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James Bond's Lotus Esprit S1
from The Spy Who Loved Me
The Lotus
Esprit shot to fame in the 1977 James Bond Film, The Spy Who Loved Me, staring
Roger Moore and Barbara Bach. The screen role of the Esprit in this film did
more for Esprit sales than anything else Lotus attempted to do. How the Esprit
came to feature in the film is a story of chance. Donovan McLauchlan, Colin
Chapman's PR man, had been tipped off that the Bond movie was scheduled for
Pinwood studios. So during 1975 he took a pre-production Esprit to the studios,
dropped a quid to the doorman and left the Esprit prototype right in the path
of anyone trying to get in or out. This gave the car maximum exposure and
it wasn't long before Cubby Broccoli and the production staff saw the car
and were so impressed with it, they chose the Esprit as James Bonds car in
the film.
Lotus spent £18,000 altogether on the film, loaning the Film Company
2 production Lotus Esprit’s, 5 Esprit body shells and 2 Lotus personnel,
during the Sardinian car chase - Roger Becker and McLauchlan. The body shells
were used to make a 1:1 scale replica of the under-water Esprit, built by
Perry Oceanographics. The Esprit submarine featured fins, front-mounted rocket
launchers, mines, a periscope, a smoke screen and a surface to air missile.
There was also and cement sprayer concealed behind the registration plates.
The cost of converting the Esprit body shell into a submarine was $100,000,000
US dollars, this bill was picked up by the Film Company. The other body shells
were used in various scene, including the shot of the Esprit driving off the
pier, into the sea. That shell was powered by compressed air, equipped with
a space-frame and a locked steering wheel.
The filmed was critical acclaimed at the time and grossed $187 million at
the box office. Lotus sales increased dramatically, with a 3 year waiting
list for Esprit’s. The Lotus, that was featured in the car chases PPW
306R, survives today at the "Car of the Stars" Museum in Cumbria.
The underwater Esprit "Wet Nellie" resides at the Beaulieu National
Motor Museum. Lotus sold the remaining body shells to the public at the time,
without saying they were from the Bond movie!
Lotus Esprit Submarine
The Lotus Esprit emerges from the sea
Roger Moore and Barbara Bach pose for a promotional shot
Roger Moore and Barbara Bach in the Lotus Esprit
A promotional stand for the Spy Who loved Me
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