Have you seen many Rolls Royce Wraiths in Geneva? I know I haven’t. That’s before I got to actually ride one. A couple of weeks back I, and our team member and automotive photographer Aleksandr Markovsky (@Markovsky) were in Geneva shooting some watches and cars when suddenly we get a proposition to drive the new Rolls Royce Wraith for a day. As soon as the car was ready for us we decided to drive it as far from the urban setting as possible, and following the navigation we ended up somewhere on the route A41 after Annecy.
The time of day and weather were perfect for a car shoot so we stopped in a couple of very nice places where the colour of the car as well as the view could both be brought out. Now, speaking about the actual car – this is probably my favourite Rolls Royce so far. I’ve tried out and experienced the Ghost and the Phantom already, but Wraith offers something completely different, while still keeping that extreme feeling of comfort and luxury as the Ghost. Actually Ghost is kind of a predecessor to the Wraith because most of the exterior and interior features we notice in it resemble the ones in the 4 door sedan.
Nevertheless, Rolls Royce Wraith feels and looks like a completely different and (what’s also important) new car. The 2-door design doesn’t make it look like a chopped Ghost but on the contrary gives it a much sportier and fresh feel. The power can also be experienced when you feel the twin-turbo V12 engine. Over 600 bhp and 0-100 km/h in only 4.6 seconds for a sporty yet still massive car is pretty impressive too. We didn’t have much time to try out every cool feature inside but one thing I can tell for sure is that the car is super smart. Everything, starting from the unlocking doors process to recording voice memos, wireless hotspot, top camera or the 16 speaker sound by Harman Kardon.
However with all this electronic madness going on there the car still feels like… a car :) But the difference with the Ghost or Phantom is – you feel most comfortable in the driver’s seat. Even though there is space in the back front seats get my vote. And even though under the hood you have a powerhouse driving is as smooth as it can ever be. Even after you cross 160 km/h it still feels like you are just cruising around.
Finally, the overall feel of the car is absolutely amazing, only problem being – people always photographing the car wherever you go :) Priced at around $400’000 you can probably contact Rolls Royce already to get your customised beast. Also, make sure you go for the crystal sculpture on the hood – it lights up and looks awesome!
Finally, the overall feel of the car is absolutely amazing, only problem being – people always photographing the car wherever you go :) Priced at around $400’000 you can probably contact Rolls Royce already to get your customised beast. Also, make sure you go for the crystal sculpture on the hood – it lights up and looks awesome!
Photography by Aleksandr Markovsky for WatchAnish.com