Report: DeLorean Motors Reimagined Closes Texas HQ

According to a report from the San Antonio Current released earlier this week, DeLorean Motors Reimagined (DMI), the Texas-based company that owns the DeLorean trademark, has shuttered its San Antonio headquarters. Signage at the company's Port San Antonio building was removed earlier this week and the offices appeared abandoned.

It's the latest development in a murky, messy course plotted by one of the two companies associated with the DeLorean name. DMI's right to the DeLorean trademark is contested by Kat Delorean, John's only daughter, who argues that the name is hers by right of birth and is planning a new car based on the mid-engine Corvette. The San Antonio company bases its claim on its purchase of the trademark from a woman claiming to be John's wife. Kat says she never found a marriage certificate. As of this writing, despite the back and forth, no lawsuit has been filed on behalf of either Kat or DeLorean Motors Reimagined.

That said, DMI has not been without legal strife since its inception in November of 2021. Texas Public Radio reported in September of 2023 that a lawsuit filed by Karma Automotive against DMI alleged that former employees-including then-CEO Joost de Vries-stole trade secrets during their time at Karma that were then used to help found DMI in San Antonio. (As of October of 2023, de Vries is no longer CEO of DMI.) The lawsuit was settled out of court, according to TPR's report. The financial hit may well have been quite substantial for the fledgling firm.

DeLorean Motors Reimagined publicly revealed its first concept vehicle, a high-performance electric vehicle dubbed the Alpha5, at Pebble Beach back in August of 2022. Penned by Giorgetto Giugiaro's Italdesign, the same firm that designed the original DMC-12, the gullwing-doored, slinky four-seater was promised to have a range of more than 300 miles and the ability to zip to 60 mph from a standstill in just 3.4 seconds.

The company had planned for an initial run of 88 cars (a nod to Back to the Future, the film that immortalized the DMC-12) targeted at collectors, who would put down $2500 or $3000 deposits for an NFT (non-fungible token) that would secure their spot on the delivery sheet. According to available transaction information, it's believed that DMI raised at least $3 million from the NFT deposits. Other vehicles reportedly in the works from DMI included a V-8-powered sports coupe, a battery-electric sedan, and a hydrogen-powered SUV.

The plans all sounded grand, as they often do for startup automakers, and when DMI announced intentions to relocate to San Antonio, it pledged that the move would create hundreds of high-paying jobs, earning praise and tax-break incentives from local officials. However, according to another report from the San Antonio Current in October of 2023, the company's LinkedIn information showed just 18 people on staff.

The failure to make good on hiring promises was one of several concerning developments in recent months at DMI. There had been no updates on vehicle production for quite some time, adding fuel to the fire. In December of last year, the San Antonio Current reported that de Vries, the company's first CEO, had quietly resigned in October for reasons unknown.

Then, on Monday morning, concerns reached new heights as several depositors said on Facebook that they no longer had access to their NFTs. Ken Brackins, who spent $5000 on two build slots, confirmed to the Current on Monday morning that he no longer had access to his tokens. "I'm sure somebody will come up with some kind of class action suit, but I wouldn't expect to recover anything," Brackins told the Current in an interview.

As of Monday, DMI had not filed a petition for bankruptcy protection with the San Antonio-based U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Texas, according to the Current. We'll have to wait and see if that changes.

There currently appear to be more questions than answers. While it may mark the end for DMI, a feature from Wired detailing the showdown between Kat's company and DMI noted that an executive from the latter stated that the company was merely moving locations. We've seen no development confirming a move rather than a shutdown, and without concrete proof in either direction, DMI's future remains a mystery.

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