Resurrection Reactions: How the world reacted to 8 just-revived car nameplates

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Fresh life has officially been breathed into an iconic American automaker after the new Texas-based DeLorean Motor Company revealed details and computer-generated images of its production-ready predecessor to the famed DMC-12 time machine. 

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The Alpha5 is an electric two-door four-seater with a 480-km range, capable of a sprint to 60 mph (96 km/h) in 2.99 seconds, with a top speed of 250 km/h, and the weight of the most celebrated vehicle in pop culture resting on its shoulders. Oh, and most crucial to brand recognition: gullwing doors. 

We won’t see the car in full until its official reveal on August 18 at Monterey Car Week, but what’s available so far on the Alpha5 microsite (interior and exterior renderings, plus some sketches) has done a fine job of generating hype. Pictures of the car with its doors up were greeted this week with a chorus of “Great Scott!” cries from nerds around the globe (we can call them that because we are among them). 

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We’ll ultimately reserve judgment for when the production model rolls up later this summer, but one thing is for certain: the original DeLorean DMC-12 left some big shoes to fill. 

DeLorean is far from the first automaker to hang its hat on nostalgia and attempt to resuscitate a past legend in the name of modern profits. Many of the big boys, from Toyota to Ford to Volkswagen, have been at it for years. 

Here’s a breakdown of how the most recent iconic nameplate revivals were received by the public, and how they ultimately delivered on their promises of nostalgia. 

Acura Integra

When Acura announced it’d be bringing back the revered Integra nameplate as an affordable five-door hatchback after a 20-plus-year pause, fans were naturally excited and skeptical. Online reactions to the prototype reveal included some thumbs-up from potential buyers who saw it as a “more athletic and more luxurious alternative to the Honda Civic,” as well as plenty who just couldn’t get over the fact that there wasn’t a coupe on offer. 

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But Driving expert Graeme Fletcher’s First Drive of the 2023 Acura Integra proved the car remains “fast and fun” regardless of how many doors-too-many it may or may not have. From behind the wheel of the topped-out Elite A-Spec model, there’s little Civic-ness evident, even though the fifth-generation does indeed share a platform with the popular Honda car. 

The 2023 Integra will carry its own unique legacy moving forward, as its reportedly the brand’s final all-new gas vehicle. 

Volkswagen International Scout

In the late 1950s, American construction equipment manufacturer International Harvester took aim at the two-door Willys Jeep, and subsequently pioneered the SUV movement with the production of the Scout. The off-roader enjoyed a 19-year run and two generations, inspiring other great American SUV nameplates also on this list, before it was let go in 1980.

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Then, just last year in 2021, the industry caught wind that Volkswagen was once again playing with the “Scout” name, having acquired the company that had rights to it. Rumours of a revival were officially confirmed earlier this year when the brand released preliminary sketches of an electric SUV and pickup Scout.

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Unlike some of the more recognizable nameplates that came in the decades that followed, the Scout comes with the added cache of being something of a forgotten idol.

The Volkswagen Scout should be revealed in prototype form in 2023, with production to begin before 2026 in America. 

Chrysler Airflow

Chrysler recently reached way back into its nearly centurion lifespan to pull up the “Airflow” name, originally attached in the 1930s to the brand’s first unibody vehicle, and the first Chrysler to be developed in a wind tunnel. But the OG Airflow was too ahead of its time and wound up on the chopping block by 1937. 

Now Chrysler is plugging a new Airflow concept as another pioneer — this time for the brand’s forthcoming electric revolution.

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The electric Chrysler Airflow Concept crossover was previewed earlier this year and is being positioned by the brand as the cutting edge of its EV movement, which will start in earnest with the first full battery EV build in 2025, potentially coming from what we see here and setting up in competition against the Mustang Mach-E.

It remains unclear whether the Airflow nameplate will grace the back of any production vehicles, but Chrysler has gone to the effort of showcasing what a darker “Graphite” model might look like. 

Ford Bronco

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Of all the models that have come backwards out of the sunset in recent years, few reappeared to as much fanfare as the original Ford SUV, the Bronco. News of its return (along with the Ranger) after a five-generation run from 1966 through 1996 began wafting about the Internet all the way back in 2015, and was officially confirmed in January of 2017.

But it wasn’t until the SUV was fully revealed in the summer of 2020 that the world’s temperature as a whole could be taken. And what did the thermometer register? Mostly red-hot desire (and a bunch of O.J. Simpson jokes). 

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In fact, the waves caused by the iconic 4×4’s return to the market rocked the boat of other well-known off-roaders such as Jeep, whose owners couldn’t seem to keep the Broncos name off of their various Jeep fan forums. And when we finally got behind the wheel for the First Drive, the off-road tracks available to us didn’t even challenge the Bronco, leaving us also unable to confirm or deny its superiority over the Wrangler. 

Recently, however, we were able to do a more detailed side-by-side comparison with the Wrangler — check out how Ford’s 4×4 SUV compares to the stalwart Jeep here. 

Toyota Supra

After Toyota withdrew the Supra from markets in 2002, it spent 12 years figuring out how it’d stage a comeback for the sports car/GT. And when the fifth-generation rolled forth, it was as the brand’s sportiest production car ever, fit with the heart of a BMW Z4 and an eight-speed automatic transmission. (Toyota would eventually announce an added manual transmission option in early 2022.) 

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The jury is still out on which of the brothers is more fun to drive, but when the Toyota Supra was initially road tested, it proved speedy and pleasant in the corners, but less comfortable, slightly, and refined than the BMW Z4 with which it shares genetics. 

Ford Maverick

Not all nameplates that return to the public sphere do so on the same type of vehicle they were originally stuck to. The Ford Maverick, for example, was a compact car originally produced by the Blue Oval from 1970 through 1977, but the current market isn’t exactly begging for more compact cars. It wants SUVs and pickups. So, that’s what Ford made. 

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Public reactions to the compact pickup’s reveal seemed to register as net positive, with many fans noting the attractive combo of utility and competitive pricing (and just as many calling out the obvious Top Gun references). And professional reviewers including Driving’s own who drove it seemed smitten by the pickup’s not-too-big size and flexible use cases, citing its efficient standard hybrid engine and responsive drive as two of its main winning attributes. 

If sales are any indication (and they usually are) the little “anti-pickup” Maverick with a sub-$30,000 price tag has turned into a big deal for Ford, making up some 14 per cent of the market’s small/midsize truck market sales this spring. 

Jeep Grand Wagoneer

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The Wagoneer was a huge vehicle for Jeep when it launched in 1963, following the Willys and setting the stage for the vehicle’s domination in the full-size off-road SUV market for decades to come. In the Wagoneer’s second-generation form (under the production of AMC) that bowed in the ’80s, the Grand Wagoneer was introduced for the first time with a V8 engine, modified exterior features, and that classic wood-grain detail. At the time, it cost a good amount more than some of its more basic American competition, like the Ford Bronco. 

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But when Jeep revealed the reboot of the Grand Wagoneer name with a price point north of $100,000, people seemed to forget its more upscale roots. Initial impressions were dominated by negative reactions to the price tag, closely followed by cries for an exterior wood-panel option, which so far have yet to be answered.

Driving’s Brian Harper drove the top-trim $127,65 2022 Grand Cherokee Series III last summer to see how readily Jeep owners might buy into the luxury SUV market via a Jeep. His takeaway: it drives like it looks (which is to say ‘big’), doesn’t care much for fuel efficiency, and is a clear “swing for the fences.” 

What’s your take on this list of golden oldies?