Editing John DeLorean (section)

==Career==
===Packard Motor Company===
DeLorean was at Chrysler for less than a year. In 1953, he was offered a salary of $14,000 ({{Inflation|US|14000|1953|fmt=eq|cursign=[[United States dollar|US$]]}}) at [[Packard|Packard Motor Company]] under the supervision of engineer Forest McFarland. DeLorean quickly gained his new employer's attention with an improvement to the [[Ultramatic]] automatic transmission, giving it an improved [[torque converter]] and dual-drive ranges; it was relaunched as the Twin-Ultramatic.<ref>{{Harvnb|DeLorean|Schwarz|1985|pp= 32–33}}</ref>

When DeLorean joined Packard, it was experiencing financial difficulties because of the changing postwar automotive market. While Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler had begun producing affordable mainstream products designed to cater to the rising postwar middle class, Packard had retained its prewar notions of high-end, precisely engineered luxury cars. This had a positive effect on DeLorean's attention to engineering detail, and after three years at Packard he became McFarland's successor as head of [[research and development]].<ref>{{Harvnb|DeLorean|Schwarz|1985|p= 34}}</ref>

While still profitable, Packard suffered alongside other independents as it struggled to compete when Ford and General Motors engaged in a [[price war]]. James Nance, Packard's president, decided to merge the company with [[Studebaker|Studebaker Corporation]] in 1954. DeLorean was considering keeping his job and moving to Studebaker headquarters in [[South Bend, Indiana]], when he received a call from [[Oliver K. Kelley]], vice president of engineering at General Motors, whom DeLorean greatly admired. Kelley offered DeLorean his choice of a job in any of GM's five divisions.<ref name="GMoffer">{{Harvnb|DeLorean|Schwarz|1985|pp= 35–37}}</ref>

===General Motors===
====Pontiac====
In 1956, DeLorean accepted a salary offer of $16,000 ({{Inflation|US|16000|1956|fmt=eq|cursign=[[United States dollar|US$]]}}) with a bonus program, choosing to work at GM's [[Pontiac (automobile)|Pontiac]] division as an assistant to chief engineer [[Pete Estes]] and general manager [[Semon "Bunkie" Knudsen]]. Knudsen was the son of the former president of GM, William Knudsen, who had been called away from his post to head the war mobilization production effort at the request of President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]].<ref name=GMoffer/> Knudsen was an [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]] engineering graduate and at 42 was the youngest man to head a GM division. DeLorean and Knudsen quickly became close friends; DeLorean later cited him as a major influence and mentor. DeLorean produced dozens of patented innovations for the company and in 1961 was promoted to division chief engineer.<ref name=telegraph1/>

[[File:Pontiac GTO 1966.jpg|thumb|The Pontiac GTO was designed by DeLorean]]

DeLorean became widely known at Pontiac for the [[Pontiac GTO]], a [[muscle car]] named after the [[Ferrari 250 GTO]]. The Pontiac brand reached third place in annual industry sales in the United States. To highlight the brand's performance emphasis, the GTO debuted as a [[Pontiac Tempest|Tempest]]/[[Pontiac LeMans|LeMans]] option package with a larger and more powerful engine in 1964. This marked the beginning of Pontiac's renaissance as GM's performance division instead of its previous position with no clear brand identity. The car and its popularity continued to grow in the following years.<ref name="washingtonpost1">{{cite news |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200510113731/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2005/03/21/flashy-automaker-john-z-delorean-80-dies/50dcad98-016a-4ef2-bdc8-d1a10d1e8b46/ |archive-date=May 10, 2020 |first=Adam |last=Bernstein |title=Flashy Automaker John Z. DeLorean, 80, Dies |page=2 |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2005/03/21/flashy-automaker-john-z-delorean-80-dies/50dcad98-016a-4ef2-bdc8-d1a10d1e8b46/ |date=March 21, 2005 |access-date=April 1, 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> DeLorean received almost total credit for its success—its conception, engineering, and marketing—and was rewarded with a 1965 promotion to head of the Pontiac division.<ref name="telegraph1" />

At 40, DeLorean had broken the record for youngest division head at GM and was determined to continue his string of successes. Adapting to the frustrations he perceived in the executive offices was a difficult transition for him. He believed there was an undue amount of conflict between GM's division heads. Several of Pontiac's advertising campaign themes met with internal resistance, such as the "Tiger" campaign used to promote the GTO and other Pontiac models in 1965 and 1966. In addition, there was [[Ed Cole]]'s decision to ban multiple [[carburetor]]s, a method of enhancing engine performance used by Pontiac that had begun with two 4-barrel carburetors ("2x4 bbl") and [[Tri-Power]] (three 2-barrel carburetors ("3x2 bbl")) in 1957.

In response to the "[[pony car]]" market dominated by the [[Ford Mustang]], DeLorean asked GM executives for permission to market a smaller version of the [[Pontiac Banshee]] show car for 1966. However, his idea was rejected because of GM's concern that it would divert sales from the [[Chevrolet Corvette|Corvette]], their flagship performance car. Their focus was on the new [[Chevrolet Camaro]] design. Pontiac developed its version, and the [[Pontiac Firebird|Firebird]] was introduced for the 1967 model year.

Shortly after the Firebird's introduction, DeLorean turned his attention to the development of an all-new [[Pontiac Grand Prix|Grand Prix]], the division's personal luxury car based on the full-sized Pontiac line. Sales were lagging by this time, but the 1969 model would have its own distinct body shell with drivetrain and chassis components from the intermediate-sized Pontiac A-body (Tempest, LeMans, GTO). DeLorean knew the Pontiac division could not finance the new car alone, so he went to his former boss, Chevrolet division head Pete Estes, and asked him to share the cost of development with Pontiac, having a one-year exclusivity before Chevrolet released the 1970 [[Chevrolet Monte Carlo|Monte Carlo]]. The deal was done. The 1969 Pontiac Grand Prix featured sharp bodylines and a {{convert|6|ft|m|adj=mid|-long}} hood. The interior included a wraparound cockpit-style instrument panel, bucket seats and a center console. The new model offered a sportier, high performance, somewhat smaller, and lower-priced alternative to other personal luxury cars on the market, such as the [[Ford Thunderbird]], GM’s [[Buick Riviera]], [[Cadillac Eldorado]], and [[Oldsmobile Toronado]], and Ford’s newly debuted [[Lincoln Continental Mark III]]. The 1969 Grand Prix production ended up at over 112,000 units,<ref name="oldham">{{cite magazine |last1=Oldham |first1=Scott |title=With the '69 Pontiac Grand Prix, John DeLorean defined personal luxury muscle |url=https://www.hagerty.com/media/magazine-features/with-the-69-pontiac-grand-prix-john-delorean-defined-personal-luxury-muscle/ |access-date=1 August 2021 |magazine=Hagerty Media |date=2 September 2020}}</ref> far higher than 1968’s 32,000 full-sized Grand Prix.<ref name="HiPPMag">{{cite magazine |last1=Rotella |first1=Rocky |title=Pontiac Grand Prix: Part I: A Historic Look At Pontiac's Flagship Model From 1969 To 1972 |url=https://www.motortrend.com/news/hppp-0605-pontiac-grand-prix/ |access-date=1 August 2021 |magazine=High Performance Pontiac Magazine |via=MotorTrend |date=15 November 2006 |quote= By 1968, Grand Prix sales figures had dipped below 32,000 units. [...] Model-year production totaled 112,486 units-an increase in excess of 80,000 units from the previous year ... |language=en}}</ref>

During his time at Pontiac, DeLorean had begun to enjoy the freedom and celebrity that came with his position, and he spent a good deal of his time traveling to locations around the world to support promotional events. His frequent public appearances helped to solidify his image as a "rebel" corporate businessman, with his trendy dress style and casual banter.{{citation needed|date=March 2018}}

Even as General Motors experienced revenue declines, Pontiac remained highly profitable under DeLorean, and despite his growing reputation as a corporate maverick, on February 15, 1969, he was promoted to head Chevrolet, General Motors' top-selling marque.

====Chevrolet====
[[File:1970 Chevrolet Nova.jpg|thumb|The redesigned 1970 [[Chevrolet Nova]] was released under DeLorean's leadership of GM's Chevrolet division]]

By this time, DeLorean earned an annual salary of $200,000 ({{Inflation|US|200000|1969|fmt=eq|cursign=[[United States dollar|US$]]}}), with yearly bonuses of up to $400,000 ({{Inflation|US|400000|1969|fmt=eq|cursign=[[United States dollar|US$]]}}). He was ubiquitous in popular culture. At a time when business executives were typically conservative, low-key individuals in three-piece suits, DeLorean wore long sideburns and unbuttoned shirts.<ref name="nytimes2005">{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/21/business/john-z-delorean-father-of-glamour-car-dies-at-80.html |title=John Z. DeLorean, Father of Glamour Car, Dies at 80 |first=Danny |last=Hakim |date=March 21, 2005 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=April 1, 2016}}</ref> He invited Ford president [[Lee Iacocca]] to serve as best man at his second wedding.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Weiner |first1=Rex |title=How John DeLorean Took Us Back to the Future – essay |url=https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/how-john-delorean-took-us-back-to-the-future/ |access-date=15 September 2023 |work=Los Angeles Review of Books |date=January 10, 2016 |language=en}}</ref>

DeLorean was a [[Limited partnership|limited partner]] in a pair of American professional sports franchises. The first was the [[History of the San Diego Chargers|San Diego Chargers]], as part of a syndicate led by [[Gene Klein]] and [[Sam Schulman]] that bought a controlling interest for $10 million in August 1966.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2016/oct/08/ticker-pernicano-died-60-million-worth-chargers/ |last=Potter |first=Matt |title=How to die with $60 million worth of the Chargers |newspaper=San Diego Reader |date=October 8, 2016 |access-date=September 16, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=q_1ZDwAAQBAJ&q=john+delorean+mabee+chargers&pg=PA431 |last1=Quirk |first1=James |last2=Fort |first2=Rodney D. |title=Pay Dirt: The Business of Professional Team Sports |edition=Second |publisher=Princeton University Press |date=1997 |page=431 |access-date=September 16, 2019 |isbn=9780691187945}}</ref> The other was the [[New York Yankees]] of which he was one of fifteen investors led by [[George Steinbrenner]] and [[E. Michael Burke|Michael Burke]] who completed the purchase from [[CBS]] for $10 million on January 3, 1973.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/1973/01/11/archives/yanks-new-owners-got-deal-they-couldnt-refuse-owners-couldnt-refuse.html |last=Chass |first=Murray |title=Yanks' New Owners Got Deal They Couldn't Refuse |newspaper=The New York Times |date=January 11, 1973 |access-date=September 16, 2019}}</ref><ref>New York Yankees 1973 Yearbook.</ref>

DeLorean continued his jet-setting lifestyle and was often seen hanging out in business and entertainment celebrity circles. He became friends with [[James T. Aubrey]], president of [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]] Studios, and was introduced to celebrities such as financier [[Kirk Kerkorian]], [[Chris-Craft Industries|Chris-Craft]] chairman Herb Siegel, entertainer [[Sammy Davis Jr.]], and ''[[The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson|The Tonight Show]]'' host [[Johnny Carson]].{{citation needed|date=March 2018}}

The executive offices of General Motors headquarters continued to clash with DeLorean's [[nonconformity]] . When he was appointed, Chevrolet was having financial and organizational troubles, and GM president Ed Cole needed a manager in that position to sort things out. The new model Camaro was due out for the 1970 model year, and it was rapidly falling behind schedule. Redesigns for the Corvette and [[Chevrolet Chevy II / Nova|Nova]] were also delayed, and unit sales had still not recovered from the past four years of turmoil, much of that because of the bad publicity surrounding the [[Chevrolet Corvair|Corvair]] and well-publicized quality-control issues affecting other Chevy models, including defective motor mounts that led to an unprecedented recall of 6.7 million Chevrolets built between 1965 and 1969. DeLorean responded to the production problems by delaying the release of the Camaro and simplifying the modifications to the Corvette and Nova. He used the extra time to streamline Chevrolet's production overhead and reduce assembly costs. By 1971, Chevrolet was experiencing record sales in excess of 3 million vehicles, and his division alone was nearly matching that of the entire Ford Motor Company.{{citation needed|date=September 2019}}

[[File:Delorean and 1971 Vega 2300.jpg|thumb|John DeLorean and the [[Chevrolet Vega]] in 1970]]

The [[Chevrolet Vega|Vega]] was assigned to Chevrolet by corporate management, specifically by Cole, just weeks before DeLorean's 1969 arrival as the Chevrolet division's general manager. In a ''[[Motor Trend]]'' interview in August 1970, DeLorean said, "Vega will be the highest quality product ever built by Chevrolet."<ref>Motor Trend-August 1970.</ref> By DeLorean's orders, dozens of extra inspectors were assigned to the Vega assembly line, and the first 2,000 cars were road-tested. He stated, "the first cars, from a manufacturing standpoint, were well built." But in 1972, General Motors Assembly Division took over the Chevrolet [[Lordstown, Ohio|Lordstown]] assembly plant and the adjoining [[Fisher Body]] plant. Their main goal was to cut costs, and more than 800 workers were laid off, many of whom were the additional inspectors. This led to assembly-line vandalism, with workers intentionally slowing the line, leaving off parts and installing others improperly. Incomplete and often non-functioning cars soon filled the factory lot, which then had to be reprocessed and repaired by a team assigned to this task by DeLorean. A one-month [[Strike action|strike]] followed, and dealers did not receive enough cars for the demand in 1972. DeLorean regrouped for the 1973 [[model year]] with Vega sales of 395,792. The one-millionth Vega was built in May 1973.<ref>''Hot Rod'', December 1973. Rodden at Random</ref>

In 1972, DeLorean was appointed to the position of vice president of car and truck production for the entire General Motors line,<ref name="telegraph1"/> and his eventual rise to president seemed inevitable. However, the idea of him assuming that position was almost intolerable to GM executives, and on April 2, 1973, he announced that he was leaving the company, telling the press, "I want to do things in the social area. I have to do them, and unfortunately the nature of our business just didn't permit me to do as much as I wanted." However, it had been rumored that he had been fired.<ref name="nytimes2005"/> GM gave him a Florida [[Cadillac]] franchise as a retirement gift,<ref name="washingtonpost1"/> and DeLorean took over the presidency of The National Alliance of Businessmen, a [[Charitable trust|charitable organization]] with the mission of employing Americans in need, founded by [[Lyndon Johnson]] and [[Henry Ford II]]. 

DeLorean was sharply critical of the direction GM had taken by the start of the 1970s, as well as objecting to the idea of using rebates to sell cars: <blockquote>"There's no forward response at General Motors to what the public wants today. A car should make people's eyes light up when they step into the showroom. Rebates are merely a way of convincing customers to buy bland cars they're not interested in."<ref name="nytimes2005"/></blockquote>After DeLorean left General Motors, Patrick Wright, author and former ''[[Business Week]]'' reporter, approached him with the idea of writing a book based on his experiences there. DeLorean agreed to dictate his recollections for Wright, who wrote the book. The final product, published in 1979, ''On a Clear Day You Can See General Motors'', sold approximately 1.6 million copies, but disagreements over the content led to a conflict between the collaborators, with Wright eventually publishing the book on his own.<ref name="an01">{{cite news |last=Lapham |first=Edward |date=October 31, 2011 |title=DeLorean didn't fit the GM mold |work=Automotive News |url=http://www.autonews.com/article/20111031/CHEVY100/310319927/delorean-didnt-fit-the-gm-mold |access-date=March 4, 2016}}</ref>

===DeLorean Motor Company===
[[File:DeLorean DMC-12 (15704582713).jpg|thumb|[[DMC DeLorean]]]]
[[File:DMC publicity photo.jpg|thumb|DeLorean and the prototype of the DMC DeLorean, 1980]]

DeLorean left General Motors in 1973 to form his own company, the [[DeLorean Motor Company]]. A two-seat sports car prototype was shown in the mid-1970s called the DeLorean Safety Vehicle (DSV), with its bodyshell designed by [[Italdesign]]'s [[Giorgetto Giugiaro]]. The car entered into production as the [[DMC DeLorean]]. The car's body distinctively used [[stainless steel]] and featured [[gull-wing door]]s. It was powered by the [[V6 PRV engine|"Douvrin" V6]] engine developed by Peugeot, Renault, and Volvo (known as the PRV).

The manufacturing plant to build the new car was built in [[Dunmurry]], a suburb of [[Belfast]] in [[Northern Ireland]], with substantial financial incentives from the Northern Ireland Development Agency of around £100 million. [[Renault]] was contracted to build the factory, which employed over 2,000 workers at its peak production. The engine was made by Renault, while [[Lotus Cars|Lotus]] designed the chassis and bodywork details. The Dunmurry factory eventually turned out around 9,000 cars.<ref name="washingtonpost1"/>  In 1980, an [[American Express]] catalog featured an ad for a DeLorean plated in 24-karat gold. According to the ad, only 100 were going to be manufactured and sold for $85,000. In total, only four were actually purchased.<ref>{{cite web |last=Stoklosa |first=Alexander |title=In 1980, You Could Buy an $85,000, 24K-Gold-Plated DeLorean |url= https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a15352421/in-1980-you-could-buy-an-85000-24k-gold-plated-delorean/ |publisher=Car and Driver |access-date=August 28, 2019 |date=October 16, 2015}}</ref>

Production delays meant the DeLorean did not reach the consumer market until January 1981<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.deloreanmuseum.org/news |title=News |website=DeLorean Museum}}</ref> (nearly a decade after the company was founded), and in the interim, the new car market had slumped considerably during the [[Early 1980s recession in the United States#1981–1982|1980 US economic recession]]. This was compounded by unexpectedly lukewarm reviews from critics and the public, who generally felt the uniqueness of the DeLorean's styling did not compensate for the higher price and lower horsepower relative to other [[grand tourer |GT]]-influenced [[sports car]]s on the market. While interest in the DeLorean quickly dwindled, competing models with lower price tags and more powerful engines (such as the Chevrolet Corvette) sold in record numbers during 1980–81 in spite of the ongoing recession. By February 1982, more than half of the roughly 7,000 DeLoreans produced remained unsold, DMC was $175 million in debt, and the Dunmurry factory was placed in [[receivership]].{{sfn|Harris|2012|p=100}}

In January 1982, the British government discovered that DeLorean had built just 8,500 cars and that the equivalent of 23 million pounds, almost half the funds received in 1974, had been transferred to a Panamanian account under the name of General Product Development Services, the company intended to subsidize Lotus. But the money never made it to Lotus, which had collaborated in the development of the car; Lotus head [[Colin Chapman]] died at the start of the investigation into the missing money. 

After going into receivership in February 1982, DMC produced another 2,000 cars until John DeLorean's arrest in late October, at which point liquidation proceedings were undertaken, and the factory was seized by the British government.{{Citation needed|date=October 2015}}