Rolls-Royce

The English love two things: the monarchy and the Rolls-Royce. The the brand founded in 1906 by Charles Rolls and Frederick Henry Royce benefitted from the Platinum Jubilee Celebration of the late Elizabeth II, to present their very own crown jewels; unveiled at the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel in Monaco, the new Phantom Range and especially the Phantom Patriot seduced the lucky chosen-few who had the honour of being seated in this legend.

Not at all surprising, because every Phantom on-show at the Principality are works of art, magical… and unique! One fundamental rule at Rolls is that no treasure coming out of the workshops at Goodwood should be identical to any other. Each customer can ask for a personalized touch, whether it’s their initials embroidered onto the headrest, their date of birth on the steering wheel, or the colour of the roof lining. « The sky is the limit » Rolls Royce boss, Torsten Müller-Ötvos told us. « We’re not here to judge our customers’ tastes. Our job is to fulfil their desires within the framework of security. Cabinetmakers, painters, upholsterers, tanners, sculptors, all these demanding professions have a role to play in this at Rolls Royce."

Let’s be clear, the Rolls is not really a car as much as an incarnation of absolute luxury, all kinds of possibilities, and every standard of excellence. At 5.75 meters long and 2.02 meters wide, the new Phantom fills the space and grabs attention. And even though the 6750cc V12 engine gracefully glides along under its 2.5-ton weight, it only requires minimum experience to handle the four-wheel drive, because between one century and another, tradition and customer experience has changed, just as 20th Century Rolls Royce owners gave their keys to their chauffeurs, 21st century buyers like to tame the beast themselves. « 80% of our customers buy the Phantom to drive it themselves, » says Torsten Müller Ötvos. « The chauffeured car ethos belongs to an older generation. » 

Nevertheless, Rolls-Royce does not yield to the whims of the fashion of the moment. The English brand has made an eternal pledge committed to resisting the passage of time. In this light, the dashboard has not surrendered to the dictates of the digital display, on the contrary, it celebrates the return of analogue dials. So, at the wheel of the Phantom, there is no connection to a central computer. There is a link to history though. "What will become of these new technologies in twenty years?” says Torsten Müller-Ötvos. “When the other manufacturers advise you to download after-sales service software, Rolls Royce will always call on a technician to come and change the defective part in your own garage in whatever four corners of the world it is located. It was true yesterday. It is true today. And it will still be true in fifty years.” So, legend has it.