Rolls-Royce going all-Black at Goodwood

BLACK, as that well-worn maxim says, goes with anything, and Rolls-Royce will be taking that expression to heart with its display at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed – on the same English country estate where its ultra-luxury cars are made.

The quintessentially British marque will have its full Black Badge line-up on public display at Goodwood this weekend, the first time all four of its exclusive Black Badge variants will be on show, side-by-side.

However despite the name, Rolls-Royce’s display will be far from monochromatic. The company describes its Black Badge treatment as being targeted at newer clientele, ones with extroverted tastes who prefer a more dramatic aesthetic.

Besides a specific “Low Mode” that drops the suspension, increases exhaust decibels and sharpens gearshifts, Black Badge models score blacked-out chrome (including the Spirit of Ecstasy figurehead), lashings of carbon-fibre and slightly tauter performance from suspension and brakes, but exterior colour options can be as wild as the customer wants. 

The two Black Badge Ghosts that will be on display are a case in point. One in vibrant Galileo Blue and the other in a scorching Lime Green, rejecting the sober stereotype that has traditionally applied to Rolls-Royce.

Sharing space with the Ghosts will be the Black Badge Cullinan. The Cullinan, Rolls-Royce’s first and so far only SUV, is the biggest mover for the company. Accounting for nearly half of Rolls-Royce’s sales in Australia, the opulent off-roader is commercially critical. In Black Badge trim, it makes an imposing statement as well.

At Goodwood, a dark olive green example will flaunt orange pinstriping and brake calipers, along with unique 22-inch Black Badge wheels and a Spirit of Ecstasy that’s milled from carbon-fibre. 

The Dawn and Wraith two-door twins – the former roofless, the latter a hardtop coupe – are the remaining models to be offered in Black Badge form, and both will be presented at Goodwood in vibrant two-tone colour schemes to emphasise their presence.

Right now the only model that cannot be had in Black Badge form is the flagship Phantom, while the all-electric Spectre that is expected to enter production late next year has yet to have its full range offering detailed.

However, with four models already in the Black Badge family – including the brand's more accessible and market-relevant vehicles – the variants account for a respectable wedge of Rolls-Royce’s sales pie.

Currently, 27 per cent of Rolls-Royce orders are for Black Badge variants – solid uptake considering Black Badge was only launched as a permanent offering six years ago, and the volume-selling (by Rolls-Royce standards) Cullinan Black Badge only joined the range less than three years ago.