Rolls-Royce has revealed the Rolls-Royce Phantom Regatta, a one-of-one Phantom Extended (long-wheelbase) commission that pays tribute to the racing yachts of the English South Coast and their regattas held on the nearby Solent and Chichester Harbour, which can be seen from Goodwood.
Sure, the car may look like a regular Phantom from a distance. But this is Rolls-Royce, and nothing it builds is ever truly ‘regular’. The blue is no ordinary blue; its deep marine tone is called Regatta Blue, and it’s complemented by English White that lines the lower parts of the car for a two-tone finish.
Rolls-Royce says this was made to recreate the line where the hull of the yacht meets the water. To finish off its looks, it sits on 22-inch fully polished disc wheels — inspired by the mirror finish of polished steel winches of a racing yacht.
Inside is where things start to feel properly special. The colour theme is inspired by a yacht under full sail, with the deep blue below representing the waters and the white representing the canvas above. The front of the cabin is upholstered in Navy Blue leather; the rear suite is finished in Grace White. For a pop of contrast, the seat and door piping, along with the contrast stitching and steering wheel, are finished in both tones.
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Just like the furnishing of a yacht, the wood veneer used is Piano Milori paired with Open Pore Royal Walnut. This is featured on the Waterfall (rear passenger centre console), rear doors and picnic table tops.
Each picnic table took 120 man-hours to complete. It uses 16 ‘planks’ of Royal Walnut, all cut from the same section of wood for a uniform grain pattern. The ‘planks’ were also laid from the centre outwards for a bookmatched effect. The pieces are then lined with individual pieces of Black Bolivar wood, measuring two millimetres wide to avoid any visible joins, in the manner of deck caulking.
Centrepiece of it all is the hand-painted Gallery, named “Watercolour”, spanning across the front dashboard of the Phantom Regatta; it was curated by the marque’s in-house artist using specially developed paints. The artwork wasn’t done on a piece of canvas either; it’s an open-pore wooden substrate.
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As for the bespoke Starlight Headliner, Rolls-Royce says it’s inspired by the swirling tidal currents around the Isle of Wight. Altogether, the design comprises 1,307 hand-placed fibre-optic ‘stars’.
As for the final bespoke touch, each ‘eyeball’ air vent is engraved with a set of geographic coordinates that are only visible when the vent is tilted forward. The passenger-side vent includes the coordinates of Goodwood House; the driver-side vent carries those of the Home of Rolls-Royce. This references that these two locations only sit within one mile (1.6km) of each other.
Whether it’s the bespoke artwork, the tide-inspired Starlight Headliner, or even the hidden coordinate engravings, the Phantom Regatta is another reminder that, with Rolls-Royce, the smallest details often tell the biggest story. The car is set to make its public debut at Chichester Harbour during the Goodwood Festival of Speed, which runs from July 9 to 12.
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