Today marks a seminal moment for the House of Rolls-Royce. We are proud to unveil Rolls-Royce Boat Tail to the world, and with it, the confirmation of coachbuilding as a permanent fixture within our future portfolio.
- Rolls-Royce introduces utterly unique coachbuilt ‘Boat Tail’ commission
- Rolls-Royce Coachbuild to become a permanent fixture in future portfolio
- Based on a true commission model, ‘Boat Tail’ represents a collaborative exploration of luxury, design and culture between the marque and commissioning clients
- Coachbuild empowers clients to create potent evocative expressions of personal taste
- Rolls-Royce Coachbuild is contemporary patronage in its truest form
- Rolls-Royce prompted the contemporary coachbuilding movement in 2017 with the introduction of ‘Sweptail’
“Today marks a seminal moment for the House of Rolls-Royce. We
are proud to unveil Rolls-Royce Boat Tail to the world, and with it,
the confirmation of coachbuilding as a permanent fixture within our
future portfolio.
“Historically, coachbuilding had been an integral part of the
Rolls-Royce story. In the contemporary Rolls-Royce narrative, it
has informed our guiding philosophy of Bespoke. But it is so much
more. Rolls-Royce Coachbuild is a return to the very roots of our
brand. It represents an opportunity for the select few to
participate in the creation of utterly unique and truly personal
commissions of future historical significance.
“Rolls-Royce has carefully listened to its closest clients, each
of whom has expressed a desire to deepen their relationship with the
brand by creating ambitious, personal statements of true luxury.
Rolls-Royce Boat Tail is not a concept created to be retrospectively sold.
“Quite the contrary. Rolls-Royce believes in complete authenticity
and Boat Tail is the culmination of a four-year collaboration with
three of our most special clients.
“Rolls-Royce Coachbuild clients are intimately and personally
involved at each step of the creative and engineering process. We
work in harmony with the client to gain complete fluency in the
nuances of their character and personality. We carefully translate
these qualities into the elements with which they wish to imbue
their commission.
“Only the House of Rolls-Royce can offer its Coachbuild clients
the inimitable opportunity to commission a product of future
historical significance, that is as fundamentally unique as they are
– and then participate in every detail of its creation.
“This is authentic luxury. This is contemporary patronage in its
truest form. This is Rolls-Royce Coachbuild.”
Torsten Müller-Ötvös, Chief Executive, Rolls-Royce
“Rolls-Royce Boat Tail challenges the notion of what a motor car
is and creates a new definition of what a motor car means. Boat Tail
exists far beyond a mere means of transport. It is not just the
method to reach a destination, but the destination itself. It is an
ambition realised with a remarkable cohort of women and men who
empowered the marque to create a concept of extraordinary scope.
“Coachbuild provides freedom to move beyond the usual constraints.
Normally, there is a natural ceiling to Rolls-Royce Bespoke by way
of the canvas. At Rolls-Royce Coachbuild we break through that
ceiling, embracing the freedom of expression afforded by
coachbuilding to shape a concept directly with our commissioning patrons.
“With Boat Tail we have achieved this. We have created a trio of
exceptional cars which, although they share a common body style, are
each imbued with the unique, highly personal imprint of the
commissioning patron, thereby telling differing stories. Boat Tail
is unprecedented. Boat Tail is a distinct counterpoint to
industrialised luxury.”
Alex Innes, Head of Rolls-Royce Coachbuild Design, Rolls-Royce
As a House of Luxury, Rolls-Royce imbues its products
with meaning. A Rolls-Royce serves as a canvas onto which clients
reflect their personal tastes, express ambitions and often, define
legacies. The Bespoke treatment of a Rolls-Royce elegantly reflects
its status as ‘the best car in the world’ while stylishly expressing
the personality of its commissioning client.
Ever increasingly, clients appreciate and enjoy the marque’s
Bespoke capabilities and Rolls-Royce is called upon, by its clients,
to integrate itself into their lives in meaningful ways. The brand and
its clients have become progressively closer and the designers,
engineers and craftspeople at the Home of Rolls-Royce, a Global Centre
of Luxury Manufacturing Excellence, have developed a unique fluency in
interpreting the lifestyles of these remarkable women and men. This
evolution of mutual confidence has resulted in ever more ambitious
commissions, reaching well beyond the scope of Bespoke competencies
and capacity, into the rarefied realm of coachbuilding. To fulfil
these extraordinary client commissions Rolls-Royce has reached a
decision to return to one of the historical roots of the marque and to
initiate a distinct department within the company, Rolls-Royce Coachbuild.
Coachbuilding is a highly distilled expression of Rolls-Royce
Bespoke and is reserved for those who look to move beyond existing
constraints. It is based on a true commission model and represents a
collaborative exploration of meaningful luxury, design and culture
between the marque and its commissioning client. The results become
pivotal moments in time that create a future historical legacy,
advancing designs which in turn define an era, extending influence far
beyond the original intended purpose of a mere means of transportation.
Rolls-Royce Coachbuild is contemporary patronage in its truest form.
The discipline inherent in Rolls-Royce’s approach to
coachbuilding requires elite artistic skills that do not exist
elsewhere in the automotive industry. Commissioning clients demand an
object that is truly transformative; an object that makes a permanent
statement and sets itself apart from anything that has gone before.
In response, the marque must interrogate and deeply understand
two worlds. The first is the intimately personal context of the client
– their individual life-space, how they celebrate, what and who they
surround themselves with, and the experiences that have defined the
very best moments in these exceptional people’s lives. The second is
the broader cultural context in which a Coachbuild car will exist.
Here the marque explores the cultural nuances of the client, movements
in architecture, couture, colour palettes, artistic tastes – even hospitality.
THE DAWN OF A MOVEMENT
In 2017, the celebrated Rolls-Royce Sweptail defined the dawn of
the contemporary coachbuilding movement. It created a definitive
moment that raised the awareness of a new watermark in luxury and
automotive possibility, illustrating a new realm of exploitation owing
to its hand-built nature. This remarkable product, which was instantly
proclaimed as one of the finest intercontinental tourers in history,
represented a major recalibration of possibility, and confirmed that
the legacy of Rolls-Royce will be defined in collaboration with its clients.
Sweptail set a new waterline of potential and ignited a
fascination among a rarefied cohort: collectors, patrons of the arts
and commissioning clients of now-iconic architecture. A number of
these women and men approached Rolls-Royce to discover if they too
could collaborate on a unique commission, one that was even more
profound – one that provided an elevated sense of curation. The marque
agreed, signalling the genesis of a permanent contemporary Coachbuild
department at the Home of Rolls-Royce.
Within this group, it emerged that three potential patrons
shared a deep appreciation of contemporary nautical design. J-Class
yachts were often referenced as points of inspiration, both for their
purity of form and their requirement for hand craftsmanship at the
highest level to will them into existence.
This client-led creative expression coincided with a long-held
ambition of the design team at Rolls-Royce to create a contemporary
expression of the Boat Tail typology, where coachbuilders would graft
the hull forms of sailing boats onto the rolling chassis of a
Rolls-Royce. When the idea of this design direction was proposed, the
three patrons were unequivocal in their approval. And all three shared
a single demand: “Show me something that I have never seen before.”
In consultation with the clients concerned, an agreement was
reached whereby three cars would share a common body, but each would
then be individually, highly personalised, reflecting the confluence
between vision, capability and ambition of the marque and each of the
individual commissioning patrons.
Rolls-Royce Boat Tail was conceived.
THE TRANSFERENCE OF SOUL
The manual techniques of coachbuilding offer new realms of
design opportunity. Once the preliminary design proposal is penned by
hand, the discovery of the form is enabled with a full-sized sculpture
in clay, allowing hand-crafted manipulation of the expansive surfaces
to perfect its shape. Throughout this process, the clients were
invited to envisage the scope of the collaboration and influence its
direction. Cutting-edge engineering technologies within Rolls-Royce
are fused with the artistic practice of coachbuilding to exploit new
possibilities. The clay sculpture is digitally remastered, from which
the buck, is created on to which aluminium sheets are hammer-formed by hand.
Employing age-old individual hand skills and craft, a living
canvas is created from metal –honing and optimising the aluminium
body, creating a clarity of surface and continuation of line that is
unable to be achieved by machine alone.
The process is akin to yacht building, easing the transference
of soul into the creation. A process of hand refinement is repeated
almost endlessly, without the pressure of time. Slowly, vast sheets of
metal transform into the sculptural representation of Boat Tail. A
truly pure form is created: uninterrupted by panel breaks, dramatic in
its curvature, monolithic in scale and formed from one seemingly
endless surface.
A CELEBRATION OF SUCCESS
The first Rolls-Royce Boat Tail, unveiled today, is a curation
of exceptional thoughts, concepts and items, which culminate to form
the clients’ perfect experience. The commissioning patrons, a globally
successful couple who are highly proficient in the appointment of
Rolls-Royces, truly personify connoisseurship; their luxury curation
is an artform in itself. Their proposition was purposefully
self-indulgent. Their desire was to create a response to a life
of hard work, success achieved, and celebration required. Their
Rolls-Royce Boat Tail should be joyful, a celebratory car to enjoy
with their family.
Together, with the marque’s designers, they embarked on an
intellectual journey, founded on a long-standing and creative
relationship with the brand. Indeed, the clients’ fascination of the
Boat Tail form was furthered by a motor car in their private
collection; a 1932 Rolls-Royce Boat Tail, lovingly restored, by them,
in time for their modern Boat Tail’s completion.
Rolls-Royce Boat Tail presents a wonderful new aesthetic for the
marque, balancing previously unseen levels of sculpture with discrete,
sometimes playful functionality. The creation tells the romantic tale
of Rolls-Royce’s history, echoing a Boat Tail design but not
explicitly mimicking it, fusing an historical body type with a
thoroughly contemporary design.
At nearly 5.8m long, its generosity of proportion and clarity of
surface present a graceful and relaxed stance. The front profile is
centred on a new treatment of Rolls-Royce’s iconic pantheon grille and
lights. The grille becomes an integral part of the front end, not an
applique; a freedom of design bestowed only upon models within the
Coachbuild portfolio. This progressive treatment softens Rolls-Royce’s
familiar formality while retaining the marque’s undeniable presence. A
strong horizontal graphic with deep-set daytime running lights forms
Boat Tail’s intense brow line and frames classical round headlamps, a
design feature recalled from the design archives of Rolls-Royce.
In profile, nautical references are very suggestive. The
wrap-around windscreen recalls the visor on motor launches, while the
gentle rearward lean of the A-pillar, the large, crisp volumes at the
front and the tapered rear create a gesture that recalls a motor
launch rising out of water under power. A progressive negative
sculpture in the lower bodyside creates a lithe impression, while
making an historical reference to the running boards of prominent
heritage Rolls-Royce designs.
Viewed from dead rear, the body resolves in a gentle sharpening
of the form. As with the front, a horizontal emphasis is established
at the rear with wide, deep-set lamps – a break from the expected
vertical Rolls-Royce lamp iconography.
Indeed, it is at the rear where the nautical references become
more apparent. The aft deck, a modern interpretation of the wooden
rear decks of historical Boat Tails, incorporates large swathes of
wood. Caleidolegno veneer is applied in a feat of Rolls-Royce
engineering; the grey and black material which is typically housed in
the interior, has been specially adapted to be used on the exterior,
with no compromise to the aesthetic.
The open pore material features a linear wood grain which is
visually elongated by brushed stainless steel pinstripe inlays,
serving as an optical nod to the typical wooden construction of yachts
– both old and new. The honed skills of Rolls-Royce’s wood specialists
have manipulated and book-matched the grain so as to contract with the
geometry of the car. The veneer treatment extends to the lower transom
area resolving the taper and overall volume astern. This bold
truncation is a subtle reference to the hull lines of classic Boat
Tail bodies.
From the rear, one perceives a strong graphical composition
marked by further horizontal emphasis, accentuating Boat Tail’s great
width. Deep-set lamps establish a dramatically low reference point,
evoking the dipped stern and proud bow of a motor launch under power
and on plane.
An explicit architectural influence is discovered in Boat Tail’s
unconventional fixed-canopy roof. Adding to the sculptural form, the
sweeping roofline concludes in delicate structural elements that touch
down on the rear, redolent of flying buttresses. Of course, if
inclement weather is encountered while the roof is removed, a
temporary tonneau is stowed for static transitory shelter.
A MUSE IN BLUE
The exterior of Rolls-Royce Boat Tail is swathed in a rich and
complex tone of the client’s favourite colour – blue. The hue, with an
overt nautical connotation, is subtle when in shadows but in sunlight,
embedded metallic and crystal flakes bring a vibrant and energetic
aura to the finish. To ensure the smoothest possible application when
rendering the exterior, a finger was run over the definitive body line
before the paint had fully dried to soften its edges. The wheels are
finished in bright blue, highly polished and clear coated to add to
Boat Tail’s celebratory character.
A hand-painted, gradated bonnet, a first for Rolls-Royce, rises
from a comparatively subdued deeper blue which cascades onto the
grille, providing a progressive but informal aesthetic and a solidity
of overall volume when viewed from the front.
The interior leather reflects the bonnet’s colour tone
transition with the front seats swathed in the darker blue hue,
recognising Boat Tail’s driver focused intent, while the rear seats
are finished in the lighter tone. A soft metallic sheen is applied to
the leather to accentuate its pairing with the painted exterior while
detailed stitching and piping is applied in a more intense blue
inspired by the hands of the car’s timepieces. A brilliant blue is
also found woven at a 55 degree angle into the technical fibre
elements to be seen on the lower bodywork, precisely orientated to
emulate the spill of a water’s wake.
The fascia is distilled in its appearance, purposefully reduced
to provide a modern aesthetic. This minimalist canvas accentuates the
jewel like features of the completely unique BOVET 1822 timepieces
specifically commissioned by the client for Boat Tail (see below).
Collecting pens is another of the clients’ great passions. A
particularly cherished Montblanc pen will reside in a discretely
placed, hand-crafted, case of aluminium and leather, in Boat Tail’s
glove box.
The instrument panel dials are adorned with a decorative
technique named Guilloché, more commonly perfected in the workshops of
fine jewellers and watchmakers. An elegant, thin rimmed two-tone
steering wheel then bears the colours of the commission.
The tactility of the open pore Caleidolegno is brought into the
cabin. Anthracite in colour, the veneer brings modern strength and
depth to offset the softness of the light blue and metallic sheen. The
wood is applied to the lower cabin and floor area, reminiscent of
wooden hull forms, again, at 55 degrees, perfectly book matched on
centre line providing a uniform appearance when viewed from either side.
A SENSE OF OCCASION
“This car should mark a sense of occasion and serve that
occasion like nothing else”.
Such was the brief of Rolls-Royce Boat Tail’s commissioning
patrons. In response and in reflection of their character, the rear
deck inconspicuously houses a highly ambitious concept never seen
before in the automotive world. At the press of a button, the deck
opens in a sweeping butterfly gesture, to reveal an intricate and
generous hosting suite. Its complex movement was inspired by
cantilever concepts explored by renowned architect Santiago Calatrava.
The hosting suite creates a celebratory focal point for a shared
occasion and affords ample opportunity to reveal the individuality of
the clients’ tastes and desires. It harbours an abundance of surprises
executed to the highest quality. Expressed in a celebratory fashion,
subverting the very notion of the motor car, the hosting suite
surprises and delights all who come to experience it.
Hinged towards the centre line, the synchronised balletic
opening movement reveals a treasure chest of moving parts that offer
themselves to the host at a precise angle of 15 degrees. This subtle
gesture of presentation reflects a genteel and quintessentially
British expression of service.
The chest is appointed with the perfect accoutrements for a true
Rolls-Royce al fresco dining experience; one side dedicated
to aperitifs, the other, cuisine, complete with cutlery engraved with
the name ‘Boat Tail’, made by Christofle in Paris.
A double refrigerator has been developed to house the clients’
favourite vintages of Armand de Brignac champagne. Elegant cradles
were created to stow the specific bottle size within the refrigerator,
the surrounds are highly polished and colour matched to the bottle.
While champagne is a familiar trope in the luxury world, Boat
Tail’s client had a particular affinity with fine wine. The husband of
this couple recalled a story from his humble beginnings. A great
friend of his was a sommelier in his hometown and educated him in the
taste profiles of various Grandes Marques de Champagne. This became a
life-long education that turned into one of the most informed
collections of rare Grand Cru champagnes in the world. The requirement
for this knowledge and passion to be shared through the client’s Boat
Tail was paramount – as was the need for this champagne to be
rapid-cooled to precisely six degrees – the optimum serving
temperature of the preferred vintage.
A classic design element of contemporary Rolls-Royce motor cars
is the stowage of Rolls-Royce umbrellas in the doors, in anticipation
of possible poor weather. In a delightful twist and to heighten the
languid experience of Boat Tail, a unique parasol is housed beneath
the rear centre line in anticipation of fine weather. A telescopic
movement opens this beautiful and whimsical canopy inversely, ensuring
effortless deployment.
Cocktail tables, which elegantly rotate to mimic the offering of
an attendant, open on either side of the hosting suite providing
access to two highly contemporary minimalist stools, which are
discretely stowed below. Designed by Rolls-Royce and created by
Italian furniture maker Promemoria, the slim-line interlocking stools
are formed from the same technical fibre found on the exterior of the
car. The interior blue Rolls-Royce leather provides the stools’
suitably comfortable seating materials.
TIMELESS PASSION – A COLLABORATION WITH BOVET 1822
In a move that further demonstrates the clients’ visionary
approach to contemporary patronage, two great luxury Houses with a
common pursuit of perfection have been brought together at the
clients’ behest. World-class craftspeople from the House of BOVET
1822, which was founded on the philosophy of ingenuity and
engineering, were called upon to work hand-in-hand with Rolls-Royce’s
own masters in their field.
The mechanically minded clients sought to break new ground in
horology. As esteemed and passionate collectors of both the
Swiss-based House of BOVET and Rolls-Royce, their vision was to create
exquisite, ground-breaking timepieces for their Boat Tail. In an act
of tireless endeavour and genuine collaboration, the Houses have come
together to re-imagine Rolls-Royce’s iconic centrepiece, the dashboard clock.
The result is an accomplishment never before realised in either
industry. Two fine reversable timepieces, one for the lady and one for
the gentleman, have been designed to be worn on the wrist, or, placed
front and centre within Boat Tail’s fascia as the motor car’s clock.
The two-sided timepieces required Rolls-Royce and BOVET 1822 to
work side by side over the course of three years to develop a
ground-up remastering of the Amadeo convertible system, the most
complex undertaken to date. The result is a true reflection of BOVET’s
mastery, allowing for the bespoke tourbillon timepieces’ inclusion in
the motor car.
Pascal Raffy, owner, BOVET 1822, commented, “I am so proud
of the BOVET 1822 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 story behind the creation of these remarkable works of art,
and a detailed exploration of their mechanisms, together with
information on the precious materials, unique micro-sculptures and the
vast complexity of the watch carrier will be shared via a press
release on 8 June, 2021 at 1pm BST.
AN ENGINEERING MARVEL
To fulfil the clients’ extraordinary ambitions, significant
engineering challenges were overcome in the development of Rolls-Royce
Boat Tail. Indeed, 1813 completely new parts were created specifically
for the cars. Time, patience, dedication and passion were the
project’s hallmarks. To complete the preliminary engineering phase,
prior to the commencement of production, a total of over 20 collective
years were expended.
While designs were being finalised with the clients, the
marque’s body-in-white, with its scalable aluminium spaceframe
architecture, was completely reconfigured to support Boat Tail’s
generous proportions, a process that took eight months in itself. As
ever, the 15-speaker Bespoke Rolls-Royce Audio System was intended
from the motor car’s inception, but the spaceframe architecture was
exploited differently. Rolls-Royce’s existing product portfolio use a
specially designed sill section of the architecture as the resonance
chambers for the sound system’s bass speakers. In Boat Tail, the
entire floor structure is utilised, creating an exceptional audio
experience for the client.
To support the complex requirements of the hosting suite to the
rear of Boat Tail, a unique electronic treatment was required. Five
electronic control units (ECUs) were created for the rear of the car
alone – a process that required a completely redesigned, dedicated
wiring harness, which was the product of nine months of intensive
research and development. Only then was it possible for the aft deck
lids to open to an appropriate 67-degree angle, incorporate a highly
secure locking mechanism and integrate a total climate control system
to the rear hosting suite to preserve any cuisine stowed on board.
Indeed, the inside temperature of the hosting suite was a
specific consideration. Boat Tail was created in anticipation of fair
weather, so measures needed to be taken to ensure that heat absorption
did not adversely affect the contents of the suite, which could
include food, liquids and of course champagne. To that end, two fans
are mounted in the lower section of the hosting suite to dissipate
heat. To confirm this and to ensure that Boat Tail’s hosting suite
will acquit itself in all climates, it has been rigorously and
successfully tested to 80 degrees Celsius and -20 degrees Celsius.
As Boat Tail is a fully homologated, road-legal motor car that
was created to be driven, it was only fully released by the marque
once it had undergone the same rigorous dynamic testing as all other
Rolls-Royces, including high speed analysis to ensure the contents of
the rear hosting suite are sufficiently fastened and therefore silent
under power. Indeed, each client has stipulated that they wish to
drive their Boat Tail immediately upon receipt.
Torsten Müller-Ötvös, concluded, “Boat Tail is the
culmination of collaboration, ambition, endeavour, and
time. It was born from a desire to celebrate success and
create a lasting legacy. In its remarkable realisation, Rolls-Royce
Boat Tail forges a pivotal moment in our marque’s history and in the
contemporary luxury landscape.”
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