As time went on, Bond as a character would change. The suave and sophisticated character of Connery would be replaced by several actors before we
Our Lotus has come back in for a service before the owner takes it out on a road trip. We’ve attended to the engine cooling
The original water pipe on a Lotus Esprit is made from Aluminium and over time the Aluminium starts to deteriorated creating very small holes in
The Bridge Classic Cars engine team have been hard at work investigating a knocking noise coming from our 1985 Lotus Esprit Turbo. Ady, our engine
Our 1985 Lotus Esprit Turbo is back with us for a diagnostics and a possible full engine rebuild. Our engine expert Ady has the whole
I think it’s fair to say Oscar is pretty pleased with the recent addition to his garage. Hello guys, just thought I would send you
Oscar Casco was the latest winner with us. He won our 1985 Lotus Esprit Turbo with ticket number 394! Take a look at the video
Congratulations to Oscar S Casco, winner of our 1985 Lotus Esprit Turbo with ticket number 394 and Karl Burgess, winner of our 1991 Ford Sierra with
As time went on, Bond as a character would change. The suave and sophisticated character of Connery would be replaced by several actors before we reach the 1980s with the release of For Your Eyes Only starring Roger Moore in 1981.
The 1977 film The Spy Who Loved Me, would see Bond driving another British motoring icon for the first time. A Lotus Espirit. Famously this one was more adept underwater than on land. But in 1981, Bond was back behind the wheel of Norfolks most famous export thanks to the success seen with the Esprit (known as Wet Nellie) in The Spy Who Loved Me.
The start of the film has a white Lotus Esprit Turbo in the Spanish countryside. When a wayward henchman of the man Bond is tracking decides to smash the window of the Espirit. It explodes. One of Q’s little additions to the car was self-destruction set up if the vehicle were to be tampered with. Thankfully, this car was actually a rolling shell. But for the driving sequences, a very early production car was used for the on-screen scenes. In the Film, Q’s workshop has managed to rebuild the blown up Lotus for the next time Bond would need it.
For Your Eyes Only most famously features a copper painted Lotus Esprit Turbo in a stunning backdrop of the Ski Resort of Cortina in Italy. Lotus had supplied two very early Esprit Turbos for production (10858 & 10930). So early in fact that the hero car, was actually a pre-production prototype (Chassis 10858). Both cars were delivered to production but when the location was decided on, the cars needed to be repainted. Both were finished light colours that didn’t contrast well enough against the white background of the location.
So, the cars were set back to Lotus’s headquarters of Hethel to be resprayed in the Copper Fire Metallic along with the Gold stripes and decals are seen on the cars used in the film. Whilst at Hethel, a pair of custom fabricated ski-racks were made for the Esprits to give that little bit extra cool to the cars on screen.
After filming had finished, both cars found their way to private owners after a long run of promotional duties. Chassis 10930 was actually held on to by Lotus until 1998 when it was sold at Auction. While the pre-production prototype went on to live life registered as 459 JTA with a private owner.
Apart from the Lotus, what is the other early Bond car that isn’t an Aston Martin?
Our Lotus has come back in for a service before the owner takes it out on a road trip.
We’ve attended to the engine cooling fans which are working correctly, we’ve found no oil leaks, we’ve checked over the vehicle to identify any other faults, which we have not found and replaced the oil and filter.
The original water pipe on a Lotus Esprit is made from Aluminium and over time the Aluminium starts to deteriorated creating very small holes in the pipework.
Water and holes tend not to agree with one another so a new pipe is required.
These pipes can be purchased but at £400 a the only supplier being in the USA it makes more sense for Dave to make us a new one at the workshops.
This has now been fabricated, fitted and the car runs perfectly once again. Great work from Dave and Pete to diagnose and fix the issue…
The Bridge Classic Cars engine team have been hard at work investigating a knocking noise coming from our 1985 Lotus Esprit Turbo.
Ady, our engine expert explains the process; “we removed the whole engine to investigate. The pistons were in bad shape. We’ve gone right through the whole engine and all its components.”
The Lotus has been treated to four brand new pistons, new gaskets, new bearings and a new cambelt. It was also discovered that a loose clip has caused the pully to rub on the waterpipe, causing a leak.
It’s taken the team three days and a whole lot of tea! But we’re finally over the worst. The engine is only waiting on a new water pipe to be fitted and she should be raring to go soon!
Our 1985 Lotus Esprit Turbo is back with us for a diagnostics and a possible full engine rebuild.
Our engine expert Ady has the whole engine out of the car, with many of its components removed for closer inspection. “When fitting the cylinder head to the cylinder block, you have to torque the cylinder head up to a certain lbs per ft.” Ady explains. “It was in doing this that I found that the thread in the cylinder block was completely stripped.”
Being an all aluminium engine means the wear and tear is so much greater on the threads. An aluminium engine does however give the Lotus Esprit Turbo its high-speed performance, so it’s swings and roundabouts one might say!
You can see the extent of the damage from the pictures of the parts shown below. The problems been rectified by putting a helicoil into engine.
Our spirited Esprit is longing to be driven down some winding Great British roads. We’re doing all we can to get her back to tip-top condition and return her to her owner as quickly as possible.
I think it’s fair to say Oscar is pretty pleased with the recent addition to his garage.
Hello guys, just thought I would send you a few pics of the car, it’s still super weird to go downstairs and see it there! Thank you.
Congratulations Oscar. We’re glad to hear you are enjoying your Esprit.
You could be our next classic car winner! Enter today at www.bridgeclassiccarscompetitions.co.uk
Oscar Casco was the latest winner with us. He won our 1985 Lotus Esprit Turbo with ticket number 394! Take a look at the video below to see his wonderful reaction.
You could be our next winner! Check out our current competitions here.
Congratulations to Oscar S Casco, winner of our 1985 Lotus Esprit Turbo with ticket number 394 and Karl Burgess, winner of our 1991 Ford Sierra with ticket number 164.
To be in with a chance to win your own classic, head to bridgeclassiccars.co.uk/competitions
Bridge Classic Cars are award winning Classic Car Restoration and Maintenance specialists. Your pride and joy is in safe hands with our expert Classic Car Technicians. Take a look at our awards here.
