Iconic Screen Cars Find New Homes At The Auctions

Two of the most recognisable cars ever to roll into Hollywood are on their way to new homes: Doc Brown's time-hopping DeLorean, and the Duke boys' General Lee.

As with any film or television hero car, more than a few examples of each were made and trashed throughout their careers, and a number of them eventually made their way into private ownership.

What we've got here however is the very first General Lee, and the only privately-owned DeLorean of the three remaining cars from the Back to the Future films.

The General Lee

The bright orange General Lee Dodge Charger that will hit the auction block this week is the car that was featured in the opening scenes of the television series, making just one 25 metre jump before being retired.

That lone Lee sat rusting in a Georgia junk yard before being picked up and restored in 2001 by Travis Bell, eventually winding up in the hands of current owner Marvin Murphy. 

Murphy hasn't said what he's expecting to get for his Lee, and he's put no reserve on the auction. A replica was sold for US$450,000 in 2008 however, so we could see more than half-a-mil handed over for this one.

Time-travellin' DeLorean

The only privately-owned Back to the Future DeLorean, complete with its Mr Fusion Home Energy Reactor and the all-important Flux Capacitor, has left the auctions at US$541,200.

That's right in the middle of the estimated $400-600,000 value, and a good deal more than the roughly US$30-40,000 you could expect to pay for a regular mint-condition DeLorean DMC-12.

There are two other BttF DeLoreans out there, but both belong to Universal Studios and it could be sometime before you ever see either of those sold off.