Roma, October 21st 2010 Enel and Wired Italia, in association with eCars-Now!, the first open-source community dedicated to the conversion of combustion-engine cars to electric cars, will unveil a new project involving one of cinemas motoring icons: the legendary DeLorean from 1980s trilogy Back To The Future, specially redesigned for the occasion.
Twenty-five years to the day since Robert Zemeckis cult film Back To The Future was first screened in cinemas, Enel, Wired Italia, and eCars-Now! have embarked on a futuristic scheme to convert the iconic DeLorean DMC-12 from Back To The Future into an electric car, in the first ever zero-emission Wired Electric Race. With energy support from Enel and its network of vehicle recharging stations, the extraordinary machine used by Doc and Marty McFly to travel through space and time will be converted into an electric car, proving that it is already possible to drive the cars of the future.
With the backing of Enel, Wired Italia and eCars-Now!, the exciting venture will get under way on October 25th, the same date that the legendary DeLorean first appeared in Robert Zemeckis cult film as Docs time machine.
The tour will leave Milan on October 25th and stop off in several Italian cities. After visiting Piacenza and Reggio Emilia, it will arrive in Bologna on October 26th, Pisa on October 27th and Capalbio on October 28th, before arriving in Rome later that day. On each leg of the tour, the new electric version of the DeLorean will attract motoring enthusiasts and members of the public alike, intrigued by this image of the sustainable future of motoring brought to life from the big screen.
For the entire duration of the tour, a special support truck will follow the Electric Race and will turn into a stall as required, fitted out as a mock-up of Docs laboratory. During each leg, street events will be organised and stewards dressed as Doc will go around handing out leaflets.
Members of the public are welcome to have a special picture, there will be a chance to be photographed alongside the famous Emmett "Doc" Brown and of course the legendary DeLorean.
Enel will follow the legendary Deloreans journey also on its social channels. In particular, the event will be available on twitter enelsharing (www.twitter.com/enelsharing), which will provide live updates on the cars journey and its stops at Enel recharging stations. The enelsharing facebook page (www.facebook.com/enelsharing) will feature an event in which users will be enabled to comment pictures and videos of the car in action. Furthermore, the Youtube Enelvideo (www.youtube.com/enelvideo) will broadcast the cars departure from Milan and its arrival in Rome.
The tour is scheduled to arrive in the Italian capital on October 28th, in time for the opening of the Rome Film Festival, the perfect occasion to celebrate 25 years since the release of Back To The Future in Italian cinemas. After being photographed on the red carpet, the Wired Italia, Enel and eCars-Now! electric DeLorean will remain on show at the entrance to the auditorium until November 3rd.
RDS (Radio Dimensione Suono, an Italian radio station) will join Wired Italia, Enel and eCars-Now! as media sponsor of the Wired Electric Race. As well as dedicating a special section of its website to the Wired Italia, Enel and eCars-Now! project, RDS will be in constant communication with the Wired Electric Race team, proving real-time updates, facts and news for its listeners. All RDS online subscribers can take part in the Wired Electric Race and, by following the instructions broadcast on air a few minutes before the DeLorean arrives at one of the prearranged destinations, will able to join Matteo Bordone and Roberto Vezzi in their challenge to reach the capital by October 28th. One lucky listener who comes along to support the Wired Electric Race team will have the chance to sit in the DeLorean DMC-12 and will receive a special Back To The Future boxed set.
To coincide with the first Wired Electric Race, the editor of Wired Italia magazine, in association with Blog TV, has devised a series of online events for fans and members of the public who, via the website www.electricrace.it and social networking sites, will able to communicate directly with the team and stay up to date with events, hearing the latest news from Matteo Bordone and Roberto Vezzi on their journey towards the future of green mobility, today.