Jeremy Clarkson

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By Admin
Published: August 19, 2008
Rolls-Royce doesn’t need to advertise. Not when you have Alan Sugar whizzing hither and thither in his Phantom every week on The Apprentice. And on the other side, Simon Cowell doing much the same thing on The X Factor. Maybe it’s because there is simply no alternative. The Phantom has the pluto-matic market all to itself; a first cousin only to silence, and manners, and breeding. It is an exquisite car and I would have one tomorrow if it weren’t so bloody expensive. That and the fact my wife has said she would divorce me. And then kill me with a knife.
However, when I came home to find it sitting in my drive, all huge and brilliant, I’m afraid I started to dribble. And then my wife came home. “Jesus H Christ,” she said. “What is that monstrosity doing here?” An argument ensued. She said it was vulgar. I said she was from the Isle of Man so she’d know. Some doors slammed. And I went for a drive. Like its hard top brother, this also has no rivals. Well, unless you count the Bentley Azure, which is of course excellent. If you like to waft around in something that can trace its roots back to 1959. Which means you’d be wafting around in something that’s older than me. The Rolls doesn’t look or feel old fashioned at all. Everything, from the unpainted bonnet to the backwards-opening suicide doors to the rattan carpets and, yes, even the teak Sunseeker-style decking on the back, makes it look as fresh and as futuristic as tomorrow morning’s papers. Add to this steering, suspension and a gearbox, all of which feel decidedly American and you very quickly learn to back off and waft. The next day we took it to a party in Marlow, me in the driver’s seat and my wife curled up in the passenger footwell in case she was seen. But it didn’t matter, because we weren’t speaking anyway.
This is mainly because we had comprehensively failed to find a way of opening the boot, so she’d put her bags on the back seat and her favourite scarf had blown away. And also, the satellite navigation system – one of the few bits on the car obviously to have been lifted from a BMW – steadfastly refused to acknowledge Marlow existed.
When we arrived at our party in Marlow everyone went berserk. I’ve never seen a car cause such a stir, and suddenly the point of the Roller became crystal clear. It is not built for speed or grip. It is not built to excite with its handling or the roar from its exhaust. It is not built to be safe, or frugal, or cheap. It is not built to do any of the things we have come to expect of cars in recent years. It is not built to go places. It is built to arrive. This car, then, is not a car at all. It is a fanfare. A blast of trumpeteering to silence the crowds when someone special is about to enter the room. The reason why there’s no advertising for this car is simple. It’s built to advertise you. Sure, I will admit that in England it is a bit ostentatious, a sunflower in a field of weeds. Arriving anywhere here in such a thing is the same as arriving with a Rolex at an NUM reunion. But arriving in a Drophead at the Oscars or at the casino in Monte Carlo would be more impressive, I suspect, than arriving in Keira Knightley.
And because of this I shall ignore the pleas of my wife. And give it five stars.
Source: Times Online
As the UK’s leading automotive design house, Project Kahn recognises the importance of dynamic cutting edge designs whilst staying true to the original form. Our elegant and sculpted Rolls Royce DHC evolved through skilled artistic innovation, state-of-the art manufacturing and materials technology. Rolls Royce owners will testify to the exuberance of passion and sumptuous beauty of A Kahn Design.
Owning the Rolls Royce DHC pertains to a level of bespoke authenticity that will bring back memories of the time honoured Rolls Royce tradition while providing up to date European styling keeping with the Rolls Royce ethos.
The foremost features of the Rolls Royce Phantom DHC are exquisite to say the least. The wheel has been designed to take the original centre cap and has a meticulous diamond polish in each spoke, and the interior is truly sensational. Our new 9.5 X 22” Kahn Dark Mist Rolls Royce wheel is subtle, and provides OE fitment with superior style. This effortlessly compliments the Rolls Royce Phantom DHC.

Rolls-Royce doesn’t need to advertise. Not when you have Alan Sugar whizzing hither and thither in his Phantom every week on The Apprentice. And on the other side, Simon Cowell doing much the same thing on The X Factor. Maybe it’s because there is simply no alternative. The Phantom has the pluto-matic market all to itself; a first cousin only to silence, and manners, and breeding. It is an exquisite car and I would have one tomorrow if it weren’t so bloody expensive. That and the fact my wife has said she would divorce me. And then kill me with a knife.

However, when I came home to find it sitting in my drive, all huge and brilliant, I’m afraid I started to dribble. And then my wife came home. “Jesus H Christ,” she said. “What is that monstrosity doing here?” An argument ensued. She said it was vulgar. I said she was from the Isle of Man so she’d know. Some doors slammed. And I went for a drive. Like its hard top brother, this also has no rivals. Well, unless you count the Bentley Azure, which is of course excellent. If you like to waft around in something that can trace its roots back to 1959. Which means you’d be wafting around in something that’s older than me. The Rolls doesn’t look or feel old fashioned at all. Everything, from the unpainted bonnet to the backwards-opening suicide doors to the rattan carpets and, yes, even the teak Sunseeker-style decking on the back, makes it look as fresh and as futuristic as tomorrow morning’s papers. Add to this steering, suspension and a gearbox, all of which feel decidedly American and you very quickly learn to back off and waft. The next day we took it to a party in Marlow, me in the driver’s seat and my wife curled up in the passenger footwell in case she was seen. But it didn’t matter, because we weren’t speaking anyway.

This is mainly because we had comprehensively failed to find a way of opening the boot, so she’d put her bags on the back seat and her favourite scarf had blown away. And also, the satellite navigation system – one of the few bits on the car obviously to have been lifted from a BMW – steadfastly refused to acknowledge Marlow existed.

When we arrived at our party in Marlow everyone went berserk. I’ve never seen a car cause such a stir, and suddenly the point of the Roller became crystal clear. It is not built for speed or grip. It is not built to excite with its handling or the roar from its exhaust. It is not built to be safe, or frugal, or cheap. It is not built to do any of the things we have come to expect of cars in recent years. It is not built to go places. It is built to arrive. This car, then, is not a car at all. It is a fanfare. A blast of trumpeteering to silence the crowds when someone special is about to enter the room. The reason why there’s no advertising for this car is simple. It’s built to advertise you. Sure, I will admit that in England it is a bit ostentatious, a sunflower in a field of weeds. Arriving anywhere here in such a thing is the same as arriving with a Rolex at an NUM reunion. But arriving in a Drophead at the Oscars or at the casino in Monte Carlo would be more impressive, I suspect, than arriving in Keira Knightley.

And because of this I shall ignore the pleas of my wife. And give it five stars.

Source: Times Online

As the UK’s leading automotive design house, Project Kahn recognises the importance of dynamic cutting edge designs whilst staying true to the original form. Our elegant and sculpted Rolls Royce DHC evolved through skilled artistic innovation, state-of-the art manufacturing and materials technology. Rolls Royce owners will testify to the exuberance of passion and sumptuous beauty of A Kahn Design.

Owning the Rolls Royce DHC pertains to a level of bespoke authenticity that will bring back memories of the time honoured Rolls Royce tradition while providing up to date European styling keeping with the Rolls Royce ethos.

The foremost features of the Rolls Royce Phantom DHC are exquisite to say the least. The wheel has been designed to take the original centre cap and has a meticulous diamond polish in each spoke, and the interior is truly sensational. Our new 9.5 X 22” Kahn Dark Mist Rolls Royce wheel is subtle, and provides OE fitment with superior style. This effortlessly compliments the Rolls Royce Phantom DHC.

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