British luxurious marque Rolls-Royce Motors has unveiled the most recent expression of its flagship Tremendous-luxury SUV, the Cullinan Series II, which arrived in its present type in 2018, as a 2019 mannequin.
When Cullinan was first launched, lower than 70% have been self-driven: at this time, virtually each Cullinan is pushed by its proprietor, with lower than 10% of purchasers retaining the companies of a chauffeur.
Along with the rejuvenation of the model and the ever-increasing Bespoke providing, Cullinan contributed to a fall within the common age of Rolls-Royce purchasers from 56 in 2010 to simply 43 at this time.
“In 2018, Cullinan reframed super-luxury motoring, enabling Rolls-Royce purchasers to expertise the model’s hallmark magic carpet trip whatever the terrain and in each nook of the world. Within the six years since, Cullinan has attracted solely new teams of purchasers to Rolls-Royce and profoundly altered perceptions of what a Rolls-Royce motor automobile is, and what it might imply to its proprietor. Cullinan Series II has been created to construct on that success.
“By integrating new applied sciences, new supplies, meticulously thought-about design updates and progressive alternatives for self-expression by Bespoke, we retain all the things our purchasers love about this motor automobile, making certain its continued attract.” Chris Brownridge, Chief Government Officer, Rolls-Royce Motor Automobiles.
Cullinan Series II: Exterior
An more and more city focus, a youthful cadre of purchasers and a decisive shift in the direction of self-driving informs the floor remedy and element of Cullinan Series II’s exterior. A key theme is verticality, which echoes illuminated skyscrapers within the megacities the place Cullinan is more and more at residence. That is most obvious within the new lamp remedy, the place tall daytime working gentle graphics guarantee Cullinan Series II is definitely recognized, day and night time.
The entrance of Cullinan Series II consists of easy characteristic strains and crisp edges, with an emphasis on clear, monolithic surfaces that amplify the motor automobile’s beneficiant proportions and presence. The bumper strains type a shallow ‘V’ from the bottom level of the daytime working lights to the motor automobile’s centre level, recalling the sharp bow strains of contemporary sports activities yachts. Beneath, new air intakes angle outwards assertively, visually reducing the motor automobile when considered head on.
The centrepiece is the illuminated pantheon grille. That is the primary time that Cullinan has been provisioned with an illuminated grille, which has been additional refreshed with a decrease vanguard. It additionally incorporates a brand new polished horizontal ‘horizon line’ between the daytime working lights, offering a transparent visible hyperlink to the marque’s pinnacle product, Phantom Series II.
In profile, Cullinan Series II reveals additional adjustments to the surfacing. Whereas the entrance wings retain their sheer, vertical strains, the marque’s designers added a restrained but exact characteristic line main from the taillight forwards to the centre of the floating ‘RR’ centre caps on the rear wheel.
This creates a refined taper and impression of motion, additional amplified by the up to date decrease valance surfaces, which elevate on the rear. They’re introduced in a wealthy high-gloss black, which displays the highway under, creating a way of movement on these fastened types.
Seen from behind, the exhaust remedy of Cullinan Series II is a daring assertion of energy – every encompass is introduced in mirror-finish chrome steel, cleanly built-in and visually flush to the physique. Modifications on the rear conclude with a brushed stainless-steel protecting plate working between the exhausts, which flows beneath the motor automobile.
Resolving this youthful and extra expressive evolution of Cullinan’s styling are upsized 23-inch wheels – the primary time that 23-inch wheels have been made obtainable by the marque for Cullinan. Every wheel is milled from a billet of aluminium, and the three-dimensional and faceted seven-spoke design is obtainable in an element or totally polished end.
Along with the advanced exterior type, Rolls-Royce color specialists developed a brand new paint end during which to current Cullinan Series II. Impressed by a richly-veined brown marble, Emperador Truffle is a up to date, minimalist stable grey-brown; when mixed with the Bespoke ‘Crystal Over’ end, a lacquer infused with glass particles, it positive aspects a refined shimmer harking back to recent snow beneath morning gentle.
Cullinan Series II: Inside
Reflecting many consumers’ wishes for bolder types of self-expression, progressive ornament and element have been added all through the inside of Cullinan Series II. Probably the most substantive change to the motor automobile’s geometry is the pillar-to-pillar glass-panel fascia within the higher portion of the dashboard – a chic and versatile design component that levels each digital and bodily craftsmanship.
The gauge cluster panel in entrance of the driving force and new, completely seen Central Data Show within the centre of the fascia are redesigned to type a stage for the superior SPIRIT working system. This digital interface was first launched on the all-electric Spectre; Cullinan Series II marks the primary software of SPIRIT in a V12-powered Rolls-Royce.
It additionally presents alternatives for Bespoke personalisation to increase from the bodily to the digital world – purchasers can tailor the color of the instrument dials to enhance the motor automobile’s inside palette or exterior end.
Spirit additionally sees Whispers, the Rolls-Royce personal members software, built-in into Cullinan. Purchasers are capable of ship locations on to their motor automobile, view Cullinan’s location remotely and handle car locking by the app.
Connectivity has been refined all through the motor automobile, particularly for these within the rear of Cullinan Series II. Purchasers are capable of join as much as two streaming gadgets to the rear screens, which now incorporate a Bespoke interface for streaming automobile administration and seating features equivalent to therapeutic massage, heating and cooling.
The set up of web connectivity permits purchasers to get pleasure from a Wi-Fi scorching spot connection and impartial streaming for every display. For the primary time in Cullinan, Bluetooth headphones of any sort may be paired with the rear seat infotainment system, or purchasers can benefit from the marque’s distinctive 18-speaker Bespoke Audio system, which advantages from the most recent technology 18-channel 1400-watt amplifier.
Cullinan Series II retains the model’s celebrated speaker structure whereby cavities throughout the motor automobile’s aluminium sill sections are used as resonance chambers for low frequency audio system, successfully remodeling your entire motor automobile right into a subwoofer.
Instantly in entrance of the passenger is an Illuminated Fascia panel – a outstanding expression of contemporary craft that debuted with Ghost earlier than showing in Spectre and now, for the primary time, is obtainable throughout the Cullinan household. On this guise, it options an illuminated Cullinan wordmark and a singular Cityscape graphic impressed by the skyscrapers of the world’s megacities at night time.
That is created utilizing a specially-developed method whereby 7,000 dots are laser-etched onto the rear of the darkened and toughened safety glass, every at minutely differing angles and dimensions to create the notion of depth. Along with this prêt-à-porter design, purchasers are additionally capable of create their very own Illuminated Fascia motif in collaboration with the marque’s Bespoke designers.
Alongside the Central Data Show on the passenger facet of the fascia is the brand new Spirit of Ecstasy Clock Cupboard. This distinctive inset vitrine shows each an analogue timepiece and an up-lit Spirit of Ecstasy figurine. The figurine is constructed from stable chrome steel and positioned on her personal stage with a matte black again panel and excessive gloss facet panels to create a mirrored image impact.
Incorporating the Spirit of Ecstasy into the inside of the motor automobile was the product of 4 years of improvement, and a singular partnership between analogue and digital craftspeople to create a dramatic and meticulously orchestrated move of sunshine.
This sequence begins with the illumination of the driving force’s show upon coming into the motor automobile, adopted by the Central Data Show, then the Illuminated Fascia, the place gentle sweeps inwards in the direction of the vitrine, lighting the timepiece. The Spirit of Ecstasy is illuminated from under initially, harking back to a highlight on a debut efficiency, earlier than her stage lighting settles to a gentle glow.
Cullinan Series II: An Advanced Materials Palette
To acknowledge Cullinan’s potential – and the need of many consumers – to flee into nature at will, the inside is comprised of a palette impressed by botanicals. Cullinan Series II introduces Gray Stained Ash, a richly grained pure open-pore wooden with a fragile shimmer.
All the logs of this species are individually chosen, veneer ‘leaves’ are subsequently stained by hand and elevated with the addition of microscopic metallic particles, which creates the distinctive impact – a course of that took greater than 4 years of improvement.
Cullinan Series II additionally continues Rolls-Royce’s exploration of textiles with a brand new rayon material created from bamboo, named Duality Twill. The usage of this materials was impressed by the intensive bamboo grove in Le Jardin des Méditerranées on the Côte d’Azur, which neighbours Sir Henry Royce’s former winter residence, Villa Mimosa.
Members of the design crew visited the gardens throughout a analysis tour the place they have been impressed to develop a fabric made with the plant, which has grown within the grounds of the jardin for greater than a century and would have been noticed by Sir Henry Royce himself.
The twill textile is embroidered with a creative ‘Duality’ graphic. Based mostly on an summary interpretation of the 2 interlinked letter R initials of the marque’s founders, the design displays a transparent nautical affect, harking back to the interweaving rope strains discovered on crusing yachts – one other refined allusion to the French Riviera.
This intricate embroidered textile was developed for greater than a yr in collaboration with a grasp weaver who has now joined Rolls-Royce full-time to supervise this advanced course of, which takes place on the House of Rolls-Royce at Goodwood. A full Duality Twill inside can incorporate as much as 2.2 million stitches, 11 miles of thread and is the product of 20 hours of development.
To make sure uniformity within the sample, every bit is individually crafted earlier than being minimize utilizing a specifically developed laser that seals the fabric’s edge and mitigates particular person threads changing into unfastened. The bottom twill textile is obtainable in three colors – Lilac, Chocolate and Black – and purchasers can choose from 51 completely different colors of thread.
Cullinan Series II integrates one other new up to date craft method developed by the marque’s artisans; Positioned Perforation is the follow of making artworks by tiny perforations within the leather-based. Accessible for the primary time on a sequence mannequin, for Cullinan Series II, designers have created a sample impressed by the consistently altering shapes and shadows of the clouds over the House of Rolls-Royce at Goodwood. It includes as much as 107,000 0.8- and 1.2-millimetre perforations. A single craftsperson checks every particular person perforation to make sure absolute uniformity.