The Tesla Cybertruck is the first stainless-steel vehicle since the ill-fated DeLorean - here's a closer look at both

The DMC DeLorean was, the context of the auto industry of the late 1970s and early 1980s, a stunner. Nothing else looked like it — the dashing coupé was defined by its gull-wing doors and its stainless-steel skin.

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The Cybertruck, in the late 2010s and soon-to-be early 2020s, is also like nothing else on the market. Certainly not the truck market.

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Founder John DeLorean was the most flamboyant personality in the car business, in his day.

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Tesla CEO Elon Musk is something of the John DeLorean of this era — except that he's far exceeded DeLorean's achievement, selling many more cars and building other companies, including SpaceX.

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DeLorean was hands-on.

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And so is Musk.

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DeLorean was no stranger to the celebrity circuit. Here he is with Johnny Carson, a DeLorean owner and investor.

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Musk has marched down a few red carpets in his time.

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The DMC DeLorean used 304 stainless steel for its body — that's a relatively common grade of the material.

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The Cybertruck uses what Tesla calls "Ultra-Hard 30X Cold-Rolled stainless-steel." This material is supposed to be superior to 304.

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The DeLorean was designed by the legendary Giorgetto Giugiaro, who has an absolutely staggering resume for a car designer, ranging from Ferraris to Maseratis to humble VWs.

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The Cybertruck was penned by Franz von Holzhausen. The Tesla design chief has created every new vehicle for the company since the Model S in 2012 (with a little input from CEO Elon Musk).

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Fewer than 10,000 DMCs were built before allegations of drug-trafficking sank John DeLorean's reputation and iffy finances ended the car company.

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The Cybertruck isn't even in production yet. Elon Musk has endured his share of legal run-ins, but so far, Tesla is still in business.

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The DeLorean's fame was revived by the 1985 film "Back to the Future" and the sequels that followed.

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The time-machine DeLorean was, basically, a joke. But it saved the DMC from the scrap-heap of history.

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The Cybertruck has thus far only appeared at a Tesla event and on video. A mishap with its supposedly super-tough window glass is its only media stumble thus far.

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In the movies, the DeLorean's engine was modified to run on fusion technology borrowed from a trip to the future.

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The Cybertruck is a pickup with a "vault" instead of a bed. The top-spec model costs about $70,000 — and full-self-driving tech adds $7,000. The DeLorean sold for $25,000 and couldn't drive itself.

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The DMC's looks were something, but its performance was feeble. A 130-horsepower V6 yielded a 0-60 mph time of 10.5 seconds.

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The Cybertruck's fully-electric drivetrain, in tri-motor trim, has 500 miles of range, yields a 0-60 mph time of 2.9 seconds, and can tow over 14,000 pounds (all according to Tesla). The DeLorean ... really wasn't supposed to tow anything.

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