Lotus Esprit
Giugiaro's folded-paper supercar from Norfolk.
The story
A glassfibre wedge on a steel backbone, weighing only about 900kg, the Esprit handled like a racing car even if the first ones were not as quick as Lotus claimed. Turbocharging in 1980 fixed that. It lasted 28 years.
Inside
You lie back between a high centre tunnel and the door, facing a wraparound pod of green-faced dials. Early cars had tartan cloth seats.
In period colours
Tap a colour to respray the drawing.
A white one turned into a submarine in The Spy Who Loved Me in 1977.
On screen
The Spy Who Loved Me Film, 1977
Bond's white Esprit drives off a jetty and turns into a submarine.
Pretty Woman Film, 1990
Richard Gere's character cannot drive his borrowed Esprit properly, so Julia Roberts's character takes the wheel.
Meanwhile, in 1976
A long, hot summer brought drought, and Concorde entered passenger service.
Best-selling single of 1976: Save Your Kisses for Me by Brotherhood of Man
Before you buy a 1970s car
- Rust is common in sills, wheel arches, front panels and the bottom of the doors.
- Check the wiring and electrics carefully, as they age badly.
- Many volume-selling cars still have good parts support, but badge-engineered and low-volume models can be harder to source.
General notes, not specific to this model. Check the model's own history before buying.
Rivals of its day
Picked automatically: cars on sale at the same time with similar size, speed and price.
See the real thing
These open in a new tab: the car on Wikimedia Commons, the interior and the badge as Google image searches.
Today's money: the launch price adjusted for inflation to 2026, using the Office for National Statistics price index.