Rumormill: Electric Rolls-Royce Phantom cometh?
by Jeremy Korzeniewski on Sep 22nd 2009 at 5:01PM 
2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom - Click above for high-res image gallery
Yes, an electric Rolls-Royce. And why not? The torque curve of an electric motor – making maximum pulling power right at zero RPM – would seem to suit the R-R mission perfectly, as would the distinct lack of noise, vibration and harshness. Sounds like a match made in heaven, no?
Naturally, there are issues to overcome, not the least of which is sourcing a suitably large battery for the three-ton Phantom sedan. According to Auto Express, that battery pack would feature lithium ion cells, which happens to be the same technology used by parent company BMW in its electric Mini E.
These rumors aren't exactly new – we last heard of an electric Roller about a year ago – but this time the addition of a possible range extender is mentioned for the first time. Such a configuration is featured in both the upcoming Chevy Volt and the Vision EfficientDynamics Concept BMW showed off at the Frankfurt Motor Show.
The unnamed spokesperson cited by Auto Express doesn't offer any sort of timetable as to when we might see an electric Phantom, but we're not exactly holding our breath.
Gallery: 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom
[Source: Auto Express]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Luis 5:03PM (9/22/2009)
All these electric cars - I can't keep up anymore!
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Art 5:08PM (9/22/2009)
No no no BMW holdings
NO ONE wants a plug in X6/M5/Rolls Royce. NO ONE
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mikey683 5:13PM (9/22/2009)
I don't see the point. Rolls Royces aren't produced in any kind of numbers that make it matter what kind of mileage they get or how much carbon they spew. There's so few of them it just doesn't matter. Oh maybe for celebrities who want to seem like they care about the environment.But hey, your driving a Rolls Royce they're going to hate you anyway. lol
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groundZ 5:23PM (9/22/2009)
Well like it says in the article it would be better for the kind of car a RR buyer wants. Little to no NVH and great pickup.
mikey683 5:30PM (9/22/2009)
i have a feeling RR's are already pretty NVH free and with 453 HP and 531 ft lb of torque I don't think their owners are suffering to badly.
chad.dawkins 1:59AM (9/23/2009)
An electric engine would be dead silent and have little to no vibration while bringing high torque. This isn't about performance or fuel economy. It's Rolls-Royce producing a car that they see as flawless. Under hard acceleration you can still hear the engine in the Phantom. Rolls-Royce believes if you're good at something then you can make it seem effortless. An engine that pins you to the back of your seat without making a sound would do that.
Hike15 5:14PM (9/22/2009)
Two things make this easier than most electirc cars:
1. It already wieghs a few tons, so a couple hundred more pounds isn't noticable
2. I already costs $400k so price isn't an issue
3. I don't think people will care much about trunk space since the trunk is already small
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Andrew T 6:23PM (9/22/2009)
Im willing to bed its a bit more then a couple hundred pounds. Im not sure what kind of electric car this would be, but if its going to try to appeal to the upper class, i would think this thing needs some range.
the teslas battery pack is 53kw and weights 900lbs. those are some pretty sophisticated batteries in there too, not your typical lead acids, so weight/kw ratio is going down.
a typical car gets something along the lines of 300wh/mile (or thats atleast what EV'ers go by). heavier larger vehicles like SUV's/Pickups get around 400-600wh/mile (and more depending on size). ill assume 500wh/mile. and lets say we want a range of 200 miles. thats means we need about a 100kw battery, about twice. ill negate the fact that lithium batteries only have about 80% usable energy, due to the fact that there will be some regen. so a bit under a ton for 200 miles.
Andrew T 6:27PM (9/22/2009)
seems like i wrote something wrong in just about every other sentence
"willing to bed" -> willing to bet
"ratio is going down" -> ratio is not going down
about twice -> about twice the size of teslas pack
there is probably more, but none jump out to me like those 3
Hike15 7:25AM (9/24/2009)
I'm not really sure how they will manage a descent range out of it, but at least there is plenty of space for more batteries than the tesla
CBXweb 5:16PM (9/22/2009)
Imagine all the codgers having their driver push their ePhantom down Wilshire x Beverly? I could see it now on the news "A Beverly Hills woman died in the backseat of her electric Rolls Royce ePhantom after it ran out of power. The driver of her car was charged with Vehicular Manslaughter, because this incident does not make sense."
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Venom 5:27PM (9/22/2009)
This is ridiculous.
You would need all the batteries in the world to power one of these beasts.
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The Doctor 5:33PM (9/22/2009)
If ever there was a car that was suited to being electric it's the Phantom - I don't know about the rest of the world but in London I've never seen a Phantom on the motorway. They seem to spend their entire lives doing 17mph round the inner city.
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pmgpmg 7:11PM (9/22/2009)
While providing transportation “in class”, RRs are also used for motorcade parade.
I remember seen the Queen Elizabeth II in Rouen, France, who came at the inauguration of the Joan of Arc museum. It was a hot summer day and the Queen’s RR while driving at a 2mph suddenly broken down because of a water hose leak. Well, the Queen Elizabeth II decided to continue on foot to the museum located one block away.
This would be a particular need for getting an EV RR when doing such parade procession.
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J 7:34PM (9/22/2009)
Why?
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retsel 7:49PM (9/22/2009)
forever i wanted to get a 1978 RR and convert it to a electric car... all i would want is a range of 100 miles on a change... something that they say can be done with a off the shelf kit...
Then i would hook it up...
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jim 10:10PM (9/22/2009)
The idea of a luxury car in the manner of a RR is effortless, silent propulsion. An EV Roller or Maybach or Bentley, makes a hell of a lot more sense than a hybrid Corvette or Ferrari.
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bobnine 2:24AM (9/23/2009)
Just put the motors in the wheels like the Audi and fill that massive hood with the latest lithium batteries and there would be plenty of range. The loudest thing in a Rolls Royce at 50mph is then.. your heartbeat?
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jill 3:41PM (10/01/2009)
Car looks awesome... electric car how bout the electric cig! http://www.electroniccigarettesinc.com
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