Rolls-Royce Phantom (BMW)

See also Rolls-Royce Phantom for other models sharing this name

The Rolls-Royce Phantom is a luxury saloon automobile made by Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, a BMW subsidiary. It was launched in 2003 and is the first Rolls-Royce model made under the ownership of BMW.

Specifications

It has a 6.8 L, 48-valve, V12 engine that produces 453 hp (338 kW) and 531 ft·lbf (720 N·m) of torque. The engine is derived from BMW's existing V12 powerplant.

It is 1.63 m (63 in) tall, 1.99 m (74.8 in) wide, 5.83 m (228 in) long, and weighs 2485 kg (5478 lb). The body of the car is built on an aluminium spaceframe and the Phantom can accelerate to 60 mph (100 km/h) in 5.7 s. It has a six-speed automatic transmission and double wishbone suspension.

The Phantom features side markers on all vehicles (rear ones are red in the US to comply with federal car lighting rules).

An extended wheelbase Phantom was presented in March 2005 at the Geneva Motor Show, which is 250 mm longer than the standard Phantom.

Image:Rolls-Royce Phantom at USGP 2005.jpg|A Phantom at the 2005 United States Grand Prix Image:Phantom_tail.jpg|Rear view of a 2005 Phantom

Design

BMW went to great lengths to distinguish the Phantom from their own range. Although some 15 percent of components are shared with other BMW models such as the BMW 7 Series, the Phantom retains the traditional Rolls-Royce design cues.

The intention was to avoid being seen as just an extension to the BMW range. When Mercedes introduced its Maybach luxury saloon, it was criticized of producing "the ultimate Mercedes" instead of a separately branded car. The car shared many components with and looked like the cheaper S-Class saloon. BMW learned from this lesson, selling the Phantom through separate dealerships where BMWs are not sold, while the Maybach showroom in London also sells the most basic of Mercedes models.

The aluminium spaceframe body is built in a BMW plant in Dingolfing, Germany and the V12 engine in Munich. Final assembly to each customer's individual specification is at a purpose built €100M plant at Goodwood, West Sussex, England.

Novel features

Instead of a tachometer, the car has a power reserve dial indicating how much of the engine's power is left available to the driver.
The rear doors are rear-hinged, a style referred to as suicide doors. An electronic lock prevents the doors from being accidentally opened when moving.
The rear doors feature pop-out umbrellas.
The traditional Spirit of Ecstasy ornament has an electronic retraction mechanism to prevent theft and protect pedestrians in the event of an accident.
The 'RR' logos on each of the wheel hubs are independent bezels in order to always remain upright while the wheel is rotating

Sales

BMW have set a lifetime limit that only 10,000 units of the Phantom will be built.
The base price is £250,000 in the UK and $340,000 in the US.
As of October 2004, only 555 Phantoms were sold, down from a target of 1,000 units per year. Many say this is due to the slow set-up of the dealer network. By the end of the year, the company expected to have sold between 750 and 800. However, at that stage, Rolls-Royce was selling twice as many cars as its closest rival Maybach.
The 2000th car rolled out of the Goodwood factory in December 2005. http://www.jalopnik.com/cars/rollsroyce/

Famous owners

50 Cent - aka rapper Curtis Jackson, silver with cream interior. He is thinking about making it a convertible http://cars.msn.co.uk/fun/celebrity/50cent/
Fat Joe aka Joseph Cartengena, sky blue. He bought it after the success of "Lean Back".
Ben Affleck - silver. He bought it for then fiancee Jennifer Lopez. When the relationship broke up, she returned it - and he was photographed taking it to McDonalds.
Christina Aguilera - white. Was used at her wedding in Napa Valley
David Beckham - silver. Bought for him as a birthday present by wife Victoria Beckham. http://socialitelife.com/categories/celebrities/victoria_beckham/index.php
Johnnie Cochran - black on black
Simon Cowell - ordered a Maybach. He then took a ribbing from Jeremy Clarkson on Top Gear. He was in Hollywood, and his Bentley needed a service - they gave him a Phantom as courtesy car, and he loved it. He telephoned Rolls-Royce and found the Beverly Hills dealer had three in stock, including one with his preferred 'piano black' paint and triple black interior - black leather, black carpets and black lacquered wood dashboard. An hour later his Maybach order was cancelled, and he had ordered a second similar Phantom for London. He has a 100CX convertible on order for American delivery http://www.topgear.com/content/features/stories/2005/08/stories/13/1.html.
Jay Kay - black on black with piano black.
Jay Z - white
John Kerry - black. The former Democratic presidential candidate, or more correctly, his wife Teresa Heinz Kerry.
Brittany Murphy - after seeing one in a Snoop Dogg video
Shaquille O'Neal - silver
Yohan Poonawalla - the Mumbai industrialist bought the first Rolls Royce in India, 2 years after test driving it in London. It was the first Rolls-Royce sold through a local dealer in 50 years - and included 103% local luxury tax
Russell Simmons
Rev. Al Sharpton - Owns one after celebrating his 50th birthday in 2004.
Snoop Dogg - white. Used in one of his music videos.
Sir Alan Sugar - black with cream interior. The known collector of specific Rolls Royce and Bentley cars has one as his chauffeured transport, which featured in the second series of The Apprentice
Donald Trump - basketball star Shaquille O'Neal purchased a white Phantom as a wedding gift for Donald Trump and his wife
Stevie Wonder - in black, purchased by Oprah Winfrey as a "thank you" for singing her "Happy Birthday" on her 50th birthday.
Sultan of Brunei - and his brother Jefri each purchased six bullet-proof Phantoms http://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/2004/01/29/sultanbrunei/
Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud - the Saudi is the fourth richest man in the world
Prince Abdullah - has loaned Michael Jackson a driver and one of his three Rolls Royce Phantoms, while the singer resides in Bahrain http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,188181,00.html

Some of the world's best hotels use them to chauffeur top line guests. These include: Pudong Shangri-La, Shanghai - blue; Emirates Palace Abu Dhabi, 2 both in white http://www.ameinfo.com/images/news/8/13898-empal.jpg

References

External links

Rolls Royce Phantom Chauffeur and Images

Rolls-Royce Phantom (2003) | Rolls-Royce Phantom | Rolls-Royce Phantom | Rolls-Royce Phantom