More than a decade after Rolls-Royce released its flagship luxury car Phantom VII, the company on Thursday unveiled the eighth-generation Phantom, the next in line to take over the Rolls throne.

Now, normally we don’t like to cover things based around old tech like the combustion engine. However, Rolls-Royce is planning on going fully electric in the next generation, and there are plenty of new, high-tech advancements for this iteration.

For almost one hundred years, Phantom has been the embodiment of sophistication and world’s best luxury car engineering. In an interview with Business Insider, CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös said:

“The Phantom is the pinnacle of the Rolls-Royce brand in its truest sense. It embodies all of the qualities Rolls-Royce is well known for. It starts with the magic carpet ride, the quality, the precision design, and engineering. It embodies what Sir Henry Royce said, ‘Take the best that exists and make it even better,’ and that is exactly what the Phantom is in every single detail.”

Rolls-Royce Phantom VIII: The Grandest Car to Date

Before the unveiling of Phantom VIII on Thursday, the Roll-Royce luxury car throne belongs to its predecessor Phantom VII.

Phantom VII was launched in 2003 by the then Volkswagen Group controlled Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. For 13 years, it became the car maker’s flagship model with annual sales reaching over 4,000 car units.

But the seventh-generation Phantom’s reign is over, and now it has to make way for, what car experts say as Rolls-Royce grandest car to date, the Phantom Viii.

Following UK’s moved to ban combustion vehicles by 2040, the latest Rolls-Royce Phantom is only the second modern version of the flagship state car that Rolls first introduced in 1925. According to Müller-Ötvös:

“Rolls-Royce will start to go electric in the next decade.”

Further adding that by then, they must have an “effortless charging situation” as Rolls’ wealthy clientele has no patience for spending “a couple of minutes” topping up batteries.

Rolls-Royce Phantom VIII Design, Style, and Features

The eighth-generation Phantom has not undergone any drastic stylistic change. While trained eyes would see that it is a new car, the majority of Phantom VIII’s styling remained similar to those of the Phantom VII.

Phantom VIII is more angular and sharper from the front. Its fenders are also noticeable for the way it comes all the way out to the front end of the car then make a right angle straight down.

The front end shows the biggest difference with the largest 24-slat grill ever fitted to a production Rolls Royce. The front valence has a built-in bumper, and the split headlamps are now sporting a sleeker single piece unit that has LED illumination and daytime running lamps.

The rear-end of the Phantom VIII is pretty similar with the seventh-gen Phantom. The large tail lights of the seven together with the signature two-tone theme has been carried over to the latest Phantom model.

The inside of the latest Phantom has been designed to create an environment that will deliver unparalleled luxury and isolation from the outside world. The seats and interior are covered in soft leather, metal accents, and rich wood veneers.

The Phantom also comes in a wide variety of rear seats ranging from lounge seats to individual seats with occasional armrest, individual seats with fixed center console and the newly introduced sleeping seat.

The fixed center console acts as a drinks cabinet with whiskey glasses and decanter, champagne flutes and a cool box.

The Phantom VIII can be customized to have a glass case installed in the dashboard. The gallery comes with only one permanent thing: the analog clock. Aside from that, everything that can be mounted in the gallery can be customized according to the request of the customer.

The driver will also have access to a panoramic camera system, night vision, adaptive cruise control, collision warning, cross-traffic warning, pedestrian warning, lane departure and lane change warning, as well as a high-definition head-up display.

Other features that would probably make Phantom VIII the grandest car ever are as follows:

• 8-speed gearbox aided by satellite makes impeccable shifts at any speed
• 100-percent original new chassis designed and engineered to sustain the exact weight of Phantom VIII (5,862 pounds for the short wheelbase; 5,948 pounds for the longer version) and its motion, which improves acceleration, traction, and the car’s overall rigidity by 30 percent.
• Four-wheel steering pretty much similar to that of the new Lamborghini Aventador, which increases agility and stability around corners.

The Phantom VIII will be powered by a twin-turbocharged 6.75-liter V12 engine. Its new architecture was dubbed as ‘Architecture of Luxury’ according to Rolls engineering chief Philip Koehn.

The eighth-generation Phantom will be offered in saloon model only with an initial price of £400,000 or over $520,000 USD. Phantom VIII is also the first Phantom model to be introduced since BMW took over the brand from Volkswagen.

In the words of Peter Schwarzenbauer, Rolls-Royce chairman, and BMW board member:

“We’re [BMW] quite happy to have this wonderful brand and develop it in future. This is not just launching a car, but setting a new standard for luxury overall.”

What was your impression of the elegance and cutting-edge technology that the Phantom VIII sports? Let us know in the comment section below!

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