[MOC] Back-to-the-Future DMC DeLorean

[Phil B]

Hello everyone,

A few months ago I stumbled upon some digital renderings made by Reddit user u/brxstr of a Back-to-the-Future DMC DeLorean, which looked fantastic. He/she had (has?) the Stud.io file available on Rebrickable.com, so I downloaded it and planned to build it. In doing my due diligence I found out that the model was originally designed by user Troelskf on Brickshelf, so I want to make sure (s)he gets credit as well. 

I ended up redoing large parts of the design for several reasons:

1. Part availability and cost. Several parts were very expensive (the F40 windscreen for example) so I came up with alternative solutions for those.
2. Stability and Buildability. As the design has never been built IRL, certain parts of the design looked great in Stud.io, but did not work in the brick. For example, the click hinges for the shaping on the back were originally positioned right in between two clicks, which meant there was an ugly gap. The doors were so flimsy in their original design, they would fall apart when touched lightly.
3. Operability. The doors were not opening in the original design, as there was no tolerance for the swing movement (they looked great opened and closed, but would have to be removed and reassembled to change them from opened to closed. The lid for Mr Fusion could not be opened for similar reasons.
4. Improved looks. I completely redesigned the dashboard, adding more and more detailed instrumentation. I changed the gear lever and created a different flux capacitor design. I modified the hose work around the engine, and redesigned the back section to make it look more like the BttF version, including custom license plate.
5. Generating instructions. The original file was a purely digital design, with no consideration for building the set with real bricks. I spent many hours redesigning the build sequence and creating detailed, step by step instructions. They are almost complete (Isn't it wonderful that if you move a part from one step to another in Stud.io, it decides to undo all the call-outs in the instructions which in turn leads to page layouts resetting?). I still have one change to make but then the 300+ page instructions are ready.

Here is the final product. Hope you like it.

More pictures in my Flickr album (click on any one of the images to get there). Total cost was ~$200 (US), but I had most of the common parts on hand. Would likely be closer to $300 if all 1600+ parts had to be purchased.

 

[jp-30]

Love it, and your explanation of the changes and issues you encountered. Given the new official large Ghostbusters car, I still hold out hope for a nice big official delorean model some day too.

[JintaiZ]

Wow, that's awesome! It'll sure look great with the new Ecto 1!

[Kit Figsto]

Fantastic work!  Are the wheels able to be rotated from driving mode to hover mode, or do they have to be removed and re-assembled?

[Phil B]

20 hours ago, Kit Figsto said:

Fantastic work!  Are the wheels able to be rotated from driving mode to hover mode, or do they have to be removed and re-assembled?

They rotate through a clever Technic hinge setup developed by Brxstr.

 

 

[The Stud]

That looks great! I got the official Delorean set over the summer, and even though I heavily modified it, I’m still not satisfied with it. Hope Lego ends up releasing a definite version of one of cinema’s most iconic time machines.