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2016 Rolls-Royce Dawn opens up in public [w/video]

This is the third time I've seen this exact car. Rolls-Royce first showed me the Dawn at a private residence in Beverly Hills, then I saw it behind closed doors in Pebble Beach. Now it makes its official public debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show, and even though the car is old news to me, it's drawing quite a crowd. Of course, there's always reason to get excited when someone says, "New Rolls-Royce." The Dawn is a really pretty, four-seat convertible. It shares a lot of its underpinnings with the Ghost and Wraith, but nearly 80 percent of the body panels are new. Under that long hood sits Rolls' 6.6-liter, twin-turbo V12, producing 563 horsepower and 575 pound-feet of torque, mated to the silky-smooth ZF eight-speed automatic transmission. Rolls-Royce says the Dawn will be its most versatile canvas yet, with nearly endless possibilities for customization. I like the blue and orange of the showcar, but I'm excited to see how different colors look on this nicely sculpted, elegant convertible. If you haven't checked out the Dawn already, see it from all angles in our live gallery above. Everything else you could ever want to know about the new Rolls-Royce can be found in the press blast, below. ROLLS-ROYCE DAWN – UNCOMPROMISED DROPHEAD LUXURY September, 8 2015 – Goodwood UK "Our new Rolls-Royce Dawn promises a striking, seductive encounter like no other Rolls-Royce to date, and begins a new age of open-top, super-luxury motoring. Dawn is a beautiful new motor car that offers the most uncompromised open-top motoring experience in the world. A true four-seater, it will be the most social of super-luxury drophead motor cars for those who wish to bathe in the sunlight of the world's most exclusive social hotspots. Quite simply, it is the sexiest Rolls-Royce ever built. The name 'Dawn' perfectly suggests the fresh opportunities that every new day holds – an awakening, an opening up of one's senses and a burst of sunshine. In its tentative, inchoate, anticipatory state, dawn is the world coming to light from the ethereal dark of the night. The early-day chill of dawn provides an erotic tingle on the skin, awakening the senses and passions as the day begins.

Time to catch up with Jay Leno's Garage, including his Lamborghini Espada restoration

If you're already jealous of the time, effort and money that Jay Leno can devote to his massive car collection, prepare to get a little greener with envy with this latest video from Jay Leno's Garage. Instead of the usual format of discussing a model for about ten minutes and then taking it out for a test drive, this week Leno gives viewers on a tour of over a dozen projects concurrently happening in his stable. The breadth of the vehicles shown and the things being done to them run the entire span of the automotive hobby. At the same time, Jay's shop is working on just a simple restoration of his 1969 Lamborghini Espada (pictured), and at the other side of the building, the team is rebuilding a wood-bodied 1914 Detroit Electric from scratch. He eventually plans to slot a more modern electric drivetrain into it. If bikes are more your interest, there's a freshly completed Brough Superior just waiting for a ride, and if American models are your thing, a Ford Bronco is getting a Coyote V8 installed into it. You have some very specific tastes if you can't watch this clip and start wishing at least one of these vehicles could be in your own garage. Other than the personal projects his mechanics are working on in the shop, Jay gets to have them all, plus plenty more.

This is the very last Rolls-Royce Phantom VII

Rolls-Royce built its very last Phantom VII today. The model was first introduced in 2003 and ends with this one-of-a-kind long-wheelbase model that will go to the unnamed Rolls-Royce collector who commissioned it. The car itself is themed around 1930s-era ships, which is in turn a nod to the era of the first Phantom I, launched in 1925. Immediately upon looking at the car's "Blue Velvet" paint scheme, you can see the oceanic influence. The color is accompanied by coach lines with a ship motif, and the tires have white lines to complement it. Inside, the car features the beautiful marquetry wood trim the brand has become known for. The dashboard shows a '30s-era ship with a map of North America and Europe in the background. Further maritime highlights include dash clocks modeled after ship radios, and embroidery on the "Powder Blue" leather that mimics the look of ocean waves. The front dash clock has a movable bezel for different time zones, and Rolls-Royce says the carpeting has been cut to look like a ship's wake. While this generation of the Phantom is at an end, it's by no means the end of the line for the name. We've seen prototypes of the Phantom VIII running around, and Rolls-Royce has openly said that a successor is coming. We expect the new generation will only be available in short- and long-wheelbase sedans to start, and will probably be revealed sometime this year, perhaps as soon as the Geneva Show in March, or as late as the Pebble Beach Concours in August. Related Video: