DeLorean
DMC-12 24-carat gold-plated

Why it matters

The gold DMC-12 was a 1980 promotional offer built around the American Express Gold Card. It is one of the best-known special versions of the car, with only a few examples ever finished in gold.

How rare is it?

Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.

Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.

Production

Every figure says what it counts.

Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.

History

The cars appeared on the cover of the American Express Christmas catalogue in 1980, which offered up to 100 cars with 24-karat gold plating at $85,000 each. Only two were sold through the promotion. Two cars were assembled at the factory; a third was finished from spare gold panels with a tan interior by Consolidated International after the factory closed in late 1982 and was later raffled in a Big Lots promotion.

Two more gold cars are documented as privately plated by their owners (one in 1981 by Brushtronics Engineering in Maryland). Two of the factory cars are in museum collections (Reno and Los Angeles).

Technical specifications

Engine

Transmission & drivetrain

Chassis, body & dimensions

Performance

“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.

Identification guide

How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.

Documented gold cars by VIN: 4300 (manual, tan interior) and 4301 (automatic, black) as the Amex cars; 20105 (automatic, tan) finished late with spare panels; 1542 and 16625 (both manual, black) privately plated. The knowledge base lists five gold cars in total.

Sources

Each number links to the exact facts it supports.

1. 1
   Gold Plated DeLoreans (DeLorean knowledge base) Level B

   • 3 cars completed in gold by the factory or its successor: two American Express promotion cars (only two sold) plus a third finished from spare gold panels after the factory closed; two further cars were plated privately

   Accessed 2026-11-12