We were lucky enough to ride in the concept car two years ago, when the now Phantom Coupe was called the 101EX. Our words that day were "You have to build this car." And we've been waiting ever since the end of that sentence for this day to come. It was evident even as a concept that no other coupé -- with two syllables, please -- promised such a return to Jazz Age glamor, when a gentleman motored from Antibbes to Monaco in a Hooper bodied Phantom II to visit that Polish countess he'd had his eye on. So, when Rolls-Royce called with the invite to Goodwood to drive the new Phantom Coupe from England to Crozet, in the South of France, it would be our chance to see if the promise was delivered.
Rolls Royce has been on a roll of late, with a 25-percent increase in global production in 2007, and the gorgeous new Phantom Coupe ready to add to last year's record totals. Since the official announcement of the ultra-luxury two-door, 200 orders have already been taken, which represents all production for 2008. Even more impressive is the fact that two-thirds of the orders come from customers who have never before owned a Rolls. It doesn't hurt that the Phantom Coupe's Drophead sibling is sold out through summer 2009, which means the fixed-top Phantom has little short-term competition on the show floor.
It's hard to blame the filthy rich for sopping up Phantom Coupes so quickly. The luxury-liner's incredible contours, stunning materials, and mind-blowing suicide doors make us lie awake at night thinking of ways to become wealthy enough to one day own one. So far all we've thought of is more blogging, which means we'll have to settle for something a bit less well-heeled.
Perhaps calling it a true GT might have been a bit of a stretch, but with changes to the chassis, steering, brakes and suspension, Rolls Royce promised that this new Phantom Coupe would take Rolls into a new market. Appearing very similar to the concept 101EX that debuted in 2006, the Coupe and its Drophead brother are also expanding the bottom line for RR. Sales for RR were a huge 1010 for 2007. This new model and the Drophead that it follows are taking on the Bentley Continental GT and GTC challenge with more of a focus on the driver. With help from parent BMW, it's understandable that these cars might be a little better on winding roads than one might suspect. We'll have to wait until we get one in the AB garage to make our final judgment. What isn't being debated here is the fact that the coupe is a gorgeous car. Perhaps even nicer looking than its convertible sibling. While the car itself is a beautiful piece of rolling sculpture, the gray color and standard wheels shown on the first production model today didn't do much to show it off. When they opened the suicide doors, however, it really didn't matter anymore. This thing has Style with a capital "S" and that's what it takes to succeed in this niche.
The Autoblog crew is setting off for Geneva to bring you all the goodies, and along with the wealth of exciting new production cars and concepts, there'll be a whole mess of customized tuner cars, as well. Usually the latter comes after the former, but in this one case both will be arriving together as Castagna has prepared its own take on the new Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe.
Following the lead of its own Rolls-Royce-inspired Gran Tourer Sport concept from last year's show, the Castagna Phantom Coupe Royale replaces the Phantom's aluminum and steel hood, trunk-lid and pillars with polished carbon fiber bits. The Italian carrozzeria has also worked its magic on the Roller's 6.75-liter V12, boosting output from 453 hp up to 600. As is apparent from the photo above, Castagna has also fitted its own rims, but while other aftermarket firms scramble to find new ways of hinging doors, Castagna appears to have reversed the Phantom's portals to open in the more conventional fashion. We'll be on hand to see the Phantom Royale concept, along with Castagna's wood-sided Clubman and 500, from the show floor over the next few days.
Rolls-Royce has released pics of the Phantom Coupé, and if any one from Rolls is reading this, you can sign us up for one in every color. And we don't mean the standard colors -- we mean every single color. Sure, the car only has two doors, but even we still experience a bit of a catch when calling this car -- all eighteen-and-a-half feet of it -- a coupe. Which is why we don't: we call it a "coupé." That final accent, like the Alpine summits in the above picture, puts the car in its proper perspective: that of the Jazz Age gentleman racer hopping from Antibes to Nice for dinner with the Polish Countess and a moonlight sail.
Descended from the 101EX concept, the Coupé is nearly all-aluminum on an aluminum spaceframe, with steel apparent in only the A-pillar surround, the hood, and the picnic boot. Behind the raked grill of the Coupé resides the by now well known 6.75-liter V12 with 453-HP and 530 lb-ft to pull its 5,798 pounds. The back end of the car comes up 250mm short of the Phantom's length and manages to pull out a BMW-like 49:51 weight distribution. To keep up those kinds of driver's car credentials, the rear dampers are stiffer, there's a thicker anti-roll bar, and the steering has been given some additional feel. A Sport button on the new, thicker steering wheel enacts a new shift program that holds gears longer, the autobox kicks down faster, and the pedal response is quicker. With the changes, sixty comes up in a rather sporting 5.6 seconds. Three choices of 21-inch wheels will be offered, two of them forged alloy numbers.
Inside are all of the usual Rolls-Royce accoutrements, but the only two words you need to remember are: "starlight headliner." You might not want to have it on all the time, but as a showstopper it will certainly do the trick.
