AUTOMOTIVE 113 effectively ended the tradition of coachbuilding until it was revived at Goodwood in 2017 with ‘ Sweptail ’.
PHANTOM REBORN
When the marque was relaunched at the new Home of Rolls-Royce at Goodwood , a ‘ Phantom-type ’ model quickly emerged as the natural and obvious choice for its inaugural motor car . The design concept , for which legendary Rolls- Royce designer John Blatchley was consulted and of which he approved , included signature elements inherited from previous generations . These included a long wheelbase with the front wheels well to the fore and a minimal front overhang of the bodywork , a long bonnet comprised of a massive expanse of metal along the side , and a rising sweep of the door edge towards the front windscreen pillars .
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars ’ first Design Director of the Goodwood era , Ian Cameron , formed a specific team to create the interior design for the much-anticipated new model . Their remit was to express the ambience of past Phantoms and the traditional high-quality materials of coachbuilding – leather , wood , deep-pile carpeting – in a totally upto-date way .
At one minute past midnight , on 1 January 2003 , the first Phantom VII was handed over to its new owner . Unlike every Phantom that had gone before , it was built entirely in-house by Rolls-Royce Motor Cars , with spaceframe bodywork to a single design rather than coachbuilt . In one important sense , however , it retained a link with its heritage , in that every motor car was hand-built by a team of skilled craftspeople . Furthermore , the marque ’ s Bespoke programme meant Phantom was effectively a blank canvas on which patrons could realise their own visions and desires .
THE EVOLUTION CONTINUES
Over its 13-year lifespan , Phantom VII cemented Rolls-Royce as the world ’ s pre-eminent super luxury motor manufacturer , and its own place as the marque ’ s pinnacle product . But just like their predecessors , Rolls-Royce ’ s designers and engineers understood that perfection is a moving target : that Phantom was never ‘ finished ’.
In 2017 , Rolls-Royce presented Phantom VIII . This was the first Rolls-Royce to be built on the Architecture of Luxury , an advance on the all-aluminium spaceframe used on Phantom VII , and designed to underpin every future motor car produced at Goodwood .
Phantom VIII was specifically designed to be the ultimate canvas for Bespoke commissions . With this in mind , it is the only Rolls-Royce model to feature the Gallery – an uninterrupted swathe of glass that runs the full width of the fascia , behind which the client can display a commissioned work of art or design .
This singular focus has made Phantom the subject of some of the most technically ambitious and challenging Bespoke projects ever undertaken by the marque ’ s designers , engineers and specialist craftspeople . Commissions such as Phantom Syntopia , Phantom Oribe , Phantom Koa and Phantom ‘ Inspired by Cinque Terre ’ all incorporate features , materials and engineering innovations never seen before in a Rolls-Royce or any other motor car . Each is a unique , one-of-one creation that will never be repeated , echoing the very first Phantoms that were individually hand-built for their commissioning owners .
THE ESSENCE OF PHANTOM
For 100 years , the Phantom name has occupied a unique position in the Rolls-Royce product family and story . While the standards of quality , engineering and design are consistent across all Rolls-Royce motor cars , Phantom has always been the grandest , most impressive and , above all , most effortless motor car being built in series production by the marque at any given moment .
Through all its eight generations , Phantom has never been compromised by existing engineering orthodoxy , fleeting trends or development costs . From Henry Royce ’ s original New Phantom to today ’ s Phantom VIII , the essential purpose behind Phantom has always remained the same : to build the motor car that offers owner-drivers and passengers alike the most comfortable , satisfying experience available in the world at that moment in time – the unassailable pinnacle of luxury and motoring excellence .
ISSUE 69 2025 THE ART OF LUXURY