Celebrating the Art of Italian Coachbuilding
Celebrating the Art of Italian Coachbuilding
The Lotus Esprit: the icon designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro.
The Lotus Esprit, wanted by Colin Chapman, begins its story with some difficulties and then it becomes an icon for this English brand. Lotus’ chairman, Colin Chapman, asks Giorgetto Giugiaro to design a new supercar and wants to see a 1:4 scale model as soon as possible. The tests in the wind gallery mark a cx of 0,34 and Chapman, disappointed by the results, stops the project but Italdesign decides anyway to going on with it until the creation of a 1:1 model, presented at the Turin Motor Show in 1972. Chapman, fascinated by this model decides to go on with the project. The Esprit, designed with a new technology for plastic materials, was produced since 1975 in 1700 units. The Esprit’s style recalls the Boomerang, whose lines are smothered. The windscreen, raked at 18°, bold for that time, even though very similar to Manta’s and Boomerang’s one. Only the Esprit mass-production proves that a solution considered futuristic by glass producers is, on the contrary, possible. Lotus Esprit S1 is James Bond’s car in 007 The Spy Who Loved Me (Lewis Gilbert, GB 1977); Roger Moore drives also a submarine version of the Esprit. The car appears also on the following episode of the saga: For Your Eyes Only (John Glen, 1981), but only in few scenes. The anti-theft system blows it up quite soon.
Imagine strolling into a 1970 auto show and coming face-to-future with a vehicle so low and sharp it could slice the bell-bottoms right off your leisure suit. In the 1970s, Italian design houses like Pininfarina, Bertone, Ghia, and Italdesign were in a feverish race to envision the car of tomorrow – and apparently, tomorrow was shaped like a doorstop.
If you’ve ever driven a Volkswagen Golf or drooled over a Lotus Esprit, you have Giorgetto Giugiaro to thank. This Italian design wizard has penned everything from everyday hatchbacks to exotic movie star cars – all in a career spanning more than 60 years. Born into an artistic family in rural Italy, Giugiaro went from sketching cars as a teen to being crowned Car Designer of the Century in 1999. Along the way, he even dabbled in designing cameras, firearms, and yes, a new shape of pasta (because why not?). Buckle up for a ride through Giugiaro’s life and work – a chronological tour of the man who styled the cars we drive and the ones we dream about.
