RAISED VERTICAL wings, a graceful drop at the rear, a cosy interior and 'waftability'. No, it's not a mythical creature with supernatural capabilities, although the Rolls-Royce Phantom could be described as such a creature. John Lennon, Queen Elizabeth II and Goldfinger share a love for this car - or, at least, they've ridden in or owned one.
When Project Rolls-Royce team members met in 1999 at The Bank - a former bank turned design loft for the planning of RR01 (now the Phantom), project head Karl-Heinz Kalbfell, chief designer Ian Cameron and chief engineer Tim Leverton, among other talented team members, realised several things. First, they would have a limited amount of time and resources to remodel and construct what would re-establish the Rolls-Royce brand as producing the 'Best Car in the World'. Secondly, they wanted to produce something unique and something to delight its drivers - in its exterior form, interior features and engine capabilities; and thirdly, it would need to use the latest technology in car design and manufacture to preserve the age-old history and tradition of the car and prestigious RR brand. 'Our priority was to create a car that was clearly a Rolls-Royce even when the radiator grille is not in view. More than this, the new car had to stand apart from all others,' says Cameron.
Why was this new Phantom so important? Henry Royce, co- founder of Rolls-Royce, along with Charles Rolls, who died in an aeroplane accident aged 32, designed aeroplane engines as well as cars. In 1971, Rolls-Royce was acquired by the British Government and Rolls Royce Motor Cars became a separate entity from its aero engine-making counterpart. Vickers bought it from the state in 1980 and after being owned briefly by Volkswagen, Rolls-Royce became part of the BMW company in 1998.
Because VW retained ownership of the much-loved Silver Ghost, something new, admired by Rolls-Royce's faithful following and representative of the famous RR badge had to be created to keep Rolls-Royce 'in the frontlines'.
Several of the cars' features are a result of co-operation with BMW. The lightweight aluminium 'spaceframe' - the welded interior structure of the car - is an example of this relationship. Cameron, who was involved in the design of the Z8 sports car, brought his expertise to the Rolls-Royce roundtable, and BMW manufacturing plants were used at various points during the course of the Phantom's development. It is perhaps one of Rolls-Royce's lesser-known secrets, but this spaceframe contributes to Rolls-Royce's acceleration and brake capacities. The BMW V12 was also analysed and reworked in the planning stages of creating a replacement for the Rolls-Royce's aging V8.
The design team came up with concepts to assist the creation of the Phantom. The 'Authority Concept' covers the driver's seat position, steering wheel, mobile telephone, stereo, navigation system and air-conditioning and is tailored to deliver a 'feeling of wellbeing' to its drivers: the ultimate luxury car experience. Comparable to BMW's iDrive, the 'Intuitive Control' - part of the Authority Concept - allows drivers to navigate the road - and the buttons on the dashboard - without taking their eyes off the road or using too much extra brain power. 'Waftability' is the smoothness and suspension-induced easy riding that supposedly endures fast acceleration and sharp corners.
Post-war Phantom models were concurrent with the Silver Wraith, Silver Dawn and Silver Shadow respectively, yet many see the Phantom as Rolls-Royce's feature car. John Simister, journalist for Evo writes after test-driving the latest model of the car following its launch in 2003: 'This is a ridiculous car by normal, sane standards. But it's beautifully created, full of personality, at ease with itself.'
