We Pound the Pavement in the Fastest Rolls Royce Ever Made

The all-new Wraith is super luxurious…and scary fast.

Don’t get it twisted: The Rolls Royce Wraith is not a sports car. Yes, it’s the fastest vehicle produced by the British motorcar company in its over 100-year history (we’re talking a 0-60 time of 4.3 seconds). And, yes, when you’re behind the wheel you feel like you could smoke the devil himself in a drag race. Yet, Rolls describes the civilized beast as a “gentleman’s GT car.” “It’s made for crossing continents,” says the company’s Director of Global Communications, Richard Carter. “It’s not ‘sporty,’ it’s ‘dynamic.’” Hey, someone tell that to the car’s 624 horsepower twin-turbo V12!

The experience of driving a Rolls Royce is like nothing else. It’s not just that the Wraith is insanely powerful; it’s the way that power hits the road. The car utilizes a technology called “satellite-aided transmission,” which means that satellite imagery, along with information about the route you’ve programmed into the GPS, determines the optimal gear for any given moment. This translates to an unbelievable smoothness of ride, which we experienced while twisting around the desert roads outside Scottsdale, Arizona (its standard adaptive air ride suspension helped as well). Would we describe this experience as the “drive of our lives”? Why, yes. Yes we would.

You’d think that the inside of a Rolls would be a magical place, and you’d be dead right. Upon shutting the massive, super-fancy-wood covered, rear-hinged (baller!) doors – don’t worry, there’s actually a button that closes them for you – you’re in another world that provides happiness from under your feet to above your head. Yes, that’s sinfully plush lambswool you’re feeling beneath your cheap-ass Gap socks. And what’s that above you? Are you outside on an extremely clear night? Nope, it’s the 1,340 fiber-optic lights hand sewn into the roof liner to look like stars. What’s that? You’d like the stars in the same exact formation as they were the night you were born? No problem! Rolls’ in-house “Bespoke” team would be more than happy to do that, or pretty much anything else, for you. (No, they wouldn’t tell us how much that particular option would cost.)

Oh, and if you need more proof that the Wraith means business, take a good look at the “Spirit of Ecstasy,” the brand’s iconic winged-woman hood ornament: She’s leaning slightly more forward (four degrees, to be exact) than usual, ready for whatever damage you’re about to inflict on the speed limit.

SPEC CHECK

MSRP: $284,900 (base), $372,324 (as tested)

Engine: Twin-turbocharged 6.6-liter V12

Horsepower: 624

Torque: 590 lb-ft

0-60: 4.3 seconds

Top Speed: 155mph (limited)


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