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Wet Nellie

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Not to be confused with Wet Nelly.
Wet Nellie
Wet Nellie
History
NameWet Nellie
NamesakeLittle Nellie
OwnerElon Musk (since 2013)
Ordered1976
BuilderPerry Oceanographic, Inc.[1]
Cost$100,000
Laid down1976
Launched1976
Sponsored byEon Productions
Completed1976
Acquired2013
Commissioned1976
Maiden voyage1976
In service1976
General characteristics
Class and typecustomized Lotus Esprit
Typewet sub
Length14 feet (4.3 m)
Beam6 feet (1.8 m)
Height4 feet (1.2 m)
Propulsion4 electric motors
Capacity2
Crew2

Wet Nellie[2] is a custom-built submarine, created for the 1977 James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me in the shape of a Lotus Esprit S1 sports car.[3] The Esprit was chosen to give James Bond a glamorous car to drive. "Wet Nellie" is named in reference to Little Nellie, an autogyro featured in the James Bond film You Only Live Twice.[4] Little Nellie was named after Nellie Wallace.[5]

Construction

The submarine is a "wet sub" for SCUBA divers, not having a dry environment, requiring occupants to don scuba gear.[6] It was built by Perry Oceanographic, Inc., of Riviera Beach, Florida, USA,[7] specifically for the film, using a Lotus Esprit S1 bodyshell, for about $100,000 at the time.[8] The wedge shape of the Esprit is designed to provide downforce, so would force the submarine to dive, so was compensated for by fins placed where the wheels would be in a conventional Esprit. The sub would require a crew of two to operate. It has four electric motors that allowed forward motion only.[3] The interior bears no resemblance to that of a car, being just a platform for the scuba divers, and the equipment used to operate, drive, and power the sub.[4]

Filming

During filming of "The Spy Who Loved Me", the submarine was piloted by ex-U.S. Navy SEAL Don Griffin.[8] The fictional history of the car in the film was that it was developed by Q-Branch. In filming, six Esprits were used (tagged "PPW 306R"), several specially modified for water duty, though only one submarine.[3]

Post-film life

Upon completion of filming, the submarine went on a promotional tour.[4] Afterwards, it was shipped to Long Island, New York, and placed in storage. The storage unit was prepaid for 10 years; at the end of the lease, no one claimed the contents, so the contents of the storage locker were placed on auction. The buyer paid less than $100 for the unit.[4][8] The buyers did not know the contents when they bought it, and from 1989 to 2013 occasionally exhibited the submarine.[8] The then owner, also owner of a tool rental shop, had the exterior restored.[4] It was put up for auction as a Bond Car in 2013.[8] In September 2013, the submarine sold at auction for £550,000,[9] at RM Auctions in Battersea, south west London.[6] Elon Musk bought the vehicle, and as of 2013, planned to convert it into the functional car-submarine from the film.[10] Musk stated that he plans to use Tesla Motors' electric drive train in making his conversion a reality.[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ http://www.perrybaromedical.com/company-history.html Perry Baromedical Corporation is a successor company to Perry Oceanographic, Inc., although it no longer builds submarines.
  2. ^ The Telegraph (India), "Bond’s 'Wet Nellie' car sold", Reuters, 10 September 2013 (accessed 2013-11-13)
  3. ^ a b c Auto Evolution (ae), "Wet Nellie: The Second Most Famous Bond Car", Alex Oagana, 9 May 2011 (accessed 2013-11-13)
  4. ^ a b c d e The Telegraph (London), "Inside James Bond's Lotus supersub", Leo Wilkinson, 12 August 2013 (accessed 2013-11-13)
  5. ^ Places & Faces, "The Name's Wallis" (accessed 2013-12-12)
  6. ^ a b THM Magazine, "James Bond’s “Wet Nellie” Hits Nearly $1 Million at Auction", Matt Gergeni, 10 September 2013 (accessed 2013-11-13)
  7. ^ The Telegraph (London), "Billionaire Elon Musk admits he bought James Bond's submarine car", Chris Irvine, 18 October 2013 (accessed 2013-11-13)
  8. ^ a b c d e autoblog, "James Bond Lotus Esprit submarine car headed to auction [w/video"], John Neff, 28 June 2013 (accessed 2013-11-13)
  9. ^ London24, "Bond submarine car ‘Wet Nellie’ goes for £550,000 at Battersea auction house", 10 September 2013 (accessed 2013-11-13)
  10. ^ USA Today, "Tesla's Elon Musk buys 007's sub to make it real", Chris Woodyard, 18 October 2013 (accessed 2013-11-13)
  11. ^ CNBC, "Tesla's Elon Musk wants to make sub car a reality", Paul A. Eisenstein, 18 October 2013 (accessed 2013-11-13)

Further reading

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wet Nellie.
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