The DMC DeLorean has been out of production for almost 40 years, but now we’ve learned that the iconic vehicle might be coming back as an electric car.

DMC DeLorean
The DMC DeLorean was the only vehicle produced by John DeLorean’s DeLorean Motor Company (DMC).

It became famous for being featured in the ‘Back to the Future’ series of movies, but it is also a well-known vehicle in the industry for a few reasons.

First off, it successfully reached production, which is rare for a startup in an auto industry dominated by legacy automakers who have roots going back up to a century.

In the end, the company went bankrupt after facing many challenges throughout a tumultuous history that involved political fighting and even an FBI sting operation, but they still managed to produce several thousand vehicles.

The DMC DeLorean was also an innovative vehicle with its signature use of gull-wing doors and brushed stainless-steel outer body panels.

In 1995, Stephen Wynne bought the company’s old inventory and trademark to relaunch the brand based in Texas.

An Electric DeLorean?

At first, the plan was to bring back the same vehicle with more modern technology in low volume.

For the past 5 years, the company pushed for the adoption of new rules for low volume vehicle production with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

These new rules were finally recently adopted, but the delay was so long that it complicated DeLorean’s plans.

The engine that they plan to use is not going to be compliant with emission standards starting in 2022 and the landscape has changed significantly.

In a new blog post, the company is now hinting that going electric with the DeLorean:

“That said, with EV’s becoming more mainstream, we’ve been considering switching to an all-electric as the future. It certainly makes for an easier path through emissions maze which still looms large over any internal combustion engine. While an electric Cobra or Morgan may be a little extreme for their potential market, we’ve already seen that an EV DeLorean – as we displayed at the 2012 New York International Auto Show – is not such an “out there” idea.”

The company hints at being in the process of looking to secure financing to bring an electric DeLorean and says “stay tuned.”