Leave the Cullinan in the Garage - Rolls-Royce's Ghost to Go AWD

The next time you don your best wool and tweed garb and grab the Holland & Holland for a day of upland game hunting on the moors, you might want to leave the largest of Rolls-Royces in your heated garage. That’s because the next-generation Ghost, the most affordable of Rolls’ cars, will send power to all four wheels.

Retailing for a mere $314,400 (2020 model), the now decade-old Ghost is a suicide-doored alternative to the gauche, look-at-me Phantom, Wraith, and Dawn, to say nothing of the Cullinan SUV. Due for a full revamp this fall, the Ghost stands to gain some of the features modern drivers can’t do without.

Specifically, all-wheel drive. Not content to just add it and move on, Rolls-Royce claims the next-gen Ghost will feature four-wheel steering, a new aluminum platform, and a painstakingly crafted suspension aimed at boosting the car’s “magic carpet ride” handling.

All aboard.

The automaker detailed the changes this week, claiming that, when notified that the company was working on a new Ghost, existing customers weighed in. They wanted more, apparently. Don’t they know it’s an entry-level car?

“To fulfill this challenging brief, Rolls-Royce’s engineering experts rejected the use of a pre-existing platform,” the automaker said. “Instead, they configured the marque’s proprietary spaceframe architecture to incorporate elements of the brand’s existing model portfolio such as all-wheel drive and all-wheel steering, while adapting the structure to accommodate significant advances in Rolls-Royce’s hallmark magic carpet ride and dynamic abilities.”

Groovy stuff, but wait till you hear the nitty-gritty behind the car’s newfound road manners:

“A key development was the Planar system, which is comprised of three elements. The first is an Upper Wishbone Damper unit, which is mounted above the front suspension assembly and creates an even more stable and effortless ride,” the company stated. “The result of three years of development, this is a world-first technology. The second is the Flagbearer system, which uses cameras to read the road ahead and prepare the suspension system for any changes in road surface. The third is Satellite Aided Transmission, which draws GPS data to pre-select the optimum gear for upcoming corners. The Planar system allows new Ghost to anticipate and react to even the most demanding road surface.”

Obsessions over comfort aside, Rolls-Royce claims the new Ghost is nothing more than an exercise in “uncomplicated versatility.” The automaker says it’s not trying to make a “grand statement.”

That may very well be true for Rolls-Royce, but it might not be for the average U.S. Rolls-Royce buyer.

[Image: Rolls-Royce]