Autoblog

click above for high-res gallery of the Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe

Rolls-Royce has released pics of the Phantom Coupé, and if any one from Rolls is reading this, you can sign us up for one in every color. And we don't mean the standard colors -- we mean every single color. Sure, the car only has two doors, but even we still experience a bit of a catch when calling this car -- all eighteen-and-a-half feet of it -- a coupe. Which is why we don't: we call it a "coupé." That final accent, like the Alpine summits in the above picture, puts the car in its proper perspective: that of the Jazz Age gentleman racer hopping from Antibes to Nice for dinner with the Polish Countess and a moonlight sail.

Descended from the 101EX concept, the Coupé is nearly all-aluminum on an aluminum spaceframe, with steel apparent in only the A-pillar surround, the hood, and the picnic boot. Behind the raked grill of the Coupé resides the by now well known 6.75-liter V12 with 453-HP and 530 lb-ft to pull its 5,798 pounds. The back end of the car comes up 250mm short of the Phantom's length and manages to pull out a BMW-like 49:51 weight distribution. To keep up those kinds of driver's car credentials, the rear dampers are stiffer, there's a thicker anti-roll bar, and the steering has been given some additional feel. A Sport button on the new, thicker steering wheel enacts a new shift program that holds gears longer, the autobox kicks down faster, and the pedal response is quicker. With the changes, sixty comes up in a rather sporting 5.6 seconds. Three choices of 21-inch wheels will be offered, two of them forged alloy numbers.

Inside are all of the usual Rolls-Royce accoutrements, but the only two words you need to remember are: "starlight headliner." You might not want to have it on all the time, but as a showstopper it will certainly do the trick. But don't take our word for it: the full press release is after the jump, and check out the gallery of hi-res images below.


[Source: Rolls-Royce]