![]() ![]() Enjoying the solitude for a moment, I realized I must have also created the world’s biggest blind spots for Jeeves.Īs one would imagine, once underway, the new Phantom is smooth and impossibly quiet. Then another to my left, and finally a third set behind me and I found myself sitting quietly in the dark. Another button closed a set of black drapes to my right. The crystal glasses supplied by Rolls-Royce to buyers were wisely removed because drivers like Jeeves probably shouldn’t be trusted. Behind my left elbow is where I’d put my champagne if I had any. With the seat massagers switched on, I spent the next few minutes casually exploring my mobile kingdom. When I thought nobody was looking, I ran my fingers through the decadence and imagined a world where more tactile treats like this existed. I pushed another button and a small footrest rose up beneath the plushest, thickest, black wool carpet I’ve ever seen. The extended wheelbase version presented to me offered up 220 mm more rear-seat legroom than the already generous regular wheelbase Phantom. Playing into Jeeves’ laziness, the front doors also featured the electric close function. That’s when the Product Communications Manager for Rolls-Royce kindly pointed out the button near my right ear that would electrically close the door for me, making me question the usefulness of Jeeves even further. Then it occurred to me as I stretched my body in a most undignified way, nearly falling back out of the Roller: it’s an impossibly long reach to close the door. The opening to the rear quarters is enormous, enabling a most dignified ingress, where I plopped my posterior into the seat with as much formality as I could muster wearing jeans and a t-shirt. To try to lift it by oneself (either the castle gate or the Phantom’s door) would be impossible, but thanks to perfectly balanced hinges, the task is manageable. Finding good help these days is so challenging.īy the way, calling the rear-hinged portal a “suicide door” would be unsuitably vulgar, so you know.ĭimensionally, and due to the smooth, fluid heft of it, swinging open the rear door on a Phantom reminded me of opening a massive castle gate. Alas, upon my arrival at the car’s flank, Jeeves (as I wished to call him) immediately clambered into the driver’s seat instead of opening the rear coach door for me. My driving partner (and fellow automotive reviewer) for the occasion speaks with an English accent and has silver hair, both of which I surmised should have made him a suitable driver for the stately beast. It’s a splendid sight to behold (the car), and even more so when finished in a dark emerald metallic hue. ![]() It is a truly imposing car: a monolith of enduring strength and weightiness, like the sensation of approaching the Rocky Mountains from a hundred kilometres away, and having them grow before your eyes in slow motion. Walking up to the Phantom from more than 20 paces, the car’s sheer magnitude – nearly 6,000 mm or 20 feet in length – commands attention early on. So far be it from me to question the choices of the ultra-rich and powerful. And as a long-wheelbase edition, it is likely a buyer will choose the back of the car over the front for most journeys. This isn’t the sort of thing a commoner should even touch. Those are numbers that should set any gearhead’s heart skipping.īut such talk of technical details is uncouth for this particular car akin to impolitely inquiring how much money someone earns. Continuous piece of glass across the dash is the largest such application in any car, and creates what Rolls-Royce calls “the gallery”įor the first time in as long as I can remember, I chose to relinquish control and opted instead to be chauffeured around.Īs a driving enthusiast, this response was not one to be taken lightly, especially considering I had just been offered a machine propelled by a 6.7-litre V12 engine delivering 563 well-mannered horsepower and an absolutely liquid 664 lb-ft of torque.Broader “standard” colour palette is available, though of course, there are fully bespoke options.Coach line (stripe) ends 2/3 way down the flank of the car, reinforcing a power-forward style, led by a taller and wider grille.The Phantom VIII is only the eighth generation since 1925 and the first significant update since 2003 – and here are the changes: This car builds steam in such a linear and unending fashion, it feels like it could ultimately press on and out of the atmosphere. In the past, I have described other cars as having locomotive-like thrust, but I now know I had used the term inappropriately.
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