The Phantom Coupé has been retired and the new Dawn, which just arrived at dealerships in May, is already stealing the scene.
Hand-built in Goodwood, England at the Rolls-Royce factory, a single Dawn takes a team of over 60 craftsmen working more than five days to assemble (including steps like six coats of exterior paint and over five hours of hand-polishing). The brand as a whole only produces 4,000 automobiles in one calendar year, and each one is painstakingly created.
The average net worth of a Rolls-Royce owner is $20-40 million, and he has seven cars in his garage already, but the Dawn is an occasion car that appeals to a younger clientele (currently the average age of an owner is 45, down from 65 in 2008). Owners of other Rolls-Royce vehicles, like the three-year old, two-door sporty Wraith, were asking for a grand touring car instead of a super sports car, and the brand answered that call. The Dawn is more of an everyday car—albeit with plenty of trunk space for a weekend jaunt—and certainly the most social automobile the brand has ever built.
Photo: Capitol Sunset
The entire production for 2016 is already sold out, but you can order one now for delivery in January 2017. Initial orders are almost exclusively current Rolls-Royce owners. There are plenty of reasons to fall in love with the Dawn, but here are our four favorite.
1. It’s the quietest drophead in the market. Even though it’s a soft-top convertible, the interior is designed to be silent when the top is up (thanks to its French Seam technique). Additionally, the silent ballet of putting the top down is serene, quiet and done in just over 20 seconds.
2. It is one of the largest four-seat convertibles out there, with ample space for four full-size adults.
3. It is the ultimate show-off vehicle. Whether you’re pulling into the garage or being chauffeured out to dinner, a Rolls-Royce arrival always gets a double take. But, at the same time, it also boasts the option of a more subtle arrival by its ability to automatically retract the “Spirit of Ecstasy” bonnet ornament to make for a more inconspicuous entrance.
4. This is the most colorful Rolls-Royce on the market. The brand offers buyers to choice of 84 standard exterior bespoke colors and 44,000 additional colors in the Rolls-Royce palette—or work with the Bespoke team to create a personalized color palette to match your style.
The Dawn starts at $335,000; rolls-roycemotorcars.com
