The distinctly-shaped Lotus Esprit used to film the 1977 movie starring Roger Moore as the 007 agent is purchased for 550,000 pounds.
- September 10, 2013
AceShowbiz -
A white Lotus Esprit used by Roger Moore to film an underwater scene for 1977's James Bond movie "Spy Who Loved Me" has been sold at RM Auction that ran live on the Internet Monday, September 9. Bidding started at £100,000 and the car eventually went under the hammer for £550,000 or $864,600.
It was less than the initial estimation of between £650,000 and £950,000, perhaps because the custom car cannot be driven on the road, although it is said to be a fully operational submarine. The highest price for an ex-007 car was set in 2010, when the Aston Martin DB5 used in Sean Connery-starring "Goldfinger" was sold for £2.9 million.
Nicknamed "Wet Nellie" on the movie set, the white submarine car was found in a storage unit in Long Island, New York, which was purchased by a couple in a "blind" public auction in 1989. There were six Esprit body shells used in the filming, but only one was converted into a fully operational submarine car.
In the James Bond movie, Moore and his Bond girl Barbara Bach survived a helicopter attack by driving the Esprit off a pier into the ocean.
