An elegant new two-door, four-seater coupé, based on the experimental 101EX, will be launched by Rolls-Royce in 2008. The model will sit alongside the Phantom, Phantom Extended Wheelbase and Phantom Drophead Coupé to complete the family line-up.

As with the rest of the Phantom family, the new coupé will have an all-aluminium construction. Outright power will also be identical, at 453bhp, with 720Nm of torque. However, the coupé will be tuned slightly differently, to put more emphasis on a sporty feel for the driver, and the body will be shorter than that of the Phantom saloon. There will also be revisions to the suspension and chassis set-up.

Said Rolls-Royce Chief Designer, Ian Cameron, “With this car we wanted to emphasise the performance potential of the 6.75-litre V12 engine and the effortless experience that it delivers. Whilst never overtly sporty, Rolls-Royce is a brand that has always offered owners a powerful and refined drive combined with, as Sir Henry Royce described it, a bit of fizz.”

”Judging by the customer reaction to 101EX,” added Chairman and Chief Executive of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, Ian Robertson, “we are confident of its success.”

The new coupé will be priced between the Phantom (£224,000 / EURO 334,000 / $US340,000) and Phantom Drophead Coupé (£260,000 / EURO 370,000 / $US407,000). Production is scheduled to begin next summer, and it will be hand-built at the company’s manufacturing plant in Goodwood.

Text - Charis Whitcombe
Photos - Rolls-Royce Motor Cars