Geneva show: Rolls-Royce Phantom Serenity floats in

ROLLS-ROYCE has lifted the covers off its one-off Phantom Serenity, a specially made model designed to showcase the iconic British car-maker's burgeoning Bespoke Design capabilities.

Revealed at this month's Geneva motor show, the redesigned interior of the bespoke extended-wheelbase Phantom features extensive use of silk, as well as the most expensive one-off exterior paint work ever used by Rolls – both heavily influenced by Asian cultures.

The luxury car-maker says the design work pays extra attention to the details to increase levels of “elegant chic” and is a nod to an era when finer materials were used in automobiles as a statement of prestige.

The interior is swathed in silk, sourced from Suzhou, China – a town renowned for its embroidery quality – which is hand-dyed, hand-woven and then hand-painted with a meticulous blossom design.

The two-tone exterior is finished in a Mother of Pearl and silver paint, applied in three stages and then “hand-polished for 12 hours,” before an asymmetrical three-colour blossom theme is applied to distinguish the driver and rear passenger sides of the car.

All the work is done in-house by the Bespoke Design team at Rolls-Royce, who specialise in customising new cars for clients, with as many as 85 per cent of vehicles sold going through the team's hands before being delivered to customers.

The two designers of the Serenity, Cherica Haye and Michelle Lusby – both young design graduates – explained that the theme of the new Rolls-Royce was inspired by Oriental works of art.

“The rear compartment of a Phantom is the most tranquil, beautiful place to be, a place where time and the outside world simply slip past,” Haye said.

“This tranquility made us think of the Oriental tradition where Emperors would take to their private gardens to reflect in solitude under the blossom trees. The blossom motif is one that is cherished in Far Eastern culture and has been beautifully applied to Royal robe design over the centuries.

“We felt it was the perfect representation of tranquility and serenity for a beautiful modern interior from Rolls-Royce.” Rolls-Royce Motor Cars CEO Torsten Muller-Otvos said that the Serenity will raise the bar to new levels of automotive comfort and opulence.

“Celebrating the historical role played by silk as a symbol of ultimate elegance, the Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Bespoke Design team has created a magnificent one-off Phantom which will set a new benchmark for luxury individualism in the motor industry,” he said.

Mechanically, the Serenity is identical to its Phantom sibling, powered by a 6.75-litre V12 engine paired to an eight-speed automatic gearbox.

Rolls-Royce has not yet confirmed further production of the special Phantom beyond the Geneva showcar, so it is unclear whether it will end up in showrooms in the future.

The price for an extended-wheelbase Phantom in Australia is $990,000, driveaway.