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Rolls-Royce considering carbon coachbuilding?

There's any number of applications in which you might expect to find carbon fiber on an automobile, but a Rolls-Royce is not one of them. That could change in the near future, however, as the super-luxe auto marque is reportedly looking into using the lightweight material on a range of special models.
The idea, according to Edmunds, would be to rebody certain models in carbon fiber as a sort of in-house coachbuilding operation for discerning customers looking for something a little different from what the neighbors in the next mansion or ivory tower over have in their gold-paved driveway. While the carbon-fiber bodywork might help shave off some of the weight from a range of cars that tip the scales at 5,500 pounds or more, the principal notion here is exclusivity.
The business case for these bespoke automobiles apparently stems out of two developments. For one, the vast majority - over 90 percent - of Rolls-Royce customers opt for some manner of customization or another. For another, parent company BMW has been working hard to reduce the cost of carbon-fiber production in particular for the new i3, and that expertise could turn these premium-priced creations a greater cash cow for Rolls-Royce than the development of a sport-utility vehicle ever could.

Even Aston Martin and Rolls-Royce have designed flying taxis

Think British-built taxi cabs and you're likely to think of the classic, black London taxis. However, there are British companies eager to take taxis to the skies — bearing vaunted nameplates. Aston Martin has created the Volante Vision Concept, which isn't a sports car, but a luxury VTOL aircraft. It is the product of a joint venture with Cranfield University, Cranfield Aerospace Solutions and Rolls-Royce, and Aston says it's a "near-future study" that previews a flying autonomous hybrid-electric vehicle. It's meant for both urban and inter-city travel. The hybrid powertrain would come courtesy of Rolls-Royce Electrical, which has already provided such systems for marine and train use. The Volante Vision Concept's design language has been overseen by Marek Reichman, who stated the following: "We are at the beginning of a new generation of urban transportation; vertical mobility is no longer a fantasy. We have a unique chance to create a luxury concept aircraft that will represent the ultimate fusion of art and technology. We have used forms and proportions that express the same devotion to design, engineering and beauty that shape our cars." The leather interior bears familiar, winged Aston Martin badging — though this time the wings are especially appropriate. Beyond working with Aston Martin, Rolls-Royce plc has also designed a flying taxi of its own. Similarly VTOL, Rolls-Royce's hybrid-electric taxi has rotating wings and uses a gas turbine engine paired to hybrid tech; it is designed to carry four or five passengers and offers a 500-mile range with a top speed of 250 mph. And Rolls, of course, as a major supplier of aircraft engines, knows a thing or two about flying. Rolls says that if there is a business case for the flying taxi, it could see production in the early-to-mid-2020s. The Rolls-Royce concept was presented Monday at the Farnborough Air Show. Related Video: Featured Gallery Aston Martin / Rolls-Royce Flying Taxis Image Credit: Aston Martin, Rolls-Royce plc Design/Style Aston Martin Rolls-Royce Technology Emerging Technologies Autonomous Vehicles Commercial Vehicles Future Vehicles Luxury Special and Limited Editions air taxi

Rolls-Royce gets Inspired by Film with latest Wraith special [w/video]

"You like me, you really like me!" If Rolls-Royce could tune its exhaust note to speak those words, (in Sally Field's voice, no less) we get the feeling it would. But since it can't it has done what it does best: launch a special edition. In this case, it's called the "Inspired by Film" edition, and it's based on the Wraith. Its creation was inspired by And the World Stood Still, a rather dramatic promotional video that accompanied the Wraith's launch two years ago. The film, which you can view below if you missed it the first time around, involved 100 DSLR cameras, 36 computers and nearly a mile of cabling, orchestrated in Barcelona to capture the spirit of the Rolls-Royce fastback. It was decorated with a Gold Award by the International Visual Communications Association and was recently admitted to the National Archive of the British Film Institute. So to mark the occasion, Rolls is rolling in to the New York Auto Show with this special edition. Taking the Silver Screen theme quite literally, it's decked out with two-tone silver paint, a solid silver Spirit of Ecstasy hood ornament and grey leather with ebony and aluminum trim. The special edition will be available to order right after its debut in Manhattan, and of course comes with the 6.6-liter twin-turbo V12 churning out 624 horsepower to make the Wraith the fastest, most powerful production model in the company's history. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. ROLLS-ROYCE WRAITH 'INSPIRED BY FILM' DEBUTS AS LAUNCH FILM IS ACCEPTED INTO BFI NATIONAL ARCHIVE 31 March 2015, Goodwood The groundbreaking Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Wraith launch film, 'And the World Stood Still', has been accepted into the BFI (British Film Institute) National Archive, the world's most significant collection of film and TV. To celebrate the event, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars has created Wraith 'Inspired by Film', which will debut at the 2015 New York Auto Show tomorrow, 1 April 2015. The film, which won a Gold Award at the 26th International Visual Communications Association (IVCA) Awards, caught the attention of the BFI's Senior Curator for Non-Fiction Films, Patrick Russell, who considered it a striking piece of contemporary cinematography and so decided to accept it into the archive. "We are delighted to see Rolls-Royce's Wraith launch film enter the BFI's collection," commented Russell.