To complete Rolls-Royce’s model range, it will need just one or two more Ghost offshoots, according to CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös. But he clarified that it’s unlikely that it will produce any extremely expensive specials that will rival the limited edition Ferrari Enzo’s styling. The reasons it gave are that it may not meet the high standards of the current cars and that its existing bespoke business already provides the flexibility they require. In an Autocar interview, Müller-Ötvös said that Rolls would never “chase volume” but that it expects to post an improvement to the record sales in 2011 of 3538 units with a figure nearer to 4000. Its deliveries last year increased by 31%, boosted by the high Ghost sales, says Autocar. It surpassed the older sales record set by the Silver Shadow II in 1978 of 3347 units. Müller-Ötvös said that the demand for new cars remains strongest in the Chinese market. The deliveries in this country surpass those for a recovering U.S. market. The proposed models that are based on the Ghost would likely be added to the top-performing Ghost-based coupé, which is believed to have a unique name. It will debut at the Geneva motor show next March. The car’s power got a boost to about 600bhp. It is built on a shorter wheelbase and is equipped with a lowered, sports-oriented suspension.
Rolls-Royce planning not one, but two versions of the Ghost
by Andrew Christian, Email, 29 Aug, 2012
