Whilst in Canberra over Christmas, helping move my son into an apartment he had just purchased, I happened to spot a DMC-12 DeLorean, in the apartment complexes underground car park.

I've never seen one in the flesh before, as there are so few of them in Australia. I had of course seen them in auto mags over the years, which is why I recognised it. To be truthful, my first impression at a distance was, it must be a replica.  However, after walking all around it & looking closely, I realised it was the real thing.

I'm back in Brisbane now, & started researching it, to make myself fully aware of the history of this extraordinary bit of automemorabillia.

Strangely enough, I was watching tele yesterday afternoon, & saw a re-run of Classic Car Rescue, in which those pair of idiots restored a DeLorean.

After researching DeLoreans this morning,  on Wikipedia    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DeLorean_DMC-12, if I was back in Canberra today, I could probably determine whether it was a 1981 or 1982 model, from all the subtle exterior changes the short lived car had.

However, one thing has got me wondering.  The Delorean, production cars, had unpainted stainless steel panels, which were not a structural part of the car. They had an unpolished finish, such as would result from the use of a "flapper" wheel, which is what they used in Classic Car Rescue TV series resto.

Wikipedia tells me that there were 3 off factory gold plated models produced, & a fourth was gold plated by it's new owner after production.

I have read or heard somewhere, that there were a very limited number of DeLoreans produced with a burnished bronze type finish.  The one I spotted in Canberra, was one of them. It is not painted on, as I looked at it closely, & you can see the grazed pattern in the metal work.  

I haven't done any research on Deloreans in Australia, but did notice there was one for sale in Mackay Qld. mid this year for about $ 48K.  There was another up for auction, in Tasmania.

Next time I'm in Canberra, I'll try & find the owner of the car, & see if I can't learn a little more about this unusual classic.

Here is a picture of one that obviously resides in Australia.

If anyone reading this, has any knowledge on the "bronze" finished ones, or their total numbers in Australia, please let me know,

Cheers Banjo

 

Edited January 2, 20188 yr by Banjo

No idea really, but one interesting thing, dont overpay for them, a guy bought all the unbuilt cars as parts and is selling them off piece by piece and occasionally puts out brand new cars built from parts upon request, so not as rare as they seem , and parts are still available 100%, so no need to overpay for a wrecked one just to get parts.  The rarity may come as you say from the colour.  It might have been a different type of stainless steel, if its still brushed finish as well.

Not questioning your judgement or your eyesight, but being in an underground apartment complex is it possible that it was just a normal brushed stainless finish and the poor lighting gave it the bronze effect?  Having photographed car shows in underground carparks before, the lighting is normally terrible for white-balance and correct colour matching...

 

I've personally seen a couple of DMC-12s, there's one up at the Lost in the 50s car museum in Newcastle as well as the Gosford Classic Car Museum, both are LHD models though from memory and both are the normal stainless finish.

Edited January 2, 20188 yr by Hiro Protagonist