Elon Musk plans to turn real-life James Bond car he bought for $1m into electric submarine
- Elon Musk bought the Lotus Esprit Submarine from The Spy Who Loved Me
- He paid $900,000 at auction after a bidding war
- It isn’t a functioning submarine but Musk plans to change that using leftover parts from Teslas
Published on Nov 23, 2023 at 6:32 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Nov 24, 2023 at 1:29 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Alessandro Renesis
It’s no surprise the richest man in the world, Elon Musk, gets whatever he wants – even if it doesn’t exist yet.
And, for the founder of Tesla, an electronic submarine is on his wishlist to add to his car collection.
Like a real-life Bond villain, Elon Musk bought the actual Lotus Esprit Submarine from The Spy Who Loved Me.
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The Lotus Esprit played the part of a submarine in the 1977 James Bond film.
The billionaire bought it at auction in 2013, setting him back a whopping $900,000 after a bidding war with another car enthusiast.
Bond was driving the modified Lotus Esprit in the movie that could change into a submarine – but it wasn’t actually functional.
The vehicle itself was put into a storage locker for years after filming and many believed it was lost for good.
And, never one to turn down a challenge be it in space, the human body or elsewhere, rumor has it he plans to turn it the car into a real working electric submarine.
The transformation into electric submarine will happen using leftover bits from Teslas.
It’s currently parked at Tesla’s Design Studio in Hawthorne, California.
The CEO of Tesla, Musk tweeted about the project in 2016 to X (then known as Twitter).
“If curious abt TSWLM car, am still planning to do a sports sub car that can drive on roads. Just a side project. Limited market potential :)” he said.
In an interview following his purchase Elon made it clear that it was a “low priority project” but was keen to see it through.
Tesla’s powertrain is sealed so their tech could allow them to create a propulsion system that works both in water.
Air intake isn’t necessary, which helps.
The transition from road configuration to water or underwater configuration should make for an interesting engineering and design challenge for Musk and his Tesla team.
But he’s never taken to the seas.
Aside from claiming the Cybertruck is “waterproof enough to be a boat” – and one driver taking that literally.
And if this doesn’t cement his status as a super villain then this 2015 tweet will.
“If this works, I’m treating myself to a volcano lair. It’s time,” he said.
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All Supercar Blondie contributors undergo editorial review and fact-checking to ensure accuracy and authority in automotive journalism. After gaining her BA Hons in French and English at the University of Nottingham, Amelia embarked on a vocational diploma from the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ). This led to numerous opportunities, from interning at Vogue to being on the small team that launched Women’s Health magazine in the UK, which was named the PPA Consumer magazine of the year for three years running. As Health, Beauty and Fitness editor, Amelia personally received a Johnson & Johnson Award and was shortlisted for both PPA and BSME titles. Since then, Amelia has created content for numerous titles and brands, including the Telegraph, 111 Skin, Waitrose, Red magazine, Stylist, and Elle, as well as being Head of Content at Vitality and Editor in Chief at INLondon magazine. “My superpower is translating technical jargon about the mechanical workings of a supercar into a relatable story you’ll want to share with your friends after you’ve read it.” After joining the SB Media family as a senior journalist in September of 2023, Amelia’s role has evolved to see her heading up the SEO output of the editorial team. From researching the most ‘Google-able’ key terms to producing evergreen content - it’s been a time of hard work, growth, and success for the editorial team and the Supercar Blondie website. “I like to think of myself as a ‘method journalist’. In other words: I live and breathe whatever I am writing about. When writing about fitness, I trained as a personal trainer, and as a beauty editor, I completed an ‘expert’ in scent diploma with the Fragrance Foundation. “During my tenure at Supercar Blondie, however, I did something I never thought possible: I passed my driving test at the age of 36. One day I’d love to train as a mechanic to better understand what happens under the hood, too. “My sweet spot is providing readers with a ‘takeaway’ (read: something new they didn’t know before) after reading every one of my stories. While I don’t claim to be an expert in the automotive world, I know the experts and bodies in the field to rely on to provide our readers with an informative and thought-provoking story every time they visit the site.”
