Elon Musk is sharing his ownership of the Lotus Esprit submarine from the James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me with every Tesla Model S owner thanks to a nifty Easter egg in the car's software. He also pays homage to a classic piece of sci-fi literature.
With the $966,560 sale ($863,000 plus a 12-percent buyer's premium) of the white 1977 Lotus Esprit S1 submarine used in the 1977 James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me, we now know "the Roger Moore discount."
We've covered many cars from the movies and TV that have made their way to auction (the original Batmobile, good old General Lee and even John Neff
With 007's Skyfall hitting theaters this weekend, we couldn't help but reflect on our favorite Bond cars throughout history. Of course there's the classic DB5, which is set to make yet another appearance in the series' latest installment. But, for us, no movie car can outdo the submarining white Lotus Esprit
Click above for a gallery of the Esprit S1 from The Spy Who Loved Me
Click image for a huge photo gallery
For many of us in our 30s, the white Lotus Esprit S1 driven by Roger Moore as James Bond in 1977's The Spy Who Loved Me represents our first exposure to Lotus and the beginning of a long love affair with the British marque. After all, the Esprit was one of the most exotic and different-looking cars those young eyes had ever set on at the time ( and the S1still looks fantastic today). What made the Bond car special, however, was its incredibly cool alternate mode, which we were introduce
