2024 Rolls-royce Spectre on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Rolls-Royce Phantom Zenith takes assembly line with it

Rolls-Royce is phasing out the Phantom Coupe and Drophead Coupe. But before it does, the luxury automaker is, as promised, building a few final examples that actually take parts of the assembly line with it. Called the Zenith Collection, these special-edition two-door Phantoms feature a number of unique upgrades to set it apart, and the most intriguing one is right there in the dashboard. That's where a component from the Phantom's assembly line in Goodwood is housed in a polished, laser-engraved aluminum case with the kind of ornamentation you might otherwise find on a high-end shotgun. Naturally, that's not all there is to the Zenith editions. They also feature special paintjobs, laser-etched armrests, machined aluminum cupholders, and a trunk fitted with a custom picnic basket, and mini-bar fridge for cooling champagne. Rolls will only make 50 examples, and they've all been spoken for already. Expect the factory to offer a similar special on the Phantom sedan, orders for which are now being taken before production ends for good. Eventually there'll be a new model line to replace the Phantom – one that promises to be lighter and more advanced, but no less luxurious than the outgoing model. But in the meantime, high-end customers will have to suffice with the Ghost, Wraith, and Dawn. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. PHANTOM ZENITH COLLECTION "As we begin to write a bold new chapter in Rolls-Royce history, I am delighted to present a Bespoke Collection that so elegantly celebrates two of the world's rarest and most celebrated luxury goods; Phantom Drophead Coupe and Phantom Coupe. Phantom Zenith Collection motor cars speak of the marque's unrelenting commitment to setting and advancing the standard by which all other luxury goods are judged." Torsten Muller-Otvos, Chief Executive Officer, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. From its foundation 112 years ago, the story of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars has been defined by a restless commitment to setting and raising the standard by which all other luxury goods are judged. On January 1 2003, this philosophy was realised emphatically with the handover of the first seventh generation Phantom to its customer at the newly established Home of Rolls-Royce in Goodwood, England.

Everybody's doing flying cars, so why aren't we soaring over traffic already?

"Where's my flying car?" has been the meme for impending technology that never materializes since before there were memes. And the trough of disillusionment for vehicles that can take to sky continues to nosedive, despite a nonstop fascination with flying cars and a recent rash of announcements about the technology, particularly from traditional automakers. Earlier this month, Toyota applied for an eye-popping patent for a flying car that has wheels with spring-loaded pop-out helicopter rotors. The patent filing says the wheels/rotors would be electrically powered, while in on-land mode the vehicle would have differential steering like tracked vehicles such as tanks and bulldozers. At an airshow in July, Aston Martin unveiled its Volante Vision Concept, an autonomous hybrid-electric vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) vehicle it developed with Rolls-Royce. Aston says the Volante can fly at top speeds of around 200 mph and bills it as a luxury car for the skies. Audi used the Geneva Motor Show in March to unveil a flying car concept called the Pop.Up Next it developed with Airbus and Italdesign. If the Pop.Up Next, an electric and autonomous quadcopter/city car combo, gets stuck in traffic, an app can be used to summon an Airbus-developed drone to pick up the passenger compartment pod, leaving the chassis behind. Audi said that the Pop.Up Next is a "flexible on-demand concept that could open up mobility in the third dimension to people in cities." But Audi also acknowledged that at this point it has no plans to develop it. The cash-stoked, skies-the-limit Silicon Valley tech crowd is also bullish on flying cars. The startup Kitty Hawk that's backed by Google co-founder Larry Page announced in June that it's taking pre-orders for its single-seat electric Flyer that's powered by 10 propellers and is capable of vertical takeoffs and landings. The current version can only fly up to 20 mph and 10 feet in the air and has a flight time of just 12 to 20 minutes on a full charge. The Flyer is considered a recreational vehicle, so doesn't require a pilot's license. Uber says it plans to launch its more ambitious Elevate program and UberAIR service in 2023. "Uber customers will be able to push a button and get a flight on-demand with uberAIR in Dallas, Los Angeles and a third international market," Uber Elevate promises on its website.

Rolls-Royce Phantom Tempus Collection is inspired by the infinite universe

Rolls-Royce, like NASA, is exploring what's far beyond the stratosphere. It introduced a limited-edition version of the Phantom, its flagship, called the Tempus Collection and inspired by time, astronomical phenomena, and the infinite reaches of the universe. Most of the visual changes are found in the cabin, where interior designers added a mesmerizing headliner that represents a pulsar. If your brain is soaking in Shell Rotella, you're thinking of a Nissan sold on and off since 1978; sorry, but it's not that one, though the British firm's Bespoke department can probably make it happen if your wallet is thick enough. In astronomy, according to Rolls-Royce, a pulsar is a type of white-hot star that lurks about 280 light years away from our planet while emitting electromagnetic radiation in extremely regular pulses, hence the name. Stylists transformed the dashboard into a work of art they call the Frozen Flow of Time. It consists of a single billet of aluminum in which 100 individual columns were milled to represent the 100-million-year period of a pulsar's rotational spin. Rolls-Royce also removed the clock from the dashboard to signal that its customers are free from time and its pesky limitations, though we don't think that's a binding promise the company is making to buyers. If you have a few seconds to spare, you can pop open the glovebox and read a quote from Albert Einstein: "The distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion." Visually, the Tempus wears a relatively subtle look characterized by a new color called Kairos Blue. It was created specifically for the limited-edition model to embody the darkness and the mystery of space, Rolls-Royce explained. It features blue mica flakes that shine like stars in the sky when viewed in the right light. Buyers can customize the Spirit of Ecstasy emblem by engraving a date and location — like their wedding anniversary — on its base. Rolls-Royce will deliver each Tempus with a custom-built champagne chest whose table features a hand-painted pulsar. It's big enough to store and chill champagne, caviar, four flutes, and a mother-of-pearl caviar spoon. The outer-space theme does not continue in the engine bay, so don't expect to find a Rolls-Royce Trent turbofan under the hood. Like the regular-production Phantom, the Tempus is powered by a twin-turbocharged, 6.8-liter V12 engine that effortlessly develops 563 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque.