Stretch your legs with the Rolls-Royce Ghost Extended | GRR
When thinking of cars in need of a bit more rear-seat legroom, the Rolls-Royce Ghost isn’t the first to come to mind. Such is demand and Rolls tradition, though, that the long-wheelbase Ghost Extended now follows hot on the heels of the rejuvenated ‘standard’ model.
The long and the short of the Ghost Extended is that it offers 170mm more space than the Ghost, for a near-record amount of rear legroom. We say near-record, as the crown remains with the Extended variant of Rolls-Royce’s Phantom flagship. The wheelbase of the Ghost is 3,295mm, the Ghost Extended 3,465mm, the Phantom 3,552mm and the Phantom Extended Wheelbase a whopping 3,772mm.)
Rolls-Royce works very closely with its customers to work out exactly what they want. Research into what customers wanted for the Ghost Extended revealed that more interior space and luxury shouldn’t impede on style or driving dynamics. The new Ghost’s minimalist design is retained by only extending the car within the space of the rear door.
Young long-wheelbase buyers (yes they exist) also want their slice of ‘post-opulence’ to be as suitable for their work time as it is their down time. To that end, Wi-Fi and infotainment systems also join a reclining ‘Serenity Seat’ and Champagne fridge. To develop the latter, Rolls consulted with a Master Sommelier, to determine that the optimum serving temperatures of non-vintage Champagne is around six degrees centigrade. Vintage meanwhile is a toasty 11 degrees. So, the fridge features two cooling modes, tailored to vintage and non-vintage champagne. Strangely, there’s no mention of a Nürburgring lap time.
Customers in big smoggy cities will be thankful for the MEPS (Micro-Environment Purification System) too. It utilises highly sensitive impurity detection sensors to monitor ambient air quality. Air is automatically recirculated through a nanofleece filter as and when required, for a fully refreshed cabin in under two minutes. Shielding you from the noise of the outside world is 100kg of sound-deadening materials throughout the chassis, body and tyres.
Good driving dynamics are retained, in spite of the extra length, thanks to the flexibility of the Rolls-Royce’s proprietary all-alloy spaceframe. Ghost Extended also features all-wheel steering – urban chauffeurs rejoice – and all-wheel-drive for the first time. This works with the new Planar Suspension System for that magic carpet ride and dignified composure at speed.
Talk of power is obviously crude. Nonetheless, the 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12’s 571PS (420kW) and 850Nm (629lb ft) should be sufficiently potent to keep the 2,599kg Ghost Extended brisk. The 0-62mph time remains at 4.6 seconds, as does the top speed of 155mph.
As for when you can have one, well, we expect Extended Ghosts are rolling off the Goodwood line right now, given deliveries are scheduled to begin this Autumn. Price? Well, to deploy a well-worn cliché, if you have to ask…