Lotus Esprit Corgi Toy Cars - 3 from 1977 - value?

Silhouette Man

I don't often collect James Bond film memorabilia, but I recently purchased three different Corgi toy cars of the underwater Lotus Esprit from The Spy Who Loved Me (1977). One is a large-scale version of the Lotus with a back bumper that pulls out to reveal the underwater fins and back rotor projectors, the other two are Corgi Juniors, one with OO7 stickers, the other plainer and with none. Bought tghem in a second-hand bookashop - any idea of their value/rarity. I expect they're not worth too much, as they are bound to have been mass-produced, but I'd really like to know more about them, their variations and how many people here on AJB have them as part of their James Bond memorabilia collection?

Higgins

Corgi Lotus are not valuable - particulatly when not perfectly new and without box.
Noone will be able to give you a value without pics and more details.

Unboxed and used between Eur 1-12 each

Silhouette Man

Bondtoys wrote:

Corgi Lotus are not valuable - particulatly when not perfectly new and without box.
Noone will be able to give you a value without pics and more details.

Unboxed and used between Eur 1-12 each

Yes, these are unboxed and in none-too-perfect condition. The Lotus features still weork, though, which is always a bonus. I guess that they instead have sentimental value, at the very least!

Rainier Wolfcastle

I am not sure if you mean the propellers with "back rotor projectors". If so, it's a model from the Director's Cut range produced from around 2003-'10 and can be bought new and boxed for about £10. Earlier Esprits, original and re-issues from 1997 and 2001, did not have propellers. Does your model look like this?


The Juniors are original production, they have never been re-released after 1983. But in played-with condition they can be obtained for £1-2. One is missing its sticker, there were no plain versions - although a few can be found with a 007 tampoprint instead of a sticker, these are quite rare.

Silhouette Man

Rainier Wolfcastle wrote:

I am not sure if you mean the propellers with "back rotor projectors". If so, it's a model from the Director's Cut range produced from around 2003-'10 and can be bought new and boxed for about £10. Earlier Esprits, original and re-issues from 1997 and 2001, did not have propellers. Does your model look like this?


The Juniors are original production, they have never been re-released after 1983. But in played-with condition they can be obtained for £1-2. One is missing its sticker, there were no plain versions - although a few can be found with a 007 tampoprint instead of a sticker, these are quite rare.

No, the back projectors (a technical term?!) are white on mine - you simply push the black grill on the bonnet and out they pop. There's also a button that does something on the roof of the Lotus where there are four holes. It' definitely from the tiome, given condition and how it looks - just a pity it's not worth a whole lot. Still, very nice to have all the same! Sentimental value, I guess as they come from the iconic Bond film TSWLM.

Silhouette Man

Anyone else got these cars from the 1970s - I guess that they must be pretty common!?

ChromeJob

I remember they were cheap as chips, and about a common.

Silhouette Man

ChromeJob wrote:

I remember they were cheap as chips, and about a common.

Yes, sadly I suspect that you're correct - they are all too common. First time I'd ever come across them in a second-hand shop, though. As I say, they have sentimental value for the James Bond fan!

Silhouette Man

See my article partly on The Spy Who Loved Me and the gadgetry of the Lotus Espirit car here on my The Bondologist Blog:

http://thebondologistblog.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/kingsley-amis-draxs-gambit-and-reform.html

Silhouette Man

Are the reissues of these worth buying at all, or are they worthless now too?

If your Lotus Espirit from 1977 was still in its original box, what would it be worth moneywise nowadays?

Higgins

SM,

your questions are worthless until we see pics.
In general reissues have lesser value that the original issues, boxed models have higher value than unboxed models and playworn models have less value than perfectly mint models.

Silhouette Man

Bondtoys wrote:

SM,

your questions are worthless until we see pics.
In general reissues have lesser value that the original issues, boxed models have higher value than unboxed models and playworn models have less value than perfectly mint models.

Right, well I'll try to get some pics uploaded on here, then. As you know, I'm rather new to this whole collecting thingymajig!

Rainier Wolfcastle

Silhouette Man wrote:

Are the reissues of these worth buying at all, or are they worthless now too?

If your Lotus Espirit from 1977 was still in its original box, what would it be worth moneywise nowadays?

Not much. They usually sell in the £30-50 range, for a near mint car in the typical good-but-not-too-good box and some loose missiles. Empty boxes in the same condition seem to go for the same amount as those including the car ...
Rarely does a Lotus exceed £100, then it has to be in a box where the header card has not been folded over and the original missiles still on the sprue. (Original missiles are orange-red or pinkish red while those from the re-releases are deep red.) Usually even the better examples still go for well below £100.

The less common black/yellow/red 1981-83 box with separate - often missing - header card sells for higher prices than the earlier, more attractive film-strip box.


I find the reissues collectable, too. The first from 1997, no. 65001, includes a white-metal figure of Jaws; the 65002 from the Definitive Bond Collection range has a very nice box design but is the same model as before. The next from the Ultimate Bond Collection is not worth getting, basically the same model in a cheap looking box. Spyguise made a special version in a box with Jeff Marshall's great artwork. The Director's Cut range has a rather boring box design but the model itself has the propellers and many tampoprints added. The white plastic parts have a tendency to yellow on this model, though.


PS: I didn't want to correct you before but since you have it in your blog, too: it's Esprit, not Espirit. Just one letter - but you wouldn't write "Ian Flemming" either, would you? :007)

Silhouette Man

Rainier Wolfcastle wrote:

Silhouette Man wrote:

Are the reissues of these worth buying at all, or are they worthless now too?

If your Lotus Espirit from 1977 was still in its original box, what would it be worth moneywise nowadays?

Not much. They usually sell in the £30-50 range, for a near mint car in the typical good-but-not-too-good box and some loose missiles. Empty boxes in the same condition seem to go for the same amount as those including the car ...
Rarely does a Lotus exceed £100, then it has to be in a box where the header card has not been folded over and the original missiles still on the sprue. (Original missiles are orange-red or pinkish red while those from the re-releases are deep red.) Usually even the better examples still go for well below £100.

The less common black/yellow/red 1981-83 box with separate - often missing - header card sells for higher prices than the earlier, more attractive film-strip box.


I find the reissues collectable, too. The first from 1997, no. 65001, includes a white-metal figure of Jaws; the 65002 from the Definitive Bond Collection range has a very nice box design but is the same model as before. The next from the Ultimate Bond Collection is not worth getting, basically the same model in a cheap looking box. Spyguise made a special version in a box with Jeff Marshall's great artwork. The Director's Cut range has a rather boring box design but the model itself has the propellers and many tampoprints added. The white plastic parts have a tendency to yellow on this model, though.


PS: I didn't want to correct you before but since you have it in your blog, too: it's Esprit, not Espirit. Just one letter - but you wouldn't write "Ian Flemming" either, would you? :007)

Sorry, I've now corrected the spelling in this thread and in the blog article. Thank you for all the great info, Wolfie!