Rolls-Royce News

It may not be a lot by most motor companies' standards, but Rolls-Royce last year sold 1010 cars worldwide which was a 25 per cent increase and the first time the bespoke builder had reached four figures for a year.It was also the fourth successive sales increase since the company was re-launched in 2003.Australia joined in on the record-making with 17 sales, representing 42 per cent growth from 12 in 2006 and more than double the 2004 figures.Australia is the third largest market for Rolls in the region behind China and Japan with Australian dealer Trivett Classic delivering two Phantoms pictured right, to Queensland and two Drophead Coupes to the Gold Coast.Trivett Classic general manager Bevin Clayton said they expected the growth to continue in 2008.“Already, we are beginning to see inquiry rates on the up, compared to last year,” he said.“We have six confirmed orders at the start of the year.“We have every reason to be optimistic, because Rolls-Royce is expanding its model range to add a two-door, four-seat coupe by the end of the year giving our customers more choice.”This model will complete the Phantom family line-up alongside the Phantom, Phantom Extended Wheelbase and Phantom Drophead Coupe.“We view the (economic) situation as positive but understandably with a little uncertainty due to the changeover in government,” he said.“Our clientele is also optimistic about the economy for the year ahead, the only concern being the continuing rise in interest rates.”A new Rolls-Royce model series will be launched in 2010, currently named RR4. 

The powerplant was confirmed in Detroit this week as work on RR4, the code-name for the sub-Phantom newcomer planned for 2010, moves to the next step. Rolls-Royce is tapping its German owner, BMW, for the basic mechanical package for the new engine but says it will be unique to the brand in everything from its tuning and styling to many of the individual mechanical parts. Details are still scarce, even though Rolls-Royce admitted last year that the 'compact' would still be about the size of a 7-Series BMW. But company chief Ian Robertson is finally opening up to build expectation for RR4 following the runaway success of the Phantom Drophead Coupe and the upcoming Phantom Coupe later this year. “To date I haven't been able to tell you much about RR4, but I can announce today that we are developing a brand-new engine for this model series,” the Rolls-Royce managing director says. “Phantom is already the most efficient car in the super luxury segment and the new engine will be a further substantial advance." “The engineering development is now well under way. I recently drove an early test car and can confirm that it is an outstanding product and an authentic Rolls-Royce.” The new motor will be more compact and efficient than the 6.7-litre V12 fitted to the Phantom, and will produce 338kW and 720Nm. No one is saying officially that it is a V8 but neither are they denying it. Rolls-Royce is cashed-up and aggressive on the new-model front, a total contrast to the tough times at its German rival Maybach, following record sales in 2007 and with the RR4 program committed and moving ahead on schedule. “Building work on our manufacturing plant at Goodwood is now under way, expanding operations in readiness for our new model series,” Robertson says. “This is the largest building program since the plant was built in 2002. But, crucially, we are not expanding the footprint of the building.”

In a new sales record for Australia, 17 cars were sold last year - netting the company in the region of $17 million.Sticker prices for the exclusive cars start at $915,000 for a base model Phantom, and rise to $1.2 million for a drophead coupe.Australia recorded 12 sales for the whole of 2006.The strong demand pushed sales growth to 10.4 per cent in the Asia Pacific region.Australia is the third-largest market in the region for the BMW subsidiary, following China and Japan.Sales in China grew by about 70 per cent, while sales to the Arab Emirates increased by about 50 per cent.Worldwide, Rolls-Royce sales increased by 25 per cent, with 1010 cars sold in 2007.North America remained the biggest single market for the luxury vehicles and accounted for 40 per cent of last year's total sales.Porsche also enjoyed a good year during 2007.The company's sale of 1380 cars included 47 sold in December alone.Just 20 sales were made in the same month in 2006, with a total of 1154 sales.Close to record sales were recorded across the automotive industry in general in Australia last year. Why do you think Rolls-Royce sales have jumped? Are we getting richer? 

You'd never think that driving a Rolls-Royce would be so difficult. But that's what happens when you get a 1924 version of the brand that for decades was recognised as the world's best and most famous marque.This 1924 Silver Ghost, housed in the National Motor Museum, in Birdwood, is long, the 3.5m distance between its 21in diameter spokes wheels alone equalling that of a small car. Its top-hinged bonnet runs forward to the famous Spirit of Ecstasy lady.Under the bonnet sits a long, inline six-cylinder engine of about seven litres, dressed in brass tubing. There's even an oil can attached to the bulkhead.“There are so many grease and oil points that it could take you hours to grease it up,” museum director Kym Hulme says. But in those days cars were high maintenance items for their owners, or probably in this case, the chauffeur. The car was driven by an eccentric Irishman to Australia. For about 30 years in Adelaide it was owned by Ray Pank, who donated it to the museum a few years ago.Step over the footplate embossed with 'Coachwork by Maythorn & Son, London and Bigglesworth' and the back seat boasts enormous leg room. Your valet and lady-in-waiting can sit on the jump seats facing you. There's even a tiny glass sunroof.But to the driving; best get in from the left and slide across because the gearshift and handbrake lever block access from the right.Now, to the multi-stage starting procedure. There's a carburettor switch on the dash for 'starting' or 'running.' The steering wheel hub has just four controls - a lever for spark adjustment on the right, one for idling on the left, a fuel mixture control at the top and in the centre the ignition switch button which pulls out and rotates. They can get in the way of crossed-arms steering so it's the old push-and-pull routine with hands on the sides of the steering wheel. Steering lightens up at speed but for slow-speed corners it's heavy.The four-speed floor shift has gates but requires moving to the left on its way from first to second but then to the right on the way to third. Or something.It easily moves off in second gear despite its over two-tonne weight and it will idle along in third, such is the torque of this big engine.Downshifting is another matter - double-de-clutching while wrestling with this complicated gear change is difficult.It's a majestic car to travel in - even more so in its day - but you do feel for the chauffeur. 

Rolls is boosting its manufacturing capacity and adding a new model. The BMW-owned marque has announced development plans for its Goodwood headquarters and manufacturing facility in the UK to cope with a new Phantom coupe, a production version of the 101EX two-door, four-seat experimental car.The purpose-built plant will add a second assembly line, with the two running simultaneously and some areas 24hoursa day.One will produce the existing Phantom models and the other will build the new model series. A second working shift will be introduced in 2009.The wood and leather shops also will expand, allowing for installation of new equipment including an automated wood-lacquering system.Manufacturing capacity will also be increased to keep pace with demand for Phantoms. The company sold 22percent more cars by the end of September compared with the same period last year. Forward orders for the four-door models stretch well into 2008, with the Extended Wheelbase model accounting for a quarter of all Phantom four-door sales in 2007.Orders for the new Phantom Drophead Coupe extend right through next year. Rolls-Royce sold 805 cars last year in more than 50 countries, the highest number for 16 years.It was the third successive year of growth for the company. Meanwhile, Bentley board member Stuart McCullough said at the recent Tokyo Motor Show that booming sales could force the company to expand.“In four years our volume has grown from 1000 to 10,000 cars,” he said. “The current volume is closer to where we want it to be, but we may have to change the way we produce cars.“But we won't make those changes until we are certain the volumes are safe. We're reluctant to push too many cars into the marketplace and cheapen the product.”

So what do you buy when you've got a lazy million or so to drop on a ride? A sensible answer to that question may be several cars to cover all occasions — say, a BMW 335i coupe, a 911 Carrera S, a Maserati GranSport and a Bentley Arnage. Not much chance of getting caught short with that combo.But for 200 people on this planet in the next 12 months, it will be a Rolls-Royce Drophead Coupe, the two-door/four-seat convertible whose local launch was held in Melbourne.For the truly selective, just 25 will be built, only a Rolls-Royce Silver Phantom will make the grade.Two of these ultra-exclusive Rollers, produced to mark the 100th anniversary of the original Silver Ghost, have been designated for Australia.One is already sold, and the other is the subject of intensive inquiry at Trivett Classic Sydney.Price, as they say, on application.This modern homage to the Silver Ghost, which was built between 1907 and 1925 and attained legendary status in its own lifetime, is finished in a new bespoke paint, Metallic Ghost Silver.Its 21-inch wheels have chrome centres, and on top of the grille sits a hallmarked, solid-silver Spirit of Ecstasy mascot.Inside, Rose Leaf or Creme Light leather is accompanied by seat piping and headrests embroidered with the R-R emblem.Straight-grained Santos Palisander wood veneer is used throughout. The same veneer is also used on a specially designed presentation box that contains the key, two solid-silver key fobs and a specially commissioned solid-silver Conway Stewart fountain pen.Don't, in other words, go parking it overnight on the street.Comparatively commonplace, the Drophead Coupe is the real-life manifestation of the 100EXconvertible concept.“It has received an overwhelming response, with our 2007 production fully allocated and only a few build slots left for 2008,” Rolls-Royce Asia Pacific regional director Colin Kelly says, reassuring those who may have thought it in danger of Corolla-like ubiquity.“It's entirely true to the values of Rolls-Royce and attracts a new segment of discerning clients.”Although R-R reckons more than half the orders placed for the Drophead are from customers who have never owned a Rolls-Royce, it's some way beyond your and my humble understanding of 'entry-level.'The Drophead is, of course, hand-crafted using top-drawer materials to R-R's exacting standards and is modelled on the J-class racing yachts of the 1930s.Indeed, there's a rear deck of teak. The bonnet is machine-brushed before being hand-finished to ensure a uniform grain throughout.A picnic boot has a split tail compartment that opens in two parts, giving easy access to 315 litres of space. The lower tailgate provides a comfortable seating platform for two adults when it's folded down.A fabric hood, the largest on any modern convertible car, uses five layers of material to insulate the interior.Coach-style, rear-hinged doors let you step aboard elegantly rather than fall into the the car.At the heart of this uber-ragtop is a 6.75-litre V12 that produces most of its 338kW from just 1000rpm. Shorter than the existing Phantom, the Drophead should also outstrip its 6.1-second sprint time to 100km/h.Price? If you have to ask, you can't afford it.But, since you did, it's $1.19 million. Plus on-roads, of course. 

Fewer still can say the first car they owned was one of them.And I'm not talking about a garden variety Ford or Holden, but a little known British marque that has not been seen here for over 50 years.As a motoring scribe I was tickled pink to find out that my my old man's first car was in fact a Riley sports car.How cool is that?Kevin bought the car at age 19 from a girl in Goulburn for 90 pounds, using money he'd had saved as a professional singer and performer.My father I should explain was a man who changed cars almost as frequently as he changed his undies.As a child I have fond memories of the endless stream of treasures that graced our driveway, my earlier memories being of a huge slope backed Peugeot.I guess my father's love of cars must have rubbed off on me.Kev has fond memories of his 1929 two-seat Riley 9 Tourer which also came with a pop up "dickey" seat.There's a couple of stories that go with the car, like the time he rescued his girlfriend from falling out by grabbing her hair in the nick of time as the door swung open going around a corner.Or how about the time the car caught fire in the middle of crossing the Sydney Harbour Bridge.The first Riley automobile - a small voiturette with a single-cylinder engine - was made in Coventry, England in 1898.Production however didn't commence until around 1905.Riley automobiles were marketed under the banner "as old as the industry, as modern as the hour".Percy Riley, who was responsible for the first Riley, patented many engineering features later incorporated by other manufacturers, and designed the famous Riley '9' engine first seen in 1926.He also patented detachable wheel used universally today which meant in the event of a puncture the wheel could be changed for a spare (in the early days of motor transport wheels were a permanent fixture).The wheel caught on quickly and Rolls- Royce took out a license to manufacture it, along with at least eight other manufacturers.Lord Nuffield bought the company after it went into receivership in 1938 for 143,000 pounds.He immediately sold it to Morris Motors which soon became the Nuffield Organisation - a combination of Morris, MG, Wolsley and Riley.Earlier Rileys of the 1920s and 1930s were noted for their flowing, sporting lines as well as sprightly performance which earned them such an illustrious competition career.Production of Riley's continued into the 1960s but later cars were Rileys in little more than name only, with the Riley griller and higher level of specification.BMC even produced upmarket Riley ver- sions of the Morris 1100 called the Kestrel and, get this - a version of the Mini called the Elf, the latter billed as "magnificent motoring in miniature".Don't know what ever became of Dad's Riley?He said he sold the car to two brothers who had plans to convert the roadster into a utility of all things. 

The Ocean Drive concept was rated only an outside chance for showrooms, until Rolls-Royce confirmed production plans for the Phantom Drophead Coupe at the show this week. It's a move that's sure to spark interest among mega-rich fans of open-air motoring.The British company is already talking about waiting lists and long delays in Australia, despite a price beyond $1 million, and it will probably be a similar story in many other country, with multi-millionaires racing to get their hands on the Phantom convertible. The Rolls-Royce announcement was predictable, even if it did not bring the expected return of the Corniche name that has been previously used for open-air Rollers.But that did not stop an instant reply at the Mercedes-Benz stand."It looks as if Rolls-Royce is going to be responsible for Mercedes buyers getting their hands on our new convertible," a Mercedes-Benz US source says. "It is almost certain to get the go-ahead now."The big Benz is being displayed only as a concept in Detroit, but is clearly more than just a dream machine.It shows Mercedes' thinking on everything from body styling to the pillarless side panels needed to make the car a workable production model. They anchor the rear doors and ensure the sort of access to the back seat every other convertible and coupe owners can only dream about.Based on earlier show-to-road programs, it will probably take about three years for Mercedes to transform the concept to a production model. It is based on the S-Class but has different styling, even from the super-expensive CL coupe about to go on sale in Australia.It is much more bluff, with giant wheels and a two-tone paint job that are unlikely to make it to production.But the upright grille could easily make it through the system in Germany, along with the electric folding soft-top roof and Benz's "airscarf" heating system that blows warm air over the occupants' necks.

Michael Schumacher retired with seven world championships, but 007 is up to 21 movies — with six different macho men in the role — and still going hard.During the past quarter-century and in 21 official films, Bond has been the target of more bad guys on wheels than anyone else in cinema history, yet he has always managed to escape without a scratch.And he has often pulled a nifty U-turn on the opposition with some sort of car trickery, from concealed machine guns on a 1960s Aston Martin to an '80s Lotus Esprit that morphed into a submarine — and even a remote-controlled BMW 7 Series in the '90s.Now he's back for the noughties, and doing it again in the remake of Casino Royale, which opened in cinemas just before Christmas. And he's back in an Aston Martin, just like the early days.The hype for the new 007 movie got me thinking not only about Bond's wheelwork in the latest British supercar, but also the dream car of my childhood: a scale model of the Aston Martin DB5 Bond drove in the 1960s.It came with all the Bond gear — revolving number plates, concealed machine guns, tyre-slashers, a bulletproof rear shield and even an ejector seat.In 1965, Corgi released its scale model of the gadget-laden DB5, and by 1968 nearly four million copies had been sold.It remains Corgi's best-known model, and I couldn't afford it.The release of the 21st-century Casino Royale has triggered a lot of talk about 007 and cars and movies.The model-making machine is already rolling again, with scaled-down copies of the DBS and even re-done — but de-gadgeted — replicas of the original DB5. And this time, there was a tiny Aston in my Christmas stocking.It's worth looking at what Bond cameos have done for car companies.BMW experienced plenty of benefit when it signed a multi-movie deal that began with its baby Z3 convertible. The world saw the car first when it was driven on the big screen by Bond. That deal continued with the Z8 convertible and the controversially styled 7, and even a BMW motorcycle.But then Britain bounced back for the last of Pierce Brosnan's appearances as Bond, when he slid back into an Aston and the baddies strapped into a rocket-equipped Jaguar.This time around, Agent 007 is driving a gorgeous new DBS, and there's even a special appearance by an original DB5.A poll has been conducted for the television series Top Gear on the most popular car chase in Bond movie history. And the winner is ... no, not the Aston. Not a Jaguar, nor the Lotus, nor even one of the BMWs.First choice was a crazy little Citroen 2CV that suffered all sorts of punishment — including being cut in half — when it was driven by Roger Moore in the 1981 film For Your Eyes Only. The four-wheeled co-stars:Dr No (1962): Sunbeam Alpine, Chevrolet Bel AirconvertibleFrom Russia With Love (1963): Bentley Mark IVGoldfinger (1964): Aston Martin DB5, Rolls-Royce, Mercedes 190SL, Lincoln Continental, Ford Mustang convertible, Rolls-Royce Phantom IIIThunderball (1965): Aston Martin DB5, Ford Mustang convertible, BSA Lightning motorcycle, gyrocopter1967 You Only Live Twice: Toyota 2000 GT, BMW CSOn Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969): Aston Martin DBS, Mercury Cougar, Bentley S2 Continental, Rolls-Royce CornicheDiamonds Are Forever (1971): Ford Mustang Mach 1, Triumph Stag, moon buggyLive And Let Die (1973): double-decker London bus, Chevrolet Impala convertible, MiniMokeThe Man With The Golden Gun (1974): AMC Hornet and Matador, Rolls-Royce Silver ShadowThe Spy Who Loved Me (1977): Lotus Esprit, Wetbike concept, Ford Cortina Ghia, Mini MokeMoonraker (1979): Bentley Mark IV, Rolls-Royce SilverWraithFor Your Eyes Only (1981): Citroen 2CV, Lotus Esprit Turbo, Rolls-Royce Silver WraithOctopussy (1983): Mercedes-Benz 250 SE, BMW 5 Series, Alfa Romeo GTVA View To A Kill (1985): Renault taxi, Ford LTD, Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II, Chevrolet Corvette C4The Living Daylights (1987): Aston Martin DBS and V8 Vantage, Audi 200 QuattroLicence To Kill (1989): Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow, Kenworth petrol tankerGoldenEye (1995): BMW Z3, Aston Martin DB5, Russian tank, Ferrari 355Tomorrow Never Dies (1997): Aston Martin DB5, BMW 750iL, BMW R1200C motorcycleThe World Is Not Enough (1999): BMW Z8, Rolls-Royce Silver ShadowDie Another Day (2002): Aston Martin Vanquish, Jaguar XKR, Ford Thunderbird convertibleCasino Royale (2006): Aston Martin DBS and DB5, Jaguar E-type roadster, Fiat Panda 4x4, Ford Transit, Ford Mondeo

The $US2.2 million ($2.8 million) built-to-order stretch Rolls-Royce Phantom boasts state-of-the art gadgets including an LCD entertainment system. It also has two rows of rear seats, facing each other. "It was the most expensive car we've ever done," says Robertson. He wouldn't disclose the name of the buyer.Robertson was in Hong Kong last week for the unveiling of a fleet of 14 new Phantoms for the city's Peninsula Hotel, the world's largest such order. They were built to meet the luxury hotel's needs, including larger boots for luggage and refrigerators for chilled towels, Robertson says.The total amount of the deal was not disclosed.China has overtaken Japan as Rolls-Royce's biggest Asian market, with 60 per cent sales growth this year as the country's newly rich entrepreneurs splash out to display their wealth.