Falling under the category of too good to be true, Paul DeLorean, the nephew of famed GM design genius and founder of the short-lived yet notorious DeLorean Motor company, John DeLorean, is developing – what else – a flying car.
That’s right all you Back to the Future fanboys and girls, the DeLorean dream lives on.
Paul is the CEO and chief designer of DeLorean Aerospace, the company he founded in 2012 to develop a real-life version of Doc Brown’s infamous cruiser.
Although the name DeLorean isn’t exactly synonymous with success, i.e. the elder’s arrests for drug conspiracy and fraud in the wake of his company’s rapid demise, Paul embraces the legacy, even pointing out that earlier generations of his family actually built stagecoaches.
So although this flying DeLorean won’t allow for revisiting your past days in high school or fast forwarding to the next Cubs World Series victory, the two-seat vertical takeoff and landing personal air transport vehicle has moved into the full-sized prototype development stage.
The DR-7, in comparison to many of its contemporary rivals, is fairly modest. It features one set of wings both up front and in the back, as well as two center-mounted fans, again at the front and back that swivel horizontally for takeoff and then back to vertical for forward flight.
The aircraft is about 20’ long and 18.5’ wide with hinged wings that can be tucked in against the side for storage. The fully electric DR-7 is targeting a range of 120 miles and could also provide an autonomous flying mode so no special licensing would be needed. That range is more than twice what other flying car start-ups are initially projecting.
And while there’s no report on what happens when this baby hits 88 mph, DeLorean hopes his flying car will be more than just a toy for the rich. Rather, he sees the potential for solving many of the inefficiencies associated with personal transportation and the challenges stemming from infrastructure costs.
