DeLorean enters flying-car racing as first American constructor in 2026-27 Airspeeder series

DeLorean will enter the Airspeeder flying-car racing International Series as its first American constructor, debuting at the season opener in Adelaide this November. The 2026-27 series begins next month, with the DeLorean Team representing the United States.

The catch is that the first-season entry is largely a livery exercise. DeLorean will race the existing Airspeeder Mk3C rather than an aircraft of its own, with its initial contribution limited to design identity and team presentation.

The announcement comes from Airspeeder itself, which introduced DeLorean as the championship's first American constructor ahead of the 2026-27 International Series. A specific race date and venue for the Adelaide opener have not been confirmed publicly.

For a brand whose promised road car has slipped repeatedly, the racing programme is at least a way to put the name in front of people again. Whether a badge-engineered racer moves the needle is another question.

The fine print on the first season

Rather than arrive with an in-house aircraft, DeLorean will run the existing Airspeeder Mk3C in its debut season. Its contribution for 2026-27 is described as leading its own design identity, which in practice means how the aircraft looks and how the team presents itself.

The comparison to badge-engineering may even be generous. The DeLorean pit-stop image in the announcement appears to reuse the same crew, poses and background from an earlier Airspeeder Team Australia photo, with only the branding changed.

The more substantial engineering is scheduled for the following season. For 2027-28, DeLorean plans an aircraft designed with American university engineering students, including collaborators at UC Berkeley and Georgia Tech.

What is still to be revealed

The pilot lineup, the aircraft design and the sporting program are all still due to be announced ahead of the season opener next month. The cost of the racing programme has not been disclosed.

That leaves a short window for DeLorean to fill in the details. A debut next month with no named pilots and no confirmed race date or venue is an unusual position for a new constructor, and it suggests the entry came together late.

The road car is still missing

None of this changes the status of the Alpha5, the car that was supposed to mark DeLorean's return to production. Unveiled in 2022 with gullwing doors and a body styled by Italdesign, the all-wheel-drive four-seater was claimed at 300 miles (483 km) of range and 0-60 mph in 2.99 seconds, with sales promised for 2024.

That timing came and went, and the production car has not materialised. The racing programme does not alter that, but it does keep the brand visible while the road car remains overdue. For a company that has spent four years promising a comeback, a flying racer with someone else's hardware underneath is a thin result, even if the 2027-28 student-built aircraft adds real substance later.

Stellantis used this week's Paris motor show to roll out a wave of concept vehicles across its European brands, including a new design direction for DS Automobiles, an unusual new body style wearing a familiar Fiat name and a wagon study from Opel.

The concepts arrived as Chinese manufacturers including BYD and Changan used the same show to preview their plans for European expansion, adding pressure to Stellantis's crowded brand portfolio.

A crowded show floor

Stellantis showed concepts for six of its European brands in Paris. Alongside the new DS, Fiat and Opel studies, the display included the Alfa Romeo Cuorerosso, the throwback Peugeot RCZ Vision and E-T16, and a retro-styled Citroen 2CV concept.

Lancia had no fresh reveal but displayed members of its recently unveiled Gamma mid-size SUV lineup, only its second new model in two years after more than a decade without new product.

The Chinese presence gave the show a competitive edge. BYD and Changan were among the brands previewing European expansion plans, and the source material frames Stellantis's concept flood as a response to that onslaught.

DS F3VER points to a small hatchback

DS Automobiles, the premium brand spun off from Citroen, revealed the F3VER as an exploratory concept opening a new chapter in its design story.

The styling nods to one of the brand's first vehicles, the original DS 3, which was sold as a Citroen before DS Automobiles was formed. Like that car, the F3VER is a small hatchback with a two-tone exterior.

It measures 4.19m long, 1.84m wide and 1.46m tall on a 2.7m wheelbase. That makes it about 200mm longer than the Citroen DS 3, all of it in the wheelbase, and 130mm wider, with tight front and rear overhangs.

Design details include angular lighting up front, tail-lights shaped like the first DS 3's but with a 'light tunnel' effect that makes them appear to extend infinitely, and a vertical 'totem' housing the DS logo in both the front fascia and rear bumper. Sharp angular elements sit against curvaceous, muscular sheetmetal on the fenders and bonnet, and the car is finished in Cosmic Blue dichroic paint with champagne-coloured accents on the roof and wheels.

DS claims an electric powertrain with class-leading range but has released no powertrain or battery specifications.

The brand context matters here. DS is often viewed as being on the bubble as Stellantis juggles more than a dozen brands, so a design-direction concept reads as much as a statement of intent as a preview of product.

Fiat Multiplay and Opel STX

Fiat revived the Multipla name, now spelled Multiplay, on an unusual new body style. The original Multipla was an innovative but polarisingly styled people mover, and the source material cuts off before describing the new vehicle in detail.

Opel's STX concept shows what future wagons could look like from the German brand.

Neither concept has confirmed production plans, specifications or on-sale timing in the source material.