Rolls-Royce is famously one of the most creative automakers in the world, if not the absolute most creative of them all. As a Rolls-Royce customer, the sky is the limit when it comes building your luxury car. Actually, safety and emissions regulations are really the limits but you get the idea. Rolls’ team of Bespoke craftsmen and women use cars as blank canvases for your wildest automotive dreams and last year was a record year for Rollers custom-tailored by those very talented artists.
Rolls-Royce sold 5,152 cars last year, a sales record in the brand’s 116-year history. Among those cars sold, almost all of them were custom-tailored by the brand’s Bespoke division. That’s not entirely surprising, to be honest. If you have the money to buy a Rolls-Royce, wouldn’t you want it as bespoke and special as you can possibly have it? If you can afford the car, surely you can afford the Bespoke treatment. That said, the number of cars custom-tailored by the Bespoke team was impressive.
“I am proud to say that the craftsmen and women of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars have surpassed themselves once again in creating an array of extraordinary motor cars, tailored to the requirements of some of the most influential and discerning individuals in the world. These motor cars become unique works of art and it is an extraordinary feat when you consider that each and every single one of these unique commissions has been created on one production line at the Home of Rolls-Royce in Goodwood, West Sussex – the skills of these individuals knows no bounds.” said Torsten Müller-Ötvös, Chief Executive, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars.
To celebrate the incredible work done by the Bespoke team at Rolls-Royce, let’s take a look at some of the incredible creations from last year.
Million-Stitch “Rose Phantom“
An entrepreneur from Stockholm wanted a Rolls-Royce Phantom that enveloped his passengers in flowers. The result of that vision was the “Rose Phantom”, a Phantom which featured one-million embroidered stitches inside the cabin. A stunning rose motif was created from those million stitches, with the star flower of the cabin being the special rose that was bred for Rolls specifically by Harkness Roses. That very rose is actually the same sort featured in the garden at Rolls’ home in Goodwood. The famous Starlight headliner illuminates the roses and a rose motif is featured in the glass “Gallery” dashboard design. It’s a stunning car that really shows off the level of craftsmanship the Rolls-Royce Bespoke team is capable of.
Ghost “Zenith” Collection
Back before the Rolls-Royce Ghost went on sale, it was originally the 200EX experimental concept. To commemorate ten years of the current Ghost, Rolls-Royce decided to create the “Zenith” Collection of 50 highly bespoke models. Inside, ambient lighting shines through perforated leather and it even features the new Shooting Star headliner, which features light trails that fire at random throughout the headliner of the car. Each of the 50 “Zenith” Ghosts features a commemorative ingot inside, made from the Spirit of Ecstasy from the 200EX car.
Bayside Dawn Aero Cowling
To celebrate the seafaring city of Yokohama, Japan, a customer from that very city had a Rolls-Royce Dawn customized by the Bespoke team with a maritime theme. Open-pore teak panelling is reminiscent of stunning luxury yachts and high-performance speedboats. Its maritime blue and white color scheme evokes the history and tradition of Yokohama Bay.
Digital Soul Phantom
Product Designer Thorsten Franck had his Rolls-Royce Phantom customized in a contemporary way, with 3D-printed stainless steel design, made from data created by an algorithm. That stainless steel is then hand-polished and then coated in 24-carat gold and then set into smoked Eucalyptus wood. It’s equal parts old-school craftsmanship and digital technology and looks very unique.
Wraith Eagle VIII
The Wraith “Eagle VIII” honors the first-ever, non-stop transatlantic flight by Alcock and Brown in June, 1919, which was powered by Rolls-Royce Eagle VIII engines. Rolls created 50 of these unique machines, which feature a unique starlight headliner that replicates the night sky above them during their trip in June, 1919. The flight path and constellations are embroidered in brass thread and the exact moment the pair left the clouds, also illustrated in embroidery, and navigated by the stars is indicated by a red fiber-optic light. Brass speaker covers depict the estimated 1,880-mile flight distance whilst a brass plaque engraved with Winston Churchill’s stirring quote commending the pair’s remarkable achievement adorns the driver’s door. The Smoked Eucalyptus fascia, vacuum metalized in gold and inlaid with silver and copper, depicts a birds-eye view of the Earth at night, showing a light map of roads and homes glittering below.
Rolls-Royce “Horology” Phantom
Anyone that owns a Rolls likely also has a fine collection of watches. Or a extremely gaudy one but let’s assume the former. The “Horology” (study of time-keeping and art of watch-crafting) Phantom was designed after a meeting of a Rolls designer and master watchmakers in La Chaux-de-Fonds in Switzerland, the watch-making capital of the world. It features a lot of gold inside, as well as a depiction of a watch movement in the glass art gallery. The Rolls clock is also in a solid silver guilloché case.
These beautifully crafted motor cars are all fantastic examples of the incredible work the Bespoke team is capable of. If you can dream it, Rolls can make it. So long as you can afford it, of course. But as the saying goes; if you have to ask how much it costs…