Rolls-Royce Phantom Test Drive
The emergence of the next generation of Rolls-Royce Phantom is a phenomenon comparable in scale to the formation of new continents. Recently, in the automotive industry, such events happen once every 14 years.
What you think about the car is your expectations, which, when you met it, turned out to be higher or lower. Rolls-Royce Phantom in this sense exists in a parallel universe. Firstly, because you hardly think much about him in principle. Secondly, you are unlikely to meet him for a close acquaintance. Thirdly, to expect even more from the machine is already some kind of mental disorder, in which the connection with reality is lost. And even though the new Phantom, which traditionally carries its crown for about 15 years, is already not the fastest and not the most technically advanced, it is still a cut above everyone else.
Imaginary competitors are outraged, but what can you do: the world is unfair. To what extent can reasoning of this kind be considered objective? And what objectivity can we talk about when the true criteria for evaluating this machine are reduced to the question of preferences in the shade of gold, which will cover the "Spirit of Ecstasy". But such a superficial perception is also not the best way to understand what any Rolls-Royce is, and especially the brand's flagship.
Switzerland was chosen to meet the Rolls-Royce Phantom VIII. A country of prosperity, but not abundance. With insane speed limits, but where to rush, headlong, when everything has already been achieved. With idyllic landscapes floating outside the window and so well in harmony with the absolute serenity in a cabin that will not be penetrated by any unnecessary sound. With the unshakable and unperturbed Alps, next to which this car seems to be just as eternal and just as durable. With art galleries, watch manufactories and Michelin-starred restaurants, but most often without gold plumbing, no VIP plates and no security.
It is better to meet Rolls-Royce Phantom here, and not in Macau, not in Dubai, not in Las Vegas or even in Moscow. To understand the main thing: it can be decorated with Persian carpets, inlaid with precious stones so that every time you cry from their radiance and happiness, and you can even cover it with pure gold, and it will not suffocate with luxury and will not bend under the onslaught of all this unearthly beauty. Yes, all of this is possible, but, no, all of this is not at all necessary. Phantom is the most luxurious car not because of all this, but in spite of it.
But Switzerland, which so easily accommodates the new Phantom's ego, has a hard time accommodating it on its own roads. In the first 15 minutes behind the wheel of this barge, only one thought calms down: “if that truck has passed here, I will somehow squeeze through too”.
Is it worth even dreaming of being in this car behind the wheel, and not in the passenger seat around which the whole world revolves and all the planets revolve? Yes. At least for the sake of the Power Reserve scale - you press the gas, and the V12 with two turbochargers still has 97% of the potential, so that perhaps only Fly me to the Moon and back, for nothing more all these 571 hp. and 900 Nm at once may not be needed.
It is, of course, impossible to feel the acceleration without looking at the speedometer. It is much easier to feel all 2,6 tons of this giant aluminum carcass and remember the laws of physics: when driving downhill, despite pronounced braking, accelerating cheerfully and cheerfully.
When Philippe Koehn, head of engineering at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, begins to talk about his chosen technical solutions, it seems as if he is reading the most exciting adventure novel in the world, but all these words and numbers put on paper begin to fade and rustle boringly, because The new Phantom is far more grandiose than the sum of its components, whether it be the eight-speed ZF gearbox or even the flagship's biggest innovation of the 6th generation, the full-steering chassis, the first in Rolls-Royce's history. Although its usefulness is really felt in the corners, into which that XNUMX m of unconditional comfort and engineering excellence is screwed in with unexpected ease and grace.
The Rolls-Royce Phantom VIII is a work of art. Moreover, not only in the engineering sense, but also in the artistic one. In the interior - the holy of holies of this car - the front panel has become almost an iconostasis for those who worship art. On the passenger side, it has become a "Gallery", presenting an impressive art exhibition.
“I wanted to take an integral part of a car that had been of little use for a century other than storing the airbag and individual components,” explains Giles Taylor, design director at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. “And give her a new purpose, a space for self-realization”.
An oil painting by the Chinese painter Lian Yang Wei of the South Downs in England in autumn is presented as examples and a variety of ready-to-order options; the gold-plated genetic card of the owner, made on a 3D printer by the German designer Thorsten Frank; a handmade porcelain rose from the renowned Nymphenburg porcelain house; abstraction made on silk by the young British artist Helen Amy Murray; a mesmerizing aluminum sculpture by the Based Upon project; and a dazzling bird feather panel by Nature Squared.
“Art is at the heart of the new Phantom's interior design concept,” says Taylor. - Many of our clients are connoisseurs of beauty, owning their own private collections. For them, art is an important part of life. "
Thus, the "Gallery" is the most eloquent symbol of the new car, saying that any achievements of the digital era, which seem modern to us today, at any moment will turn into pagers, but art is eternal. Pathetic? No, in a car that starts at £ 400 it sounds more than natural.
