Given the direction all car makers are going - i.e., towards full electrification - it should be of no surprise that Rolls-Royce now has its first ever electric car on the market. That perhaps underplays the monumental engineering task it took to create the Spectre, but as a casual observer, it's an inevitable development and, while we love the smooth V12 petrol engines that have defined the Rolls-Royce brand, few could argue with the perfect suitability of silent, smooth, torque-rich electric power for its cars. The big question is, does the new Spectre live up to the lofty expectations of Rolls-Royce's loyal customers, regardless of what propels it?
In the metal
The Spectre's design mixes the expected presence of a Rolls-Royce with a more obvious focus on aerodynamics than even before. While you're being dazzled by the widest Rolls-Royce 'Pantheon' grille ever made (though its LED backlighting is too subtle to actually dazzle anyone), you may not notice that the vertical stainless-steel vanes are flush and the long bonnet curves down to meet the top.
Indeed, once someone has pointed out the swoop of the bodywork aft of the distinctive split headlights, it's impossible not to notice how less upright it is than other models' in the Rolls-Royce line-up. That theme continues back to the dramatically raked windscreen and the sweep of the coupe roofline.
Only the eagle-eyed will spot that the famous 'Spirit of Ecstasy' figurine has also been redesigned for a lower stance and less drag. Rolls-Royce tells us that it alone underwent 830 hours of design modelling and wind-tunnel testing.
From the A-pillars back to the boot lid is the largest single body panel ever made for a Rolls-Royce and it adds to the simplicity of the car's profile. Distinctive rear lights appear to protrude from this, accentuating the rear haunches of the Spectre and the design line that runs from the top of the back lights through the door handles into the front wings.
When you come around to the side of the Spectre you begin to understand that, though it's a two-door coupe, this is a very large car. Its near-five-and-a-half-metre length is disguised somewhat by the use of 23-inch alloy wheels and everything else is in proportion, too. The doors, for example, are each nearly 1.5 metres long, the longest ever fitted to a Rolls-Royce. They're made of aluminium to reduce weight and feature the latest development of the company's 'Effortless Doors' function to make ingress and egress as easy and as elegant as possible. Adding to the occasion, they're hinged at the back and yes, there are posh Rolls-Royce-branded umbrellas within easy access once the doors are open.
If the driver jumps in and presses the brake pedal, their door silently closes behind them automatically.
There's room for two adults in the back to stretch out comfortably (and even ISOFIX child seat mountings) while the 380-litre boot will be more than adequate for the average Spectre's owner's needs we have no doubt. Of more importance to its buyers, we suspect, will be that it feels very much in keeping with any other car from Rolls-Royce. And it takes mere seconds to realise that it does.
Leaving aside the fact that every example of the Spectre will be personalised to its owner's preferences, the cabin is a truly special place to sit. This car gets a new seat design inspired by British tailoring with customisable 'lapel' sections and subtle bolstering on the sides to aid support. Naturally, they adjust electrically, as does the simple three-spoke steering wheel with a large circular central boss.
Ahead of that are bespoke digital instruments - customisable for colour of course - and unique column stalks, including the slender drive selector. The glorious solid metal air vents are partially operated by push-pull organ-stop controls and there is quirky physical switchgear for the heating and air conditioning. Nonetheless, all this artisanship is paired with a more high-tech digital offering than in any other Rolls-Royce, so there's a fully-functioned infotainment system run by what the company calls its Spirit digital architecture. There's even a smartphone app for owners, called Whispers.
Complementing the exceptional build quality and tactile materials used, the cabin is made all the more special by the firm's matchless LED starlight feature. On the passenger side of the dashboard, the Spectre name is surrounded by 5,500 'stars' and the same concept is applied to the doors, which feature another 4,796 dots of light in a unique pattern. It's nothing short of a work of art.
Driving it
Amusingly, as we pull out of the event venue onto the main road, our co-driver points out the sound that the indicator makes. He flicks the metal of an air vent to illustrate where inspiration for the sound came, and another person suggested that it was influenced by the clink of ice in a crystal tumbler. This is the obsessive level of detail that Rolls-Royce goes to in creating its cars.
The focus on sounds other than the engine's was more important than ever for the Spectre, of course, and the aerodynamic work on reducing drag was as much in the name of refinement to allow the big coupe to slip through the air as silently as possible as it was to increase the range on a battery charge.
Officially, the Spectre can go 530 kilometres on a charge of its big 102kWh battery pack. Rolls-Royce is confident that will be sufficient for its buyers, as it tells us that they have an average of seven cars at their disposal and they only cover about 5,000km a year in their current Rolls-Royce. Then again, our time at the wheel of the Spectre would suggest that it might up that average, as it's such a joy to drive.
There's no one overriding aspect of the driving experience that overshadows the others, but it's the way all the sub-systems work in concert to allow the Spectre to be both a cossetting luxury car and a really fast and capable coupe that stands out.
The car's performance is more than adequate thanks to the use of two electric motors adding up to maximums of 584hp and 900Nm of torque. The rear motor is more powerful to give the Spectre a distinct rear-led attitude, and it accelerates forward with alacrity whenever you need it to. The 0-100km/h time of 4.5 seconds is impressive given the three-tonne weight of the car, but it doesn't convey the effortless nature of the performance. In short, when you want more go, you've got it, though it is delivered in a suitably smooth and easy to control fashion.
The same can be said for the Spectre's chassis. It features a development of the Rolls-Royce Ghost's 'Planar System' that has air springs at its core. That's paired with two-stage adaptive damping and the ability to decouple the anti-roll bars completely in a straight line in the name of comfort. Using a camera system, it reads the road ahead and sets up the suspension accordingly. The Spectre has super-fast processing power, though, so it can alter the rear suspension settings if it detects that the front wheels encountered something unexpected.
The final piece of the jigsaw is rear-wheel steering, turning the back wheels the opposite way to the front wheels at lower speeds to enhance manoeuvrability when parking and agility in the corners. At higher speeds, the rear wheels rotate in phase with the front wheels to aid stability.
All this technical wizardly is bolted to a stiff body structure, allowing the driver to blithely get on with the job of just enjoying themselves. The Spectre is comfortable and quiet in the main, gliding along imperiously and allowing for sports-car-like performance when required. And yet it responds positively to being rushed along, too, belying its size and weight.
What you get for your money
It'd likely cost in the region of €600,000 to buy a Spectre, import it into Ireland and register it for use here. The actual figure won't be of much relevance to actual Rolls-Royce buyers, of course, as most will happily spend a considerable amount more on personalising the car using the firm's Bespoke service. These are more than merely cars to their buyers, and it's easy to understand why that might be.
Summary
It's always a privilege for mere mortals such as us to get to experience cars as special as a Rolls-Royce, but even against that background, the Spectre is an extraordinary creation, one that reinvents the storied brand for the future. The fact that the electric powertrain is only a part of that transformation is telling, and we can't wait to see what the company does next.