1978 Lotus Esprit S1
Giorgetto Giugiaro’s “folded paper” design philosophy produced few results as striking as the Esprit. First shown as a prototype at the 1972 Turin Motor Show, it entered production in 1976 and the Series 1 ran through 1978, making this a late example of the original configuration.
The wedge-shaped fiberglass body sits low and wide, all flat planes and sharp creases, with pop-up headlights and a profile that looked genuinely unlike anything else on British roads. Wheelbase measured 96.0 inches.
The fiberglass body was mounted on a steel backbone chassis, with the 2.0-liter Lotus 907 twin-cam four-cylinder positioned longitudinally behind the passengers, driving the rear wheels through a Citroen C35 five-speed transaxle (the same basic unit found in the Citroen SM and Maserati Merak).
Rear brakes were mounted inboard, following contemporary racing practice. Output was approximately 160 bhp in European specification and about 140 bhp in US trim. Curb weight was approximately 2,100 pounds, which contributed meaningfully to its handling character.
An S1 Esprit appeared in the 1977 James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me, where the car famously converted into a submarine during a chase sequence.
The Series 2 followed in 1978 with aerodynamic and cooling revisions, making this final-year S1 a slightly transitional car and, for collectors, among the more desirable variants of the original Giugiaro design.
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