Rolls-Royce News

It will take nearly eight days to get things set for the 11th show.The cars will not be put in place under spotlights until a couple of hours before the industry preview next Thursday morning, before the public opening at 5pm.The battle for best in show is running hot, though Ford and Holden are still refusing to talk about their cars.Show organiser Russ Tyrie, of the VACC, says: "We still have no idea what they are doing."But there's a group of $1 million-plus exotics, and a concept has been shipped from Europe for the show."I suppose the most expensive car is the Senso (inset) concept. It is probably about $3 million with all the technology," Tyrie says."The most expensive production car at the show is probably a toss-up between the Rolls-Royce Phantom (above), the Maybach 57S and the Pagani Zonda."There are 42 manufacturers this year. The show space was sold out in July. There will be hundreds of cars, so you don't have to work hard to get to $25 million worth of cars."There is plenty of hard work to get the show built and ready."It is almost like building a house in just over a week," Tyrie says. "Many of the stands are very complex, both in their construction and set-up."Some are double-storey and some are shipped in from overseas. Many have audio-visual elements that anyone would love to have as a home theatre."There will also be action outside the show itself, with stunt driver Russ Swift arriving from Britain at the weekend for his second appearance in Melbourne."He will be driving a Peugeot 307 this year. And it promises to be pretty spectacular, Tyrie says.Swift is famous for his high-speed parking, handbrake turns, skids, slide and two-wheeling antics. He will practise in the car park at the exhibition centre from Wednesday, and give four performances each day of the show.This year's event will start at lunchtime on Tuesday with a street parade featuring some of the show's biggest drawcards."We are expecting to have 10 cars in the parade. They will be the most exotic cars from the show and they will all be driven from the corner of Burke and Swanston streets, along Swanston St to Federation Square."The cars will be displayed afterwards and there will be a series of interviews, including one with Russ Swift," Tyrie says.The Melbourne Motor Show opens next Thursday at 5pm and runs until 6pm on February 19.

The Phantom EWB, as it is known, will be an undisputed star of the show when it opens its doors at 5 pm on Thursday 9 February at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre.Remarkably, it will not be the Show's most expensive car - that will be the $1.2 million Pagani Zonda Roadster - but it does have vast potential for optional equipment.It has an extra 250 mm in the wheelbase to create additional space for the rear occupants and for specialist items crafted by the company's Bespoke design and engineering team.Rolls-Royce owners can choose from a palette of 45,000 paint colours, special woods, fridges, wine cellars, safes, humidors and computer equipment.Regardless of Bespoke equipment, all the beautiful wood and leather fittings are created by Goodwood craftsmen and women.Rolls-Royce is the world's top selling super-luxury car, and last year sold 796 Phantoms in more than 40 countries, including Nigeria, Bulgaria, Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan - and, of course, Australia.The new Phantom has attracted a new type of owner, which has resulted in higher average mileages - up from around 3000 km to almost 10,000 km, and in some cases as much as 50,000 km.As average mileage goes up, the average age of owners is coming down - it now stands at around 56 years old, and many of these customers are new to the brand.