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Rolls-Royce celebrates Goodwood with Chicane edition Phantom Coupe

Of all the automakers out there, perhaps none scream "race track" as quietly as Rolls-Royce. But the British luxury automaker has its home near the Goodwood Motor Circuit, and has honored that proximity with its latest special edition.
Called the Chicane, it's based on the Phantom Coupe and is upgraded with a series of tastefully motorsport-inspired details. It's painted in gunmetal grey with a matte black hood and windshield frame, with matching gunmetal wheels - a modern Rolls-Royce first - and a red interior decked out with carbon-fiber trim and a checkered flag motif that's repeated on the exterior coachline.
The special one-off was commissioned by the dealership in Dubai and was created by the Rolls-Royce Bespoke division. Feel free to read more in the press release below.

2016 Rolls-Royce Dawn First Drive

There is apparently a migration of sorts among the set that would buy something like the 2016 Rolls-Royce Dawn, the newly arrived drophead variant of the raffish Wraith. When our theoretical Dawn buyer finds the Cote d'Azur or some such place a bit chilly, perhaps it's off to South Africa. Late March is the tail end of summer, and it's an exceedingly pleasant way to get into the Dawn state of mind. Stellenbosch is just northeast of Cape Town, the "Mother City." What used to be open country occupied primarily by the Khoikhoi and Khoisan peoples, as well as prototypical African game, is now wine country. Our starting point is a vineyard estate called Delaire Graff owned by a diamond baron. South Africa's diverse and stunning countryside is on display as we leave the vineyard and climb. The lower highlands are covered with quasi-Californian scrub, but with altitude the scene transforms into a mist-tickled moor full of low heather-like plants and tumbling rivulets. We traverse the suburban lowlands to a windy road clinging to a cliffside above the crashing surf of the Indian Ocean. Ancient cliffs and peaks jut over us at improbable angles and in fascinating shapes. At the end of our drive, looking across False Bay, the Cape stretches south towards the equivocal boundary between two oceans. Twice and then once, the Cape lighthouse winks at the end of Africa. Most automakers consider sportiness the ultimate attribute. Like its stablemates, the Rolls-Royce Dawn's draw is its timelessness and unabashed luxury. Here that's paired with the inherent hedonism of a convertible, not to mention the cachet that comes with spending $340,000 or more (most likely more) on a car. That figure makes the Dawn more expensive than the Ghost or Wraith, but less than the Phantom range. The Dawn is vast; like most huge things, it commands attention because it takes up so much space. Watching my colleagues dart around town was a bit like watching a flotilla of cruise liners maneuver to their moorages. Like a yacht with a lot of freeboard, the flanks rise impressively to the top of the door, but then there's some tumblehome inward to the thick brightwork strip ringing the cabin. A longitudinal spear of chrome bisects the hood, a bit like a grab-rail on the foredeck. The Spirit of Ecstasy could have graced the bowsprit of any of the windjammers that hove into Table Bay. Twice and then once, the Cape lighthouse winks at the end of Africa.

Giles Taylor succeeds Ian Cameron as head of Rolls-Royce design

Back in the day, a Rolls-Royce looked pretty much the same as a Bentley, but with a different grille. Once BMW took over Rolls-Royce, however, it was faced with the challenge of visually separating itself from its former sister brand. And most would agree that it did so pretty well. But its cars have looked pretty much the same ever since. What Rolls-Royce needs, then, is a bit of a design shake-up. And that's just what this latest appointment could bring.
After a baker's dozen years as design director at Rolls-Royce (and twenty years designing for the BMW Group altogether), Ian Cameron is retiring from his post. In his place, Rolls-Royce has named Giles Taylor as its new director of design. In his new capacity, Taylor will report directly to BMW Group chief designer Adrian van Hooydonk, and be responsible for all design matters related to the Rolls-Royce brand and its products.
Taylor was promoted to the role from his previous position as head of exterior design for the marque, a position he's held for barely more than a year. We'll be eagerly watching to see what the veteran British car designer has in store for the future of Rolls-Royce. In the meantime you can read the full announcement below.