It is a purely subjective perception that instils respect for the Rolls-Royce marque. Rolls-Royce is majestic. The bodies are large and heavy; the cars glide rather than drive, let alone race. Rolls-Royce takes no detours via a hybrid or any other half-hearted solutions — it is all or nothing. The British have little choice, after all. For the moment, like every other marque. An inevitable evolution of the model range. Visually, the design team has given one model after another the final touch. And naturally it also graces the Spectre, first unveiled last summer.
The raked line
The impetuous, light-hearted Emily — or Spirit of Ecstasy — has something playful about her as a bonnet ornament, a humorous counterpoint to the dignified presence of a Rolls-Royce. Since 1911 she has stoically endured various facelifts, all the while performing her duty quite superbly. To offer a little less wind resistance, the line of the Phantom Coupé was taken and flattened, made more flowing; even Emily crouches slightly lower. The new line shows to best advantage when the roof and bonnet are darker than the rest of the car. Which is why, of the variants on offer, I instantly liked the Spectre in Chartreuse and Gunmetal best.
Keeping composure
The enormous door closes by itself when, seated in the driver’s seat, you press the brake pedal. Very convenient. And then you are alone. Silence all around. A rich, upholstered, sedan-chair silence. Plenty of glass in the cockpit; for a moment you are reminded of the displays in the BMW i7. Quite possibly there are synergies. The — slightly rain-dampened — drive leads from the Hotel Bachmair on the Tegernsee (D) through the Isar valley to Schloss Elmau and back to the Tegernsee, to Käfer Gut Kaltenbrunn. Nothing exciting happens, just a little ice on a side road; you balance the 2890-kilogram jewel across such a passage as if walking on eggshells. Unthinkable, sliding into the ditch with it. Nor is speeding an issue on these country and village roads, although the Spectre could probably do it superbly. The 584 hp speak for themselves; according to the factory figures, the Spectre goes from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.5 seconds. But that — the simple act of accelerating — is so terribly mundane.
That certain something of nothing
What fails to materialise is the sublime feeling of driving a Rolls-Royce. It is a wonderful car, nobly crafted; the author has already been to Goodwood (GB) and toured the production facility, and knows the love of detail that goes into the work there. But the driving experience itself is practically neutralised by the much-sung Rolls-Royce effect, which lets the driver believe he is travelling on a flying carpet (the air suspension adapts predictively to the road every five milliseconds, thanks to cameras). All Rolls-Royces can do this, and ever better — the Spectre too. Which, on top of that, is almost inaudible. Then again, in the Phantom that brought us from the airport to the Hotel Bachmair we heard and felt nothing whatsoever either. The suspicion suggests itself that the esteemed Spectre customer will have no different driving sensation, whether at the wheel or as a passenger, than in any other modern Rolls-Royce.
A model for collectors
The Spectre, though, probably makes no claim to be better than its predecessors. Rolls-Royce has, since time immemorial, set out to build the best car in the world. Mission accomplished, for those who appreciate it. Interestingly, 40 per cent of the customers who have ordered a Spectre (or several) are first-time Rolls-Royce customers. Which means: there are evidently people who have been waiting for the electric one. And among them, no doubt, a few collectors who want to place the very first fully electric Rolls-Royce in their hallowed halls.
An illustrious club
Rolls-Royce, moreover, does a good deal more for its customers to leave them wanting for nothing. Practically every car is personalised in some way; no two Rolls-Royces are alike. And anyone who has bought a Rolls-Royce since 2003 automatically belongs to Whispers, the illustrious Private Members’ Club of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. Which is nothing less than the most exclusive concierge service imaginable. The roughly 20 000 high-end members to date actually network with one another the way the rest of us do on LinkedIn. Whispers concierges offer curated experiences, will fly in the New York Symphony Orchestra for a private concert on request and procure tickets for the Oscars gala. Behind it all, however, are not Rolls-Royce employees anticipating the customer’s every wish and making the impossible possible, but a firm specialising in precisely that. At the end of the test drive you wonder whether you would treat yourself to the Spectre if you had around half a million Swiss francs to spare (327 500 euros, before taxes). Would you?
This article appeared in MEN issue 1/24 (May 2024).
