Lotus Esprit S1

[Matt]

The Lotus Esprit was unveiled as the Silver Car concept at the Turin motor show in November 1972. Based on a Europa twin-cam chassis, the first Esprit prototype was displayed at the 1973 Geneva salon. Essentially it was a rolling chassis on which Giugiaro could develop his ideas for the project M70. It was another three years before the first customer cars were delivered in 1976.

The S1 was produced from 1975 to 1978. In that three year period, 714 Esprit S1's were manufactured. The majority were shipped to the United States.

The now famous 'red car' was the second Esprit prototype and ran during 1972 and '73. Registered 'IDGG 01', the name 'Esprit' had yet to be decided on. The 'red car' had its radiator in a pod beneath the bumper and its petrol filler cap just inside the rear window. Numerous facets of the car were later standardized including the petrol filler caps which were moved out on to the upper flanks but the Morris Marina door handles survived right through to 1993 and the introduction of S4.

The S1 was replaced by the S2 in 1978, with only a few external & internal changes. The S2 was followed in 1980 by the S2.2, which was basically an S2 with a 2.2 litre engine instead of a 2.0 litre. Very little else changed and with under 100 produced, they remain rare. Lotus also released a special edition S2 in JPS colours (F1 Sponsor) to celebrate winning the F1 championship.

Throughout its 20-plus year history, there have been many variations of the Lotus Esprit. However, any Esprit can be lumped into one of two major categories. The first category is what is commonly referred to as the Giugiaro Esprit; named after the original Italian designer of the car. This category includes any car built before the 1988. It is distinguished by sharp angles and a wedge shape that has been compared to everything from a doorstop to a spaceship. This is the Esprit that was popularized by the James Bond films The Spy Who Loved Me and For Your Eyes Only.

[ScionDriver]

What an awesome car that started an iconic sports car.