Rolls-Royce Ghost – Living In Your Own World
It was not a usual day at the office to be sure. The opportunity to pilot RM2.6 million worth of metal around the streets of Klang Valley is not a common assignment even for a motoring journalist. Not something that I was inclined to reject, though I did approach the invitation to test drive the Rolls-Royce Ghost with some niggling concerns lingering over my head.
Let’s be frank, you don’t need to read the musings of a motoring journalist to know that Ghost (no ‘the'; RR calls it like a person) is an engineering masterpiece. That then brings me to question, how exactly do I review this car? What do I compare it against? I have driven my share of exotic rides, but the Audi R8 and Lamborghini Gallardo don’t exactly make for appropriate one-to-one comparisons with Ghost.
My closest point of comparison would then be the BMW 7 Series, which according to Rolls-Royce personnel, is something of a story on its own. When BMW assumed control of the Rolls-Royce brand in 2003, pre-dominant customer replies in surveys said that they don’t want to spend their money on a glorified 7 Series.
BMW had to develop Ghost, and Phantom before it, from scratch. At the end of a very protracted battle of ownership of RR and Bentley between BMW and the Volkswagen Group, the Bavarians were left with only the Rolls-Royce name and branding elements. Everything else, including a century’s worth of engineering know-how, went to Wolfsburg.
In that light, BMW did an amazing job in wiping off most of its fingerprints from the new Rollers. Only to the trained eye that the basic BMW architecture in Ghost’s control layout remain visible, though the dressed-up iDrive serves us a reminder that shots in Goodwood are actually called from Munich.
Other components shared include the 8-speed automatic transmission from ZF which will make its way across the BMW range in due time. Only the hardware is common, however, as the transmission software application for Ghost is tuned for smoother and less aggressive shift patterns than say, the 535i.
You also see BMW’s handiwork when going through the list of safety equipment. Dynamic Stability Control and Dynamic Traction Control ring a bell to you? We won’t be surprised if the same basic codes were taken with appropriate alterations made to suit Rolls-Royce’s application.
What is not shared, however, is the way it presents itself. Even if there are no ties between the Rolls-Royce of the past and the present-day company, Ghost’s design remain faithful to its lost heritage. Its appearance remains quintessentially Rolls-Royce. You can’t say the same for the Bentley Continental GT.
To say that Ghost’s cabin is well-appointed is a bit of an understatement. Far cry from the cold and clinical cabins produced by its parent company, Ghost’s interior is a very welcoming place to be in. It gives you a sense of occasion without overwhelming you. It even allows those of us accustomed to more modest surroundings to feel immediately at home.
It’s a very cosseting environment inside Ghost, all the harshness of the outside world are kept where they belong, outside. While you shouldn’t expect potholes to be completely filtered out, Ghost is probably the most comfortable ride you’ll ever get this side of an actual magic carpet. Just to give you an idea on how quiet a ride you should expect, the window glass is double-paned, so wind noise will become an unfamiliar concept to you if you spend too much time in this car.
Driving it is a similarly serene experience. The 6.6-litre motor upfront is armed with two turbochargers and direct injection. It produces 563hp @ 5,250rpm and 780Nm @ 1,500rpm. On any other car, outputs like these would translate to sickening and mind-blowing pace, but not here. What you get is all that power gradually and gently being fed to the rear wheels. As a result, you build up pace rapidly, but without all the backs-to-the-seat drama.
At this stage, you’ll probably be thinking that this car is all about the towkay behind and that the poor chauffeur up front will have to live with a mind-numbing driving experience. Not quite true. While it is true that you don’t get BMW levels of steering feel, you do get a steady stream of information flowing back to you via your palms.
What truly impressed me about Ghost was how easy it was to drive, and how quickly it made me feel at home. Ghost is all about effortless delivery, and that philosophy can be seen in the way it drives, and also the way its cabin is appointed. It doesn’t overwhelm with buttons or funky design lines; it welcomes you with its special ambiance and makes you feel just like home.
Rolls-Royce says that while Phantom is something of a special occasions car, Ghost is as close as an everyday car that you’ll get from them. Phantom owners will always arrive piloted by their chauffeurs, but Ghost owners will want to be behind the wheel once in a while.
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