- The Rolls-Royce Spectre is proving well-liked and the truth that it is an EV solely provides to its attraction.
- Rolls-Royce patrons have been extra within the Spectre in 2024 than within the Cullinan, which is a combustion SUV.
- A second Rolls-Royce EV will likely be revealed someday this yr.
Lengthy earlier than Rolls-Royce launched its first electrical automobiles, it was broadly believed that electrical energy was an ideal match for the model in its quest to make automobiles with fully silent interiors that just about fully isolate you from the surface world. It appears they have been proper, and Rolls-Royce patrons had no bother accepting the model’s first EV, the Spectre, which proved extremely popular in its first full yr on sale.
Rolls-Royce doesn’t break down its annual gross sales determine however says it bought 5,712 automobiles final yr. Nonetheless, the producer added that the Spectre “was essentially the most requested Rolls-Royce mannequin in Europe final yr and the second most demanded globally, with purchasers world wide confirming it amplifies the attributes for which the marque is most famed: silence, ‘waftability’ and the distinctive ‘magic-carpet trip’ expertise.”
We’re not fully certain what the distinction between “most requested” and “most demanded” is on this context, however it’s clear that Rolls-Royce is making an attempt to inform us that the Spectre had an incredible yr. “Demanded” might imply market curiosity, orders and precise purchases, whereas “requested” would possibly emphasize that it had loads of inquiries in regards to the mannequin however not essentially orders. Or they might have been used interchangeably to keep away from repetition within the prose of the blurb.
Regardless of the case could also be, the truth that an electrical coupe was a producer’s second hottest car globally exhibits simply how good a match electrical energy is for Rolls-Royce. When we tried the Spectre a number of months in the past, we found a Rolls-Royce that also had all the normal qualities you anticipated from the model however much more serenity inside with the whole absence of any engine noise.
It simply felt so pure to be inside a Rolls-Royce that ran on electrons, and it confirmed that new expertise and old-school craftsmanship can seamlessly meld. Look slightly nearer on the Spectre, and also you uncover that the infotainment is a reskinned model of an older BMW iDrive system, and because it’s constructed with BMW tech, it solely has a 400-volt electrical structure, which limits its charging velocity to 190 kilowatts.
It’s not significantly fast both, even with 584 horsepower from its dual-motor powertrain, and the facility supply feels gradual and much from the whiplash-inducing acceleration that some high-powered EVs can ship—it accelerates from a standstill to sixty in 4.4 seconds. Even with 120 kilowatt-hours of battery capability, the Spectre can’t muster greater than 291 miles on one cost, in keeping with the EPA, which is partially defined by its vital curb weight of 6,371 kilos.
However though the Spectre is a very new kind of Rolls-Royce, it nonetheless exudes basic luxurious and opulence, and its specs and figures appear unimportant. Apparently, millionaires who might simply as simply purchase a Rolls-Royce with a robust combustion engine and never give it a second thought are discovering the absolutely electrical Spectre extra interesting as a result of it is electrical.
This means that the transition from ICE to EVs could also be a bit simpler for Rolls-Royce than different luxurious automakers most of which have introduced they’re backtracking on their beforehand introduced plans to go electrical. Rolls-Royce has introduced that it’s going to reveal its second absolutely electrical car someday this yr, however it has to date not shared any further particulars.
