The Tesla Model S is as critically acclaimed as they come. The upmarket rear-wheel-drive electric saloon has been causing a stir as a pioneering electric car, but this revelation has left many shaken – not just stirred.
The stylish auto can give you 25 miles to the dollar, take you from zero to 60 mph in 3.2 seconds and has a range of 270 miles on a full charge. Sadly, however, it can’t (yet) drive underwater or fire missiles.
Perhaps that could be in company founder Elon Musk’s future plans, since he allowed this very quirky Easter egg to be released as part of the v5.9 software update – meaning it’s taken almost a year for anyone to notice.
As this user video shows, simply typing Bond’s codename, 007, into the 17-inch touchscreen interface will lead to a depiction of the submersible Lotus Esprit from 1977’s The Spy Who Loved Me.
As it turns out (reported by Jalopnik, TechCrunch and many others), Musk actually spent a million dollars at auction for the original movie prop from ’77 and the newly-discovered Easter egg was a nod from his engineers.
Many have also spotted the Jules Verne reference, with Depth options reaching 20,000 leagues, as per the iconic 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea – where there are even parallels between Captain Nemo and the webbed-fingered Karl Stromberg in The Spy Who Loved Me.
Here’s the Bond scene that inspired it all: