Javillac
There are few cars more controversial and at the same time as loved as him DeLorean DMC 12. The million-dollar development and manufacturing of it in Northern Ireland led John DeLorean to ruin, leading to a series of decisions that forever damaged the reputation of the executive, and which led him to sit in court accused of drug trafficking.
The almost ephemeral manufacture of the so-called “ethical sports" It was carried out y entre 1981 1983, and probably, if it weren't for one of the most successful films at the box office of that decade, Back to the Future 1985, the car would have been forgotten.
But the DeLorean's expensive price, coupled with disappointing performance and some quality problems made the car a huge failure. But The idea of manufacturing these vehicles in 24-karat gold predates their start of production.
AN IDEA FROM AMERICAN EXPRESS
The eighties were a decade of excesses of all kinds, and by Christmas 1980 the financial institution American Express advertised in a catalog a futuristic sports car whose production had not begun covered in 24-karat gold, of whom they said to be “the most luxurious car in the world".
In the catalog in which the gold DeLorean appeared American Express said that no more than one hundred units would be produced of this exclusive sports series. The conditions were to have a bank account with said company and an initial deposit of $10.000, although the final price was U.S. dollar 85.000, which are equivalent to the high figure of $317.500 in 2023.
It's no surprise, but a hundred units of the 24-karat gold DeLorean were never produced. The reality was that Only two of these prohibitively expensive cars were sold through the American Express promotion. and correspond to frames 4300 and 4301.
A third golden car was manufactured at the DMC factory in 1983., based on an existing unit, but with the 20105 frame, the control panels were replaced stainless steel for gold-covered pieces that had been created as replacements.
EXPENSIVE REPLICAS
It may be surprising because of the high price of covering a car in gold, but There were those who resorted to their own means to get a gold DeLorean. In 1981 a New York owner hired a company to electroplating gold on every panel of his car. Although this work was complicated, the process cost $8.000.
Later, and less talked about, a 24-karat gold DeLorean was put up for sale in a magazine in 1990. Although the car was covered in precious metal, it turned out to be a copy, for details such as the silver front, paradoxically demonstrating that not everything that glitters is gold.
It is not at all strange, but it is worth mentioning that, given the high value of gold, and the status of the DeLorean as an icon of the eighties, all the cars mentioned in the article survive to this dayAll units have very few kilometers, including the replicas, and the originals are kept in museums in the United States.
