Luxury Life & Style

DRIVE ROLLS-ROYCE CONVERTIBLES: A HISTORY he Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe has some big shoes to fill. The PDC represents an amazing milestone in RR history, taking the torch from a long succession of pedigreed drop tops. It’s a big responsibility most recently held by the popular, and long-lived, Corniche. Introduced as the Corniche in 1971, the elegantly styled coupes and convertibles were also sold as Bentleys until 1984 when the Continental name was resurrected for Bentley, distinguishing the two cars. The Corniche was one of the most successful Rolls-Royce projects in the history of the company, receiving only minor redesigns and engineering changes throughout its lifetime. In the mid-1980s, RR freshened up the car with rubberized bumpers and other contemporary touches and created the Corniche II, succeeded by the III in 1989 which had airbags and a more modern interior styling. In 1993, Corniche IV debuted and boasted a number of upgrades over the previous generation cars. Production of this model ended in 1995, with the last 25 cars called Corniche S, denoting the supercharged engine. In 2000, under BMW management, Rolls brought back the Corniche convertible sporting a turbocharged engine and absolutely lovely body upgrades, reminding the world of the classicism of the original design. This line was discontinued in 2002, marking the end an era of familiar styling and making way for the massive Phantom sedan and 100EX concept convertible, which, of course, would become the Phantom Drophead Coupe. T all, moisture resistance. One small area that’s taken very seriously at RR is the leather, which has always been impressive on all of its models. But the new generation of seating surfaces is absolutely phenomenal. Easily maintained and very durable, it’s virtually carefree. The wood veneers inside are polished to a mirror finish and protected from the elements as well. Everything about the car, both to the touch and to the eye, is amazing: the superb fit and finish, the body and chassis seemingly chiseled from a block of steel, the paint so deep that Rod Serling could convince you another dimension exists within its sheen, and the car’s easy handling all make driving the PDC a sheer delight. It glides along and, despite its massive weight (5,775 pounds), handles corners and curves quite athletically. Under the hood a 6.75liter V-12 quietly creates 453 horsepower and 513 pound-feet of torque. The engine whisks the Rolls to 60 miles-per-hour in about 5.9 seconds, tops out at 149, and you’ll hear everything that you need to hear from the engine to stir the emotions. Of course, isn’t this what a Rolls is really all about? The PDC can be ordered in any color you wish with a variety of optional extras at your fingertips. One worth pointing out is the very British picnic boot. When you pop open the trunk lid, the panel between the taillights lays down like a pick-up tailgate, offering a nice eating surface. It’s one of those things that makes the Rolls a Rolls, and some of us are very happy that BMW honored that little idiosyncrasy that is so British. Make no mistake about it – Rolls is on track to becoming the best car in the world, thanks to modernization, development, careful planning, and an absolute “no limits” attitude towards craftsmanship, engineering, design, and dedication to using the best materials available. Thanks to this, seeing a Rolls-Royce can once again be a moment of magic. Find out more at Rolls-Royce Motorcars, 8845 W. Olympic Boulevard, Beverly Hills. 310-659-4050, rollsroycemotorcars.com. • 52 Luxury Life & Style November/December 2007 roycemotorcars.com

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