#2: Lotus Esprit S1 - The Spy Who Loved Me. 1977
This car, the Lotus Espirt S1 is almost as famous as the DB5 and affectionately called “Wet Nellie”. Roger Moore played Bond. The S1 is internationally known for it’s under water action scenes. Lotus provided seven body shells for the underwater action scenes, it only granted one road-going car. The actual submersible version was converted by Perry Submarines and driven underwater by frogmen. The car featured surface-to-air missiles, torpedoes and depth charges.
Myth has it that the then Lotus PR man heard that producer Cubby Broccoli was planning a new Bond epic at the Pinewood Studios, near London. Lotus somehow managed to have an Esprit parked outside Broccoli’s office so he couldn’t help but see this new car with its ‘folded paper’ front end and radical design created by Giorgetto Giugiaro. It worked andBroccoli added to the line of superb machines Bond gets his hands on.