1969 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow, Chevy V8, Automatic, Excellent Wedding Car on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Rolls-Royce Cullinan revealed: Ultra-luxury SUV is so British, it curtsies

Why did we ever expect the Rolls-Royce Cullinan to look like anything other than a Phantom on a lift kit, minus the trunk? The Rolls-Royce of SUVs perfectly employs Phantom cues, from the raised hood to the strong shoulder line and coach doors. The English off-roader brings a bunch of brand-redefining firsts with it, including all-wheel drive, an off-road driving mode, and a suspension that actively extends the dampers to keep every wheel on the ground. All of the vehicle's innovations serve the tagline that will help sell the Cullinan to wealthy owners: "Effortless, Everywhere." View 30 Photos The Cullinan stretches 210 inches long on a 130-inch wheelbase, 17.2 inches shorter overall than a Phantom on a wheelbase 9.8 inches shorter. However, the SUV is 5.6 inches wider than the sedan and its roof stands 7.2 inches higher. Built around the same all-aluminum Architecture of Luxury as the Phantom, the extra bits that make the Cullinan ready for dirty work add just 200 pounds compared to the car, for a curb weight of 5,864 pounds. The 6.6-liter twin-turbo V12 (Rolls-Royce still refers to it as a 6.75-liter) produces 563 horsepower and 627 pound-feet of torque, matching the Phantom's horsepower but losing 37 lb-ft of torque. However, the remaining torque comes 100 rpm sooner in the Cullinan than in the Phantom. Rolls-Royce whipped up another narrative trick to keep the Cullinan from being associated with the two-box SUV herd, calling it "the first 'three-box' offer in the SUV sector." With only two boxes visible from outside, we assume Rolls-Royce refers to the available glass partition in the cabin separating the seating area from the cargo, for Cullinans equipped with individual second-row seats. That would make for three distinct areas, and serve as a "nod to the era when luggage was mounted on the exterior of the motor-car, so the occupants did not travel with their belongings." Speaking of which, the feature we normally call a "tailgate" is called "the Clasp" on the Cullinan, a reference to when drivers put luggage on the outside of the car. The electrically operated two-piece hatch has a narrow lower section that folds down to help support the electronic drawer in the Recreation Module. The module provides custom designed storage for tools suitable to an owner's hobbies, like hawking, hunting, or drone racing, or it can stow the seats and cocktail table for the Rolls-Royce Viewing Suite. The Cullinan earns its chops in the cabin and under the skin.

Rolls-Royce teases Wraith debut in Geneva

Rolls-Royce is headed to the 2013 Geneva Motor Show with a new addition to its lineup: the Wraith. The ultra-luxury automaker says it plans to start deliveries by the fourth quarter of this year, though details are scarce at the moment. The automaker has contented itself with saying the Wraith will the "most dynamic, powerful and beautiful Rolls-Royce in the company's history." We hear it will be the most modest, too.
Rolls-Royce first began using the Wraith nameplate in 1938. The original car used a tweaked version of the 4.3-liter inline six-cylinder found in the company's 25/30, but its real claim to fame came from the fact that it boasted speed-variable hydraulic dampers. Capable of reaching speeds of up to 85 miles per hour, Rolls-Royce only built 492 examples of the vehicle's chassis.
You can look for the new Wraith to bow at the Geneva Motor Show in March. In the interim, check out the shockingly bare press release below and get ready for a spate of teasers to follow.

Rolls-Royce EV likely to take the name Silent Shadow

Rolls-Royce last year trademarked the name Silent Shadow with the German patent office, and that moniker is likely to be applied to the British luxury carmaker's upcoming battery electric vehicle. In an interview with Bloomberg Television, Rolls CEO Torsten Muller-Otvos confirmed that the company is working on a purpose-built EV. While he would not reveal the scheduled launch date, Rolls-Royce has previously said an EV model would arrive before the end of the decade. The Silent Shadow name echoes the Silver Shadow of 1965-1980. Although Rolls-Royce has previously ruled out doing a plug-in hybrid, the German-owned British automaker has been inching toward full-electric vehicles for some time. At the 2011 Geneva auto show, it introduced an electric version of the last-generation Phantom named 102EX. More recently in 2016, it unveiled the stunningly futuristic 103EX concept, which was fully electric. "Electrification fits perfectly with Rolls Royce — it's torquey, it's super-silent," Muller-Otvos said. It's true that, at Rolls-Royce, the sound of the car's engine has never been a selling feature. Instead, the brand has long promised near-silent motoring. Indeed, a 1958 ad for Rolls-Royce by advertising legend David Olgivy, makes a claim to the car's quietness. And that ad has become what many consider to be the most famous auto ad of all time: "At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this new Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock." Maybe they'll want to revisit that claim when the Silent Shadow makes its debut. Green Rolls-Royce Automotive History Electric