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Rolls-Royce Cullinan and BMW 8 Series spied south of Death Valley

Recently, we've stumbled upon a number of manufacturer prototypes running around. Usually, spy photographers sit and wait for hours with cameras primed in order to get a few shots of a car. We just got lucky. First, we caught the new Chevy Corvette ZR1 convertible during a Facebook Live video. A week or so later McGraw snapped a video of a ZR1 coupe cruising in his neck of the woods. Today, our ace photographer Drew Phillips caught a BMW test fleet filling up the new Rolls-Royce Cullinan and 8 Series coupe in Baker, Calif. Baker sits along Interstate 15, about halfway between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. It's just south of Death Valley, and, being late August, suggests that BMW was doing some hot weather testing. Drew was filling up his car when the fleet rolled in. There were at least two of the new king Rolls and a single 8 Series. Both cars were wearing a full swirl camouflage wrap. It's not an uncommon place to see prototypes. Still, seeing a whole fleet roll in is quite a sight. We've seen official photos of the Cullinan before, but these pictures give us our best view of the profile and rear we've had so far. From a distance, it looks like a high-riding version of the new Phantom with a hatch in place of the trunk. The taillights are obviously just filler units. Expect the final version to look very much like the squared off LED units on the Phantom. Likewise the interior and engine should be straight from the Phantom. That means a twin-turbocharged V12, though power is likely to be sent to all four wheels. We've seen the full BMW 8 Series concept a few times now. The proportions on the production car look the same, with a long hood and even longer wheelbase. The nose isn't quite as aggressive as the concept, but we expected the styling to be toned down to meet crash and safety standards. As for engines, look for six, eight and (hopefully) 12-cylinder power under the hood. A plug-in variant is also expected. Both cars have been in development for a long while, so look for full debuts sometime this auto show season. Maybe we'll happen upon some more test mules between now and then. Related Video:

Muhammad Ali's 1970 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow is going for auction

Boxing fans and Rolls-Royce fans, get your wallets ready. A very special car is going to cross the Bonhams auction block this October. It's a 1970 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow Mulliner Park Ward convertible that was owned by none other than Muhammad Ali, the boxer that ended George Foreman's undefeated streak. Bonhams reports that the car was owned by Ali for 6 years, meaning Ali must've enjoyed this car and used it quite a bit. The company postulates that since Ali bought the car in 1970, it may have been a celebratory purchase, since that was the first year Ali could box again after a five-year ban from the sport for being a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War. The car itself has a number of notable features. For one thing, Bonhams says the car is completely unrestored, and is in quite good condition as such. It also is apparently one of just 272 Silver Shadow Mulliner Park Wards that were built with left-hand drive. It ended up in Holland after Ali's tenure with it, which is partly why it will go for auction at a Bonhams auction in Belgium. Also interesting is that this is a celebrity car – a nice one, too – that is in the realm of affordability. Bonhams estimates it could sell for between $47,000 and $70,000. The low end of that price is actually a couple grand less than Hagerty's estimate of $49,200 for a concours-ready example without celebrity history. And even at the high end, you'll still be paying way less for this than, say, a new Rolls-Royce Ghost. So if you can get yourself to Holland and have the means to buy and ship the car, this could be a way to get a great celebrity car for not a massive amount of money. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

The Rolls-Royce Cullinan spied in production bodywork again

The Rolls-Royce Phantom is a massive vehicle. It's far larger in person than it appears to be in photos. It rivals the Ford F-150 in overall length and width, and remember this is a sedan. If the same characteristic holds true for the upcoming Rolls-Royce Cullinan SUV, as these new spy photos show, this is going to be a luxury apartment on wheels. We've seen photos of the Cullinan before, and this one doesn't appear to be too far removed from that model. The brick-like shape remains, as do all the typical Rolls-Royce touches like the upright grille and suicide doors. Out back, we can see rectangular exhaust tips and a low-opening tailgate. The prototype taillights appear to flow into the tailgate. The overall style is all about clean lines and as creating as few curves as possible. It's probably going to be described as handsome far more than it will be described as pretty. It should be no surprise that the Cullinan is as big as it its. It's supposed to share a platform with the upcoming Phantom replacement. Expect all wheel drive and a turbocharged V12, though a plug-in hybrid variant is rumored to be in the works. Expect lots of aluminum to try and keep the weight down. The prototype looks pretty far along, so look for the final version sometime within the next year or so. Related Video: Featured Gallery Rolls-Royce Cullinan Bodywork Spy Photos View 17 Photos Image Credit: CarPix Spy Photos Rolls-Royce SUV Luxury rolls-royce phantom rolls-royce cullinan