Archive for Rolls Royce

Despite being based on the F01/F02 7-Series chassis, the Rolls-Royce Ghost brings alot more to the buyer’s table. Firstly, it looks completely different. Retro-futurism isn’t only confined to modern incarnations of old musclecars – its quite clear that classic Rolls-Royce design cues are executed well here.

The kind of switchgear employed inside look of a completely different standard compared to what you get in BMWs. They look more like they came out of a luxury yacht or helicopter, and you can also say the same about the look of the wood, it’s just a grade above. Frosted lamps, chrome door handles, traditional violin key switches, eyeball air vents, frosted white dials, the works! The interior uses deep-pile carpets and there are even optional lambswool floor mats.

Leather comes only from bulls raised in pastures free of barbed wire to help reduce leather imperfections. Marks are avoided by the laser cutters. At least 8 hides are used in each interior, and a set of hides are drum-dyed in batches at the same time to ensure colour consistency. Seats and interior panels are hand-stitched.

Producing a Ghost requires it to pass through 60 pairs of hands, 2,000 individual operations, and 20 days. 7 days consist of painting and polishing. The Ghost body is first applied with a phosphate electro-coat to protect against corrosion. Then on comes a layer of primer, a colour coat, and two coats of clear lacquer. Between each layer, the body is hand-sanded and once the final cost is on, it is hand-polished for 5 hours.

The Ghost rides on air suspension at all four points. The electronically adjustable air suspension is so sensitive that it can sense the movement of a single rear passenger from one side of the seat to the other and compensate accordingly. Dampers can self-adjust every 2.5 milliseconds. The car can also raise and lower itself by 25mm.

Power comes from a new 6.6 liter twin turbo V12 engine mated to an 8-speed ZF transmission. 0 to 100km/h takes just 4.7 seconds thanks to 563 hgorsepower and 780Nm of torque from as low as 1,500rpm. The dash does not feature a rev counter but a “power reserve” gauge.

I like how they’ve added umbrella storage compartments integrated into the two front doors. The umbrellas are provided too and are Teflon-coated.

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It’s official – the upcoming Rolls-Royce Ghost will feature BMW’s most powerful engine ever, in a car made by the company at least. The 6.6 liter V12 engine under the Ghost’s hood will produce 570 PS (563bhp) and 780Nm of torque, figures that best the X5 M and X6 M’s 4.4 liter V8 engine 555 PS by a narrow margin. The McLaren F1’s BMW engine tops the M division’s powercharts at 680 PS and 705Nm in its highest state of road-going tune in the LM version.

The 780Nm equals the M V8 engine, and it is achieved at 1,500rpm. 0 to 100km/h will take just 4.9 seconds in the new Rolls-Royce Ghost, and the car will rush towards the horizon to an electronically governed top speed of 250km/h. Power is sent to the rear wheels via a 8-speed ZF transmission.

“Rolls-Royce power is entirely different to anything else in the automotive world. It is delivered free from stress and exertion but at the same time must engage the driver. Ghost is about fingertip control while still enjoying a dynamic connection with the road. Equally passengers need to be cosseted from the physical sensations of acceleration, braking and cornering. Our chassis set up keeps Ghost stable and flat, preventing it from wallowing or pitching in the corners or imposing undesirable forces on those inside,” claims Rolls-Royce Director of Engineering, Helmut Riedl.

The Ghost will feature air struts at each corner of the car’s 3,295mm wheelbase, and will use multi-link aluminium front and rear axles. Engine, exhaust and tyre noise have been engineered to be as quiet as possible, so the way the V12 engine screams to delivers its power will be quite different from the M V8 engine.

The cheapest Ghost will go for £165,000 excluding taxes and delivery charges, beginning late 2009. It will hit our region (Asia Pacific) from Q2 2010 onwards. That’s already just under RM1 million if you convert it directly, so with all the taxes and etc you get in our country I won’t dare imagine what the final price tag will be like.

Related Posts:
Rolls-Royce Ghost: name of the new RR4
Rolls-Royce Ghost to offer “magic carpet ride”

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Rolls-Royce has released a little more info on the new 200EX Ghost, probably in response to the noise Bentley is making about its upcoming Arnage replacement. The Ghost will have a state-of-the-art chassis which uses an intelligent four corner air suspension system and multi-link aluminum front and rear axles.

Various systems like Active Roll Stabilization, four corner air springs and Variable Damping Control operate as one with sensor data read and new settings calculated as often as every 2.5 milliseconds to provide what Rolls-Royce proudly calls a “magic carpet ride”. The air suspension system is so sensitive that it can detect even the smallest of changes. It can even sense the movement of a single rear passenger from one side of the seat to the other, and will compensate accordingly.

Now that’s a huge claim to make considering magic carpets miraculously fly through the air so you shouldn’t have to feel any bumps on the road at all. The suspension system can also rise and lower itself by 25mm to either assist with entry and exit or allow the Ghost to travel over uneven ground.

The Ghost measures 5399mm long, 1948mm wide and 1550mm tall, with a wheelbase of 3295mm. Unlike the Phantom range’s 6.75 liter V12 engine producing 453 horsepower and 720Nm of torque, the Ghost will have a 6.6 liter turbocharged V12 that’s said to produce at least 500 horsepower, and that already exceeds the Phantom’s engine. This will be mated to a 8-speed ZF transmission, similiar to the one in the 760Li and the 5-Series GT.

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Everytime Chinese automakers begin to show that they’ve moving one step ahead towards being able to produce advanced and most importantly SAFE cars, things like this destroy all that goodwill and return them to rip-off death trap status.

This is the Geely GE, which at first impression is obviously a rip-off of a Rolls-Royce. Geely denies this of course, saying that while it shares some similiarities it is “original” because while it looks similiar, the details are different enough to be called something new. The 5.4 meter long car has a 3.5 liter V6 engine under its hood.

The Geely GE (GE = Geely Excellence) shown here is a concept car but it must be for the truly antisocial high class Chinese customer as when you peek into the rear passenger cabin there is only one seat, somewhat like a little throne in the car. Only 3 seats in such a large thing – one driver and perhaps a bodyguard at the front and the boss at the back. The production version will be sold under a new brand called YingLun, which is meant to sound like England.

Rolls-Royce Asia Pacific is contemplating legal action, but we don’t know of any further action yet as of publishing time. But what they did say is that despite imitation being the best kind of flattery, they definitely are not flattered.

Look after the jump for more angles of the Geely GE.

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Rolls-Royce Motor Cars have announced the official name for the model only known as the new Rolls-Royce RR4 so far, previewed as the 200EX Concept early this year. The new car will be called the Rolls-Royce Ghost, in a similiar naming theme with its bigger brother, the Phantom.

Also released with the announcement are some updated specs. The 200EX Concept had a V12 engine (no other details) and a 6-speed auto. The final Rolls-Royce Ghost production car will have a 6.6 liter turbocharged V12 – that’s up 0.6 liters from the 6.0 liter unit in the BMW 760i.

Like the 760i, it will be mated to a ZF 8-speed automatic, and while Rolls-Royce says the 6.6 liter will produced over 500 horsepower, it may very well be closer to 600 since the 760i already makes 544 horses.

Dimensions-wise. the Ghost will measure 5399mm long, 1948mm side, and 1550mm tall with a wheelbase of 3,295mm. That’s a good measure longer than the F02 LWB 7-Series 3,210mm wheelbase, but shorter than the Phanton’s 3,571mm and the Phantom Coupe’s 3,320mm.

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Sharing a similar wheelbase as the BMW 7 Series, the 200EX luxury concept car from Rolls-Royce is expected to carry over a number of parts and features from the BMW 7 Series if the management gives a green light for production. BMW also revealed that the 200EX offers the same ride quality and luxury level as the Rolls Royce Phantom, but it should carry a cheaper price tag, also if it the concept goes into production.

Under the hood lies a BMW V12 power plant which is mated to a 6 speed automatic transmission. The same engine is also featured in the BMW 760i that is expected to be launched soon. Please click here to learn more about the Rolls Royce 200EX Concept as well as to view an image gallery.

This is Rolls-Royce’s new 200EX concept car, which is set to be unveiled to the public for the first time at the Geneva Motorshow early next month. This car has gone by various names in the last few months, the 200EX, the RR4, these are all codenames for the production version which has yet to be named in public.

Despite this being a concept, it should look very similiar to the production model, something that the BMW Group has been known for doing for their last few concept cars. BMW promises that this “baby” Rolls-Royce will ride as well as traditional Rolls-Royce models such as the Phantom, and it will even use an air suspension like in the Phantom. This model is based on some components from the long wheelbase F02 7-Series chassis, which only has air springs at the rear.

It will have its own height, length and wheelbase, unique to the car and not shared with any other model. Its wheelbase of 3295mm is longer than the LWB 7-Series F02’s 3,210mm, but shorter than the Phantom’s massive 3,571mm wheelbase. Not sure whether the F01/F02’s rear wheel steering will make it into this vehicle or not, but if the whole idea is a more compact Rolls with a more engaging drive I don’t see why the rear wheel steering system won’t fit the bill.

Under the hood will be a new BMW V12 engine which will also debut in the 760i, and some publications have reported a 6-speed auto, so I have no idea what happened to that 8-speed automatic transmission that was supposed to be sourced from ZF. While we enjoy the concept for now, BMW is still working hard on a production version which will be revealed later this year at the Frankfurt show.

Check out a gallery of shots after the jump.

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Click to enlarge

The Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe goes on sale officially in the Middle East today, a place where all the oil-rich need something new as an outlet to spend their money anyway. Rolls-Royce probably hopes its this new Phantom Coupe.

The Phantom Coupe is a two-door coupe built on an aluminium chassis which helps reduce weight a little, helping the 6.75 liter V12 engine with 453hp and 720Nm of torque move the car a little faster.

Unlike the Phantom Drophead Coupe that allows you to drive the top down to watch the clear starry night, owners of the Phantom Coupe has to make do with a funky “starlight headliner” which illuminates the ceiling of the car with more than 1,600 fiber optics to give the impression of a star-filled sky.

You can have a look at this starlight headliner after the jump.

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Rolls-Royce Motor Cars (BMW’s subsidiary that makes Rolls-Royces since 1998) has released preliminary sketches of its upcoming smaller car to be slotted under the Phantom range, debuting in 2010. The car is called the RR4 at the moment, but the production car may get another name.

Under the Rolls-Royce RR4’s engine hood is said to be a new engine unique to Rolls-Royce, but because of the many ways one can define unique, you can expect this to be a derivative of a BMW engine, perhaps a higher displacement version of BMW’s new twin turbocharged 4.4 liter V8. The underlying platform will likely be an adaptation of the new F01 platform that the next generation BMW 7-Series will use.

“Effortless performance and standard-setting levels of comfort and efficiency, executed with the utmost care and attention, remain fundamentals of Rolls-Royce design. The RR4 has a more informal presence than the Phantom models with a greater emphasis on driving. In design terms this is expressed through its slightly smaller dimensions and more organic form, yet with powerful, purposeful proportions. It is a true and uncompromising Rolls-Royce in every sense,” says chief designer Ian Cameron.

Look after the jump for one more sketch.

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Rolls-Royce Motor Cars will unveil its new Phantom Drophead Coupe at the 2007 Detroit Motor Show (NAIAS) beginning Sunday 7 January 2007. Production of the new car will start at Goodwood in the summer of 2007. A few features from the previous Rolls-Royce 100EX concept convertible has been adopted for the new Rolls Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe. The two most apparent aesthetics design features include the brushed steel bonnet and A-pillar and the teak decking for the rear hood cover. The brushed steel is machine finished to give a uniform grain before undergoing extensive hand polishing to achieve a perfect sheen. At the rear, the teak decking is treated with a mix of oils to preserve a natural finish.

The doors are front opening, rear hinged coach doors designed for ease of access to the rear seats. A split tail compartment gives access to a 315 liter boot, not too shabby in actual storage space and very usable but it seems a small number in relative to the size of the car. Bootspace is unaffected even if the soft top is down. The fabric hood is the largest of any modern convertible car. The hood is made of 5 layers of material and is lined with cashmere. The hood was designed for maximum acoustic insulation for cloth top standards.

Of course with every convertible car, the chassis is very important as you’re missing some of the rigidity provided by a hard roof. The chassis is an advanced all aluminum chassis with a 50:50 weight balance, hand made at BMW’s centre for aluminium competence in Dingolfing, Germany with over 140 meters of welding, 20 meters more than the standard Phantom sedan. The entire windscreen surround was designed to be an integral part of the roll-over protection system. The A-pillar struts run right down to the floor of the car. Interestingly, a 20-year old Delorean (that cult classic car of Back to the Future fame) was used in the development process. It was manufactured with stainless steel exterior panels and provided an interesting case study into the long-term durability of using aluminium and brushed steel in proximity with each other, something that might cause steel to corrode because of the aluminium.

The 2620kg car wafts along thanks to a 6.75 liter, naturally aspirated V12 engine with gasoline direct injection and variable valve timing, developing 453hp at 5,350rpm and 720 Nm of torque at 3,500 rpm mated to a six-speed ZF automatic shift-by-wire gearbox. 75% of engine power available at just 1000 rpm, progress from a standstill is easy and remains so throughout the rev range. 0-100km/h acceleration is under 6 seconds, and goes on to a top speed of 240km/h.

More photos after the jump…

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