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Rolls-Royce on Saturday unveiled its latest ultra-exclusive coachbulit creation: the Droptail. It's a two-seat roadster with its own chassis and a 593-hp twin-turbo V-12 engine.
The British luxury carmaker describes the Droptail as the "absolute pinnacle" of the brand. Like open-top vehicles of Rolls-Royce's past, its design is inspired by sailing. Smaller and narrower than the Spectre, it sports a streamlined fascia that carries across the entire design. The company says it also looked into its past for inspiration, namely cars like the 1912 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost ‘Sluggard,' the 1930 Rolls-Royce Phantom Brewster New York Roadster, and the 1925 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Piccadilly.
Rolls-Royce says it took a minimalist approach to the Droptail's cabin, with just three visible buttons on the dashboard—something the company says took four years of development to accomplish. Done to "celebrate the discipline of woodcraft," the lack of controls have allowed designers to incorporate a single, uninterrupted piece of wood that wraps around the two occupants.
The Droptail isn't just a Dawn or a Wraith with different body panels. It's an entirely new car, down to the chassis. From the B-pillar forward steel is used to support the drivetrain and doors. Aft of the B-pillar, the chassis is all carbon fiber, with three sections bonded together. The rear quarter panels are the biggest pieces of carbon fiber ever created by Rolls-Royce.
Under the hood of the Droptail is Rolls-Royce's 6.75-liter twin-turbo V-12, rated here 593 hp and 620 lb-ft of torque—30 more horses over standard. The company says that this is the first time ever power has been increased for a one-off coachbuild project. Rolls hasn't specified a transmission, but it's safe to assume the engine is paired to the same eight-speed auto found in cars like the Wraith and Dawn.
Rolls-Royce says it plans to built just four Droptails, each "telling a unique and personal story that reflects the ambition, visions and taste patterns of its commissioning client." Translation: Each Droptail will look totally different depending on the buyer's preferences. The one you see here is the first of the four, named La Rose Noire.
There's no word on pricing for the Droptail, but seeing as how past highly custom coachbuilt Rolls-Royces have cost up to $13 million, we don't expect it to be cheap.
Brian Silvestro is Hearst Autos' Lead Deputy Editor for rankings content. He spent over seven years as a staff writer for Road & Track Magazine, and still contributes regularly with car reviews, industry interviews, and more.
He also has a taste for high-mileage, rusted-out projects and amateur endurance racing.
