Over its 10-year lifespan since 2009, the Rolls-Royce Ghost has become the most successful model in the marque’s 116-year history. That legacy looks set to be extended with the new Ghost – a modest and minimalist expression of Rolls-Royce.
The new Rolls-Royce is built on the company’s proprietary aluminium spaceframe architecture first used on the Phantom and subsequently the Cullinan. Underneath the hood is a 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 with 571 hp and 850 Nm to power all four wheels and because it’s a Rolls-Royce, you’re not allowed to ask its 0 to 100 km/h time.
The new Ghost rides on Rolls-Royce’s redeveloped Planar Suspension System, named after a geometric plane which was flat and level. The system took 10 years to develop in order to create a sense of flight on land – something we’d expect of a Rolls-Royce.
The system incorporates a world-first Upper Wishbone Damper (which took five years to develop) positioned above the front suspension to create an even more stable and effortless ride. It’s also the latest evolution of the company’s Magic Carpet Ride suspension system.
The new suspension system works alongside the Flagbearer system which uses stereo cameras on the windscreen to read the road ahead and prepare the suspension system for any changes in the road surface. It’s capable of adjusting the suspension proactively up to speeds of 100 km/h.
Self-closing doors may be a common sight with Rolls-Royce’s of before but it seems the elite now have even lesser time (or energy) for trivial movements like opening a car door. As such customers of the new Ghost can now, for the first time, also open the doors with power assistance.
Customers can first open the door with one pull of the interior handle, then allow the handle to return to its resting position while they check for potential hazards, and then pull and hold it for full power assistance on opening.
Once the door is opened sufficiently for the customer’s egress, they simply stop pulling the handle, which engages a door brake. Impressive but honestly though, a manual door that we commoners use just sounds less complicated to operate.
Not contented with just the Starlight Headliner, Rolls-Royce also applied the same effect on the dashboard of the new Ghost called the Illuminated Fascia; a world-first innovation. Developed over two years and more than 10,000 hours, the ensemble glows around the Ghost nameplate, surrounded by more than 850 stars.
The illumination comes from 152 LEDs mounted above and beneath the fascia, each meticulously colour matched to the cabin’s
clock and instrument dial lighting. To ensure the Ghost wording is lit evenly, a 2mm-thick light guide was used, featuring more than 90,000 laser-etched dots across the surface.
If that does not impress you, check out the Rolls-Royce Wraith Eagle VIII we had the pleasure to shoot earlier this year. Only 50 were ever made, with one unit allocated for Malaysia although it has already found a home, obviously.
GALLERY
