AUTOMOBILES
ROLLS-ROYCE BOAT TAIL The Exclusive $30M Rolls-Royce for a Select Few | BY SOMNATH CHATTERJEE
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ou can walk into a Rolls-Royce showroom and order a Phantom, Ghost or a Cullinan but you cannot order the Rolls-Royce Boat Tail. This car is a sneak peek at an exclusive club of elite Rolls-Royce customers where price is never discussed and bespoke luxury means creating your own car with a distinct theme. Personalization is highly sought after in the luxury world but highly crafted bespoke luxury is the ultimate showcase of one’s personality and tastes. Hence, to be able to create your own car is something which the jet set hanker for. Ferrari does this, and so does Lamborghini, while Rolls-Royce has its own bespoke division with a 100-strong staff being there to cater to the demands of its most loyal customers. Entry to this secretive club is impossible for the standard car-buyer or even any Rolls-Royce owner, as only its top clients get this privilege. The Rolls-Royce Coach-build commission happens in a very unique way, and involves the client visiting the RollsRoyce factory, and being deeply involved in the design to the process of making the car. It isn’t a case of throwing a black cheque at Rolls-Royce as here the customer comes up with the idea and the car-maker takes it up within the realms of its automotive canvas. The first Boat
Tail showed the same level of personalization and the attention to detail while its price was never publicly declared. It’s never about the price as it is just a long number for the clients.
hue. Being a Rolls-Royce, the massive Pantheon Grille cannot be forgotten and is milled from a single, solid billet of aluminium while the Spirit of Ecstasy is draped in rose gold.
The second Boat Tail follows the same template as the earlier one being largely hand-built from sheets of aluminium and that makes each car unique. The second car has been commissioned by a client who comes from the pearls industry. At the start of the design process, the client presented four pearl shells, from his private collection to be used as an inspiration for the exterior color palette. The second Boat Tail comes in this unique hue consisting of a blend of oyster and soft rose while white and bronze mica flakes have been added for a pearlescent finish. The contrasting cognac-colored bonnet has been made specifically for this car while laced with fine bronze and gold colored aluminium mica flakes. Then the technical fiber lower sills of Boat Tail also have a rose gold woven thread.
The same exterior design philosophy is carried out on the inside with cognac and oyster-colored leathers and Royal Walnut veneer, with rose gold and mother-of-pearl accents. The transmission tunnel is formed from Royal Walnut veneer with rose gold pinstripes being a nod of inspiration from the rear deck.
The rear deck is beautifully draped with Royal Walnut veneer along with rose gold-plated pinstripes with a satin-brushed finish. Cars like these go beyond technology and the veneer was chosen by the client for its unique colors since it will mature into a cognac like
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As mentioned earlier, the dashboard contains a timepiece made from motherof-pearl along with the same effect chose for the control switches and instrument dials. Alex Innes, Head of Coach-build Design, said, “Boat Tail is a step-change in ingenuity and creative liberty. Building a motor car by hand offers a new realm of exploration and possibility: we can accomplish things and resolve challenges that normal industrialized methods would prohibit. This is the tale of two worlds: a modern motor car of contemporary design, made possible by historical techniques and time-honored craft. It is truly, one-of-a-kind.”.
