James Bond submarine car sells for nearly $1 Million
Robert Frank/CNBC
RM Auctions
The submersible Lotus Esprit from the James Bond movie, “The Spy Who Loved Me” sold at auction in London on Monday for nearly $1 million, including taxes. The James Bond “submarine car” may have been a hit with fans, but not with car collectors.
The famous submersible Lotus Esprit, used in the “The Spy Who Loved Me,” was sold by RM Auctions today in London for £550,000, or $864,000. Add in the sales commission, and the final price was $967,120.
RM Auctions
Several versions of the James Bond submarine Lotus were used in “The Spy Who Loved Me.” This one is considered to be the most valuable. That’s a bit below the expected price of between $990,000 and $1.45 million.
It’s unclear why the price was soft, given the boom in collectible cars and its status as an especially famous car from the silver screen. But auction experts said that because the Lotus was not a functional car, it may not have been as attractive to buyers. Although equipped with fins and propellers, it did not have wheels.
There were eight different versions of the Lotus used in the “Spy Who Loved Me,” and the one being sold was used only for the underwater scenes.
Submarine Car 