Stunning 1997 Lotus Esprit V8 Sells for 2024 Toyota GR Supra Money, The Mods are Lovely

If you don’t believe the Esprit is a true icon, then you probably don’t know your history. Lotus nailed the design of this car from the get-go, which doesn’t happen all that often in this industry.

It was one of Giorgetto Giugiaro’s first wedge-shaped sports car designs. Its styling would endure for decades, and not even Peter Stevens, the man who later went on to work on the McLaren F1, dared mess with a winning formula. Another fun fact, and a personal favorite of mine, is that the original DMC DeLorean was built on a chassis derived from that of the Lotus Esprit.

In other words, Doc and Marty wouldn’t have gone Back to the Future without an assist from the British sports car industry – and the Esprit in particular.

With that in mind, I’d like to direct your attention to an absolutely beautiful 1997 example finished in Calypso Red with a tan interior. This car recently sold for $63,000, which is pretty much what you’d spend right now on a brand-new 2024 Toyota GR Supra 45th Anniversary Edition (the flagship spec).

This is an Esprit V8, first and foremost. It means business not just visually, but also performance-wise, but we’ll get to the engine in a second. Let’s run through some of its visual and convenience features: it’s got staggered-diameter wheels (17 & 18 inches), Brembo brakes, pop-up headlights, a removable roof panel, leather upholstery, an Alpine sound system, power windows, and air conditioning. You could easily live with this as your daily driver.

Then we arrive at the mods, which are all quite tasteful, if I may say so myself – from the black alloy wheels and smoked turn signals to the Arvin exhaust system, aftermarket headlights, and custom LED taillights. According to the ad, the rear taillight and exhaust panel come from a 2002 Esprit, while the steering wheel used to belong to a Lotus Evora.

As for the engine, it’s a mid-mounted 3.5-liter twin turbocharged V8 with 25,000 miles (40,000 km) on the clock. It also happens to be factory-rated at 350 horsepower and 295 lb-ft (400 Nm) of torque, with everything going to the rear wheels via a 5-speed manual gearbox.

I know what you’re thinking. Not a lot of power, right? Wrong, because the Esprit V8 can accelerate from zero to 60 mph in just 4.4 seconds. Keep in mind, these only weigh 2,900 lbs, roughly as much as a Volkswagen Jetta.