Rolls Royce Ghost to haunt Frankfurt motor show
06/09/09 14:27 Filed in: News
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars is to unveil its new Ghost, the most powerful car ever to wear the ‘Spirit of Ecstasy’, at the Frankfurt motor show on September 15.
“Ghost is one of the most revered names in automotive industry,” says Rolls Royce Chief Executive Officer Tom Purves. “It evokes images of adventure and technical innovation. The first cars to bear the Ghost name were known not only for impressive dependability and refinement but also great flair and style.”
Ghost’s flowing lines are dominated by what Rolls Royce call ‘Yacht Line’ styling. The classic Rolls Royce design cues include the long elevated “prow” (that yachting analogy again!), a long bonnet, short front overhang and, of course, the unmistakable Rolls-Royce grille.
For the new car there has even been some adjustment to this particular Rolls Royce icon. The sides of the intake have been curved inwards and the vanes set back in the opening.
Chief Designer, Ian Cameron says that the intention was to make it: “...less reminiscent of the traditional Parthenon style and more like a jet intake,” A contrasting Silver Satin finish (introduced on 200EX) is an option for the bonnet, grille and windscreen surround. The finish is achieved by setting silver metallic paint under a layer of lacquer, giving a flawless matte finish.
Inside Ghost, the interior design team’s aim was to come up with a contemporary ambience while staying true to Rolls-Royce Motor Cars’ traditions of fine materials and peerless comfort. There are elegant, frosted lamps and chrome door handles, traditional violin key switches and eyeball air vents, frosted white dials and refined instrumentation.
Deep-pile carpets can be complemented by optional lambswool floor mats for a truly luxurious feel. Housed within the front doors are integrated Teflon-coated umbrellas. The rear doors are traditional, rear-hinged coach doors, opening to a generous 83 degrees. Once the passenger is inside, these doors can be closed at the touch of a button.
To help James (or the owner) when manoeuvring Ghost, there are cameras located around the car on the rear, front, side and top. Combined they can give a fish-eye lens style view at blind junctions and help with spotting obstacles when manoeuvring.
Built into the grille is a night vision camera that detects objects up to 300 metres away and displays them on the dashboard screen. Using infrared heat images, the camera then assesses from the car’s speed and direction the danger they pose, determining what action (if any) needs to be taken, then displaying the appropriate warning to the driver.
An aircraft-style head-up display (as fitted to cars like parent company BMW’s M6) projects selected information onto the windscreen, including speed and navigational direction. A lane departure warning system alerts the driver if the car should drift out of its current lane, by sending a slight vibration through the steering wheel if the car crosses lane markings without signalling.
Also like the M6 high-beam assistance automatically manages the operation of dipped and main beam lights while driving at night. The same camera used by the Lane Departure Warning system monitors the light from any source at the front of the vehicle and automatically dips or raises the headlights accordingly.
The interior space is filled with natural light, enhanced by the optional Panorama Sunroof, which extends from the front into the rear compartment. Four-zone automatic air conditioning can be individually tailored to each passenger’s requirements, with separate controls for front and rear. Automatic air recirculation, condensation prevention and solar compensation are delivered through classic chromed eyeball vents controlled via organ-stop plungers.
The audio system delivers 600 Watts of sound through a 10-channel amplifier and 16 speakers, including two floor-mounted subwoofers. USB and auxiliary inputs allow for the integration of external audio devices and a 12.5 GB hard drive enables storage of music files from USB or CD player sources.
The Ghost is powered by a brand new, 6.6-litre twin-turbo V12 engine and, unusually for Rolls Royce traditionalists there is a power figure given. Whisper it, it produces 563bhp. That’ enough to propel this 2.3-ton (2360 kg), 5.4-metre limousine from 0-60 mph in just 4.7 seconds.
Power is transmitted through an eight-speed, shift-by-wire, automatic ZF gearbox. What this achieves is a feeling of endless, surging power, which is illustrated by the traditional Rolls Royce “power reserve gauge” on the fascia, in place of the the more common rev counter. CO2 output is 317g/km and fuel consumption is 20.8 mpg (13.6 l/100km).
The price? Not yet announced, but if you have to ask.....
“Ghost is one of the most revered names in automotive industry,” says Rolls Royce Chief Executive Officer Tom Purves. “It evokes images of adventure and technical innovation. The first cars to bear the Ghost name were known not only for impressive dependability and refinement but also great flair and style.”
Ghost’s flowing lines are dominated by what Rolls Royce call ‘Yacht Line’ styling. The classic Rolls Royce design cues include the long elevated “prow” (that yachting analogy again!), a long bonnet, short front overhang and, of course, the unmistakable Rolls-Royce grille.
For the new car there has even been some adjustment to this particular Rolls Royce icon. The sides of the intake have been curved inwards and the vanes set back in the opening.
Chief Designer, Ian Cameron says that the intention was to make it: “...less reminiscent of the traditional Parthenon style and more like a jet intake,” A contrasting Silver Satin finish (introduced on 200EX) is an option for the bonnet, grille and windscreen surround. The finish is achieved by setting silver metallic paint under a layer of lacquer, giving a flawless matte finish.
Inside Ghost, the interior design team’s aim was to come up with a contemporary ambience while staying true to Rolls-Royce Motor Cars’ traditions of fine materials and peerless comfort. There are elegant, frosted lamps and chrome door handles, traditional violin key switches and eyeball air vents, frosted white dials and refined instrumentation.
Deep-pile carpets can be complemented by optional lambswool floor mats for a truly luxurious feel. Housed within the front doors are integrated Teflon-coated umbrellas. The rear doors are traditional, rear-hinged coach doors, opening to a generous 83 degrees. Once the passenger is inside, these doors can be closed at the touch of a button.
To help James (or the owner) when manoeuvring Ghost, there are cameras located around the car on the rear, front, side and top. Combined they can give a fish-eye lens style view at blind junctions and help with spotting obstacles when manoeuvring.
Built into the grille is a night vision camera that detects objects up to 300 metres away and displays them on the dashboard screen. Using infrared heat images, the camera then assesses from the car’s speed and direction the danger they pose, determining what action (if any) needs to be taken, then displaying the appropriate warning to the driver.
An aircraft-style head-up display (as fitted to cars like parent company BMW’s M6) projects selected information onto the windscreen, including speed and navigational direction. A lane departure warning system alerts the driver if the car should drift out of its current lane, by sending a slight vibration through the steering wheel if the car crosses lane markings without signalling.
Also like the M6 high-beam assistance automatically manages the operation of dipped and main beam lights while driving at night. The same camera used by the Lane Departure Warning system monitors the light from any source at the front of the vehicle and automatically dips or raises the headlights accordingly.
The interior space is filled with natural light, enhanced by the optional Panorama Sunroof, which extends from the front into the rear compartment. Four-zone automatic air conditioning can be individually tailored to each passenger’s requirements, with separate controls for front and rear. Automatic air recirculation, condensation prevention and solar compensation are delivered through classic chromed eyeball vents controlled via organ-stop plungers.
The audio system delivers 600 Watts of sound through a 10-channel amplifier and 16 speakers, including two floor-mounted subwoofers. USB and auxiliary inputs allow for the integration of external audio devices and a 12.5 GB hard drive enables storage of music files from USB or CD player sources.
The Ghost is powered by a brand new, 6.6-litre twin-turbo V12 engine and, unusually for Rolls Royce traditionalists there is a power figure given. Whisper it, it produces 563bhp. That’ enough to propel this 2.3-ton (2360 kg), 5.4-metre limousine from 0-60 mph in just 4.7 seconds.
Power is transmitted through an eight-speed, shift-by-wire, automatic ZF gearbox. What this achieves is a feeling of endless, surging power, which is illustrated by the traditional Rolls Royce “power reserve gauge” on the fascia, in place of the the more common rev counter. CO2 output is 317g/km and fuel consumption is 20.8 mpg (13.6 l/100km).
The price? Not yet announced, but if you have to ask.....
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