First Look: Rolls Royce loses its head

ROLLS Royce has revealed much of its next-generation super luxury convertible in the shape of the 100EX concept car at this week’s Geneva motor show.

The 100EX (100 for Rolls-Royce’s century of being and EX for “experimentation”) foretells of a very similar production-based two-door four-seat convertible coming in the near future.

Rolls-Royce denies that the EX100 itself is headed for production in its current concept car guise.

However its lightweight aluminium space-frame construction, which betrays its Phantom origins, suggests something very similar regardless.

Also cribbed from the production sedan are the air-sprung double wishbone front and multi-link rear suspension and rack and pinion steering system.

The 100EX was built alongside the Phantom in Munich in Germany.

Power comes via a naturally aspirated 9.0-litre 64-valve V16 (two BMW V8s perhaps?) piped through a ZF six-speed automatic gearbox.

The composite body, which has ended up being 165mm shorter and 71mm lower than its salubrious sedan donor, is the work of BMW’s California-based Designworks centre.

It is defined by what Rolls Royce calls a “nautical” theme, and features reverse-opening (“coach”) doors for a greater visual connection to the Phantom.

Bleached teak decking is found in the folding roof’s tonneau cover as well as inside the aluminium door cappings.

Polished aluminium also forms part of the waist rail encircling the passenger compartment, the windscreen surround and the triangulated A-pillar application.

The latter, as well as providing rollover protection, also exposes part of the space frame structure. It’s a stylistic feature not expected on any Rolls Royce production model soon.

It is the first time a Rolls-Royce concept car has materialised since BMW bought it in 1998. Between 1919 and 1957 there were a number of show cars bearing the “EX” nomenclature.