New Rolls-Royce Spectre marks new electric era for luxury brand

By Sam Phillips

18 Oct 2022

This is the new Rolls-Royce Spectre, the British brand’s first electric car which takes the form of a super-luxurious, sleek coupe that will have a starting price of around £275,000.

Rolls-Royce’s newest model will launch next year and will sit between the Cullinan SUV and Ghost saloon in the brand’s current line-up. Significantly, it's also the first step towards the firm's transformation into an EV-only manufacturer by 2030.

While owned by BMW, Rolls-Royce has opted to use its own Architecture of Luxury, a flexible aluminium platform that underpins the Phantom, Cullinan and Ghost models.

The British company worked meticulously to perfect the Spectre, most notably through a number of testing phases in the Arctic Circle and French Riviera, where the car was driven more than 403,000 miles.

Rolls-Royce is yet to confirm official range statistics for its inbound EV, but predicts a figure of around 323 miles on a single charge. The Spectre will have an output of up to 430kW, while achieving the 0-62mph sprint in approximately 4.5 seconds - not bad for a car that weighs 2975kg.

Sign-up to our Newsletter to get e-news and reviews sent to your inbox

First deliveries of the Spectre are expected towards the end of 2023, with the EV priced to sit between the Cullinan and Phantom. The Spectre is therefore likely to garner a price tag of around £275,000 before any options are added. Apparently, the average transaction price for a Rolls is around £500,000.

On the outside…

Despite being the first EV to leave the Goodwood-based factory, the Spectre remains true to the Rolls-Royce design language through a number of exterior cues which have been reinterpreted for the electrified model.

Upfront sits an illuminated front grille, an iconic feature which has come to typify the Rolls-Royce range. Intriguingly, the Spectre front grille is the widest ever to be fitted to a Rolls-Royce. True to form, the Spectre also gets rear-hinged doors.

The Spectre has a lengthy bonnet like its petrol siblings and two LED headlights sit either side of the grille, while a pair of thinner day running lights - also LED - have been added.

Described by its makers as an ‘ultra-luxury electric super coupe’, the Spectre shares similarities with the now discontinued Wraith coupe, with the blacked-out roof and fastback silhouette.

Most notably is the smoothness and sleekness of the electric Rolls-Royce, which has been designed with a focus on aerodynamic efficiency. In fact, Rolls-Royce claims the Spectre has a drag coefficient of 0.25Cd. The firm has also redesigned the Spirit of Ecstasy bonnet emblem in order to further improve airflow over the front of the car.

Rolls-Royce breaks all-electric aircraft speed record

Rolls-Royce has also added what it calls a ‘waft line’. How very Rolls-Royce. The ‘waft line’ is a lower line where the sills are tucked in to give the Spectre a more yacht-like appearance.

At 5453mm long, 2080mm wide and 1559mm tall, the Spectre is longer than the Wraith but 93mm shorter, 84mm narrower and 276mm lower than the Ghost saloon.

On the inside…

In typical Rolls-Royce fashion, the Spectre’s interior has been lavishly appointed, with the British firm offering prospective buyers “near-infinite bespoke possibilities” in terms of personalisation.

The ultramodern Spectre features an array of technological options inspired by the night sky. Starlight doors can be added, where 5876 individual LED lights are incorporated into the door panel.

The night theme is further showcased through the car’s illuminated dashboard which features a cluster of more than 5500 LED’s surrounding the Spectre nameplate. Rolls-Royce says it took 10,000 hours to develop.

The Spectre has also gained Rolls-Royce’s new Spirit infotainment platform. Spirit manages the car’s main functions and can be paired with the firm’s Whisper smartphone app which can allow owners to adjust the car’s setting remotely.

What else should I know about the new Spectre EV?

Being a luxury electric car, the Spectre will be the firm’s heaviest car to date weighing in at 2975kg. To combat this, the British has developed its electric platform – Rolls-Royce 3.0 – to be 30 per cent stiffer than any previous model thanks to the use of extruded aluminium sections.

The battery is also integrated into the structure of the car resulting in greater rigidity, according to Rolls-Royce.

With the battery in the floor of the Spectre, the new EV has a lower seating position and up 700kg of sound deadening.

A key feature is the Spectre’s Planar suspension which uses Rolls-Royce's latest software and hardware development to deliver the brand’s ‘magic carpet ride’ road holding.

New BMW i7 unveiled as luxury electric saloon

Using several hardware components and high-speed capabilities, the Planar system can decouple the car’s anti-roll bars allowing each wheel to drive independently. This prevents any rocking on pockmarked road surfaces.