This Unbelievable Droptail Roadster Is Minimalism, Rolls-Royce Style
Subtlety and Rolls-Royce don't really belong in the same sentence. After all, the brand's sedans are all named after various types of ghosts (Phantom, Wraith, etc.), and its SUV, the Cullinan, is named after a really big diamond. Driving (or being driven) around in a Rolls-Royce is about as ostentatious as you can be. However, the brand is doing its best to spin elegance and restraint into its newest roadster, the Droptail. The Droptail is part of the brand's Coachbuild series that birthed cars like the Sweptail and Boat Tail.
Rolls-Royce
Only four of them will ever be built, and all will be powered by twin-turbo 6.75-liter V12 that generates 593 horsepower and 620 foot-pounds of torque. The Droptail is the exact opposite of a regular "production" car in that each and every Droptail is painstakingly worked over until it is done and each will be unique in its own way, hence the lack of any real specifications aside from its basic dimensions and powerplant.
Rolls-Royce
The first Droptail to leave the factory is a car called the La Rose Noire, or "The Black Rose." The car itself is a monument to excess and a testament to how far Rolls-Royce will go for its customers. It took two years to build.
Simultaneously ostentatious and restrained
According to the automaker, La Rose Noire features a deep red paint color named True Love that reportedly took 150 layers to get right. Additionally, the interior features 1,603 pieces of hand-inlaid wood. But the true centerpiece of La Rose Noire is the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak watch (or "timepiece" if you're trying to be fancy). Just the watch itself reportedly costs around $200,000 when all is said and done.
Rolls-Royce
La Rose Noire will ride on 22-inch wheels painted in a color called Mystery and will feature the iconic rear-hinged doors that are featured on many Rolls-Royces. The automaker has not revealed the price of the Droptail, but given the fact that there are only four of them and there's a $200,000 watch inside, it won't even be anywhere near the word "reasonable." You likely need to have the words "King" or "Queen" somewhere in your name to even get the chance to afford one. But for comparison, the most recent car in the Coachbuild series, the Boat Tail, cost an estimated $25 million.
Rolls-Royce
Overcoming the hurdle that it's an ultra-exclusive car that costs more than the gross domestic product of some entire countries, the Droptail represents a single iota of self-control on Rolls-Royce's part.