For those of you who were old enough to have seen the 1977 James Bond movie The Spy Who Loved Me, you might remember the Lotus Esprit S1 from the film. It’s hard to forget considering that at one point in the movie, it turned into an actual submarine. It also carried torpedoes, water mines, and surface-to-air missiles. These features cemented it as one of the most iconic movie cars of all time, let alone one of the most famous cars James Bond has ever used. Fast forward to 2017, and we have Lotus releasing the Evora Sport 410, a one-off creation that celebrates the 40th anniversary of Bond’s Esprit S1 in a rather spectacular style.

Off the bat, it’s important to establish that taking the Evora Sport 410 on a dive into the ocean isn’t going to end well for the driver. So no, the one-off Esprit S1-inspired Evora Sport 410 does not have submarine capabilities. While we’re at it, the coupe also doesn’t have missiles or torpedoes, nor does it have a cement sprayer or a black dye slick. Better get those facts out of the way before somebody starts expecting the Evora Sport 410 to carry WMDs. We all know how that turned out the last time.

The good news is that Lotus did well for itself to justify the Evora Sport 410’s one-off status. The coupe is dressed heavily on special edition touches, thanks in large part to the involvement of Lotus Exclusive, the automaker’s very own personalization division. Beyond the cosmetics and aerodynamic touches on the coupe, the Evora Sport 410 retains one of its most imposing features: a 3.5-liter six-cylinder engine that produces 410 horsepower and 310 pound-feet of torque. Combine those numbers on a coupe that weighs just 1,280 kg (2,820 pounds) and you have a sports car that pays homage to one of the most iconic Bond cars in history the proper way.

Continue reading to learn more about the Lotus Evora Sport 410.

2017 Lotus Evora Sport 410 "Esprit S1" Edition

Specifications
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  • Model: 2017 Lotus Evora Sport 410 "Esprit S1" Edition
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Seems like a fairly easy question to answer, right?

For one, the Lotus Evora Sport 410 “Esprit S1” is a complete one-off, which means that the car you’re seeing here is the only one of its kind. Even the model on which it’s based on, the Evora Sport 410, is limited to just 150 units itself. Basically, this is a one-off vehicle of a limited edition model, which is insanely cool if you think about it in those terms.

Give credit to Lotus Exclusive for taking up the objective of giving the Evora Sport 410 “Esprit S1” new features that justify its one-off billing. We already know that the coupe is dressed from head to toe in carbon fiber. The lightweight material is present on the front splitter, the front access panel, the roof, tailgate, rear quarter panels, and the rear diffuser. In addition to all the carbon fiber, Lotus Exclusive also dressed up the one-off Evora with a special color-coded bumper that gives the Evora Sport 410 “Esprit S1” a more aggressive look than its limited edition counterpart.

The other defining physical feature of the one-off Evora Sport 410 is the one-piece carbon fiber tailgate, which helps create a fastback look to the coupe. The decision to add this component is intentional on Lotus Exclusive’s part as it gives the one-off Evora Sport 410 “Esprit S1” a lift back look to it, just like the original Esprit S1 from which it takes inspiration from. Other aesthetic details featured in the car include a similar black coachline that was also a prominent design detail in the Esprit S1 and a bespoke badge on the B-pillar, just above the rear wheel arches. Notice how the font used in that badge directly mirrors the same font Lotus used on the original Esprit S1. Even better, both are located around the exact same area of the respective cars.

Note: side profile of the Lotus Evora Sport 410 “Esprit S1” Edition

Move inside the cabin and the one-off upgrades continue with heritage tartan fabric dominating the surface are of the interior. Most of the interior’s surface is lavished in the upscale material with red stitching and an Alcantara dashboard service as nice complements. It is a little disappointing to note that Lotus Exclusive didn’t go all-out in giving the Evora Sport 410 “Esprit S1” Edition the full-on James Bond Esprit 1 treatment.

It would’ve been really cool if the personalization department also went with the one-piece instrument cluster and the green-faced Veglia gauges, arguably two of the most enduring features of the Esprit S1’s interior other than all the switches that launched those missiles and torpedoes. I’ll venture a guess that Lotus Exclusive had no issues not including those in the actual one-off sports coupe.

Overall, the Lotus Evora Sport 410 “Esprit S1” Edition looks the part of a true one-off. The black body line that creates a delineation between the upper and lower sections of the car is one of the most significant details of the car as it perfectly captures the same design feature found on the Bond car. The other personalization aspects also play important roles in giving the Evora Sport 410 “Esprit S1” Edition a look and appeal that none of the other 149 units of the Evora Sport 410 has. I wouldn’t have objected if the car also came with fins like the one Bond used to turn his Esprit S1 into a submarine, but something tells me that adding that would’ve been a little excessive.

On the power and performance front, Lotus made no changes in that regard, opting instead to keep the Evora Sport 410’s 3.5-liter V-6 engine place. It’s still good for an out put of 410 horsepower and 310 pound-feet of torque, good enough numbers that help the sports coupe sprint from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.9 seconds with an automatic transmission and four seconds dead with a manual transmission. The car’s top speed remains at 186 mph, the exact same number that the other 149 units of the Evora Sport 410 can boast of.

Wait, no weapons?

This has been touched before, but it’s worth mentioning again. As cool as it would have been for the Evora Sport 410 “Esprit S1” Edition to carry actual torpedoes and surface-to-air missiles, I’m not quite sure it would’ve been approved by Lotus. The good news is that despite taking liberties in modelling the car to look like the old Esprit S1, the car still has some unique features unto itself that are unlikely to be replicated by any model.

The weapons are pretty cool though, as is the cement sprayer that was installed in Bond’s car to spray cement in order to blind pursuers and the black dye slick that has a similar function as the sprayer, but is most effective when used when the car was in submarine mode and submerged under water.

Note: photo of James Bond’s Lotus Esprit S1 underwater.

It remains to be seen if Lotus has any plans for this one-off besides showcasing it to all of us and for all of us to start oggling over it. The smart money says that it’s unlikely for us to see this creation evolve into having its own limited production run, but fortunately, there are other ways for prospective Lotus customers to get the personalized treatment on its cars.

These options aren’t going to turn your Evora Sport 410s into submarines, but given the wealth of options that are available to Lotus Exclusive, it’s definitely something that’s worth considering, especially if it gets as much attention, maybe even more. Who knows, Lotus might just as well take that dive itself and proceed with a limited production run of the car. Whatever the case may be, consider me in the front row of that line in the event such a scenario takes a life of its own.