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New Rolls-Royce Boat Tail shows off coachbuilding chops of the Phantom platform

Rolls-Royce is flexing the coachbuilding muscles of its highly versatile new Phantom platform with this gorgeous Boat Tail commission. Rolls-Royce claims the build required the fabrication of more than 1,800 unique parts and 20 years of combined man-hours to complete.  Even by Rolls-Royce standards, this is pretty ambitious stuff. The commission was inspired by a 1932 Rolls-Royce Boat Tail, and like the original, it was inspired by, well, boats. Shocking, right? The trim elements both inside and out (Caleidolegno veneer, if you're curious) were designed to be reminiscent of the teak decking you'd see on a wooden yacht. "Today marks a seminal moment for the House of Rolls-Royce. We are proud to unveil Rolls-Royce Boat Tail to the world, and with it, the confirmation of coachbuilding as a permanent fixture within our future portfolio," said Rolls-Royce CEO Torsten Muller-Otvos in the Boat Tail announcement.  "We have formally re-established our Coachbuild department for those patrons who wish to go beyond the existing restraints, and explore the almost limitless possibilities this opens up for them," Muller-Otvos said previously. "We are able to offer our customers the opportunity to create a motor car in which every single element is hand-built to their precise individual requirements, as befits our status as a true luxury house." There are quite a few bespoke accessories as well, though apart from the full picnic service shown in some of the pics (there doesn't appear to be much of a trunk — sorry, boot), most of it was left out of the promotional materials. Most notably absent are the custom his-and-hers Bovet 1822 timepieces that were commissioned alongside the car. They can be either mounted in the dash or worn on the wrist (of course), but we see only a glimpse of one in the top-down image Rolls-Royce provided.

Rolls-Royce wrapped a Ghost in gold for Antonio Brown's Super Bowl use

Well, don't I feel like a jerk. While in San Diego earlier this week for the Honda Civic Coupe launch, I stumbled across a Rolls-Royce Phantom that had been wrapped in a chrome/polished gold finish. It was atrocious, so I took a picture, posted it on Facebook, and captioned it by suggesting that Charles Rolls and Henry Royce were turning in their graves. Now, the company those two men lent their names to have wrapped a Ghost in a very similar style for Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown to drive around San Francisco during Super Bowl 50. It's not clear why Brown is in San Francisco, since his team never made it past the AFC Divisional Playoff. But his love of Rolls-Royce motorcars is no secret. Brown made headlines in the sporting world in July of 2015 for his Phantom. Sporting a matte-black finish with a wide yellow stripe down the middle – just like the Steelers' helmets – the car also wore whitewall tires and bore Brown's signature in a gloss decal. This wrapped Ghost is about as tasteful. Its semi-gloss gold finish is broken up by the silver hood, while Brown's catchphrase, "Business Is Boomin" is displayed along the doors. The front fenders feature Brown's initials and his number. At least there aren't whitewall tires. You can check out the one-off Ghost in the gallery above. Or you could do the sensible thing and forget this thing ever existed. Related Video:

BMW warns profits will fall, plans $13.6 billion in cost-cutting

FRANKFURT, Germany — BMW said Wednesday that profits in 2019 will be "well below" last year's, and it will cut 12 billion euros ($13.6 billion) in costs by the end of 2022 to offset spending on new technology. The company said profits would be eroded by higher raw materials prices, the costs of compliance with tougher emissions requirements and unfavorable shifts in currency exchange rates. The Munich-based automaker also faces increased uncertainty due to international trade conflicts that could lead to higher tariffs. "Depending on how conditions develop, our guidance may be subject to additional risks; in particular, the risk of a no-deal Brexit and ongoing developments in international trade policy," said Chief Financial Officer Nicolas Peter. The company forecast a profit margin of 6 to 8 percent for its automotive business, short of the long-term strategic target of 8 to 10 percent, which it said still "remains the ambition" for the company if given "a stable business environment." BMW said it had no plans for layoffs even as it outlined cost saving measures that include dropping half of its engine variants as it seeks to reduce product complexity. The BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce brands are to get a single sales division. Peter said that given the headwinds to earnings, "we began to introduce countermeasures at an early stage and have taken a number of far-reaching decisions." The company said the measures were needed "to offset the ongoing high level of upfront expenditure required to embrace the mobility of the future." Automakers around the world have faced heavy up-front costs for technology expected to change how people get from one place to another in the next decade. Those include electric cars and renting cars through smartphone apps. Yet the returns from such investments remain uncertain and auto companies face competition from tech firms such as Uber and Waymo. BMW made 7.2 billion euros ($8.2 billion) in net profit last year, down 17 percent from 2017, when it booked a gain of $1 billion from U.S. tax changes. The company faced headwinds from increased tariffs on vehicles exported to China from the United States. It also suffered from turmoil on the German auto market when companies faced bottlenecks getting cars certified for new emissions rules. BMW faces uncertainty from U.S.-China trade tensions that could result in new tariffs if talks do not result in an agreement. U.S.