The engine was mounted longitudinally behind the passengers and drove the rear wheels through a Citroën C35 5-speed manual transaxle also used in the SM and Maserati Merak. Power was from the 1,973 cc (120.4 cu in) Lotus 907 four-cylinder engine that was rated at 162 PS (119 kW 160 hp) in European trim and 140 hp (104 kW 142 PS) in US/Federal trim. The wedge-shaped fibreglass body was mounted on a steel backbone chassis. These first cars became known as ' Series 1' (or S1) Esprits. The Esprit was launched in October 1975 at the Paris Motor Show and entered production in June 1976, replacing the Europa in the Lotus model lineup. Giorgetto Giugiaro at Italdesign Giugiaro Design of the car's mechanical systems progressed, but was not complete when the Esprit was officially announced. ĭevelopment continued with production of a second prototype, registered as 'IDGG 01' and known as 'the Red Car', that would be a functional car. That nameless prototype, often simply called 'the Silver Car', appeared on the Italdesign stand at the 1972 Turin Auto Show and the positive reception convinced Chapman to approve further development. According to Italdesign, Chapman was disappointed with the wind-tunnel test results with the model and halted the project, but the Italian coachbuilder pressed on and built a full-size mock-up on a stretched, modified Europa chassis. Work began on the new car in mid-1971 with production of a 1:4 scale model. Ī meeting between Colin Chapman and Giugiaro was arranged in 1971 by designer Oliver Winterbottom, who also suggested that Giugiaro use his Maserati Boomerang concept as the inspiration for the new Lotus. The second, Project M70, meant to develop a successor to the Europa which, like the Europa, was to be a two-door fixed-head mid-engine coupé. The first, Project M50, resulted in the 1974 Elite.

In 1970 Tony Rudd, who had arrived at Lotus the previous year, proposed two new model development projects. 8 Esprit type numbers and production numbers.4 S3, Turbo Esprit (1982) and derivatives.

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