The baby Rolls

Centurion · **The baby Rolls -** 10-06-2005, 03:37 PM

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Rolls-Royce will go back to its roots with a range of smaller and—gasp!—less-expensive models as the luxury carmaker seeks to lay the financial foundations for a
prosperous future.

Described as possessing all the traditional Rolls-Royce hallmarks of engineering prestige and upper-crust luxury, the new cars are intended to rejuvenate the BMW-owned British carmaker with entries in the growing $150,000-to-$200,000 segment of the market.

“I believe Rolls-Royce has an opportunity to move into another price point,” says new Rolls-Royce boss Ian Robertson, who previously headed BMW in South Africa.

“Our family of cars will grow to include more attainable models. Over the past 100 years we have made so many different types of cars, so there is a lot of scope for us to move forward,” Robertson told AutoWeek.

The first of Rolls-Royce’s new models, a sedan, won’t appear before 2009, though Robertson is said to have already gained the backing of BMW chairman Helmut Panke. A number of styling proposals have been created, with final decisions on the product mix coming within the next year, Robertson says.

Spurring the move to extend the Rolls-Royce line below the hugely expensive Phantom is the success of the Bentley Continental GT. Bentley built some 5000 of the $171,000 Continental GTs in 2004—six times the number of Phantoms produced at Rolls-Royce’s Goodwood factory in the same year. Robertson says the segment for cars priced upward of $150,000 has grown from 8000 worldwide sales in the late-1990s to 20,000 cars today—and all signs indicate that trend will continue.

Robertson won’t confirm body styles for the baby Rollers, but said the company’s earlier models—such as the 20hp produced during the 1920s—hint at both sedan and coupe initially and possibly even a wagon and convertible later on.

They would all be position*ed well beneath the super-luxurious $332,000 Phantom, at a price that would likely see them compete directly against the Bentley Continental and Flying Spur. The starting price would be about $180,000 in
the United States.

The smaller Rollers will be “authentic to the brand” Robertson says, with traditional Rolls-Royce attributes like a prominent chrome grille and long sweeping hood. He also says the cars will be “less formal.”

He denied suggestions the next-generation BMW 7 Series, due in 2009, would serve as the basis for the baby Roller. But when it comes to powertrains, Rolls will surely dip into the BMW parts bin, as it did for the Phantom’s 6.7-liter 460-hp V12. One possibility is a reworked version of the German carmaker’s new 4.8-liter V8.

Alx · **Re: The baby Rolls -** 10-06-2005, 03:40 PM

That is a beautiful looking car... Very nice!

Id really like to see that in the making!

180K, im sure it will sell but i'd like to see it in the 150K's.

Centurion · **Re: The baby Rolls -** 10-06-2005, 03:46 PM

The chop looks really sweat. The car colour futuristic and elegant whout appearing too vulgar like the Phantom.

Alx · **Re: The baby Rolls -** 10-06-2005, 03:50 PM

It's got a classy sporty finish, the look is clean and has fast lines... impressive style.

Nice if it was priced accordingly... over $180K, just seems like too much i think. At that point you enter a higher end range and its not a "Baby Rolls". Seems like when you spend that tpe of money you dont want to look like your on the low end of things.

MoSs AMG · **Re: The baby Rolls -** 10-06-2005, 03:50 PM

the chop looks great , if it comes out like that it will kill the maybach ...
$150,000 to $200,000 thats a cheap price for a car like that ...

Centurion · **Re: The baby Rolls -** 10-06-2005, 03:55 PM

Yeah Alex, I agree with you. The perfect base prise would be 150k. Well people are still buying the expensive arnage so I guess there is a market for this car eventhough it is going to be expensive. Compared with the Phantom and MM this one will probably be more of a drivers car. I really hope that BMW doesn't put the i-Drive inside this car.

SDNR · **Re: The baby Rolls -** 10-06-2005, 03:56 PM

Great - I have been waiting a long time for this - I'm not sure about that 100EX grill - I would have to get used to it.

I think a smaller Rolls-Royce makes perfect sense - the old Phantom VI was built at the same time as the Silver Shadow, Silver Wraith, Corniche, Camargue, Silver Spirit, and Silver Spur. So there would be nothing inconsistent or new about offering a more "mainstream" model alongside the Phantom.

Alx · **Re: The baby Rolls -** 10-06-2005, 04:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Luwalira

Yeah Alex, I agree with you. The perfect base prise would be 150k. Well people are still buying the expensive arnage so I guess there is a market for this car eventhough it is going to be expensive. Compared with the Phantom and MM this one will probably be more of a drivers car. I really hope that BMW doesn't put the i-Drive inside this car.

Exaclty what you said! No I-Drive, Less Expensive, and yes there is a market regardless, and hopefully more of a drivers car!

The Artist · **Re: The baby Rolls -** 10-06-2005, 05:01 PM

ahh hell yeah.. put a price near the Bentley FS..and ile get one... ASAP...

SDNR · **Re: The baby Rolls -** 10-07-2005, 05:30 AM

It will be interesting to see the pricing - I would guess that it will be somewhere between the Bentley Flying Spur and the Arnage - or maybe it might be in a battle with the Arnage because, technically speaking, BMW already compete against the Flying Spur with the BMW 760iL - I think BMW should try to avoid the ridiculous situation that VW have gotten themselves into with their different marques crossing-over into each others markets.