John DeLorean’s alleged son builds DMC-12 3-wheeler, gets slapped with legal action

Ty DeLorean, who believes he is the son of famous DMC-12 creator John DeLorean, intends to launch an affordable three-wheel variant of his supposed father’s car. The issue is, third parties have long since acquired the rights for ‘DeLorean’ and ‘DMC’ trademarks, and are now suing him for rights violation.

The proposed DMC-12 replica uses the three-wheel chassis of the Reliant Rialto, an affordable car build in 1982 through 1988 (watch the video for a glimpse of a stock Rialto). Additions include new body panels, a different rear end, gullwing doors, and a fake flux capacitor.

The engine stays OEM, which in this case means a 850cc four-cylinder rated at 40 PS (40 hp / 30 kW) in tandem with a four-speed manual transmission. The original could only make 137 km/h (85 mph) in a straight line, but Ty said an electric version would also be available.

In a reference to the movie Back to the Future, where Doc and Martin needed 1.21 gigawatts of power in order to travel in time, the replica is called DMC-1.21. The preliminary starting price is $25,000.

Unfortunately, a Texas-based company that restores old DMC-12 models, sells spare parts for it and is considering resurrecting the model based on modern tech, holds exclusive rights to the DeLorean and DMC brands. We are told Ty has already been informed about his illegal actions.