Editing DeLorean Motor Company (section)

==History==
{{More citations needed section|date=September 2021}}

===Beginning===
John DeLorean founded the DeLorean Motor Company in [[Detroit|Detroit, Michigan]], on October 24, 1975. He was already well known in the automobile industry as a capable engineer, business innovator, and youngest person to become a [[General Motors Corporation|General Motors]] executive. [[Investment]] [[Capital (economics)|capital]] came primarily in the form of business loans from [[Bank of America]] and from the formation of [[partnership]]s and private investment from select parties, including ''[[The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson|The Tonight Show]]'' host [[Johnny Carson]] and entertainers [[Roy Clark]] and [[Sammy Davis Jr.]] Capital was also raised through a dealer investment program in which dealerships offering DeLorean's cars for sale were made shareholders in the company.

DeLorean also sought lucrative incentives from governments and economic organizations to pay for manufacturing facilities by looking to build his first factory in an area of particularly high unemployment. Initially considering [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]], he proposed using a site in [[Limerick]], but the Republic's then [[Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment|Minister for Industry and Commerce]], [[Desmond O'Malley]], decided not to support the project, later describing it as "all too good to be true".<ref>[https://www.independent.ie/opinion/analysis/when-omalley-snubbed-the-motor-man/25996734.html When O'Malley snubbed the motor man], ''[[Irish Independent]]'', 26 March 2005</ref> A deal in [[Puerto Rico]] was about to be agreed when DeLorean took up an offer from the [[Industrial Development Board for Northern Ireland]]. Besides some early [[seed capital]] from Hollywood stars, the DeLorean Motor Company relied on the British Government for about $120 million of its $200 million startup costs according to ''[[The Times]]''.  The British Government was keen to create jobs in [[Northern Ireland]] to reduce [[sectarian violence]]. DeLorean was under the impression that the British Government, as part of this offer,  would provide his company with [[Export Credit Agencies|Export Credit]] financing. This would provide a loan of 80% of the wholesale cost of the vehicles (US$20,000) upon completion and delivery for shipping.

===Manufacturing facility===
[[File:DMC DeLorean factory.jpg|thumb|right|DMC's factory at [[Dunmurry]] in [[Belfast]], [[Northern Ireland]]]]
[[File:DeloreanONTrack2024.jpg|alt=A DeLorean car on a banked turn|thumb|A DeLorean car on the test track at the Dunmurry factory as part of the DeLorean Revival event, June 2024. In addition to a high-speed banked turn, the track featured suspension tests, splash tests and various corners.]]
In October 1978, construction of the six-building, {{convert|660000|sqft|abbr=on}} manufacturing plant began in [[Northern Ireland]]. It was designed and managed by Gerald Mooney, of Brodie & Hawthorn Architects of [[Belfast]], and constructed in 16 months by Farrans, McLaughlin & Harvey. A test/proving track was also constructed next to the factory. Officially known as DMCL (DeLorean Motor Cars, Ltd.), the facility was located in The Cutts in [[Dunmurry]], a suburb on the south-western edge of Belfast.

[[Manufacturing|Unit production]] was scheduled to begin in 1979, but engineering delays and budget overruns caused the [[assembly line]]s to start only in early 1981. Workers at the factory were generally inexperienced; many never had jobs before joining DMC. This may have contributed to the reported [[quality assurance|quality issues]] attributed to the early production vehicles and the subsequent establishment of Quality Assurance Centers (QAC) located at various delivery locations. QACs were set up in [[California]], [[New Jersey]] and [[Michigan]] where some of the quality issues were to be addressed and resolved before delivery to [[Car dealership|dealership]]s. Some of the issues related to the fitting of body panels, higher-output [[Alternator (automotive)|alternators]], and [[gullwing door]] adjustments.

The combined efforts of quality assurance improvements at the factory and the post-production [[quality assurance]] done at the QACs were generally successful, although workmanship complaints still occasionally arose; the 1981 DeLoreans were delivered with a 12-month, {{convert|12000|mi|km|abbr=on}} [[warranty]]. By 1982, improvements in components and the more experienced workforce meant that production quality was vastly improved. Disputes between dealerships and customers arose later because many dealerships refused to do warranty work because they were not reimbursed.

===Downturn and bankruptcy===
The lack of demand, [[cost overrun]]s, and unfavorable exchange rates began to take their toll on DMC's cash flow in late 1981. The company had estimated its break-even point to be between 10,000 and 12,000 units, but sales were only around 6,000. In response to the income shortfall, a restructuring plan was devised where a new "DeLorean Motors Holding Company" would be formed, which in turn would have become corporate parent to DMC and each of its subsidiaries: DeLorean Motor Cars Limited (manufacturer), DeLorean Motor Cars of America (distributor in the U.S.) and DeLorean Research Partnership (a research and development company). In January 1982, due to [[United States Securities and Exchange Commission]] questions about the company's viability, the company was forced to cancel the stock issue for the holding company that DeLorean had hoped would raise about $27 million.

John DeLorean lobbied the British Government for aid, but was refused unless he was able to find a matching amount from other investors. What followed is a matter of debate between the British Government, the US [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] (FBI), the [[Drug Enforcement Administration]] (DEA), DeLorean, his investors, and the US court system. At some point in 1982, John DeLorean became the target of an FBI [[sting operation]] designed to arrest drug traffickers. He was arrested in October 1982 and charged with conspiring to smuggle $24 million worth of cocaine into the US. The key element of evidence for the prosecution was a videotape showing DeLorean discussing the drugs deal with undercover FBI agents Benedict (Ben) Tisa and West, although DeLorean's attorney [[Howard Weitzman]] successfully demonstrated to the court that he was coerced into participation in the deal by the agents who initially approached him as legitimate investors. He was acquitted of all charges, but his reputation was forever tarnished. After his trial and subsequent acquittal, DeLorean quipped, "Would you buy a used car from me?"

In the end, sufficient funds could not be raised to keep the company alive. DMC went bankrupt in 1982, taking with it 2,500 jobs and over $100 million in investments. The British Government attempted to revive some usable remnants of the manufacturing facility without success, and the Dunmurry factory was closed. DeLorean himself retired in [[New Jersey]], and the dream with which he had mesmerized Britain's Labour government, of industry rising out of the ashes of [[The Troubles]] in [[Northern Ireland]], was shattered. He claimed that the DMCL was deliberately closed for political reasons, and at the time of closing was a solidly viable company with millions of dollars in the bank and two years of dealer orders on the books.

Approximately 9,000 cars were made between January 1981 and December 1982, although actual production figures are unclear and estimates differ. Some of the cars manufactured in 1982, but not shipped to the states (as the US arm of DMC had no money to 'buy' the cars from the factory in Northern Ireland), with 15XXX and 16XXX Vehicle Identification Numbers are actually 1982 models that were given later VINs, dated 1983, by Consolidated International (now known as [[Big Lots]]), a company that had a buyback program with DMC and had bought out the remaining unsold cars and also the inventory of unused parts left in the factory after the bankruptcy.

[[Irish folklore|Folk tales in Ireland]] attribute the failure of DeLorean to the fact that the company had destroyed a sacred [[fairy fort]] to build its factory.<ref name="irishtimes2017">{{cite web |date=9 August 2017 |title=Fairy forts: Why these 'sacred places' deserve our respect |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/heritage/fairy-forts-why-these-sacred-places-deserve-our-respect-1.3181259 |access-date=19 May 2020 |website=irishtimes.com |publisher=Irish Times}}</ref>

The DeLorean assembly plant was eventually occupied by the French automotive supplier Montupet, which began to manufacture cast aluminum cylinder heads for automobile engines at the Dunmurry facility in 1989.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/news/montupet-set-for-expansion-as-company-is-sold-for-629m-34648105.html|date= April 22, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200729191452/https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/news/montupet-set-for-expansion-as-company-is-sold-for-629m-34648105.html|archive-date=2020-07-29|title=Montupet set for expansion as company is sold for £629m|newspaper=Belfasttelegraph}}</ref> As of Monputet's acquisition in 2015, the factory employed more than 600 people.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/business/manufacturing/bright-future-at-old-delorean-plant-in-belfast-1.2397970|title=Bright future at old DeLorean plant in Belfast|first=Francess|last=McDonnell|newspaper=The Irish Times}}</ref> The facility is currently operated as Montupet UK, a subsidiary of [[Linamar Corporation]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/montupet-ma-linamar/canadas-linamar-buys-french-auto-parts-maker-montupet-idUSL8N12F3LW20151015|title=Canada's Linamar buys French auto parts maker Montupet|newspaper=Reuters|date=15 October 2015|last1=Schuetze|first1=Pamela Barbaglia}}</ref> A community of DeLorean enthusiasts reunite on a regular basis on the site's defunct test tracks (which they renovated for low-speed use), bringing along their replica DeLorean models to create a fleet that reached 62 DeLorean vehicles in June 2024.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hargan |first=Garrett |date=2024-06-08 |title=Back to Belfast: Fleet of DeLorean return to home of cult classic |url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/back-to-belfast-fleet-of-delorean-return-to-home-of-cult-classic/a693056017.html |access-date=2024-09-16 |work=BelfastTelegraph.co.uk |language=en-GB |issn=0307-1235}}</ref>