Benjamin Coyle’s Honda-Powered DeLorean

The DMC DeLorean was a distinctive vehicle even before a time travel movie made it famous. The car’s stainless steel body, Gull-wing doors, and rear-engine layout were unique. When Benjamin Coyle purchased his 1981 DeLorean he wanted performance that matched the looks. The result is a one-of-a-kind car that can easily reach 88 mph.

Benjamin swapped the factory 2.8 L PRV V6 for a 2.4 L Honda K24 inline-four built by 4 Piston Racing. The motor received a Garrett 53 mm turbocharger for extra measure and custom stainless steel exhaust. The boosted air is routed through a custom intake manifold with a Bell A2W intercooler core.

The combo produces 465 hp (342 kW) and 295 lb-ft (399 Nm) of torque on 91 octane fuel and 16 psi (1.1 bar) of boost. For comparison the DeLorean’s factory V6 produced 130 hp (97 kW) and 153 lb-ft (207 Nm) of torque.

Benjamin decided against using the factory transaxle. He swapped it for a Porsche G96 six-speed manual transaxle built by GBOX and a twin-disc clutch. Benjamin used a Kennedy Engineered Products (KEP) adapter to mount the transaxle to the Honda motor. Power reaches the rear wheels through a limited-slip differential and Driveshaft Shop axles rated at 1,000 hp (735 kW).

Benjamin had the DeLorean’s backbone chassis repaired and reinforced by Colin Gee to handle the upgraded powertrain. Benjamin lowered the car’s ride height with an Air Ride suspension and aftermarket upper and lower control arms. The factory brakes were tossed for a set of Wilwood six-piston calipers with 11-inch rotors on each corner.

You can view more photos and follow Benjamin’s progress on the DeLorean at @kswapdelorean.