Rolls Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars

will unveil its new Phantom Drophead Coupé at the Detroit Motor Show on Sunday 7 January. Production of the new car will start at Goodwood in the summer of 2007. The two-door, four-seat convertible is a less formal interpretation of classic Rolls-Royce design. Using the lightweight rigidity of an all-aluminium spaceframe, it marries modern technology to a sleek, streamlined convertible body. Its exterior lines echo the timeless styling of the great Rolls-Royce cars: a long bonnet, large-diameter wheels, short front and long rear overhangs and the quintessential dynamic line descending along its flanks. Inside, the design emphasises the airy openness of top-down motoring, embracing the elements and creating a stunning, social environment.

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Chief Designer, Ian Cameron, said, “This car gave us the chance to think about the very nature of convertible motoring and in particular what it means to Rolls-Royce. Above all we were determined to make this car a joy to live with and engineered it to give years of effortless service to its owner.”

A number of features first seen on 100EX, the experimental convertible shown by Rolls-Royce in 2004, have been engineered into the new Phantom Drophead Coupé. Two of the most visually striking of these are the brushed steel bonnet and A-pillar and the teak decking for the rear hood cover. The brushed steel is machine finished to give a uniform grain before undergoing extensive hand polishing to achieve a perfect sheen. At the rear, the teak decking is treated with a carefully blended mix of oils to preserve a natural finish and a long lasting lustre that is as beautiful as it is hardy.