Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe (2008 – 2017) Review

January 0001

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars has confirmed that a series version of the two-door, four-seat experimental car, 101EX, will be launched in 2008 and called the Phantom Coupe. Hand-built at Goodwood, England.

This model will complete the Phantom family line-up alongside the Phantom, Phantom Extended Wheelbase and Phantom Drophead Coupe.

The new car will be an elegant two-door, four-seat coupe that builds on the extraordinary driving experience offered in the Phantom and Drophead Coupe. It will use an all aluminium construction similar to the rest of the Phantom family. However, it will be a unique car in the Phantom family, designed around the desire to create the worldÂ’s foremost transcontinental tourer.

Outright power will be identical to the other Phantom models – an impressive 453bhp and 720Nm of torque – however the coupe will be subtly tuned with more emphasis placed on the driver. The body will be shorter than that of the Phantom sedan and there will be revisions to the suspension and chassis set-up.

Rolls-Royce Chief Designer, Ian Cameron, said, "With this car we wanted to emphasise the performance potential of the 6.75 litre V12 engine and the effortless experience that it delivers. Whilst never overtly sporty, Rolls-Royce is a brand that has always offered owners a powerful and refined drive combined with, as Sir Henry Royce described it, a bit of fizz."

Ian Robertson, Chairman and Chief Executive, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, said, "This new model represents an important milestone in the company’s history. It completes the Phantom family and judging by the customer reaction to 101EX, we are confident of its success. Our challenge lies in meeting the exceptional levels of customer demand for the Phantom range and in preparing Goodwood to meet the needs of future new cars."

Officially unveiled at Geneva Motor Show on Tuesday, 4 March 2008. Production of the new car will start at Goodwood in the summer of 2008.

The Coupé is the most driver-orientated model in the Phantom line. A number of subtle but significant modifications have been made that change its character. It is noticeably more dynamic, whilst still offering incredible levels of comfort.

Power is provided by the Phantom’s 6.75-litre V12 that produces 453 bhp, 720 Nm of torque and has segment-leading fuel economy. A 25 per cent increase in fuel capacity, compared to the Drophead Coupé, adds significant driving range. Agile, fast, long-legged and virtually silent, the Phantom Coupé allows both driver and passengers to emerge unruffled, even after an all-day run.

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Chief Designer, Ian Cameron, said, “Rolls-Royce has always been about pace, performance and style. For the Coupé design we gave the quintessential Rolls-Royce design a dynamic twist. This adds a sense of drama to the outstanding engineering and drivability that are fundamentals of Rolls-Royce cars. The dynamic drive of the Phantom has always come as a surprise to customers and the Coupé takes it one step further.”

The Phantom Coupé features rear-hinged coach doors which add considerably to the ease of access to the rear lounge seats as well as to the overall aesthetics. Crucially, they aid the overall stiffness of the body as the rear hinged doors allow for an uninterrupted A-pillar helping to make this the most torsionally rigid Rolls-Royce ever. A brushed steel finish of A-pillar and bonnet, as seen for the first time on 100EX, is also available for the Coupé.

At the rear is a spacious picnic boot. A split tail compartment that opens in two parts, gives easy access to 395 litres of space. The lower tailgate also provides a comfortable seating platform for two adults when lowered.

At the core of the Phantom Coupé is an advanced aluminium chassis, perhaps the single most significant component in delivering the marque’s legendary refinement. Lightweight and exceptionally strong, it impacts positively on ride comfort, handling and safety. Hand made, it requires over 130 metres of welding to create each body.

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Chairman and Chief Executive, Ian Robertson, said, “The Coupé has been designed and engineered to be the most dynamic interpretation of our values. Our 2007 sales figures illustrate how successful the entire model range has been with an increase of 25 per cent over the previous year.”

March 2012

Reflecting the new world in which we live, this pinnacle family of cars – including Phantom Saloon, Phantom Drophead Coupé and Phantom Coupé – have been thoughtfully updated with contemporary yet timeless design enhancements that frame the introduction of cutting-edge technologies which significantly improve the car’s drive-train, ease-of-use and connectivity.

Rolls-Royce Director of Design, Ian Cameron, likens the evolution of Phantom Series II design to a “familiar theme, lit in a different way”. And Phantom’s striking new front-end, with re-styled bumpers and rectangular light apertures, perhaps best encapsulates the essence of the significant changes that lie beneath.

Rolls-Royce is the first to include full LED headlamps as standard on a production car. As well as delivering a characteristic whiter light, augmenting safety and preventing driver tiredness, these allow for the introduction of new technologies that better control lighting.

Curve light functionality, for example, uses electronically-controlled reflectors to focus headlamp beams in the direction of travel, providing greater illumination of the road ahead when cornering. Adaptive headlamps change the cone of light projected onto a road – effortlessly of course – in response to different driving speeds.

Every part of the Phantom experience should be effortless, so new driver assistance technologies and a modern user interface with re-designed multi-media controller have been introduced for Phantom Series II. The new satellite navigation system has been fully updated with functions that include 3D maps with landscape topography, guided tours and enhanced points of interest, as well as composite route planning.

Information, maps and video content are presented on Phantom’s larger 8.8 inch control centre display, a feature underlined by eight programmable bookmarks presenting access to key functions at a driver’s fingertips. Front, rear and top-view camera systems further augment ease of manoeuvring. When reverse parking, for example, rear path prediction automatically deploys on the screen.

The word waftability has long been part of the Rolls-Royce lexicon, with models past and present being renowned for their magnificent ride experience. Phantom Series II reinforces the company’s reputation for both.

A new 8-speed automatic gearbox and rear differential enhance already exemplary driving dynamics perfectly complementing the V12 direct injection engine. Fuel consumption improves by 10 per cent on the combined cycle and emissions fall from 388 to 347 g/km as a consequence.