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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:

Rolls-Royce Dawn teased, will debut on September 8

The Rolls-Royce Dawn is coming, and we now have a handful of teaser shots, showing what we already know will be a four-passenger convertible based on the Ghost/Wraith. We have one more detail to confirm, too: the Dawn will officially greet the world on Tuesday, September 8, ahead of a public showing at the Frankfurt Motor Show. We can't yet show you the whole car, but there's still quite a bit we can tell you. The Dawn has a lot of Wraith elements, but is different in a number of ways (and not just because it's a convertible). Excluding the doors, every body panel on the Dawn is new. The front looks like a Ghost, but the chin is pulled forward slightly. With the top up, the convertible kind of looks like a big, fancy hot rod. It's an exceptionally pretty car, especially in dark blue. The interior uses a four-seat configuration, with ample space in the rear for passengers. The Dawn's cabin uses the same layout as the Wraith, and it's seriously luxurious. There is plenty more information we still can't share with you, like engine details, but it won't be long before we can spill all the beans. Stay tuned for the official details and images on Tuesday, September 8.

'Most expensive safety deposit box in the world' has a Rolls-Royce ferry

Ultra-high-end security and storage company International Bank Vaults (IBV) has several locations around the world, but as of next week, none will be more exclusive than the London branch. IBV is set to open a new vault with what's claimed to be the most expensive safety deposit boxes in the world. With price come perks, however, including a personal Rolls-Royce Ghost chauffeur to take customers to and from the vault. According to The Guardian, IBV, owned by South African millionaire Ashok Sewnarain, decided to open the new vault as a response to rapidly increasing demand for private wealth storage from the world's richest people. “We wonÂ’t deal with millionaires," managing director of the new facility Sean Hoey said. "We will be dealing only with billionaires.” For the top tier of the rich, a full room can be rented out for about $3.3 million per year. On a much lower scale, the cheapest available safety deposit box will cost about $785 to rent per year. Those boxes are pretty small, however, at about two inches high, 6.3 inches wide, and 19.3 inches deep. Hoey says it's enough space to store jewelry or "a fair few gold bars."  At this location, when the customers need to deposit or withdrawal spare gold bars in between polishing sessions, a chauffeur will arrive in a Rolls-Royce Ghost for proper luxury transportation. To get to the underground vault, two door people will take clients through fingerprint and iris scans. The vault itself is secured from theft attempts by steel lining in the walls, ceiling, and floor. Read more and see photos of the building on The Guardian. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.