1988 Lotus Esprit S5 Coupe

Description

The Giorgetto 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. 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. For 1987, the Esprit underwent a major redesign, this time with English designer Peter Stevens, who also penned the McLaren F1, responsible for the styling. Codenamed X180, the lines were successfully updated with a softening of the sharp edges, allowing for more interior space, while a lift-out roof panel (in either body colour Nomex or tinted glass) was a neat addition and new multi-spoke alloy wheels. The instrument panel was also new and the ventilation system vastly improved. Mechanically, the normally-aspirated Esprit was little changed from its predecessor apart from a switch the new Renault transaxle, with power of the 2174cc engine rated at 215 bhp at 6000 rpm. Lotus produced just 1,053 units of the Esprit between 1988 and 1992, with only a handful sold in Australia, making this an exceptionally scarce and still affordable sports car.