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Rolls-Royce has offered another look at the styling of the new Ghost, in the second of a series of four animated teaser videos. This latest clip details the brand’s learning process on the buyers of the outgoing Ghost – and how those lessons helped to shape the design of this second-generation model.
The all-new Rolls-Royce Ghost will make its debut later this year sporting a fresh platform, updated styling, vastly improved interior technology and, by the sound of the brand’s latest official video, a new target customer.
This second animated video looks at the importance of the Goodwood Ghost to Rolls-Royce for learning about its customer base. The company found that a new, younger generation of buyers were using their Ghosts in ways that traditional Rolls-Royce buyers didn’t.
For example, the company found that, in America, these younger buyers were driving their cars themselves rather than being chauffeured. Meanwhile, the firm’s Asian clients showed a craving for more technology and both sets of customers expressed a desire for more subdued styling – all of which Rolls-Royce will implement on the new Ghost.
This latter point was outlined in Rolls-Royce’s first video clip, which focussed on the new Ghost’s design principles. The firm says that the entire car’s aesthetic was built around the concept of “post-opulence” – which, essentially, is a more complicated way of saying “minimalist.”
So, for its second generation, the Ghost will take on a far less fussy design. The car’s panel lines will be smoothed over, the body mouldings along the car’s flanks will be kept to a minimum and every piece of unnecessary styling being shunned – so the old car’s chrome badges and flashy brightwork will likely be ditched for more understated alternatives.
Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - rear 3/4
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Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - front
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Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - front 3/4
Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - front 3/4
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Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - rear
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Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - front
Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - side
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These teaser videos also provide our first confirmation from Rolls-Royce that a second-generation Ghost is on the way. The outgoing model has been on sale since 2009 and, although it received a heavy facelift in 2014, it was starting to show its age against younger rivals, such as the latest Bentley Flying Spur.
New Rolls-Royce Ghost: design and platform
This simple design approach outlined in Rolls-Royce’s teaser campaign seems to be reflected by our most recent spy shots. Previously spied mules feature a pair of less complicated LED headlamps, a smoother front bumper and fewer creases in the bonnet and wings – although the car’s trademark suicide rear doors remain.
Inside, the new Ghost will adopt Rolls-Royce’s latest infotainment screen and digital gauge cluster, as found in the Phantom and Cullinan. So, the car’s gauges will be displayed on a 12.3-inch TFT monitor, while the central infotainment screen will disappear into the dash at the touch of a button. The Ghost’s entire interior design will be overhauled, too.
We’ve also spied the more opulent long-wheelbase model, undergoing cold-weather testing in the arctic circle. The extra space between the axles is purely for the benefit of rear-seat occupants and is unlikely to drastically alter the experience from the driver’s point of view.
Like its bigger brother, the eighth-generation Phantom, the new Ghost will be based on Rolls-Royce’s all-new “Architecture of Luxury” platform. The fully-scalable, all-aluminium space-frame chassis underpin all of the company’s next-generation models, taking the place of the previous Ghost’s BMW 7 Series-based underpinnings.
Under the bonnet, we expect the new Ghost will be fitted with the latest iteration of Rolls’s 6.75-litre V12 engine, which now sports a pair of turbochargers. It’s the same unit found in the Phantom and the Cullinan – and, like both of those cars, it’ll be mated to an eight-speed automatic gearbox and offer power figures in excess of 560bhp.
Now read our review of the previous-generation Rolls-Royce Ghost here...
Continue reading...
The all-new Rolls-Royce Ghost will make its debut later this year sporting a fresh platform, updated styling, vastly improved interior technology and, by the sound of the brand’s latest official video, a new target customer.
This second animated video looks at the importance of the Goodwood Ghost to Rolls-Royce for learning about its customer base. The company found that a new, younger generation of buyers were using their Ghosts in ways that traditional Rolls-Royce buyers didn’t.
For example, the company found that, in America, these younger buyers were driving their cars themselves rather than being chauffeured. Meanwhile, the firm’s Asian clients showed a craving for more technology and both sets of customers expressed a desire for more subdued styling – all of which Rolls-Royce will implement on the new Ghost.
This latter point was outlined in Rolls-Royce’s first video clip, which focussed on the new Ghost’s design principles. The firm says that the entire car’s aesthetic was built around the concept of “post-opulence” – which, essentially, is a more complicated way of saying “minimalist.”
So, for its second generation, the Ghost will take on a far less fussy design. The car’s panel lines will be smoothed over, the body mouldings along the car’s flanks will be kept to a minimum and every piece of unnecessary styling being shunned – so the old car’s chrome badges and flashy brightwork will likely be ditched for more understated alternatives.
Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - rear 3/4
image
Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - front
image
image
Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - front 3/4
Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - front 3/4
image
image
image
Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - rear
image
Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - front
Rolls-Royce Ghost spies - side
image
image
These teaser videos also provide our first confirmation from Rolls-Royce that a second-generation Ghost is on the way. The outgoing model has been on sale since 2009 and, although it received a heavy facelift in 2014, it was starting to show its age against younger rivals, such as the latest Bentley Flying Spur.
New Rolls-Royce Ghost: design and platform
This simple design approach outlined in Rolls-Royce’s teaser campaign seems to be reflected by our most recent spy shots. Previously spied mules feature a pair of less complicated LED headlamps, a smoother front bumper and fewer creases in the bonnet and wings – although the car’s trademark suicide rear doors remain.
Inside, the new Ghost will adopt Rolls-Royce’s latest infotainment screen and digital gauge cluster, as found in the Phantom and Cullinan. So, the car’s gauges will be displayed on a 12.3-inch TFT monitor, while the central infotainment screen will disappear into the dash at the touch of a button. The Ghost’s entire interior design will be overhauled, too.
We’ve also spied the more opulent long-wheelbase model, undergoing cold-weather testing in the arctic circle. The extra space between the axles is purely for the benefit of rear-seat occupants and is unlikely to drastically alter the experience from the driver’s point of view.
Like its bigger brother, the eighth-generation Phantom, the new Ghost will be based on Rolls-Royce’s all-new “Architecture of Luxury” platform. The fully-scalable, all-aluminium space-frame chassis underpin all of the company’s next-generation models, taking the place of the previous Ghost’s BMW 7 Series-based underpinnings.
Under the bonnet, we expect the new Ghost will be fitted with the latest iteration of Rolls’s 6.75-litre V12 engine, which now sports a pair of turbochargers. It’s the same unit found in the Phantom and the Cullinan – and, like both of those cars, it’ll be mated to an eight-speed automatic gearbox and offer power figures in excess of 560bhp.
Now read our review of the previous-generation Rolls-Royce Ghost here...
Continue reading...