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| Rolls-Royce Ghost |
The Rolls-Royce brand of 15 years ago wasn’t the brand it is
today. Through a careful strategy of vehicle launches, it has revived its
once-lustrous image into something stronger than ever. The Rolls-Royce Ghost
Series II continues that new tradition.
Updating the Ghost, or any Rolls-Royce, is a tricky matter:
the need to add new features and update designs has to be balanced against the
investment current owners have made in their cars. Nobody wants to have “last
year’s Rolls” in their garage. Fortunately, the folks at Rolls-Royce are
very
circumspect in their redesigns.
So circumspect, in fact, that it may be hard to notice the
changes to the Ghost Series II at first. Visual cues are few and minor, though
ultimately they add up to produce the desired effect: a newer, bolder look,
while maintaining the core of the original.
Changes to the Ghost Series II exterior include a slightly
revised front bumper, a new hood with a “wake channel” trailing back from the
Spirit of Ecstasy hood ornament, chrome inserts in the air inlets, new daytime
running light surrounds for the LED headlights, and a redesign of the
headlights themselves. Individually, each of these details is rather
insignificant, but together, they bring a freshness to the face of the Ghost,
as well as a wider, stronger frame to that face.
Under the hood, there are no changes to the Ghost for its
Series II incarnation. The same 6.6-liter twin-turbocharged V-12 engine gently
emanates the same 563 horsepower and 575 pound-feet of torque. In the Ghost’s
5,445-pound frame (or 5,556-pound in extended-wheelbase form), that’s still
abundant power. Acceleration from 0-60 mph happens in just 4.8 seconds, a
0.2-second improvement from the last Ghost despite the same power output.
What is new with the drivetrain is the transmission, or
rather, its programming. The eight-speed automatic now features Satellite Aided
Transmission technology, allowing the Ghost Series II to predictively select
gears based on the road’s bends and rises. This smooths out the driving and
yields an even more serene experience.
Behind the wheel, the Ghost is a satisfying car to drive.
Press on the accelerator, and it glides forward—rapidly—without any seeming
effort. Press on the brakes and its halts, again, rapidly if you desire, with a
minimum of fuss. Turn the wheel, and you’ll find slightly more feedback than in
the previous Ghost thanks to a new steering configuration, and that steering
wheel rim will be thicker for greater comfort. The ride quality, however, is
were the Ghost truly shines.
Size, weight, and very large wheels coupled with fairly
low-profile tires, are known enemies of good ride quality; it can be very
difficult to tune a car to control such a combination of physics while also
coddling the occupants. Rolls-Royce’s engineers have figured out how.
The Ghost’s large air struts, dynamic dampers, and rear-end
kinematics have all be re-engineered for the Series II. The result is an
incrementally, but noticeably, smoother, more settled ride. The handling has
improved, too, though the physics of the Ghost’s weight still rule supreme when
it comes to nimbleness, or the lack thereof.
Inside the Ghost Series II, updates are equally subtle, with
a slight refinishing of the clock in the dashboard and the instrument panel
dials that evokes premium luxury watches; the rear seats have been slightly
angled toward each other for easier conversation; and the front seats gain
adjustable thigh supports. Decoratively, the Ghost also gets a new Spirit of
Ecstasy inlay under the infotainment system’s rotary controller, as well as
extended leather upholstery options and a pair of new wood trims from the
Bespoke program.
On the technology front, the Series II introduces a new WiFi
hotspot to the Ghost, offering easy connectivity for any on-the-go data needs.
Also new is a Bespoke Audio System, which Rolls-Royce bills as the “most
exhaustively engineered and finest audio system in automotive history.” That’s a very proud claim, and unfortunately,
in our limited time with the car thus far, it doesn’t live up to the hype.
Sound from the system proved to be tinny at high frequencies, muddy in the
mid-range, and weak on bass—even after adjusting the settings in the
infotainment system. With other luxury and ultra-luxury carmakers offering
truly excellent—and unique to individual cars—sound systems from brands like
Burmester, Bang & Olufsen, and Bowers & Wilkins, it’s hard to recommend
the in-house-developed Bespoke Audio System over the alternatives.
That one beef aside, our time with the 2015 Rolls-Royce
Ghost proved that the conflicting goals of updating and redesigning the car,
while preserving the investments of existing owners, has been not only met, but
met brilliantly. The Ghost presents a compelling, luxurious package of features
and capabilities, well-suited to its target audience: the younger half of the
movers and shakers in the technology, financial, and business worlds. For those
lucky, capable few, the Ghost Series II may be just what they’re after.