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Rolls-Royce sets sales record in 2021, despite ongoing pandemic

LONDON — Luxury carmaker Rolls-Royce, a unit of Germany's BMW, said on Monday its sales soared 49% to a record high in 2021 despite the global coronavirus pandemic, as demand worldwide for luxury vehicles surged. In an online presentation, Rolls-Royce CEO Torsten Muller-Otvos said the carmaker sold 5,586 vehicles to customers in more than 50 countries, the largest number in its 117-year history despite all the volatility wrought by the pandemic. "In the luxury sector as a whole, the struggle was not so much focused on attempting to find customers, but rather producing enough product to satisfy huge customer demand," Muller-Otvos said. He said sales hit all-time records in most regions, including China and the Americas. Premium and luxury car sales have been growing more broadly in key global markets such as China and the United States as pandemic travel restrictions have left wealthy consumers with more disposable income. "Covid forced many people to ground, not to travel anymore and for that reason there is quite a lot of wealth accumulated and that is spent on luxury goods," Muller-Otvos told Reuters. "We profited from that development." He said the carmaker's British plant in Goodwood was running at close to maximum capacity and its order books were full well into the third quarter of 2022. "If you order a Rolls-Royce today, you will expect to take delivery of it about a year from now," he said. Luxury British carmaker Bentley, a unit of Volkswagen AG said last week that it had cruised to a record year in 2021 as global sales jumped 31% amid strong demand for high-end vehicles. Last week BMW said it had achieved record sales of over 2.2 million vehicles from its BMW brand in 2021, outstripping 2019 sales despite a global shortage of semiconductor chips. Muller-Otvos said that while the chip shortage was cause for concern, Rolls-Royce's parent BMW had "assured that we could take delivery of all the chips we need to build our cars, so we haven't seen any shortages." Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Blacked-out Rolls-Royce Cullinan Black Badge returns with new design

Rolls-Royce's blacked-out Cullinan Black Badge was popular enough to warrant a follow-up. Designed for buyers who want a less traditional look, the Cullinan Series II-based Black Badge features specific exterior details and carbon fiber trim that takes 21 days to manufacture. BMW-owned Rolls-Royce isn't the only carmaker that offers a blacked-out trim level, but it takes the look further than most. Up front, the illuminated grille is finished in black with contrasting silver accents, though buyers can alternatively order an all-black grille, and all of the exterior trim pieces (including the power-retractable Spirit of Ecstasy emblem, the trim around the window, and even the door handles) are black as well. Black Badge-specific 23-inch wheels and red-painted brake calipers round out the list of major exterior changes. Inside, one of the highlights is the Technical Carbon trim also found in the original Cullinan Black Badge. Rolls-Royce notes that this trim is finished with six coats of lacquer, cured for 72 hours, and hand-polished. There are 23 individual trim pieces; making them takes 21 days. One of the numerous upholstery options is a type of cloth called Duality Twill. It's made from bamboo and inspired by the bamboo grove in Le Jardin des Mediterranees, which is a park located in the south of France that's home to numerous exotic plants from around the world. Here again, the amount of work that goes into each detail is stunning: Rolls-Royce notes that making a full Duality Twill interior requires up to 2.2 million stitches and 11 miles of thread. Other upholstery types are available, and the list of options includes a champagne cooler. Power comes from a stock, 6.75-liter V12 that's twin-turbocharged to 591 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque. It spins the four wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission. Rolls-Royce added a driving mode called "Low" that changes the exhaust system's tone and volume and makes the shifts 50% quicker when the throttle is pushed at least 90% in. It also decreased the brake pedal's travel. There's no word yet on how much of a premium the Black Badge carries over the standard Cullinan Series II.

Rolls-Royce signs deal to trial hybrid-electric train conversions

LONDON — Rolls-Royce has signed an agreement to conduct a trial conversion of diesel trains to hybrid-electric engines in Britain, in a deal which could be rolled out to hundreds of trains across the country starting in the 2020s. The British company, which is best known for making aircraft engines, said on Wednesday that its German Power Systems business had signed an agreement with Porterbrook, the UK's largest owner of passenger rolling stock. Rolls-Royce's Power Systems unit, which sells engines used on ships, yachts, trains, trucks, mining and nuclear power stations, is one of the fastest growing parts of the company, and its boss said hybrid technology is behind that. "We expect hybrid technology to grow at above the current growth rates of diesel," the CEO of Rolls-Royce Power Systems, Andreas Schell, told Reuters. The Power Systems business is expected to post low double-digit revenue growth this year and is a bright spot in a company grappling with the negative headlines and cost of fixing a problem with its Trent 1000 aero-engines. Diesel trains can be fitted with Rolls-Royce Hybrid PowerPacks to turn them into hybrid trains that can also run on battery power, reducing carbon emissions and making them cheaper to run for operators while also making them much quieter when, for example, they approach stations. From RR's press release: The MTU Hybrid PowerPack is an environmentally friendly drive system which combines the advantages of diesel and battery-powered rail traction. The version for Porterbrook incorporates an MTU diesel engine which fulfils future EU Stage V emissions regulations; plus an electric machine, which can be used either as an electric motor or generator; and an MTU EnergyPack battery system, which stores the energy recovered during braking. This enables very low-noise, emissions-free battery-only electric operation in urban areas and around stations. The hybrid initiative comes as Britain seeks to phase out diesel-only trains by 2040. Adding the powerpacks to trains allows railway networks to be partially electrified without the need for expensive overhead infrastructure. The Institution of Mechanical Engineers says that 42 percent of Britain's rail network is currently electrified, which means that the country lags behind electrification rates in other European nations. Last year the British government scrapped electrification projects in some parts of the country, saying it would look to hybrid technology trains instead.