staff@slashgear.com (Justin Owen)
2024-06-11 09:30:29
www.slashgear.com
While John DeLorean is well-known today for his association with automotive manufacturing, particularly due to his failed eponymous production car made famous in the movie “Back To the Future,” he was an upstart engineer at Pontiac in the late ’50s. He soon became chief engineer, creating the popular Tempest in 1959 and the iconic GTO in 1964. But DeLorean was a trailblazer never content with the status quo, which is why in 1963 he ordered the production of two prototypes that would compete directly with the Corvette, defying corporate directives against such models.
The two prototypes would be a convertible and a hardtop roadster. DeLorean knew that they would be rejected by management but pressed on with the project anyways. Ready for the rejection, he even developed a binder to present with the project outlining his proposal and why his new car should exist in the market. He wanted to pitch it as a competitor to the new Ford Mustang, even though that car had seating for two more.
Even though the board had no intention of building this car when it was first presented, it allowed DeLorean the opportunity to pitch it because of his talent and drive. After all, in 1965, the board appointed him as head of the Pontiac Motor Division, and at just 40 years of age, he was the youngest ever head of a GM brand. Odds were that he’d later pitch another project they would endorse (he did).