The Lotus Esprit S1 was used in the 1977 James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me, where it was affectionately dubbed “Wet Nellie.” This “car-submarine” became an iconic Bond vehicle, with its ability to transform from a car into a working submarine capturing the public’s imagination.
h/t: vintag.es
Eight Esprit models were used in filming, with two being fully functional vehicles provided by Lotus. One of these was modified into a submersible for the underwater scenes, at a cost of around $100,000. Wet Nellie had various high-tech features, including cement dispensers, missile racks, and submarine capabilities.
After the film’s success, demand for the Esprit skyrocketed. Years later, Wet Nellie was rediscovered in a storage locker and sold for $100, before being auctioned off in 2013 for $997,000 to Elon Musk. Musk plans to upgrade the car with a Tesla powertrain and try to make it transform into a real-life submarine.
