- Encor Design has revealed the first images of its Series 1 restomod.
- Based on the Lotus Esprit S1, the reincarnation will be reengineered in carbon fiber.
- Just 50 examples will be produced.
Many who have been attracted to the wedge-shaped Lotus Esprit S1 unveiled at the 1975 Paris Motor Show have been just as easily repulsed by its unreliability, but now, that drawback is about to become a thing of the past. Encor Design has revealed plans to remaster the iconic car with a rebuilt engine and modern amenities. The best part of any (combustion-powered) Lotus is its chassis, and Encor intends to maintain that element of the original design while enhancing rigidity by replacing the glassfiber shell with carbon fiber, which has the added benefit of reducing weight, something Lotus founder Colin Chapman would surely have appreciated. “In every detail, we act as conservators of Chapman’s ideals,” says Encor co-founder Simon Lane. “Our mission is to elevate the Esprit for a new era without sacrificing its soul.”
V8 Power, Improved Aero, But No Pop-Up Headlights
The first Esprits were powered by four-cylinder engines, but later examples introduced in the mid-1990s moved to a 3.5-liter twin-turbo V8 producing around 350 horsepower. Each Encor Series 1 will begin life as an Esprit V8, so while the styling will be mostly similar to Giorgetto Giugiaro’s original Esprit S1, the powertrain will be more modern thanks to a rebuild of that later V8 (which will, hopefully, address the Esprit’s reliability issues). Horsepower and torque targets are yet to be revealed, but Encor says the donor chassis, engine, and gearbox will be retained to allow these cars to remain registered as Lotus products. That said, there will be some meaningful changes.
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The Esprit (alongside the C5 Corvette) was among the last cars still to be produced with pop-up headlights, but this modern interpretation will replace those with LED projectors. Furthermore, the Giugiaro body’s surfaces will offer “enhanced” aerodynamics following refinement with CAD software.
Pricing Is Sky-High, But Modern Amenities Help Justify The Cost
Inside, Encor intends to refinish the cabin with leather, Alcantara, and machined aluminum, along with “subtle digital integration” of Apple CarPlay, 360-degree parking cameras, and a new climate control system – features not even James Bond enjoyed on the two occasions he drove the Esprit – The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) and For Your Eyes Only (1981), the former with the Esprit becoming a submarine and the latter simply being a cameo of a red Esprit Turbo after the baddies blew up his original white car.
Encor intends to reveal the finished product and more technical details next month. If you’re interested, you may already want to start moving some money around, as the Encor Series 1 will start at £430,000 before options, taxes, and the cost of the Lotus Esprit V8 donor vehicle. That translates to $578,000 plus your Esprit, and those cost anything from $75,000 for a crummy one to $220,000 for an immaculate example like the one you see below. Ouch.
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