It is said that you are what you drive. The reality, in the rarefied upper echelons of society, is that you are also what you are driven in. No marque on the planet quite competes with Rolls-Royce for sheer status, and the new Phantom LWB (Long Wheelbase) is the ultimate four-wheeled calling card.
A normal Rolls-Royce Phantom is actually a good driver's car too. Its 453bhp BMW-derived 6.75 liter normally-aspirated V12 motor has 719Nm, enough torque to confer the marque's legendary waftability on this 2.5 ton limousine.
And while the ride quality is sensationally good, the chassis engineers have also been able to confer an amazingly adroit level of handling on this monster of a car. The result is that once you are used to its larger-than-life physical dimensions, it shrinks around you and can be hustled quickly down a twisty road.
Imitating a sports saloon is not the Phantom’s calling in life however, but its good dynamics make it a car that you are just as happy to drive as to be driven in. As a means of getting you from your home to a business meeting or to your yacht or private jet, it is unsurpassed for style and comfort.
The 25cm-longer Extended Wheelbase (EWB) version that became available earlier this year is most definitely a chauffeur-driven proposition however, and provides a more generously-proportioned traveling environment for rear seat occupants. The only question then, is whether to choose the bench rear seat, or two individual, electrically-powered seats from which to enjoy the extra legroom.
Rolls-Royce currently sells 700 of the normal Phantoms a year, and it fully expects the EWB to make up 40 percent of Phantom sales in the future.
From the end of 2006 however, a third Phantom version will be offered to Plutocrats who either wish to bring other family members with them or hold face-to-face business meetings on the move.
Stretched by a further 85cm over the EWB on which it is based, the new 1.1 meter-longer
Phantom Long Wheelbase (LWB) offers conference seating for four or six people depending on whether you opt for the individual or bench seat arrangements. You can of course also choose a combination of both seat types if you so wish.
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