If you happen to’ve ever puzzled what a luxurious condominium on wheels going quick seems like, that is it. Exhibiting each tempo and charm, the Rolls-Royce Ghost is on the Goodwood Competition of Pace this weekend. Regardless of having an enormous V12 engine below the hood, the ultra-luxury sedan is almost as quiet because the Spectre electrical coupe that tackled the identical well-known hill simply a few days in the past.
The luxobarge in query is a Collection II mannequin, a advertising and marketing jargon for a facelift. Rolls-Royce discreetly up to date the Ghost in October 2024, and this marks the automotive’s first look at Goodwood. It’s the usual wheelbase model somewhat than the even bigger Prolonged mannequin. Nonetheless, at 5.5 meters (218 inches) lengthy, it barely eclipses the current-generation BMW 7 Collection in measurement.
The Ghost doesn’t simply drive up the hill climb course. It glides and wafts, doing so at a powerful tempo given its sheer measurement and weight. Many of the noise you hear comes from the tires, which take a beating as the motive force threads the smallest of the Rolls-Royce sedans by the slender monitor.
A Rolls-Royce proprietor will nearly definitely by no means push a Ghost that tough on a monitor, not to mention experience as a passenger whereas another person does. Nonetheless, it’s exceptional to see how composed this land yacht stays throughout a scorching lap at Goodwood. The air suspension has its work minimize out for it, but it does a wonderful job of maintaining the automotive easy and steady.
It’s value noting this can be a common Ghost, not the extra highly effective Black Badge model. That variant has a further 29 horsepower and 37 lb-ft (50 Nm) of torque, bringing the full to 591 hp and 663 lb-ft (900 Nm). Not that the rich occupant within the again would possible discover the distinction between the 2 anyway.
The Ghost is a pure step up from a 7 Collection if you wish to keep inside the BMW Group. Quickly, ALPINA will bridge the hole between the 2 with the return of the B7, below a new identify. Based mostly on subsequent 12 months’s 7 Collection facelift, it’s rumored to supply six- and eight-cylinder engines, together with electrical derivatives. Sure, an ALPINA EV is on the horizon.
In order for you twelve cylinders, you continue to have to maneuver as much as the Ghost. The venerable twin-turbo 6.75-liter engine additionally powers the even bigger Phantom and the Cullinan SUV. For the way for much longer? Rolls-Royce plans to go absolutely electrical round 2030, so the majestic “N74” engine’s days are numbered.
Supply: Goodwood Competition of Pace / Instagram