Meet The New Rolls-Royce, Same As The Old Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce took the cover off its new Dawn convertible (see what we did there?) Tuesday in an online reveal ahead of its debut at the Frankfurt Auto Show.
The car, which is powered by a 6.6-liter V-12 that produces 563 horsepower and 575 pound-feet of torque married to a ZF 8-speed transmission, is Rolls-Royce’s answer to what we’ve all been asking: How can I be even more noticeable in my Roller?
Here’s your answer: A 22-second folding “silent ballet” droptop with open-pore wood tonneau, hand-stitched leather everywhere, 16 speakers and self-closing doors.
Rolls-Royce hasn’t announced the price for its Dawn just yet, but if you have to ask …
The company says that the Dawn shares only a few parts from the Wraith it was built from. The Dawn’s body is 80-percent new, according to the manufacturer. That includes a reshaped nose and stretched jaw that accentuates the car’s “jet air intake,” according to Rolls-Royce.
Inside, the car is predictably over the top, including copious rear legroom, grain accents on the wood deck that “waterfall” into the passenger compartment, handwriting recognition and a bespoke clock.
The Dawn may be the kind of Roller you’d prefer to drive, rather than be driven in. The aforementioned 563 ponies on tap propel (gracefully) the car up to 60 mph in under 5 seconds. And the Dawn uses GPS to “watch” the road ahead of you and set up the car’s suspension and inputs to best handle what’s coming next, similar to the system in the Wraith.
The Dawn will appear next at the Frankfurt Auto Show, which begins September 15.
More by Aaron Cole
Comments
Join the conversation
New money. What do people who drive cars like this, or who live in over-the-top McMansions, think we the hoi polloi think of them? Do they realize that the people with taste and sophistication they are trying to impress, actually look down on them? Seriously, I wonder what the interior life of these people is like. Is there an interior life?
The headlights and the transmission from a Chrysler 300.