20 Questions: John De Lorean

New York writer Warren Kalbacker fought rush-hour traffic in his nine-year-old Pinto to meet with John De Lorean in his Park Avenue penthouse office. "It looked like a marble, chrome and glass cathedral," Kalbacker told us later. "De Lorean comes across like a blasphemer in the midst of automotive orthodoxy. He also refers to taking a leak as a pit stop." De Lorean's car, which will cost in the $25,000 range, is being introduced this spring.

1.

[Q] Playboy: You're bringing out an automobile with your own name on it. Isn't that the dream of every true car lover?

[A] De Lorean: For years, I dreamed that someday I'd get the opportunity to build my own car. I've thought about this project for 10 or 12 years. It's the ultimate extension of my background as an engineer. While I was working for General Motors--first as an engineer and later as a manager--I accumulated an inventory of ideas that I wanted to incorporate into one car, but, of course, I couldn't for economic and other reasons. So this car is a fulfillment for me.

2.

[Q] Playboy: Is there room in this energy-conscious world for a new dream car?

[A] De Lorean: Driving for fun is always going to be something that people will do. In spite of all the oil-price increases and everything else that's happened to the automobile industry, cars like BMW and Mercedes have emerged unscathed because they're sold to people who love cars and who love to drive. In fact, BMW is still building new plants, while other companies are closing them down.

3.

[Q] Playboy: Just a few years ago, you were in line for the top spot at General Motors. Wasn't it hard to leave for such a long-shot venture?

[A] De Lorean: Sure. They throw so much money at you, you can't stand it. But it wasn't really satisfying for me. I watched how the president of G.M. squirmed under pressure himself, how he was unable to accomplish things he wanted to do, and I decided I wouldn't want his job--no matter what. I had quite a few years left in my career and I didn't want to wind up like that. And I wanted to start this car project.

4.

[Q] Playboy: What did your wife, fashion model Cristina Ferrare, think of your walking away from G.M.?

[A] De Lorean: We talked and I told her I wanted out. I said I wanted to start this car project and that my income would probably go down to nothing. She told me that if I had to do it, then go ahead and do it. She told me not to worry about the family. And for a certain amount of time, she actually supported us.

5.

[Q] Playboy: Was it a hand-to-mouth existence during that period?

[A] De Lorean: Well, Cristina was making between $300,000 and $350,000 a year.

6.

[Q] Playboy: Did General Motors try to squash your project right away?

[A] De Lorean: Big organizations certainly seem capable of hostility. I did a market survey among a few dealers to find out whether or not they were interested in supporting my sports-car project. The minute G.M. heard about that, they terminated my bonus, taking something like $600,000 away from me. I thought that was unfair. No one had worked harder for them than I had. Some of the records I set while running the Pontiac and Chevrolet divisions still haven't been equaled.

7.

[Q] Playboy: How much of a car can one design? Is there a little John De Lorean in the fenders as well as in the transmission?

[A] De Lorean: Yeah. A lot of it is me. Of course, with anything as complex and difficult as an automobile, you have people helping you. But when you get down to it, just about every great car ever built belongs to an individual, such as the Ferrari and the Bugatti.

Besides, you have to take into account the fact that optimum solutions to many design problems now exist. You don't have to build everything from scratch anymore. For example, the disc brake is the standard of the world. Anybody who's using anything else does so to cut costs. Today automotive design is mostly a matter of integrating components into a balanced machine.

8.

[Q] Playboy: But don't you specialize in a particular area of automotive design?

[A] De Lorean: My background is in drive trains, transmissions and chassis design. And I'm very fussy about handling characteristics. I've tried to design the De Lorean in a way that it will be very responsive to an outstanding driver but not intimidating to the ordinary driver.

9.

[Q] Playboy: Have you ever been intimidated by an automobile?

[A] De Lorean: I sold my Porsche Turbo. It was more than I could handle. I think Porsche is one of the world's sensational cars. But I always felt as though I should have been a little better driver than I was to handle a Porsche. That's all right, though. It's part of the Porsche mystique.

But I just love to drive. I love to get out there on the road when I have something to think about. I'll get in my 6.9-liter Mercedes and do about 400 miles. It's a wonderful experience. You have your own completely controlled environment. You turn on the kind of music you want. You drive through your favorite scenery. By the time I come back, my head is nice and clear.

10.

[Q] Playboy: Sex has certainly played a role in America's romance with the automobile. Has it figured in your own relationship with the car?

[A] De Lorean: Well, when I was young, you just didn't check into a hotel or a motel. I haven't had sex in a car more than 11,000 or 12,000 times. Sex would be extremely difficult in a De Lorean, though. You'd have to be a real acrobat.

11.

[Q] Playboy: Does the Edsel's ghost haunt the launch of any new-car enterprise?

[A] De Lorean: The Edsel should have failed. Number one, it was so ugly it was almost a joke. It also had a number of new mechanical devices that just didn't work. It had an automatic-transmission shift mechanism that was spectacular in its inability to function. And, of course, momentum had a lot to do with it. The Edsel was going down the tubes so fast, nobody could do much about it.

12.

[Q] Playboy: Does momentum ever work the other way in the automobile business?

[A] De Lorean: The Volkswagen Beetle was a sensation. It (continued on page 258)John De Lorean(continued from page 167) was a cult car that sold nearly half a million units a year in the United States. But I thought that the Beetle was one of the biggest pieces of junk of all time from certain standpoints. Its handling was pathetic, performance mediocre, braking almost nonexistent; and the buffeting and noise level inside the car were enough to make you sick. On the other hand, it was fabricated by real craftsmen. They turned out a quality product in spite of a mediocre design.

13.

[Q] Playboy: America does seem to be having a quarrel in its romance with the automobile. What do you see as the problem?

[A] De Lorean: There hasn't been a lessening in the romance, it's just that the object of the romance right now is a little less attractive. For many, many years, American auto manufacturers had no competition at all. They didn't worry about the public. They worried only about one another. It was all, "G.M. is coming out with a new model. We'd better bring out one just like it."

I think the tragedy of the auto industry is that it was all located in one place. It would have been much better if G.M. had been in Detroit, Ford in Los Angeles and maybe Chrysler in Houston, or something like that.

But the romance will flourish again. In the past few years, the Japanese have been building cars that are much more responsive to the demands of the American public. American manufacturers have finally recognized that and aren't arguing about it anymore. And, of course, Americans are capable of building anything at any quality level they want.

I think we're going to see a creative age in the auto industry unlike anything experienced since the Twenties. Progress in fuel efficiency alone will be incredible. I predict fuel economy will double in the next ten years.

14.

[Q] Playboy: Won't there be some permanent changes in our relationship with the automobile?

[A] De Lorean: The long vacation trip will probably disappear. I think it will be hurt by the reduced speed limit. To be honest, I think that 55 mph is maybe five miles per hour below where it ought to be. Now that cars are becoming more fuel efficient, it may be time for the Federal Government to look at raising the speed limit, even if only on the interstate system.

15.

[Q] Playboy: So what's so special about the De Lorean?

[A] De Lorean: First, it's essentially made of components that represent the high state of automotive art. The PRV [Peugeot, Renault, Volvo] engine, with its twin overhead camshafts, is the lightest, strongest power plant in the world. It's a very elegant piece of machinery, beautifully designed. And it has very solid reliability. It's been used in Volvos, Peugeots and Renaults for years. Also, the car is unique in that it's designed to be light in weight. We use the same lightweight plastic materials, for example, that are used on fighter planes. In addition, we've designed the car to be totally noncorrosive. Most cars in the U. S. are scrapped not because they're worn out but because they rust and corrode. So all the body panels are stainless steel. We're going to guarantee it for 25 years.

Also, the tires we're using are much too large and much too expensive by American-car standards. But, with normal driving, they could easily last 100,000 miles. We're not looking at their durability, however. We designed them for maximum cornering power. The car will stick on as well as any car ever has.

This combination of characteristics will permit the car to have a very high retained resale value and be an outstanding value to the consumer.

16.

[Q] Playboy: What about the "Monday-morning syndrome"? Should we buy a De Lorean that's been assembled on the day after the weekend?

[A] De Lorean: Well, that reputation is deserved. People do have trouble getting to work on Monday if they've had more than a normal amount of fun over the weekend. But there are ways to work around that.

As far as assembly lines go, there's nobody who knows more about the job than the worker, and in America, we haven't let him be part of the equation. The Japanese have. As soon as we wake up to that in this country, Monday-morning problems will disappear.

Our whole assembly line is designed differently. For example, in most automobile companies, the chassis components are assembled from underneath--in a pit; and I will tell you that it's stoop labor at its absolute worst. I worked in a pit one summer during a college break. By the time I got out at the end of the day, it took me two hours to stand up.

So we don't have any pits in our plant. At De Lorean, everything is designed to be done above the floor, in such a way that the workers' comfort and convenience are protected. We allow the work force to divide various tasks in the way they think they can be accomplished the most logically. We're trying to let the worker make a contribution of both his intelligence and the application of his own individual characteristics to the job.

Obviously, in the end, somebody's going to put it together, but we try to do it so that it's not only pleasant but also a job in which each person can take pride.

17.

[Q] Playboy: What are your predictions of your success?

[A] De Lorean: It's an experiment. I honestly didn't think things would go as well as they have. Most of the world never thought we had a chance. They're all flabbergasted to see how far we've come. We've built a dealer organization and the world's most modern auto plant--for its size. We have a product that does all the things it's supposed to do. I hope, if we are successful, it will serve as a stimulus for others to do the same thing. If we can do well in a basic industry like automobiles, then other managers and smaller companies can prove wrong those people who always say it's impossible to go into basic industries like computers or steel or whatever. I think that's the key to the industrial rebirth of America. We've got to get the momentum back. And smaller outfits can do it--as opposed to the gigantic, lethargic organizations that just can't be as responsive to the real conditions of the market place.

18.

[Q] Playboy: What are the De Lorean Motor Company's future plans?

[A] De Lorean: We're adding a sedan version of the car we're building right now. I think we need to round out our line. And we're looking at other opportunities. I think that as the price of oil continues to escalate, mass transit is going to become more important in this country. So we're looking at the possibility of building a bus.

My long-term dream would be to build the next Model T--if there is going to be such a thing. I can't visualize exactly what it would be, though I do have a few ideas. I really would like to provide a new kind of basic transportation to the world. It's got to be something unique, though, something different from any car that's being built in the world today.

19.

[Q] Playboy: From what kind of person would you buy a used car?

[A] De Lorean: I don't buy used cars myself, but if you're going to buy one, try to find somebody who has a genuine respect for machinery. People like that take such good care of cars that it might even be better than new.

20.

[Q] Playboy: Have you ever owned a lemon?

[A] De Lorean: Yeah. I've owned quite a few. I usually sell them or give them away. I bought the first XJ-12 Jaguar that came into Detroit. Today their reliability is infinitely better. Back then it was unbelievably bad. I took the car out five times and never managed to get it home. The last time, I took a taxi back to my house and called the dealer. I told him where the car was, that he could go get it and give me a credit. I just refused to accept it and paid nothing.