FIRST AND FOREMOST

Adopting smooth and silent electric propulsion is a logical progression for Rolls-Royce, and the Spectre heralds this bold future. Mark Tisshaw drives it

-  Mark Tisshaw

A Rolls-Royce first, an electric car second: that was the brief from company CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös to the engineering team creating the Spectre. "People tell us they would have bought the Spectre with a V12," says MüllerÖtvös of the customers who have already seen and ordered the car without driving it. "That shows this is the right car."

The Spectre, then, is Rolls-Royce's new flagship two-door coupé that just happens to be powered by electricity. At 5.5 metres long, it's the indirect (and lower and sleeker) successor to the Phantom Coupé that went out of production in 2016, and it's bigger than the also now retired Wraith and Dawn two-door models.

"The Phantom Coupé is seen as one of the most striking Rolls-Royce cars, and it's pretty rare: maybe only a couple of hundred [were made]," says Müller-Ötvös. "If you own one, look after it and don't sell it... Clients say it would be great to bring it back, and this inspires what we do. We didn't want to do an EV, we wanted to do the most luxurious coupé. Electric is just a by-product. This is just the next phase for V12."

The Spectre was revealed late last year, and it looks like the finished article when we arrive in South Africa's Western Cape to drive it. Yet although it looks finished from the outside, this isn't an ordinary first drive: the car is only 60% ready for production and at least eight months away from being in the hands of its first customers towards the end of this year.