Filed under: Car Buying, Etc., Supercars, Lotus, Celebrities
Corners like it's on rails: Pretty Woman Lotus Esprit for sale
Click above to see the Lotus in action in the Pretty Woman trailer after the jump
Besides Julia Roberts' boots and Richard Gere's state-of-the-period-art brick cellphone, one of the most memorable props from "Pretty Woman" had to be the Lotus Esprit that Gere borrows from Jason Alexander to get away from a party when his limo is buried in the parking lot. He stops to ask a hooker for directions and she hops in to show him "personal." After futzing with the British exotic's transmission, Gere turns over the reins and lets Julia drive the Esprit. While uttering phrases like "standard H-pattern" and "it corners like it's on rails," gearheads by the thousands fell for the blond-wigged prostitute with a heart of gold.
And now, you can actually relive that classic bit of movie magic for yourself. No, we're not recommending cruising for help with your "stick shift" on Hollywood Blvd. You see, the very same Lotus that they used in the movie is now listed on Hemmings for the bargain basement price of just $54,998. Well, color me happy! The car has been at the Volo Auto Museum in Volo, Illinois but is now for sale. It's a 1990 Lotus Esprit SE, but evidently it somehow got titled as an '89. It has a turbo four-cylinder that gets it from 0-60 in a scant 4.7 seconds and doesn't stop pushing until the car reaches 165 mph. It's one of just 324 Loti sold in the States in 1990 and the only one used in the movie. It currently has 23k miles on the clock and even comes with a letter of authenticity from Lotus. There's a longer description over at Hemmings and just to jog your memory, we've included a "Pretty Woman" trailer after the jump that features the Lotus in the first 40 seconds. Thanks for the tip, Corey!
[Source: Hemmings via The College Driver]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
MajorGeek 11:37AM (1/06/2009)
To save others the extra click to go directly to the original story and listing:
http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/carsforsale/lotus/esprit/683882.html
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Steve Neill 12:15PM (1/06/2009)
Apparently a very excited 12 year old wrote the description for the car in the ad. I stopped reading after the third word.
Ow. My eyes.
Flashpoint 12:24PM (1/06/2009)
crap...
How much for the Tumbler?
DerailmentSucks 11:45AM (1/06/2009)
I'd hate for a car to fly off its tracks when the limit has been reached.
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Coco 11:47AM (1/06/2009)
Esprit, along with DB7 has to be one of the best looking cars every made. Love to own one but that Renault25 gearbox scares me.
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Tool 12:17PM (1/06/2009)
It must have been love, but it's over now.
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GhostDoggy 12:28PM (1/06/2009)
$55K is no where near bargain basement pricing. It went for $90K and now its almost 20 years old. Not even the Brits think its worth anywhere near that much.
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geo.stewart 3:01PM (1/06/2009)
going rate should be around 40 if you dont care about the movie ties.
one of my top 5 choices.
g00fba11 4:14PM (1/06/2009)
Worth every peni....er, pennys. Seriously though, I always have a special place for a small engine with that kind of performance numbers. The fact that it's drop-dead gorgeous design is a plus.
Mobius_1 12:42PM (1/06/2009)
$54,998? That's like 2749 "directions"
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Benfolio 1:41PM (1/06/2009)
"BOTH FERRARI AND PORSCHE DECLINED THE OPPORTUNITY TO ALLOW THE USE OF THEIR CARS IN THE MOVIE BECAUSE THEY DID NOT WANT TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH SOLICITING PROSTITUTES"
LOL WUT!?!?!?
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Mobius_1 7:06PM (1/06/2009)
lol yeah you'd think Porsche and Ferrari would understand the typical needs of their clientele and cater and advertise accordingly! :P
Biff Jingles 2:00PM (1/06/2009)
I wonder when the Lotus Esprit that Sharon Stone drove and the Esprit that "Roxy" drove, off the bridge, in Basic Instinct will be sold? I have a feeling the one that "Roxy" drove won't be worth much.
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Filter300 2:20PM (1/06/2009)
I wonder if they fixed the transmission...
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Albert 2:36PM (1/06/2009)
The problem with Volo is they have the tendency to take a car that's nearly identical and pass it off as the real deal. There is no where in the description saying that the car is documented from the movie. Though it does make clear that it was borrowed from lotus and then returned. Hmmmm first clue. Owning an original movie car myself. Documentation is CRITICAL.
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Uncle Ray 9:57AM (1/07/2009)
This from a former Lotus USA employee:
FYI, the car used in PW was an 88. It was a "show/demo" car, never legal
for sale (at least not in the US) & mostly had the crap beat out of it by every
car magazine writer. It was actually my demo for a few months & the biggest piece of sh** you ever drove. It was not an SE, but an early new (180)
bodied car with the old (Guigiaro type) fuel injection & Citroen gearbox
with inboard rear brakes.
The closest this thing might have ever come to a museum was driving by one.
Thanks for the laugh
D.Fisk 3:39PM (1/06/2009)
They have had that car for sale for 2 years. I have seen the car and its got some flaws
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Dave 6:11PM (1/06/2009)
Most clumsy product placement of a car. Ever.
He explains he rented the Lotus that he can't drive because it's "the best."
HUH???
Oh, I get it. It was "the best" of all the cramped, ergonomically-challenged, overpriced British cars with horrific turbo lag. Got it.
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Blacknimbus 10:53PM (1/06/2009)
Molly Ringwald turned down the part that later went to Julia Roberts...true story.
Considering that it might have done something to extend Molly's career and possibly prevent Julia's makes me a bit sad.
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M5zealot 2:13AM (1/07/2009)
I have two Esprits in my car collection and not many know this but the tailights on this particular model are taken directly from a 1989 Toyota Corolla. If you look closely at the bottom right hand corner of each tailight you will see the TOYOTA logo on the lenses! Lotus didn't spend too much money on "non speed" parts. I think it adds character to the car although many would say it cheapens it! LOL.
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