Not everyone is a fan of Marty McFly or the DeLorean DMC. But put the duo together, and suddenly even the haters get up to take a second look. We do not know if this classic car made the movie famous, or if the movie added to the legacy of the car — either which way, a DeLorean DMC from Back To The Future is the big daddy of all movie cars, especially the best ones.
Updated September 2021: If you're a fan of the Back To The Future movie franchise or just love the DeLorean DMC-12, you'll be happy to know that we've updated this article with some more information regarding this movie icon.
And it all started when Doc Brown called Marty McFly to an empty parking lot late one night, with a video camera, and said, “The way I see it, if you’re going to build a time machine with a car, why not do it with some style?”
The silver DeLorean DMC has gone down in the annals of history, along with its “flux capacitor”, as one of the most famous/infamous cars in the history of all movie cars, so much so that people have built up replicas from scratch, with the flux capacitor firmly entrenched in the rear. Why? Well, gotta be authentic, that’s why!
So here’s how much the DeLorean from Back To The Future is worth, and why that’s okay. As Doc would have said, Great Scott!
First, Why The DeLorean In The Movie?
The original script of the movie did not actually use a car as a time machine, it had a refrigerator. Why? Well, perhaps it was cooler, in more ways than one. But since a time machine also traveled, as in moved, one of the two Bobs who wrote the screenplay, had an idea. Apparently, Bob Zemeckis said to Bob Gale that using a car would be a better idea.
Now that it was decided that the time machine was going to be a car, which car would fit it and the flux capacitor the best?
The DeLorean DMC-12, as it was officially called, was in the news. Not for anything good, though. The company had gone bust all because the founder, the once-vaunted John DeLorean had been caught at the airport with a briefcase full of drugs because the cartel was more than happy to fund a rescue for the drowning DeLorean.
The story of John DeLorean mostly ended that day, and he gently declined into old age and until he unobtrusively passed away from a stroke at 80-years-old in March 2005. However, the DeLorean DMC was back in business! From the day the movie was released, people bought the DeLorean just because of its claim-to-fame or decided to retain it for the same reasons.
How Much Is A DeLorean DMC Worth Today?
Those looking to purchase a classic DeLorean today will soon learn that prices are all over the place. According to Hagerty's Valuation Tool, the average price is roughly $40,000 these days. However, the DMC wore shiny stainless steel clothing, so if the body is damaged, it could be a gargantuan task to fix it. That's why you can get a dented one for around $25,000-30,000, while cars in good condition can easily be double that, fetching in the region of $50,000-60,000 on the classic car market today.
If you bought a new DMC in 1982, the cost in today's money, adjusted for inflation, would be $60,000-plus. Those looking for a car in mint condition will easily have to fork out $75,000 for it, but the car will then be completely refurbished and in top running condition — although the DeLorean DMC-12 would never win any races with that heavy body.
The car is still a relatively affordable purchase on the classic car market because, despite the 25,000-annual run planned, only 9,200 of these alien-looking cars were ever made. But they had already made a cartload of surplus parts, which is why you can get an authentic refurbishment done. That should also mean it's possible to get it fixed when something breaks.
A DeLorean From Back To The Future Is Worth A Lot More
Jay Leno’s Garage covered a Back To The Future DeLorean DMC, worth about $750,000. Only, this one was not a real car from the movie, but a replica built by Terry Matalas and Joe Walser, pat down to the flux capacitor and the 95 mph speedometer. Clearly, authenticity trumps even the real thing.
If you want to convert your car into a replica, there are plenty of shops happy to help you out, but you can add another $50,000-80,000 to the price tag of the standard car. So if you bought it for $50,000, your Back To The Future classic DMC can set you back by more than $100,000. Perhaps the best option here would be to buy one that's in less-than-perfect condition and turn it into a movie replica?
In 2016, Universal Studios Japan was auctioning off a replica, and people lost their minds when the auction bid reached more than $90 million. Of course, it was all fake, and the spurious bids were later removed. Not that long ago, a 1981 DeLorean DMC was sold for more than $110,000, although this was also a movie replica, not the real thing.
As far as the original movie cars are concerned, three cars were used during the filming of the movie, referred to internally as the A, B, and C cars. The "A" car was the Hero car, it was the one with the most details. Once filming was done, it was handed over to Universal Studios Hollywood as an attraction piece. Visitors would actually steal parts off it, and it would later be restored to perfect condition and is now on display at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles.
The "B" car was the stunt car, and it was used in all three movies. The car was purposely struck by a train during production, which left it wrecked. Jay Ohrberg, a movie car customizer, used what was left of it to construct various DeLorean replicas. The "B" car's body panels were sold to Planet Hollywood Hawaii, where it was until it closed down in 2010. It was bought by Bill and Patrick Shea at an auction after Back to the Future HQ reached out to Planet Hollywood to find the car's remains. These days, the stunt car is on display at Hubbardston, Massachusetts.
The "C" car was the one they used for interior footage, so it was torn apart in order to make the camera fit inside. After filming, it was left at Universal Studios Hollywood, and would see many of its parts being used on a replica remodeled by Tom Talmon Studios for Universal Japan. Universal Japan eventually sold the car to a private company and the vehicle is now on display on the company's driveway.
Sources: History.com, CNET