An excellent James Bond Movie Tribute Lotus Esprit Turbo with "For Your Eyes Only" livery and matching "OPW 654W" Hong Kong Registration Mark. Comes with a documented service history, this car marks one of the finest of its kind ever offered for sale in Hong Kong. It is as dramatic and enthralling today as when it was new – a bold but accurate statement, just like the Turbo Esprit itself.
One of the most memorable designs of Italian styling legend Giorgetto Giugiaro, the groundbreaking Lotus Esprit was among the most famous sports cars of the late 1970s and early 1980s, and would remain in production, with the same basic shape but evolving drivetrains, for over 20 years. Low, dramatic, and advanced, with all-independent suspension, a mid-mounted sixteen-valve four-cylinder engine, and four-wheel disc brakes, its performance was as thrilling as its appearance. No wonder that, for a brief time in the films "The Spy Who Loved Me" and "For Your Eyes Only", an Esprit briefly supplanted the Aston Martin as James Bond’s company car of choice.
The Giugiaro styled Esprit was Colin Chapman's first serious attempt at building a supercar capable of taking on the likes of Porsche and Ferrari. First unveiled as a concept car at the Turin Motor Show in 1972, it would be another four years before the first customers took delivery and the Esprit received a considerable publicity boost thank to the 1977 James Bond film "The Spy Who Loved Me", with Roger Moore taking to the sea in one that became a submarine.
The turbo version was first seen in 1980's 'Essex Esprit', a special edition model named for its association with Essex petroleum, a major sponsor of the Lotus F1 team at the time. Its engine, known as the Type 910, retained the 2.2-litre capacity of the naturally-aspirated car but utilised a dry sump and generated some 157kW. 1981 saw the debut of Esprit Series 3 and with it the turbo became a regular production car, though it reverted to a wet sump configuration. Although it looked every inch the futuristic Italian-styled supercar both inside and out, the Esprit remained true to Lotus' philosophy of building lightweight car with small-capacity engines and handling inspired by the racetrack.
The Esprit featured in "For Your Eyes Only" meets an explosive end not long into the film, but its time on-screen was memorable enough to lock it into the minds of enthusiasts worldwide. It was the high-performance Turbo model, which the car here exactly replicates the movie car. It even has got the same James Bond "OPW 654W" Hong Kong Registration Mark and the Red Triangular "Burglar Protected" Sticker. Sold new in the UK in 1984, this Esprit Turbo was finished in Jupiter Red with alloy wheels and leather interior. The car comes with fully documented service history comprising service book stamped at the required intervals. The current recorded mileage on the new odometer after full engine rebuild is 2368 Miles. It has a 210 hp, 2,174 cc DOHC sixteen-valve turbocharged four-cylinder engine, five-speed manual rear transaxle, independent front suspension with upper A-arms, lower lateral links, coil springs, and anti-roll bar; independent rear suspension with upper/lower lateral links, angled trailing arms, and coil springs; and four-wheel disc brakes.
Year: 1984
Body: 2 Doors Coupe
Exterior: White
Interior: Beige
Driver's Sider: RHD