Rolls-Royce expanding with ‘smaller’ model and the opening of its 80th dealership

Zafiro · Apr 23, 2007

It seems Rolls-Royce CEO Ian Robertson can’t keep his mouth shut surrounding information about the luxury marque’s forthcoming new entrant. After revealing production details for the new model back at February’s Geneva Motor Show, Robertson has been spilling the beans with Reuters at this week’s Shanghai Auto Show.

“We are working on a smaller car,” Robertson said, mentioning that it will cost roughly one third less than the Phantom saloon but remaining above BMW’s flagship 7-Series. Rolls-Royce has been enjoying great success with the Phantom but it still hasn’t met is original goal of selling 1,000 units annually. But this new model should change all that, with Robertson saying “we should more than double our overall sales with a broader market.”

Production is scheduled to start in the not too distant future. “The design is finished and the first prototypes should be running very shortly,” he said, adding that the plant in Crewe will soon be upgraded with a second production line to accommodate the new model.

Unlike the floundering Maybach brand, Rolls-Royce is moving from strength to strength, The company announced at the Shanghai show that its 80th showroom in the world has just been opened in Chengdu bringing its total in China to 5. The country is easily Rolls-Royce’s fastest growing market and two new dealerships are planned to be opened within the next 12 months making China second only to the US.

Mr. M · Apr 23, 2007

Re: Rolls-Royce expanding with ‘smaller’ model and the opening of its 80th dealership

The Flying Spur is dying to have a competitor from RR.

mercmad · Apr 23, 2007

Mirage77 said:
The Flying Spur is dying to have a competitor from RR.

The FS is dying not to get competition from RR... If it does then it is going to take a lot of sale away from Bentley IMO

Bartek S. · Apr 24, 2007

Ian Robertson, CEO of Rolls-Royce confirmed in an interview with Reuters at the 2007 Shanghai Auto Show that the company has finished designing for a new small car and the first prototypes should be on their way very shortly. The car will be a very attractive car for China, he added. The average price of a Rolls-Royce in China is around $900,000, but last year the company sold one for $2.3 million. Rolls-Royce will add two new dealerships in China in the coming year for a total of seven, a network that is second only to the United States.

From: Rolls Royce to launch new, smaller model

SDNR · Apr 24, 2007

mercmad said:
The FS is dying not to get competition from RR... If it does then it is going to take a lot of sale away from Bentley IMO

I don't necessarily think this is the case. Bentley has a very strong image. Don't forget when Rolls-Royce and Bentley were still being produced side by side, by the late 1990s Rolls' sales were 10% of Bentley's. The Bentley image is far less pretentious and probably more appealing to many. The Rolls-Royce brand image does come with a lot of "baggage" -- for what ever reason, people do tend to associate Rolls-Royce with snoberry and the British class system.

Centurion · Apr 24, 2007

RR is very snoobish since the Phantom cost a fortune and is a chauffeur type of car, and the people who tend to be driven are often very fortunate. The "smaller" Rolls will remove the chauffeur stamp from the brand and make it more appealing to the younger crowd.
Will it be a Flying Spur competitor? No it won't. The Flying Spur is a relatively compromised Bentley, almost a bastard and is more of a S600 competitor. The new rolls will be positioned above them and will have a sticker price pined somewhere in the upper 100k spectrum. Standing between the S600 and the Arnage.

Imhotep Evil · Apr 24, 2007

Yep. The smaller RR will be above the FS.

YoUhimhER · Apr 24, 2007

finally RR is letting go of its pride and follow what bentley did with its line-up, wonder when maybach will follow suit. profitability is everything.

SDNR · Apr 24, 2007

YoUhimhER said:
finally RR is letting go of its pride and follow what bentley did with its line-up, wonder when maybach will follow suit. profitability is everything.

Don't know what you're talking about "letting go of its pride" -- this new model will sit where the Silver Seraph was in the market. In other words, this new Rolls will be priced similarly to the current Bentley Arnage.

The Phantom models have always been the most expensive Rolls-Royces -- in fact, the previous Phantom model, the Phantom VI (produced untill 1992) was considerably more expensive than the current one.

YoUhimhER · Apr 24, 2007

Rob said:
Don't know what you're talking about "letting go of its pride" -- this new model will sit where the Silver Seraph was in the market. In other words, this new Rolls will be priced similarly to the current Bentley Arnage.

The Phantom models have always been the most expensive Rolls-Royces -- in fact, the previous Phantom model, the Phantom VI (produced untill 1992) was considerably more expensive than the current one.

i thought the silver seraphs was priced at 200k+, but based on the article it says the new model "will cost roughly one third less than the Phantom saloon," a phantom is around 330k to 400k in the us, one third of that is around 110k to 130k, and that's no where close to 200k of the previous silver seraph.
what i meant is it seems like they didnt wanna go down market like bentley did with its continental series, but now they cant achieve its sales goal, they have to put profit before pride.

Centurion · Apr 24, 2007

YoUhimhER said:
i thought the silver seraphs was priced at 200k+, but based on the article it says the new model "will cost roughly one third less than the Phantom saloon," a phantom is around 330k to 400k in the us, one third of that is around 110k to 130k, and that's no where close to 200k of the previous silver seraph.
what i meant is it seems like they didnt wanna go down market like bentley did with its continental series, but now they cant achieve its sales goal, they have to put profit before pride.

That article does contain som bull shit. Not in a million years will the smaller rolls be priced so low.

voriax · Apr 25, 2007

YoUhimhER said:
i thought the silver seraphs was priced at 200k+, but based on the article it says the new model "will cost roughly one third less than the Phantom saloon," a phantom is around 330k to 400k in the us, one third of that is around 110k to 130k, and that's no where close to 200k of the previous silver seraph.
what i meant is it seems like they didnt wanna go down market like bentley did with its continental series, but now they cant achieve its sales goal, they have to put profit before pride.

Um, read closely.. "will cost one third LESS than the phantom", not "one third OF the phantom's price" .. meaning, take one third of the price away from the phantom and you have the seraph's price. Eg: around 200k.

Those prices are so cheap compared to what we pay for RR's here in Australia. A new Phantom will set you back a minimum of AU$1,000,000. Which at the moment is about US$830k.

SDNR · Apr 25, 2007

voriax said:
Um, read closely.. "will cost one third LESS than the phantom", not "one third OF the phantom's price" .. meaning, take one third of the price away from the phantom and you have the seraph's price. Eg: around 200k.

That's right voriax

YoUhimhER said:
what i meant is it seems like they didnt wanna go down market like bentley did with its continental series, but now they cant achieve its sales goal, they have to put profit before pride.

Hmmm, does anybody seriously believe Bentley has gone "down market"?

Although the Continental series is the most "affordable" Bentley ever, it is still one of the best cars in the world -- the quality is not compromised at all. I think people have become too fixated on how exclusive these cars are or are not (as compared to older Bentley models) ....surely it's the quality and the brand's integrity that really matter. Although I know some people do not like the looks of the Continentals at all, they are still a first class product worthy of the Bentley name.

vabboud · Apr 25, 2007

i would venture far more than double sales
if the phantom itself, with all its inherent snobbism (for some) and its ultra high price is selling close to 700 units per year
adding into the mix the DHC and more importantly a silver seraph costing considerably less should see RR sales looming onto the 2K units horizon

EnI · Apr 25, 2007

Mind that when BMW had a plan to revive the glory of Rolls-Royce brand. They wanted to offer an ultra-luxury car to reestablish past reputation which was gone in 80s & 90s. So the decision to build a Phantom was made - although it was discussed to offer a Seraph successor first.

They could easily go with offering smaller & "cheaper" model first, but in that case RR image could be hurt. RR needed an image boost , and Phantom was a perfect car for such task.

So, Phantom is a "halo" model for RR - and it works. So now BMW have much easier task with additional more affordable RR models.

Mind that RR is positioned above Bentley - and that was also the task of Phantom: to breakaway from Bentley as far as possible.

Not only that - RR succeed to overrun Maybach as well. MB totally blew it ... they had a huge opportunity with Maybach (due RR troubles), but they totally blew it.

YoUhimhER · Apr 25, 2007

voriax said:
Um, read closely.. "will cost one third LESS than the phantom", not "one third OF the phantom's price" .. meaning, take one third of the price away from the phantom and you have the seraph's price. Eg: around 200k.

Those prices are so cheap compared to what we pay for RR's here in Australia. A new Phantom will set you back a minimum of AU$1,000,000. Which at the moment is about US$830k.

that's good to know, i thought they were too desperate.

Centurion · Apr 25, 2007

Rob said:
That's right voriax

Hmmm, does anybody seriously believe Bentley has gone "down market"?

Although the Continental series is the most "affordable" Bentley ever, it is still one of the best cars in the world -- the quality is not compromised at all. I think people have become too fixated on how exclusive these cars are or are not (as compared to older Bentley models) ....surely it's the quality and the brand's integrity that really matter. Although I know some people do not like the looks of the Continentals at all, they are still a first class product worthy of the Bentley name.

The design of the CGT is attractive to say the least, heck I was even deeply in love with it when it was launched. Is it a Bentley? Yes it is but isn't as exquisite as the Phantom, Arnage, or even the Maybach S52. When you are standing beside any of those three cars you can feel their aura, there is something magical about them, like they are from a different planet.

There is no denying that just like Lamborghini Bentley has gone down market. The CGT is in the very crowded but lucrative 120-160k segment. Although the Arnage has been around since 1999 I do see more CGTs on the roads. Now days you can grab yourself a used one over here in California for 115k and if production keep steam like it does now it will only be a matter of time 1-2 years before we will see CGTs with 80k price tags on them. What I'm trying to say is that the CGT isn't as exclusive as it should be. Ferrari has always been "down market" with their 360 and their 150k F430 but thanks to the limited production their cars are very exclusive and in countries where the appetite for luxury goods is big you can sell a used F430 for over MRSP. That's how it should be very every car coming from an elite brand, regardless of how much the car cost.

You might think I'm obsessed with exclusivity and when it comes to expensive car I am. Exclusivity is one of the reasons for buying a high-end car. Not only does it make you feel good, give the car an edge but it keeps the resale value of the car high.

SDNR · Apr 26, 2007

OK. So Hassan, do you think the Continental has devalued the whole image of Bentley?

dOmInIX · Apr 28, 2007

Some new info from Rolls-Royce boss Ian Robertson:

During an interview at last weeks Shanghai motor show, Robertson stated that “The design is finished, and the first prototypes should be running very shortly.”

“It will cost roughly two thirds as much as a Phantom, or somewhere between £150,000 and £175,000.” He added “we’ll aim to produce around 800 of them a year. That should more than double our overall sales.”

The baby Roller is expected to share parts with the next generation BMW 7-Series and CS Concept, but Robertson insisted that the car “will be unmistakably a Rolls-Royce.”

The new model is expected to hit the motor shows in 2009 before going on sale in early 2010.

Mr. M · Apr 28, 2007

Re: Rolls-Royce expanding with ‘smaller’ model and the opening of its 80th dealership

mercmad said:
The FS is dying not to get competition from RR... If it does then it is going to take a lot of sale away from Bentley IMO

What I'm trying to say is, Rolls is finally taking advantage of the lower-end of the ultra-luxurious market that it was missing from for quite a while, having only the Phantom as its only model for quite some time.

Rob said:
Don't know what you're talking about "letting go of its pride" -- this new model will sit where the Silver Seraph was in the market. In other words, this new Rolls will be priced similarly to the current Bentley Arnage.

The Phantom models have always been the most expensive Rolls-Royces -- in fact, the previous Phantom model, the Phantom VI (produced untill 1992) was considerably more expensive than the current one.

Thanks for clarifying that Rob - I always thought that the Arnage was priced similarly to the Phantom - I guess I misjudged that. So this new RR isn't going to be a FS competitor, price-wise.

Though I'd still think they will draw undeniable comparisons.

Rolls-Royce expanding with ‘smaller’ model and the opening of its 80th dealership

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