First Drive: 2010 Rolls-Royce Ghost

You feel it the moment you open the door, which is thicker and heavier than in other cars, closes silently behind you at the push of a button, and has a removable Teflon-coated umbrella stashed in its innards in case the weather turns inclement. The handmade interior trim looks like the finely crafted wood you might find on a 1930s-era yacht. The seat leather, the company says, is made from the hides of bulls raised in pastures free of barbed-wire fencing, which might cause surface blemishes.

2010 Rolls-Royce Ghost

That's all to be expected in a Rolls. What sets the Ghost apart from Roll-Royce's other model, the Phantom, is its relatively diminutive size (a mere 212.6 in. long, some 27 in. shorter than the extended-wheel-base version of the Phantom) and relatively low price (starting sticker is just $247,000, $138,000 less than the "base" model Phantom sedan). Of course, optional equipment can easily add $50,000 to the price of either model (and far more if you go a little crazy).

The rear-wheel-drive Ghost also is the most powerful Rolls ever, with a turbocharged V12 engine under its hood similar to the one in the BMW 760Li—only tweaked to make it even more powerful. In the Ghost, the engine is rated at 6.6 liters (vs. 6.0 liters in the BMW), 563 horsepower (vs. 535 in the BMW), and 575 ft.-lb. of torque (up from the BMW's 550).

As a result, the Ghost not only has the ultrasmooth and quiet ride you expect from a Rolls but also goes like a bat out of hell when you punch the gas. The company says the Ghost will accelerate from zero to 60 in a blazingly fast 4.8 seconds, slightly quicker than a Chevy Corvette Grand Sport and about one second quicker than the Phantom. That's an amazing stat for a big luxury sedan that weighs 5,445 lb. Top speed is 155 miles per hour.