Phantom [Fist Drives] Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe

[Bartek S.]

It's time to drive the Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe, some two years after the company threw back the covers hiding its 101EX concept. Back then, no one ever pretended that was anything but a gossamer thin disguise for the upcoming Phantom Coupe. Fast forward 24 months and the first Coupes - running a 453bhp V12 and costing nigh on £300,000 - are rolling off the Goodwood factory's immaculate production line.
It’s rather large, isn't it?

The Coupe looks big in pictures, but in the metal it’s even larger. The kind of larger than makes you walk around the car (a good ten minute stroll itself) a few times just to recalibrate your mental tape measure. Whether the Phantom’s size and style appeals to you or not, there’s no denying its imposing proportions and intelligent detailing. That brushed alloy bonnet is proving popular too, with the overwhelming majority of buyers ticking its box on the long options list. What a pity then that even when riding on 21inch alloys there’s still a large enough gap between tyre and wheel arch to make the car look under-tyred.
What’s it like on board, Cap’n?

Swing back that vast rear-hinged door and climb up and into the front seats. There’s a wonderfully simple and pared-back feeling to the cabin that almost verges on the spartan. Unlike a Maybach or a Bentley, the cabin is not confusingly shotgunned with a thousand buttons dials and controls. There’s no intimidation, just intelligently configured ergonomics – controls you need regularly are just where you’d want them, those that aren’t are secreted away.
Refreshing in a less-is-more way…


Quite. You get the feeling that pretty much every minute detail has been thought through to the nth degree. Take the umbrellas that are stowed in the front wings - they’re Teflon coated so that they can be replaced when damp without the fabric perishing. And the elegant dash clock - it tumbles silently away to reveal the satellite navigation screen. But after that bare bonnet, the option most drivers will enjoy is the ‘Starlight’ headlining with its 1600 LED lights. Perfect for roof-up star-gazing.
There is one glaring fault though – the trio of roof-mounted controls for opening the boot, raising the suspension (itself an odd engineering choice given the Coupe’s lofty ride height) and activating the always-necessary parking sensors is totally obscured from view from the driver’s seat.
Good to sit in, but good to drive?

Very good. Refinement levels are extraordinary – this is easily the quietest car we’ve ever tested, Phantom saloon excepted. Sitting in the Rolls-Royce at idle is like relaxing in a hermetically sealed vault. And that refinement never fades. It may have 2590kg to haul around but performance from the 6749cc V12 is never anything but silken, swift and silent. With 453bhp at 5350rpm and a hefty 531lb ft of torque at 3500rpm, the Phantom flows along with effortless ease, six-speed transmission slipping imperceptible between ratios. It may not bolt forward on wide throttle openings with the vigour to match twin-turbo specials like the Brooklands or Maybach but then the Phantom isn’t about gauche displays of power.


Does it fall to bits around corners?

Not a bit of it. Body control is extraordinary for something so large – you don’t exactly go hot hatch baiting in a Rolls-Royce, but on a winding A-road the Coupe flows along far more quickly and cleanly that you’d anticipate. Compared to the saloon, the Coupe gets uprated suspension and a tweaked steering set-up. It works very well – the car feeling surprisingly alert and keen to change direction despite its size and weight. Lovely brakes too. The ride quality is equally astounding. Even over the most acned surfaces the Coupe simply glides with an imperious serenity, it’s suspension silently insulating the cabin from intrusion.
It doesn’t exactly look massive in the back

Good point. For a car over five and a half metres long with a three metres plus wheelbase, packaging is almost comical. Sure, there’s ample of room aboard for four and their luggage, but accommodation is generous and no more. Maybach and Bentley rivals may have it licked for head, hip and elbow room, but there’s still something very special about travelling in the rear of the Coupe.
Verdict

The Coupe is the final member of the Phantom family, and as with its siblings, to judge it by the same criteria as other luxury cars is to miss their point by a West Sussex mile. These cars are motoring edifices built with a far-seeing longevity that regards fuel crises and economic downturns as minor and temporary irritations. And they are brought by people with similar attitudes, buyers who have quality, refinement and intent at the top of their list rather than the cost, economy, insurance and depreciation that would tops ours. So can the outrageously expensive yet flawed Phantom Coupe be the finest two-door grand tourer on the market? Undoubtedly.

CAR's rating

Handling

Performance

Usability

Feelgood factor

Readers' rating

Statistics

How much? £296,500
On sale in the UK: Now
Engine: 6749cc V12 petrol, 453bhp @ 5350rpm, 531lb ft @ 3500rpm
Transmission: Six-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
Performance: 5.6sec 0-62mph, 155mph, 18mpg, 377g/km
How heavy / made of? 2590kg/steel, alloy
How big (length/width/height in mm)? 5609/1987/1592

carmagazine

 

[Bartek S.]

We were lucky enough to ride in the concept car two years ago, when the now Phantom Coupe was called the 101EX. Our words that day were "You have to build this car." And we've been waiting ever since the end of that sentence for this day to come. It was evident even as a concept that no other coupé -- with two syllables, please -- promised such a return to Jazz Age glamor, when a gentleman motored from Antibbes to Monaco in a Hooper bodied Phantom II to visit that Polish countess he'd had his eye on. So, when Rolls-Royce called with the invite to Goodwood to drive the new Phantom Coupe from England to Crozet, in the South of France, it would be our chance to see if the promise was delivered. Follow the jump to find out.

The Phantom Coupe is a large car. This is not surprising -- it's a Rolls-Royce, and it's based on the Phantom, which is an even larger car. But parked among other Coupes and Phantoms, it didn't seem so big -- not even when we had to stand on tip-toe to sit in the seat. But at one point, when we pulled into a gas station in France, we lined up for a spot between a Golf cabrio and a Renault, and all of a sudden it felt like we were trying to park the Death Star. Incredibly, even once we had slotted in, there was plenty of room to open the massive suicide doors and retrieve the French chocolate we'd been craving.



The sleight-of-car is due to the magic Rolls-Royce has in making its vehicles drive a lot smaller than they are. The Phantom Coupe has the same dimensions as the Drophead Coupe, at 18.5 feet long and 6.5 feet wide, but a half an inch lower due to the hardtop. For comparison, we drove the Phantom EWB right after getting out of the Coupe. The EWB is ten inches longer than a regular Phantom, which is itself ten inches longer than the Phantom Coupe, and there was practically no difference. You look in the rearview mirror and you can see that the guy in back is a lot further back... but the cars feel the same size. In the Coupe, at no point do you think you're driving a car that is 17 inches longer than a BMW 760Li. Speaking of length, though, that back seat isn't anywhere near as spacious at the one in the BMW, but there's room for an adult to be comfy long enough to get wherever you'll be going, which is probably from your penthouse to the club, or the yacht, or the Michelin three-star restaurant...



Since it sheds the convertible top, the Coupe also benefits from a gas tank and trunk that are both 25-percent larger than its droptop sibling. Filled up, the fuel gauge said we could go about 635 kilometers on the 100-liter (26.4 gallons), and we were told that you can fit four bags of clubs in the 395-liter boot.

Underneath, the car features the 6.75-liter V12 that well heeled customers have not stopped loving. Chassis-wise, it's the stiffest Rolls-Royce in the lineup, and utilizes different spring rates, stiffer dampers, a thicker rear anti-roll bar, and steering tuned for more response. The car also sports a 49:51 weight ratio. With all that, its 453-HP and 532 lb-ft pulls 5,798 pounds of car from 0-60 in 5.6 seconds, on to a governed 155-MPH top speed. Imagine being able to sit on the back of a white rhino and hit the gas, you'll get the feeling.



Inside, the car is pure Rolls-Royce: an uncluttered, leather-stuffed, organ-stop- and violin-key-ornamented suite. There isn't really much going on, but it's almost all there. Some of it is hidden, like the seat controls under the center armrest, which is a minor issue, and the media screen controller, which is a good thing. The dash is little more than a speedo in the center, a gas gauge to the right, and a Power Reserve meter to the left, which we guarantee you will never have cause to look at, unless you're drag racing Astons up Mont Ventoux.


But let's get to the pièce de resistance inside the car: the starlight headliner. Sadly, the northern latitudes of our locations meant daylight came so early and stayed so late we were never in the car at night. The darkest it got while we were actually driving the car was during the Chunnel ride from Dover to Calais. We turned on the headliner in our boxcar, and frankly, it wasn't that impressive. It made us go "Ah, neat... lights..." On the last night, however, Paul Farraiolo, president of Rolls-Royce NA, swiped some keys so we could experience the headliner in the dead of the Alpine darkness. And then it made us go "Ah. I see. Lights!"

There are 1,600 fiber optic lights placed in the headliner, each one created by one woman -- by hand. It comes with what was called a "rheostat," but what laymen would call a "dimmer switch." At its lowest setting the headliner is twinkle, twinkle little star. At its highest setting, there's a lot of light. It's soft light, not like the klieg lights in some other luxury cars, and probably bright enough to read the paper by. It really will be good for more than a few oohs and ahhhhs. It was a tad odd to be sitting in the driver's seat at 2 am and have the car lit up like the dining room. Rest assured, though, that that Argentine model you're taking to dinner next week is going to love it.

We asked a Rolls-Royce honcho on the first day, when we'd drive from the factory in Goodwood to the Champagne region in France, what he really wanted us to get from the car. They wanted us to see how easy the Phantom Coupe is to drive over long distances. With six hundred kilometers ahead of us, we'd have plenty of time to find out if he was right.

Well, he was. In fact, he was almost too right. The car is so easy to drive, so comfortably over long distances, so uncluttered in presentation, and asking nothing in return, that, dare we say it, at one point... cruising effortlessly at speeds you don't want to know about down the French autoroute... the car... ceased to feel special. That's right. It felt so much like driving our living room that we began to feel as special as we do in our living room... and although we like our living room... it just doesn't make me feel all kingly.

How can we say this? Let us count the ways: the car doesn't register anything but the mightiest of bumps, lumps, and holes; the steering is just-right responsive for a big luxury tourer, requiring neither laser focus to keep things straight, nor being so lax that you need to turn the wheel before you actually want to turn the wheels; the only thing there is to play with are the climate control knobs, which, not being digital, could involve a bit of finessing to get the temperature you want; and the last thing: when the windows are up, the outside world ceases to exist.



The windows on the car are two slabs of glass that sandwich a thick slice of glazing material. Journos at another publication wrote that they noticed the windshield wiper motor noise. And we noticed it too, as well as the furious amounts of wind gliding around the massive front end and A-pillars. But all wiper motors make noise, and all vehicles feature some sound effects from wind. The reason you notice them so much in the Coupe is that there is nothing else to hear. The car is so well insulated, and the windows are so thick, that there's no road noise, you don't hear cars and trucks next to you. It's you, the wind noise around the A-pillar, and... the crickets. That's it. So when you roll down the windows, the volume inside the car jumps a noticeable number of decibels, and you remember, "Oh yeah, there's, like, stuff out there." Yeah. It's called the Earth.



It was day two in the car that returned the feeling of privilege to us. We had another 600 kilometers, but this time it would be over back lanes and B-roads. And it was then that we discovered the "S" button on the steering wheel, also called "The Roundabout Button." It doesn't do much: it changes the gearbox programming, dropping you down a gear immediately, and then kicks down gears faster, holds gears longer, and increases accelerator pedal response. But it has a much larger affect on the car than those changes would imply. Come to twisties, and the car jumps out of corners and bolts for the next one. Imagine that white rhino mentioned earlier, after doing 0-60 in 5.6 seconds in its basic guise, then put on a pair of gold Nikes like the kind Michael Johnson wore in the 1996 Olympics, and gave you a look like "Let's get it on!" It's hard to believe, even while doing it. If anything -- or rather, if there are any other Coupe buyers who drive like us -- we can imagine a few of them ending up in walls and ditches. The car hurtles out of turns and down straights, but there is still the issue of 6,000 pounds needing to enter and get around the next turn, and you could end up having so much fun that you forget about a silly little thing called physics. By the end of that day, all was rosy in the world again, and we felt as just special as we thought we should.

There are things I could complain about, like the BMW 7-Series key and the finicky iPod integration. But I won't. People buying this car simply don't care. Issues like that are on the list entitled "Things Phantom Coupe Buyers Don't Give One &%$#@! About," and just after gas prices and insurance premiums, they are numbers "Whatever" and "Did you say something?"




What you need to know is this: the car is supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. All promise has been fulfilled, and it has all the grace, presence, manners, and gawk factor that you would expect from any Rolls-Royce. What's more, when you decide to give it the Big-Brown-down-the-back-straight treatment, the car goes. It's big and drives small. It's massive and goes fast. It's luxurious and uncomplicated. It looks great and will get you looks -- and crowds -- all day. And remember, get a model close to that starlight headliner and it's a done deal. The only catch is that you'll need $400,000 before taxes, options, models, and Polish countesses. But honestly, is that too much to pay for a leather-lined ticket to the promised land? As far as we're concerned, no. In fact, we'll still take two, thank you.

One last note: Rolls-Royce had a few words to say about the RR4, the first being "Don't call it a baby Rolls-Royce. It will be noticeably larger than a 7-Series, and it will be more expensive than any Bentley." When Tom Purves, CEO of Rolls-Royce, was asked "Even the Arnage?" his answer was "Any Bentley." So there.
autoblog

 

[klier]

LOL, on the RR4:

"Don't call it a baby Rolls-Royce. It will be noticeably larger than a 7-Series, and it will be more expensive than any Bentley."

 

[Tarek]

^ He must be talking about the CGT family

 

[Merc1]

Wafting down a poplar-lined French motorway at 100 mph, the 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe's unique Power Reserve meter informs you that fully 90 percent of the 6.7-liter V12's 453 horsepower is still available, should you need it to whisk past a dawdler.

There's virtually no audible engine noise. The crisp, speed-sensitive rack-and-pinion steering is perfectly on-center. The seat is comfortably deep and plush, yet supportive. And an XXL-sized 26.4-gallon fuel tank means a cruising range of 400 miles.

The fact that it takes about $125 these days to fill that big tank Stateside is likely of little concern. (It costs 150 euros — over $300 — in France!) After all, you've already spent $400,000 to be seated behind this immense, leather-wrapped steering wheel.

The 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom is the most personal sporting coupe one can own. You choose your coupe's exterior color from among 44,000 possible selections. You specify an interior trim from one of six luscious veneers like Rosewood, Elm Cluster or Mahogany Flare (Piano Black is soooooo boring, darling). You select interior upholstery from eight sumptuous leather options. ("We only use bull hides," Andrew Monahan, the leather shop foreman declares. "Their leather is not stretched.") You even choose between a conventional painted hood or one in gleaming stainless steel.

And that's just the start.

Have It Your Way

Ordering a bespoke automobile as you would a custom-tailored Saville Row suit remains a way of life with Rolls-Royce, as it has for decades. You still can personally select many key, handmade elements of your 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe. If you want to specify a special color, type of leather or rare wood, Rolls-Royce is happy to comply. Rolls-Royce doesn't make many motorcars, so the ones it does make are created slowly and most often to an individual order. The assembly line moves just seven times each day.

Rolls-Royce set a sales record last year with 1,010 units sold (557 Phantoms, 200 extended-wheelbase limousines and 253 dropheads). That's about one-tenth of Bentley's current volume, so if you're looking for serious exclusivity, then you want a Phantom saloon (in either regular or extended wheelbase), a Phantom Drophead (Britspeak for convertible) or especially the new Phantom Coupe.

Rolls-Royce has a long history of desirable grand touring automobiles that harks back to the Rolls-Royce Phantom II Continental in the early 1930s. Usually built on a shorter wheelbase, these sporty coupes, cabriolets and close-coupled sedans were fitted with a tall axle ratio for high speeds and generally carried lighter coachwork (in aluminum or fabric) to encourage fast touring. Today, the born-again Rolls-Royce works ensconced in spacious, environmentally friendly (400,000 trees have been planted nearby) digs in Goodwood, England, and is meticulously assembling its huge cars by hand, while an assembly line is being readied for a new, smaller Rolls in 2010.

Meanwhile, the 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe — derived from the 101EX concept car unveiled at the 2006 Geneva Auto Show — is just entering production, and it's quite different from the bigger Phantoms that have been built since BMW bought Rolls-Royce in 1998.

Better Buy Stock in Reynolds

Based on the Phantom sedan, the Coupe shares the same all-aluminum space frame that's built in boxed sections and painstakingly hand-welded to 0.0004-inch tolerances. The Coupe's wheelbase is 9.8 inches shorter than the sedan, and the suspension has anti-dive and anti-lift geometry. The springs and rear dampers are stiffer, and a thicker rear antiroll bar tunes out some of the understeer.

Meanwhile there's more boost for the speed-sensitive, power-assisted rack-and-pinion, and the sensation is heightened by a thick-rim sport steering wheel. The brakes are massive (with 14.7-inch rotors and twin-piston calipers in front, plus 14.6-inch rotors in the rear with single-piston calipers), and they haul this big baby down smartly and repeatedly without fading. Goodyear run-flat tires on 21-inch cast-aluminum wheels (there are two forged wheel options) eliminate the weight of a spare, yet this short-wheelbase coupe still weighs 5,798 pounds, the same as a Phantom sedan and even 22 pounds more than the convertible.

The 48-valve, 6.7-liter V12 — set well back in the chassis for a desirable 49 percent front/51 percent rear weight distribution — delivers 453 hp at 5,350 rpm and 531 pound-feet of torque at 3,500 rpm and gets this heavyweight car to 60 mph in 5.6 seconds. This engine also develops some 75 percent of its power at just 1,000 rpm, accounting for the turbinelike smoothness that's long been associated with Rolls-Royce cars. Depress a discreet sport button on the steering wheel and the transmission holds gears longer and quickens kickdown, while throttle response is more aggressive, too.

A Matter of Style

Chief designer Ian Cameron has done a fine job of differentiating and updating this handsome hardtop. Up front, the contemporary Rolls-Royce grille seems even more massive, perhaps because the Coupe's rectangular LED parking lights have been reduced in size and the circular headlamps have been enlarged to recall the proportions of old. The heavy A-pillars, high waistline and bluff corners would appear even more gigantic were it not for a sculpted reveal that arcs gently from front to rear, accented by the extended front door handle and kissed with an elegant swirl behind the front wheel opening that's reminiscent of a 1930s fender line.

The Coupe's enormous rear-hinged "suicide" doors produce a graceful, uninterrupted line at the A-pillar, aiding torsional rigidity and also adding immeasurably to this car's mystique. It does take a bit of practice to slither smoothly inside and maneuver around that big steering wheel. You discover the drill is to first sit gracefully, then swivel your legs around together through about 45 degrees in a fluid, regal arc.

More importantly, the wide, forward-facing coach doors facilitate an elegant egress, especially for a lady in a long dress. The doors can be closed via a pushbutton that's discreetly hidden in the front quarter light. The rear seat is fine for a short trip to the opera, but you wouldn't want to be there for hours.

Roadworthy

The Phantom Coupe is surprisingly sporty for its size. Passing maneuvers on the old, tree-lined two-lane thoroughfares of Bonaparte's France are a snap. The Coupe scuttles around the vehicle in front of you and is back in line before you can mutter, "God save the Queen." The brakes are like the proverbial giant hand.

Asked for more speed, the V12 revs quickly, and a hint of a powerful trill breaks its usual impassive silence. Hammer this car into a tight turn, and yes, you'll get some tire squeal and body roll, but the Coupe will grip the tarmac and carry on.

That said, it's not designed for tight twisties. A typical Coupe buyer owns a Ferrari or another exotic in his fleet for that purpose. Long sweepers, arrow-straight byways or the Alps? Bring 'em on. This car puts the "Grand" in Grand Touring. It's all about the journey, and when that's completed, it announces regally: "You have arrived."

If You Have To Ask...

Although the price of the 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe has not yet been announced, it's thought to be in the vicinity of $400,000. That's a staggering sum for most people, but wealthy Rolls-Royce owners possess multiples of everything: stately homes, private clubs and cars of all types, so they are accustomed to what they perceive as being the best.

And when you buy this car, the whole process is all about selecting the best. You're getting hand-matched wood veneers, matched leather hides and cashmere blends selected by acknowledged experts. "Our leather actually breathes," coos Andrew Monahan in his leather shop. "It has particular warmth to it."

If you want to personalize your car with embroidery or marquetry, Rolls-Royce will do it cheerfully. No color choice is beyond consideration. "We make each car the way the customer wants," says Tom Purves, now CEO after years as BMW's chief executive in North America. Each car is polished for five hours and driven on the road for an hour before being cocooned for delivery.

Judging from stares and waves of passersby, there's nothing subtle about the 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe. That's what you're paying for.


2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe First Drive on Inside Line


M

 

[Bartek S.]

Wafting down a poplar-lined French motorway at 100 mph, the 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe's unique Power Reserve meter informs you that fully 90 percent of the 6.7-liter V12's 453 horsepower is still available, should you need it to whisk past a dawdler.

There's virtually no audible engine noise. The crisp, speed-sensitive rack-and-pinion steering is perfectly on-center. The seat is comfortably deep and plush, yet supportive. And an XXL-sized 26.4-gallon fuel tank means a cruising range of 400 miles.

The fact that it takes about $125 these days to fill that big tank Stateside is likely of little concern. (It costs 150 euros — over $300 — in France!) After all, you've already spent $400,000 to be seated behind this immense, leather-wrapped steering wheel.

The 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom is the most personal sporting coupe one can own. You choose your coupe's exterior color from among 44,000 possible selections. You specify an interior trim from one of six luscious veneers like Rosewood, Elm Cluster or Mahogany Flare (Piano Black is soooooo boring, darling). You select interior upholstery from eight sumptuous leather options. ("We only use bull hides," Andrew Monahan, the leather shop foreman declares. "Their leather is not stretched.") You even choose between a conventional painted hood or one in gleaming stainless steel.

And that's just the start.

Have It Your Way
Ordering a bespoke automobile as you would a custom-tailored Saville Row suit remains a way of life with Rolls-Royce, as it has for decades. You still can personally select many key, handmade elements of your 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe. If you want to specify a special color, type of leather or rare wood, Rolls-Royce is happy to comply. Rolls-Royce doesn't make many motorcars, so the ones it does make are created slowly and most often to an individual order. The assembly line moves just seven times each day.

Rolls-Royce set a sales record last year with 1,010 units sold (557 Phantoms, 200 extended-wheelbase limousines and 253 dropheads). That's about one-tenth of Bentley's current volume, so if you're looking for serious exclusivity, then you want a Phantom saloon (in either regular or extended wheelbase), a Phantom Drophead (Britspeak for convertible) or especially the new Phantom Coupe.

Rolls-Royce has a long history of desirable grand touring automobiles that harks back to the Rolls-Royce Phantom II Continental in the early 1930s. Usually built on a shorter wheelbase, these sporty coupes, cabriolets and close-coupled sedans were fitted with a tall axle ratio for high speeds and generally carried lighter coachwork (in aluminum or fabric) to encourage fast touring. Today, the born-again Rolls-Royce works ensconced in spacious, environmentally friendly (400,000 trees have been planted nearby) digs in Goodwood, England, and is meticulously assembling its huge cars by hand, while an assembly line is being readied for a new, smaller Rolls in 2010.

Meanwhile, the 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe — derived from the 101EX concept car unveiled at the 2006 Geneva Auto Show — is just entering production, and it's quite different from the bigger Phantoms that have been built since BMW bought Rolls-Royce in 1998.

Better Buy Stock in Reynolds
Based on the Phantom sedan, the Coupe shares the same all-aluminum space frame that's built in boxed sections and painstakingly hand-welded to 0.0004-inch tolerances. The Coupe's wheelbase is 9.8 inches shorter than the sedan, and the suspension has anti-dive and anti-lift geometry. The springs and rear dampers are stiffer, and a thicker rear antiroll bar tunes out some of the understeer.

Meanwhile there's more boost for the speed-sensitive, power-assisted rack-and-pinion, and the sensation is heightened by a thick-rim sport steering wheel. The brakes are massive (with 14.7-inch rotors and twin-piston calipers in front, plus 14.6-inch rotors in the rear with single-piston calipers), and they haul this big baby down smartly and repeatedly without fading. Goodyear run-flat tires on 21-inch cast-aluminum wheels (there are two forged wheel options) eliminate the weight of a spare, yet this short-wheelbase coupe still weighs 5,798 pounds, the same as a Phantom sedan and even 22 pounds more than the convertible.

The 48-valve, 6.7-liter V12 — set well back in the chassis for a desirable 49 percent front/51 percent rear weight distribution — delivers 453 hp at 5,350 rpm and 531 pound-feet of torque at 3,500 rpm and gets this heavyweight car to 60 mph in 5.6 seconds. This engine also develops some 75 percent of its power at just 1,000 rpm, accounting for the turbinelike smoothness that's long been associated with Rolls-Royce cars. Depress a discreet sport button on the steering wheel and the transmission holds gears longer and quickens kickdown, while throttle response is more aggressive, too.

A Matter of Style
Chief designer Ian Cameron has done a fine job of differentiating and updating this handsome hardtop. Up front, the contemporary Rolls-Royce grille seems even more massive, perhaps because the Coupe's rectangular LED parking lights have been reduced in size and the circular headlamps have been enlarged to recall the proportions of old. The heavy A-pillars, high waistline and bluff corners would appear even more gigantic were it not for a sculpted reveal that arcs gently from front to rear, accented by the extended front door handle and kissed with an elegant swirl behind the front wheel opening that's reminiscent of a 1930s fender line.

The Coupe's enormous rear-hinged "suicide" doors produce a graceful, uninterrupted line at the A-pillar, aiding torsional rigidity and also adding immeasurably to this car's mystique. It does take a bit of practice to slither smoothly inside and maneuver around that big steering wheel. You discover the drill is to first sit gracefully, then swivel your legs around together through about 45 degrees in a fluid, regal arc.

More importantly, the wide, forward-facing coach doors facilitate an elegant egress, especially for a lady in a long dress. The doors can be closed via a pushbutton that's discreetly hidden in the front quarter light. The rear seat is fine for a short trip to the opera, but you wouldn't want to be there for hours.

Roadworthy
The Phantom Coupe is surprisingly sporty for its size. Passing maneuvers on the old, tree-lined two-lane thoroughfares of Bonaparte's France are a snap. The Coupe scuttles around the vehicle in front of you and is back in line before you can mutter, "God save the Queen." The brakes are like the proverbial giant hand.

Asked for more speed, the V12 revs quickly, and a hint of a powerful trill breaks its usual impassive silence. Hammer this car into a tight turn, and yes, you'll get some tire squeal and body roll, but the Coupe will grip the tarmac and carry on.

That said, it's not designed for tight twisties. A typical Coupe buyer owns a Ferrari or another exotic in his fleet for that purpose. Long sweepers, arrow-straight byways or the Alps? Bring 'em on. This car puts the "Grand" in Grand Touring. It's all about the journey, and when that's completed, it announces regally: "You have arrived."

If You Have To Ask...
Although the price of the 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe has not yet been announced, it's thought to be in the vicinity of $400,000. That's a staggering sum for most people, but wealthy Rolls-Royce owners possess multiples of everything: stately homes, private clubs and cars of all types, so they are accustomed to what they perceive as being the best.

And when you buy this car, the whole process is all about selecting the best. You're getting hand-matched wood veneers, matched leather hides and cashmere blends selected by acknowledged experts. "Our leather actually breathes," coos Andrew Monahan in his leather shop. "It has particular warmth to it."

If you want to personalize your car with embroidery or marquetry, Rolls-Royce will do it cheerfully. No color choice is beyond consideration. "We make each car the way the customer wants," says Tom Purves, now CEO after years as BMW's chief executive in North America. Each car is polished for five hours and driven on the road for an hour before being cocooned for delivery.

Judging from stares and waves of passersby, there's nothing subtle about the 2009 Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe. That's what you're paying for.

edmunds