range from about 8,900 to 9,200 depending on the outlet. The hero car was restored in a fan-led, year-long project that the official franchise site documents in OUTATIME.