Rolls-Royce has introduced the Phantom VIII.This is Rolls-Royce’s largest and grandest car ever, born from the same line as those used by Elvis and Queen Elizabeth II and 50 Cent, plus myriad tycoons and oligarchs the world over. The revamped saloon will cost 375,000-euro ($440,000).

Unveiled to the public in London today, just days after the U.K. moved to ban combustion vehicles by 2040, the 2018 Rolls-Royce Phantom is only the second modern version of the flagship state car that Rolls first introduced in 1925. BMW Group unveiled the first truly modern Phantom in 2003 and used it until 2011; Phantom VIII is the first time since then that the car has been updated completely. In the years before 2003, Rolls was producing the Phantom VI on an incredible run from 1968 to 1990.

The car’s longevity is a testament to its design, which has withstood the test of time with grace and aplomb. That success is, in turn, a challenge to the Rolls-Royce designers who labored to birth the new one in Goodwood, England. The half-million-dollar Phantom is Rolls’s biggest money-making series around the world. In this rare air, there is no margin for error.

“Rolls-Royce will start to go electric in the next decade,” Torsten Müller-Ötvös, the brand’s chief, said in an interview. “You need to have then an effortless charging situation,” as its wealthy clientele isn’t in the mood to spend more than “a couple of minutes” topping up batteries.

The Looks
From my first experiences with the car, it looks like the team can rest easy. Everything about the Phantom VIII is smooth, especially how it looks. Giles Taylor, the director of design for Rolls-Royce, deserves much credit here for accomplishing what many have not—creating a new iteration of an old car so that it feels fresh but familiar. His Phantom VIII manages to look both modern and majestic.

During the private preview in New York, Taylor said he wanted the car to look as though it’s surging forward as a boat would emerging from the water. It does: The new super-clean stainless steel grille is recessed and pushed up higher than previous generations so that the Spirit of Ecstasy hood ornament virtually catapults forward. The front end of the car is shorter and the back is longer than previously, as well. All the styling lines in the rear circle forward and lead the eye back through to the front wheel. The rear glass is raked more aggressively than on Phantom VII, which adds to the general idea of forward thrust.

Elsewhere, wide C-pillars along the sides allow for passenger privacy; massive single-pieces of hand-polished stainless steel frame and soften each side. (On the Extended Wheelbase Phantom, a single polished stainless steel strip along the sill marks it as special.) You’ll be hard-pressed to find any visible join lines between body panels at any point in the car. I certainly couldn’t.

The intricate details of every component inside the car are too numerous and mind-numbing to list here, but suffice to say they adorn the car like jewels. The rear light cluster has tiny Double-RR badges etched in; the high-gloss picnic tables and chrome dials make the rear feel like a theater (yes, there are movie screens); the center of the wheels always point right-side up even as the car drives. Taylor even made the wood paneling across the back of the front seats to evoke the famous Eames Lounge Chair.

It’s worth noting that this is only the second Phantom produced by Rolls-Royce under its BMW overlords. The driving system and entertainment controls are very similar to those in some of the brand’s other vehicles. But even at this early stage, it’s easy to see that none is so befitting royalty as the new Phantom VIII. Phantom VI was famously used as the coach for the nuptials of Prince William and Kate Middleton in 2011. Phantom VIII is a worthy, modern successor.

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