The Rolls-Royce Boat Tail.
Four years ago, at the annual Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este, Rolls-Royce unveiled the stunning Sweptail, a one-off bespoke car commissioned by a client. It sparked a lot of chatter among collectors and car enthusiasts, so much so that the luxury marque decided that it was perhaps time to revive its once-revered coachbuilding division – a department wholly devoted to making your automotive dreams come true.
The Rolls-Royce Coachbuild Design recently unveiled its first completed project: the Rolls-Royce Boat Tail. The first of three builds, the car you see here took inspiration from a 1932 Rolls-Royce Boat-Tail in the client’s collection.
Every component in the modern interpretation is hand-built to the individual’s requirements. From the exterior – fully swathed in the client’s favourite colour – to the guilloche instrument panel, the details “should mark a sense of occasion and serve that occasion like nothing else”, in the words of the client.
The front of the Rolls-Royce Boat Tail.
At their request too, Rolls-Royce worked with Bovet 1822 to re-imagine the dashboard clock in the car. The result is two tourbillons – one for the lady and the other for the gentleman – that can be worn on the wrist or placed front and centre on the dashboard. It took the team three years to complete this portion of the project.
A closer look at the champagne refrigerator on the Rolls-Royce Boat Tail, which can rapidly cool the champagne to the optimum temperature of 6 degrees Celsius.
Bovet 1822 owner commented: “I am so proud of the team, who worked in tandem with the elite design team at Rolls-Royce to produce something spectacular. These two pieces, and the mounting system, are completely unique and unlike anything we have ever done before.”
The hosting suite of the Rolls-Royce Boat Tail, as seen during dusk.
But perhaps the most stunning detail is the rear deck, which houses a concept never seen before in the automotive world. Press a button and the back opens up to reveal a double champagne refrigerator housing vintages of Armand de Brignac (the client’s favourite), a parasol and enough dining amenities for you to host a tete-a-tete.
The Sweptail reportedly cost the buyer about US$12.8 million (S$16.95 million). It was, at that time, the most expensive new car ever before being trumped by the Bugatti La Voiture Noire in 2019, which was sold for US$18.7 million. We imagine the Rolls-Royce Boat Tail’s price tag is somewhere in this region.
