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Upcoming Rolls-Royce Ghost wears evolutionary design in spy photos

The wow factor of a Rolls-Royce does not come from wild, outlandish design. Its cars and SUV are stately, mature, handsome and do not change looks with a shift of the wind like many vehicles in the auto industry. Those who know model cycles know that Rolls-Royce follows a slightly longer timeline than most, and for the current Ghost, its time is nearly up. These spy shots give us an early glimpse of what the updated model will look like. Even with a ton of camo on the car, the photos confirm what we already know about Rolls-Royce: It's a company that does not stray from what its designers deem to be a classic look. The new Phantom looks like the old Phantom, the Wraith looks like the Ghost, and the Cullinan looks like the Phantom. And thus, the new Ghost is pretty much going to look like the current Ghost, just with a few modernizations that will help the model age as well as Pierce Brosnan. What the spy shots show is evolutionary. It retains its traditional three-box sedan design, if slightly smoothed over. It retains the long hood with the blunt snout and vertical bar grille, it has a high belt line that extends the length of the car, the same coach door handles, and even the exact same wheels (though that is typical of a test car). The changes we notice are minor. The car will likely have updated front and rear lighting, the side mirrors appear to have slightly more aerodynamic designs with cameras embedded, and the small third window appears to have a slight change in shape. Following in the footsteps of the Phantom, the new Ghost will likely ride on Rolls-Royce's new Architecture of Luxury platform for an improved ride and drive. We expect the Ghost will take on the Phantom's new 6.75-liter twin-turbocharged V12 powertrain, and it's possible it could also gain four-wheel steering technology. There are rumors about Rolls-Royce producing an EV in the future, but there's no indication which vehicle it would be, or if that's real at all. Check back in the future, as we'll update details on the upcoming Ghost as we see more photos and learn more information. Related Video:

Rolls-Royce is officially in the SUV business

This might be the most brand-appropriate announcement ever for a previously unthinkinable vehicle, complete with a press release titled like a royal edict. After saying a month ago that it would decide on building an mixed-terrain hauler by the end of the year, Rolls-Royce issued a press release entitled, "An Open Letter from the Chairman and Chief Executive of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars on the Subject of a New Rolls-Royce." Let's hold on a second while the sound of trumpets dies down. Nowhere among its 453 words will you find the acronym "SUV," nor the words "sport" or "utility." You will find talk of "an all-new Rolls-Royce," "a high-bodied car, with an all-new aluminum architecture," "a vehicle that can cross any terrain," and references to Lawrence of Arabia traversing mountain ranges and "the vastness of unexplored deserts" and the founders' "rigorous overland adventures," complete with sepia photos. And then there's this: "History sets our precedent and our future calls us to action." Let's hold on a second while the applause dies down. We don't know when we'll see it - Rolls-Royce says it plans to take its time getting it right, to create a vehicle that is "Effortless ... Everywhere." We would believe any date we read about, though; not even two years ago we were told a Rolls-Royce SUV hadn't even been discussed since such a vehicle couldn't fit into the brand ethos, not even a year ago the company's head designer had narrowed it down to "a shooting brake, not a crossover with a sloping roof. A proper SUV," with the Ghost platform for support and a speculated release date of 2017. If they brought a near-production-ready sample to the Frankfurt Motor Show this year, we wouldn't be surprised. We sincerely hope that, like the image, it comes with a man to shovel any obstacles out of the way. Gather round the dais and enjoy the press release below. It's a whole new world. Related Video: AN OPEN LETTER FROM THE CHAIRMAN AND THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF ROLLS-ROYCE MOTOR CARS ON THE SUBJECT OF A NEW ROLLS-ROYCE 18.02.2015 -- The launch of Phantom in 2003 marked the beginning of the renaissance of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. Since then, we have set a new benchmark for what a super-luxury car should be – unique, hand-crafted, beautiful and rare. Often imitated, Phantom has never been equalled and continues to be hailed as 'The Best Car in the World' by our customers and media alike.

Rolls-Royce Cullinan and BMW 8 Series spied south of Death Valley

Recently, we've stumbled upon a number of manufacturer prototypes running around. Usually, spy photographers sit and wait for hours with cameras primed in order to get a few shots of a car. We just got lucky. First, we caught the new Chevy Corvette ZR1 convertible during a Facebook Live video. A week or so later McGraw snapped a video of a ZR1 coupe cruising in his neck of the woods. Today, our ace photographer Drew Phillips caught a BMW test fleet filling up the new Rolls-Royce Cullinan and 8 Series coupe in Baker, Calif. Baker sits along Interstate 15, about halfway between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. It's just south of Death Valley, and, being late August, suggests that BMW was doing some hot weather testing. Drew was filling up his car when the fleet rolled in. There were at least two of the new king Rolls and a single 8 Series. Both cars were wearing a full swirl camouflage wrap. It's not an uncommon place to see prototypes. Still, seeing a whole fleet roll in is quite a sight. We've seen official photos of the Cullinan before, but these pictures give us our best view of the profile and rear we've had so far. From a distance, it looks like a high-riding version of the new Phantom with a hatch in place of the trunk. The taillights are obviously just filler units. Expect the final version to look very much like the squared off LED units on the Phantom. Likewise the interior and engine should be straight from the Phantom. That means a twin-turbocharged V12, though power is likely to be sent to all four wheels. We've seen the full BMW 8 Series concept a few times now. The proportions on the production car look the same, with a long hood and even longer wheelbase. The nose isn't quite as aggressive as the concept, but we expected the styling to be toned down to meet crash and safety standards. As for engines, look for six, eight and (hopefully) 12-cylinder power under the hood. A plug-in variant is also expected. Both cars have been in development for a long while, so look for full debuts sometime this auto show season. Maybe we'll happen upon some more test mules between now and then. Related Video: