Lotus Evija stands next to Esprit S1 from the 1977 James Bond movie

KUALA LUMPUR: There is a James Bond movie named The Spy Who Loved Me, in it features a white car that can transform into a submarine. Amazing, isn’t it? Well, that car was none other than Lotus Espirit S1, and we recently got to see it once again in a post on Lotus Cars official Facebook handle.

Celebrating 43 years of it being the 007’s coupe, the company posted a picture of the Espirit S1 standing next to the Evija hypercar. As per the information in the post, the movie’s royal premiere took place at the Odeon Leicester Square in London on the 7th of July 1977.

To be clear, the car in the picture is not the one featured in the movie but shares an identical look. The white colour serves as the perfect combo with a few black trims. On the inside, there is a tartan pattern upholstery.

Elon Musk, in 2013 purchased the Esprit from the 007’s movie for $866,000. In 2014, he announced an amphibious vehicle that would look like Esprit but 10 percent larger. Back then, Musk called it a low priority project. In 2017, he decided to leave the Bond car as it is and instead build a new machine.

We now move our attention to the Evija, the fastest car in the hypercar segment with stunning looks. Powering it are four electric motors that together generate a maximum power of 1973 hp. With so much power in hand, it touches the 100 kmph mark in less than 3 seconds and portrays a top speed of 322 kmph. It has an impressive electric range of 402 km. Besides, the car comes with six driving modes - Range, Track, Sport, City, Tour, and Off, which the driver can select via the dial on the steering wheel.

Also Read: Lotus Evija EV hypercar configurator rolled out

It is indeed an outstanding car with top-notch performance figures. But like all good things, this one too is available in limited numbers. The company will build only 130 units of the Evija with one of the wealthiest able to buy it, as it will cost around €1.5 million to €2 million.

Also Read: Spiritual successor to Lotus Espirit likely to make an entry in 2021