Rolling in the Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe
 |
At 100 mph you can't hear the clock in the new Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe. That's because the clock doesn't tick. But you can't hear much of anything else, either, apart from the rustle of wind around the A-pillars. It might be the sportiest Rolls-Royce ever -- faster than a Porsche Boxster to 60 mph and boasting a myriad of detail changes to suspension, steering, and transmission tune designed to sharpen the its responses -- but the Phantom Coupe is first and foremost a luxury car.
I've just spent two days and about 600 miles in the Phantom Coupe, driving from the factory at Chichester in the south of England to Crozet, just outside Geneva. A long-distance trip like this is exactly what Rolls-Royce says the car was designed to do, though in truth the folks who can afford to spend $400,000 on a two-door coupe are more likely to use their Rolls-Royce-powered private jet for the journey.
I guess that only goes to prove money is wasted on the rich because the Phantom Coupe is a very pleasant device in which to cross a continent. Under a hood long enough to double as the flight deck of a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier is the now-familiar BMW-based 6.75L V-12, with 453 hp on tap at 5350 rpm and 531 lb-ft of torque at 3600 rpm. Rolls-Royce claims 75 percent of the torque is available from just 1000 rpm, though, in practice the big V-12 likes to rev, becoming more responsive as engine speeds build.
While much of the rolling stock -- front and rear suspension, hubs, wheels, brakes -- is shared with the Phantom, the Coupe rolls on a wheelbase that's 9.85 in. shorter than the sedan's. The smooth-shifting ZF 6HP32 six-speed automatic transmission is also shared. Detail changes include revised spring rates to stiffen the ride, a thicker rear stabilizer bar to improve turn-in, and reprogrammed power steering. The brake modulation has been tweaked to provide more aggressive tip-in, and the transmission has been remapped with different shift points.
Even so, the Phantom Coupe feels...languid. Its natural rival, the Bentley Brooklands coupe, launches like a Saturn V, accompanied a rolling-thunder soundtrack that resembles the USS Missouri delivering a broadside. The Rolls oozes away from a standstill with the quiet murmur of a Buckingham Palace garden party. Hit the sport button on the giant steering wheel, and the car will launch in first gear instead of second and hold on to each gear longer. Selecting sport mode also sharpens the steering response, though in no way could you call the result truly sporty.
Like the Phantom sedan, the Coupe is best driven with your fingertips, guided rather than hustled. Driven smoothly, the Phantom Coupe is deceptively quick, though it's clearly best suited to fast, open roads than sinuous mountain passes. On the freeway it's so smooth, so quiet -- and so big -- you easily find yourself wafting along at an effortless 100 mph.
I arrived here at Crozet a few hours ago, relaxed and ready to watch the sunset with a chilled glass of champagne on the hotel terrace. Instead, I came back to my room to write this and a first-drive story for Motor Trend magazine. Like the rest of us, I might not be able to live how the super-rich live. But at least I've driven their car.
We'll have a more complete story on the Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe -- with more photos -- here at motortrend.com in the next couple of days.
Post a Comment