The new Rolls Royce Ghost – Simplified brilliance
That watch you have worn on your wrist. A part of you. A complex machinery that performs such a simple task. Replacing something that has been a part of you is never easy, and the same thing can be said for the Ghost. The Ghost is probably what pops into everyone’s mind when they need to think of a Rolls Royce. The Phantom might be the legend, but the Ghost is definitely the one I would go for. Equal presence, but with added flair. The Rolls Royce team had a task of monumental proportions.
It has taken six years to create the new Ghost. With focus on simplicity and reduction in all aspects. The sharp front lights and the reshaped bumper has made the Ghost even more distinguishable from the Phantom. However, with the loss of mass and volume in the lower part of the front. The pure bluntness of a RR is not as prominent. The rear lights are larger than before, and, proportionally speaking, looks much better. The diversity of the new front, it even has an illuminated grille, might turn away buyers that want a classic shape and design language. Luckily, there is the Phantom, and I do like that Rolls Royce has tried to diversify their range.
An all new aluminum platform, the same as the Cullinan and Phantom, gives the Ghost a 30 mm wider stance. The Rolls Royce derived V12 with 571 hp and 850 Nm now sends it power to all four wheels. A planar suspension system, which after some internet searching gave no real explanation to what a planar suspension actually is, and all wheel steering will not only give increased agility, but an even higher threshold of effortlessness. Going back to the basic mechanics. The engine, is placed behind the front axle to give a 50/50 weight distribution. In the press release, RR writes again and again that a big part of their focus has been just on the driving experience. And to have a solid foundation with a stiff and well-balanced chassis are some of the key ingredients to not only make a car that is rewarding to drive, but to also make a car the is in its core built without compromise.
The goal was to reach a completely quiet interior, which RR was planning to do. The problem with this, for everyone that has been in a special echo free chamber, is that it is highly disorientating. To avoid this, the interior panels have been tuned to specific resonance frequencies to create a certain audio sensation.
Where things haven’t changed, is inside. The reason being that almost every Rolls owner individually specs their car. It is what you don’t see that has been changed. A new purification system and opening and closing doors are there to make everything around you work as smoothly as possible.
The base price is 234 k euros, without taxes, and that doesn’t include the endless options that has become synonymous with a Rolls.
