Forty-three years after James Bond drove his iconic, ski-clad Esprit Turbo into the Alps, another very special Lotus is back in the snow at the annual F.A.T. Ice Race. Make sure you bring your tinted ski goggles…
We all know that when James Bond isn’t driving an Aston Martin, he’s driving a Lotus. And despite its modest screen time, the Esprit Turbo from 1981’s For Your Eyes Only ranks up there as one of the most iconic. Its distinctive red and gold colour scheme, twinned with two pairs of skis mounted over its louvred rear window, made it an instant classic.
It’s a car that has also provided the inspiration for several Lotus-based homages in recent years. A special edition Lotus Evora in 2009, as well as a one-off Lotus Exige in 2015, have both sported the colour scheme and ski rack synonymous with the Bond car.
The ski-bedecked Elise adorning these pages, however, is less of a tribute act and more of an abstract covers band. Imagine the Bond theme covered by Kraftwerk, turned up to eleven, performed inside a nuclear reactor. In place of the Esprit’s spooling turbo is a whining supercharger; instead of the retro louvres is a rear wing that looks like it’s straight off a Boeing 747; replacing the eighties paint job is the unfeasibly bright ‘luminous orange’.
What really makes this Elise as special as Roger Moore’s Esprit, however, is the fact that it represents a closing chapter in the Lotus story, it being the last Elise ‘Cup’ car ever built. As the number plate suggests, this is the final example of the track focussed, uncompromising and gloriously analogue Elise Cup 250.
Keen to honour 007’s Esprit Turbo for this year’s F.A.T. Ice Race, a number of Bond-inspired modifications have been fitted to the original car. As well as a ski rack and colour-coded skis, a custom mounted tow hook (for pulling a skijorer) conjures up memories of 007’s adventures on ice - all the way from 1969’s On Her Majesty's Secret Service, through to 1999’s The World Is Not Enough. For the real Bond aficionados, a pair of ‘Burglar Protected’ stickers are tucked away on the side windows - a reference to the self-destructing white Esprit Turbo in For Your Eyes Only.
As for the event itself, imagine a super cool cars & coffee meeting with a Finnish rally stage and a couple of F1 drivers thrown in for good measure. Organised by Ferdi Porsche (the great-grandson of his namesake) and hosted in Zell Am See, Austria, it features a diverse and mouth-watering selection of modern and classic performance cars, all kitted out with ski racks, snow tyres and full tanks of anti-freeze. It’s completely bonkers and utterly brilliant.
Equally bonkers and brilliant is the paint job on this one-of-one Elise. It's the kind of colour which ought to carry a health warning when you glance at it in full sunlight, or at least be used to paint the ambulance which picks you up afterwards. On the continent, luminous orange (or RAL 2005 to be specific) is exclusively reserved for emergency service vehicles.
But the owner’s inspiration didn’t come from Europe; instead, he looked across the pond - to Team Lotus’ exploits in the STP-liveried Indy cars of the 1960s. The iconic luminous orange STP livery featured on the Lotus Type 38 (the first rear-engined car to win the Indy 500) and Type 42, as well as the wedge-shaped Type 56 & 64. Other notable mentions include pole position in 1968 and a driver roster including Graham Hill, Jim Clark and Mario Andretti.
Speaking to the car’s owner, Chris, it’s clear that this connection to Lotus’ heritage played an important role in his choice of colour: “I spoke to the Lotus design team and they told me that they’ve been keen to make an ‘STP’ special edition Elise for years - similar to the Type 25, Type 72, etc - but they never got the clearance, primarily because of how fragile this colour is.”
In fact, when Chris first asked Lotus to paint the car in RAL 2005 the answer was a flat ‘no’ - it was simply too big a task. Chris wrote to Lotus boss, Matt Windle directly, compelling him to reconsider: ‘I believe the last Elise Cup 250 should leave Hethel with a glow,’ he petitioned. Fortunately, that line was enough to convince Matt to green-light the project. Fourteen layers of bright orange paint later, the final Cup 250 was born.
Out here, against the backdrop of the Austrian Alps, the car does more than just glow. The snow-covered landscape intensifies the impact of the incandescent paintwork, making it a rolling beacon for miles around. If Bond needed to destroy his enemies’ retinas whilst making a swift exit onto a nearby ski slope, this is the car he’d choose.
Inside the car is a different story. The whole interior is finished in black, with subtle accents of silver. Even the Lotus badges, normally stitched into the seats, have been deleted. The space feels single-minded and focused - with the glorious, exposed gear stick and perfectly proportioned steering wheel taking centre stage. All as it should be.
Glancing across to the passenger side, a plaque confirms that this is every bit the final ‘Final’ - ‘The Last Lotus Elise Cup 250 Produced at Hethel, England’. It’s a reminder that this is the kind of car which would normally roll off a delivery truck, into a private collection, only to be seen again at an auction in a couple of decades’ time. But like the car’s specification, the owner’s attitude towards his ‘asset’ is distinctly unique.
“We’re living in a time when collectables are being locked away and people don’t use them,” Chris laments. “I want to add miles and enjoy this car. I want to use it on mountain passes, B roads and ‘twisties’. This whole fetish about not putting any miles on your car or locking it away – it’s ridiculous. This is a car for the drivers not the collectors.”
With over 15,000 miles on the clock already, it’s clear that he’s serious about his aims.
As well as the Bond-themed modifications, you may have spotted that this car features another striking, non-standard option - the enormous, carbon rear wing from the Elise Cup 260. It’s a part which, amongst other aero updates, helped that car to generate a whopping 180kg of downforce at 151mph. To put that into context, it’s almost twice as much as a Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS.
Out here in the ice and snow, the tiny Elise will take all the downforce it can get. As the rear wheels scrabble for grip, we’re reminded that winter isn’t exactly the Cup 250’s natural habitat. But honestly, who cares? Because all we can see beyond those luminous wheel arches are the beaming smiles of everyone who sees this car coming.
Thumbs up, flashing lights, beeping horns; not to mention smartphones being drawn from pockets quicker than a silenced pistol from a tuxedo. It’s a reminder that driving a Lotus should be fun - whether that’s at ten-tenths on a racetrack, carving up an alpine pass, or sliding sideways with a set of bright orange skis on its roof. Now, come, come, Mr Bond… when was the last time you saw an Aston Martin do that?
Images by Jon Gorman