One of the most iconic James Bond cars of all is up for sale for the first time – the submarine Lotus Esprit made famous when it featured in the 1977 James Bond film, The Spy Who Loved Me.
“Wet Nellie”, as it was known by the crew on set, was put into storage for 10 years after filming, on Long Island, New York. After the lease on the storage unit elapsed, (a notable oversight by the film/production company), the storage firm then put the contents up for ‘blind auction’, and a lucky couple bought it for a “modest price”.
After having the car authenticated as the real James Bond Lotus Esprit, the car spent some time on display, but was largely kept out of the public eye.
The car featured in one of The Spy Who Loved Me’s best-known scenes, when James Bond drives the Esprit off a jetty and into the blue Caribbean – and the later scene when he casually drives ashore, giving a fish to a stander-by. All that water would pay havoc with an ordinary car, but Mr Bond didn’t have to call upon his car breakdown cover a single time during the movie.
The submarine Esprit was based on a 1972 concept car of the same name, and was manufactured between 1976 and 2004.
Classic car lovers and James Bond fans alike will be eager to see how much the submarine Lotus fetches, as will the owner – particularly after the last famous James Bond car was sold for £2.9 million in 2010; the Aston Martin DB5 from 1965’s Goldfinger attracted world-wide attention.
Now, RM Auctions is selling this piece of cinematic history to the highest bidder. The sale will take place at their London auction house from the 8th-9th September of this year.
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